The Ceremony of Blood and Fire
1252 Words
I had never worn a dress like this before.
It was midnight black, sleeveless, with a neckline edged in silver embroidery that shimmered under the torchlight. The fabric hugged my waist, flowing around my legs like smoke.
It wasn’t mine.
It had been delivered to my room with a handwritten note:
You deserve to be seen. — K
I didn’t know how he got my size.
I didn’t want to ask.
But when I stood in front of the mirror, something strange happened.
For the first time… I didn’t look like a human girl pretending to be strong.
I looked like a queen made of secrets.
And I wasn’t afraid.
The hall where the Blood Moon Ceremonywas held didn’t feel like part of the academy.
It was older. Wilder.
The walls were carved from dark stone, lit by floating flames that pulsed red with each heartbeat. Ancient symbols lined the floor. Above us, the moon shone through a massive glass dome — huge, full, glowing blood-red.
The moment I stepped in with Kade by my side, everything stopped.
Hundreds of eyes turned.
The pack leaders. Their heirs. Teachers. Warriors. Elders.
And students.
They were all here.
And all of them stared at me like I was a ghost.
Or a mistake.
“That’s the human?” “Why is she here?” “She’s with the Alpha—look at how he’s standing with her.” “Unclaimed. No pack. No bloodline. What is she doing at a sacred rite?”
But Kade didn’t flinch.
He didn’t let me flinch either.
He offered his arm.
And I took it.
His hand was warm. Steady.
Mine was ice.
But I didn’t let go.
At the head of the hall stood the High Alpha Council — five ancient wolves, each representing a territory.
They sat on stone thrones, draped in furs, eyes gleaming like coins in the dark.
The middle one stood as we approached.
Alpha Marek.
Tall. Gray hair. Scarred face. Eyes like a snake.
His gaze landed on me.
“A human,” he said, loud enough for all to hear. “Brought into sacred territory. By an Alpha heir.”
Kade didn’t blink. “She is under my protection.”
Marek sneered. “Is she your mate?”
Silence.
I turned to look at Kade.
His jaw was tight.
“No,” he said slowly. “Not yet.”
Gasps rippled.
Marek stepped down from the dais, approaching us like a predator.
“She has no bloodline,” he said. “No legacy. She’s not one of us.”
“Neither was the first Luna,” Kade replied calmly. “She was born outside the clans.”
“That was myth.”
“This is fact.”
Marek’s eyes narrowed. “Then let’s see how long she lasts.”
We were led to a raised platform, where the Alpha heirs stood with their chosen partners.
Kade took the center.
And I stood beside him, painfully aware that I was the only one without glowing eyes or sharp canines.
A girl to the left—tall, red-haired, and beautiful—leaned toward me.
“You should leave before it’s too late,” she whispered. “They’ll eat you alive.”
“Let them try,” I murmured.
She smiled, sharp and cruel. “Then I’ll enjoy watching you bleed.”
The ceremony began with a chant in the Old Tongue.
Deep. Primal. It echoed off the stone like thunder.
Then came the vows.
Each Alpha heir turned to their chosen and spoke ancient words of loyalty, strength, and blood.
It was more than tradition.
It was binding.
When it was Kade’s turn, he didn’t speak the traditional vow.
He looked straight at me, eyes glowing silver, and said:
“I vow to stand beside her in shadow and in flame. I vow to guard her life with mine. And should anyone seek to break her— they will bleed before her feet.”
A hush fell.
Even the High Alphas didn’t interrupt.
And when he reached for my hand, I didn’t hesitate.
I took it.
Heat surged through my skin.
And for a terrifying second, the symbols on the floor beneath us glowed white.
The council stirred.
Marek’s voice cut through the quiet. “Enough.”
The moment the ceremony ended, the floor opened for mingling and drinking. Music started — low, rhythmic drums that pulsed through bone and blood.
But I didn’t make it five steps before trouble came.
A tall figure blocked my path.
Alpha Ronan Blackstone.
Dark-skinned, built like a mountain, and with eyes that never blinked.
He looked me up and down like I was prey.
“So you’re the human causing all the noise.”
I didn’t answer.
He stepped closer. “You shouldn’t be here.”
“Get out of my way,” I said flatly.
He laughed. “You have no rank. No mark. Do you even know what happens to creatures without bonds on Blood Moon nights?”
Kade was instantly there.
Faster than thought.
His body slid between us, his hand on Ronan’s chest.
“Touch her,” Kade growled, “and I’ll rip your lungs out before you blink.”
Ronan bared his teeth. “She’s a liability. You’re risking everything.”
“I don’t care.”
The tension was electric.
Finally, Ronan stepped back.
But his last words were a warning:
“She won’t survive the awakening. And you know it.”
Later, I slipped outside for air.
The woods behind the hall were lit by the red moon, the trees casting eerie shadows.
I leaned against a tree and exhaled.
Too much.
Too fast.
Too dangerous.
I didn’t belong here.
Not really.
Kade had stood up for me—but I wasn’t his responsibility.
And I didn’t want to be.
But when I reached for the locket beneath my dress, I froze.
It was burning.
Not metaphorically.
Literally hot against my skin.
I pulled it out.
The crescent moon was glowing.
And suddenly, everything inside me shattered.
Pain.
Not like a wound.
Like fire ripping through veins. Bones stretching. Eyes burning.
I collapsed to my knees, gasping.
The forest spun.
Voices swirled in my head—voices that weren’t mine.
“It’s waking.” “She’s the last.” “Protect the flame. Protect the bloodline.”
The locket burst open.
A beam of white light surged from it, rising into the sky.
And something inside me unlocked.
A roar tore from my throat—not human. Not wolf.
Something else.
Something ancient.
And then—
Darkness.
When I woke, I was back in my bed.
Covered in sweat. Breathing like I’d run miles.
And someone was there.
Sitting at the edge of the bed.
Kade.
Watching me.
Silent.
I sat up slowly. “What… what happened?”
His voice was hoarse.
“You shifted.”
I blinked. “I what?”
“Not into a wolf. Not into anything we’ve ever seen.”
He held out the locket.
It was cracked.
Burned at the edges.
“You released something,” he said. “And every Alpha felt it.”
My blood went cold.
“What does that mean?”
He looked at me like he was seeing me for the first time.
“It means you’re not just a lost girl.”
“Then what am I?”
His next words hit like thunder.
“You’re the heir of the First Flame.”
- Writer
