REJECTED BY MY ALPHA,CLAIMED BY THE ALPHA KING

Chapter 1 : The Moon Goddess was supposed to bless my mating ceremony tonight. Instead, she watched my heart shatter. I stood beneath the silver branches of the ancient moon tree, my hands trembling inside the sleeves of my white Luna gown. Hundreds of wolves surrounded the ceremonial grounds. Every face from Moonridge Pack was there. My family. My friends. The elders. And, standing before the altar, the man I had loved for three years. Alpha Theron Ravaryn. My future. My Alpha. My mate. At least, that was what I had believed. The moonlight spilled over Theron's black ceremonial coat, making the silver crest of Moonridge shine against his chest. He looked magnificent. Powerful. Untouchable. And when his eyes met mine, my heart skipped. I smiled. He didn't. A strange uneasiness settled in my stomach. "Lyra Vale." The Elder's voice echoed across the clearing. "Step forward." I obeyed. My legs felt strangely weak beneath me. I had dreamed about this moment since the day my wolf first whispered Theron's name. Tonight, I would officially become his Luna. Tonight, everyone who had ever called me a useless Omega would finally see that I belonged beside the strongest Alpha in Moonridge. I reached the altar. Theron stared at me. There was something cold in his expression. Something I had never seen before. "Theron?" His jaw tightened. The Elder frowned. "Alpha, place your hand over your mate's." Theron didn't move. Whispers spread through the crowd. I felt my smile disappear. "Theron," I whispered. His eyes remained fixed on mine. Then he took one step backward. My heart began pounding. "I can't do this." The words were so quiet that for a moment, I thought I had imagined them. "What?" He inhaled slowly. Then his voice rose across the entire ceremonial ground. "I, Theron Ravaryn, Alpha of Moonridge Pack, reject Lyra Vale as my mate." Silence. Absolute silence. I couldn't breathe. Someone gasped. My knees nearly buckled. "No." The word escaped my lips before I could stop it. Theron's expression hardened. "Lyra—" "No." I shook my head. "This isn't funny." His eyes flickered. "I'm not joking." The world tilted. My wolf slammed against the inside of my mind. Lyra! Vespera. Her voice was usually nothing more than a distant whisper. But now she screamed. Something is wrong. Pain exploded through my chest. I grabbed my dress. "Why?" Theron looked away. That hurt more than the rejection itself. "Because you're not suitable to be my Luna." A murmur moved through the crowd. Not suitable. Those words struck deeper than any blade. I swallowed. "You told me you loved me." "I did." "You told me we would rule Moonridge together." "I was wrong." My eyes burned. "Is this because I can't shift?" His silence answered me. Of course. For years, everyone had called me the weakest Omega in the pack. My wolf had never fully manifested. I couldn't match the strength of other wolves. I had no impressive abilities. But Theron had always told me it didn't matter. Apparently, it did. A soft laugh came from somewhere behind him. I looked up. And saw her. Isolde. She stood among the elders wearing a silver gown. Beautiful. Confident. Perfect. And when Theron looked at her, his entire expression changed. Tenderness replaced the coldness. My stomach dropped. "No..." Isolde walked toward him. The crowd parted for her. She stopped beside Theron. Then he took her hand. The sight destroyed whatever was left of me. "She will be my Luna," he announced. A collective gasp swept through the pack. I stared at their joined hands. My hands went numb. "Theron..." He wouldn't look at me. "Please." I hated the desperation in my voice. I hated that I was begging the man who had just destroyed me. "We can fix this." His eyes finally met mine. "I'm sorry, Lyra." Then he said the words that would haunt me for the rest of my life. "You were never enough." Something inside me broke. My wolf went completely silent. I couldn't hear Vespera. Couldn't feel her. Couldn't even feel the bond I'd spent years believing was unbreakable. The Elder lowered his head. "The rejection has been witnessed." A bell rang somewhere beyond the trees. Once. Twice. Three times. The ceremony was over. My ceremony. My funeral. I stood alone beneath the moon while the pack gathered around their new Luna. Someone whispered. "Poor Lyra." Another voice answered. "She should have known Theron needed a stronger mate." Then came the cruelest whisper of all. "At least Isolde can actually shift." Laughter followed. My vision blurred. I turned away. I needed to leave. I took one step. Pain ripped through my chest. I fell to my knees. A scream tore from my throat. Everyone went silent. "Lyra!" For one terrible moment, I thought the rejection was killing me. Then something happened. The moonlight above me changed. Silver light poured through the branches of the ancient tree. It struck my body. My skin burned. A strange symbol appeared against my collarbone. A crescent moon surrounded by three black lines. I stared at it in horror. No one spoke. Even Theron looked shaken. "What is that?" someone whispered. Then, for the first time in my entire life, I heard my wolf clearly. Not as a whisper. Not as a distant voice. Clearly. Powerfully. Lyra. I froze. Do not let them see you break. My breath caught. "Vespera?" Her answer came like a growl from somewhere deep inside my soul. Run. I looked toward the forest. The moon was impossibly bright. And somewhere beyond the trees... a wolf howled. Not an ordinary wolf. The sound carried an authority that made every wolf in the clearing instinctively lower their heads. Theron's face went pale. The elders exchanged frightened glances. Even Isolde stopped smiling. Someone whispered the name that made the entire pack go still. "The Alpha King." My heart stopped. The howl came again. Closer this time. And though I didn't know why... Vespera began to tremble inside me. Not with fear. With recognition. He found us. I stared into the darkness between the trees. Two golden eyes appeared in the distance. Watching me. Waiting. And suddenly, I understood something terrifying. Theron's rejection hadn't ended my story. It had just begun. End of chapter 1.