The moon hung high, bloated and brilliant, casting silver light over the open field behind the Moonwatch Pack's main hall. Torches lined the circle of stone pillars, their flames dancing in sync with the murmurs of the gathered wolves. The Ceremony of Ascension was sacred. Every year, young wolves who came of age stood under the moon's gaze to embrace their first shift, marking the true beginning of their life within the pack.
Tonight, Sheila McTwain stood among them.
Her heart thundered in her chest, loud enough that she feared everyone could hear it. She stood at the edge of the ceremony ring, her bare feet chilled by the damp grass, her fingers clenched into fists at her sides. She tried to ignore the stares—the pitying looks, the whispers.
"That's her? The one who still hasn't shifted?"
"Twenty-one years and nothing. What a disgrace."
"And a Gamma's daughter, too. Can you imagine?"
Sheila swallowed the lump rising in her throat. Her twin sister, Sabrina, stood next to her—radiant, confident, practically glowing. Her long silver-blonde hair shimmered under the moonlight, her chin lifted with pride. She didn't spare Sheila a glance. Not anymore.
"Try not to embarrass yourself," Sabrina whispered sweetly, eyes still fixed forward. "Though, I suppose that's impossible."
Before Sheila could respond, the sharp sound of a staff striking stone echoed through the field.
"Let the Ceremony of Ascension begin!" announced Elder Ronin. His deep voice commanded silence.
Alpha Kael stepped forward from his throne-like perch atop the ceremonial stones. Dressed in black and silver, his gaze was sharp and unyielding. He was young, barely twenty-five, but already a formidable leader. Strong. Merciless. And until recently—Sheila's fated mate.
He looked right past her as if she didn't exist.
One by one, the young wolves were called. Cheers followed each successful shift, the air filling with the scent of fresh fur and exhilaration. Then—
"Sabrina McTwain."
The crowd grew louder. Excitement buzzed.
Sabrina stepped forward gracefully. She turned, offering a dazzling smile to Kael, who nodded in approval.
Sheila watched as her sister closed her eyes, tilted her head back, and let the moonlight embrace her. Her body shimmered with silvery energy before she shifted with effortless beauty into a sleek, pale-furred wolf.
Applause erupted.
Sheila's stomach twisted.
"Sabrina, daughter of Gamma Lorrin and Gamma Saela," Elder Ronin declared, "is now ascended into full wolfhood. Let her rise among us with pride."
Sabrina pranced once around the circle before retreating to the edge, shifting back with ease. Her body glowed with post-shift energy. She didn't bother covering up.
Then came the silence.
Elder Ronin cleared his throat. "Sheila McTwain."
Everything froze.
Sheila felt the weight of every gaze. Her knees trembled as she stepped forward. The whispers started again, hushed but cruel.
"She's still trying?"
"Pathetic."
"Maybe she's not a real wolf."
Sheila tried to block it all out. She stood in the center, beneath the moon. Her hands shook as she spread her fingers. She breathed deeply, closed her eyes, and called to the beast within her.
Come on. Please. Just this once. Let me shift.
Nothing.
She strained harder. Her bones ached, but not in the way they were supposed to. There was no burning, no cracking of transformation. Just emptiness. Silence.
Gasps rippled through the crowd. Then—laughter. Cruel. Mocking.
Sheila opened her eyes. Tears clung to her lashes.
Alpha Kael stepped forward slowly. His face was unreadable.
"I had hoped," he said coldly, "that you might surprise us tonight. That perhaps the Moon had merely been waiting."
He paused.
"But the Moon is never wrong."
Sheila flinched.
"I, Kael Nightborne, Alpha of the Moonwatch Pack, hereby reject the bond fated between myself and Sheila McTwain."
The crowd gasped.
Kael turned to Sabrina, who smiled sweetly.
"I accept Sabrina McTwain as my chosen mate."
Something inside Sheila cracked. She gasped, doubling over. A golden thread visible only to the bonded flashed in front of her—then snapped, shattering like glass. Pain shot through her chest. She fell to her knees, choking.
"Let her be removed from the circle," Kael said, his voice without pity.
Elder Ronin hesitated, but two enforcers moved toward her. As they grabbed her arms, her vision blurred. She couldn't hear the crowd anymore. Just the rushing of her heartbeat.
Above her, the moon pulsed red.
Far to the north, in the Silverstone Mountains, a blindfolded child sat upright in a candlelit chamber. Her milky eyes glowed behind the cloth. The air around her pulsed.
"She has begun to bleed," the oracle whispered. Then she shivered. "He stirs."
---
Sheila woke to the scent of herbs and smoke. The healer's hut. She was alone, lying on a straw mat.
Her body ached. Her heart felt hollow.
She sat up slowly, wincing.
"You're awake."
The voice came from the doorway. Her mother.
Gamma Saela stood tall and severe, arms crossed.
"I don't know what you were thinking, dragging the family name through the mud like that."
"I didn't—" Sheila's voice cracked.
Saela raised a hand. "Enough. You've already cost us enough. The council's convening tonight. Don't expect leniency."
Sheila looked down. Her hands trembled.
"I didn't ask for any of this," she whispered.
"No. You just failed."
Her mother left without another word.
---
That night, the council meeting was short and cruel. Kael accused her of trying to sabotage Sabrina. Sabrina tearfully spoke of nightmares and dark whispers.
"She's dangerous," Sabrina said, her voice trembling.
"I don't know what's inside her, but it's not normal."
"She's cursed," Kael agreed.
And just like that, the vote was unanimous.
"Exile," Elder Ronin said, unable to meet Sheila's eyes.
No trial. No goodbye.
Sheila didn't fight. She had nothing left.
She was dragged from her bed that night, bound and blindfolded. The guards didn't speak. They took her past the village, through the forest, toward the one place no wolf dared go.
The Silverstone Border.
---
Sheila's blindfold was yanked off. She blinked against the sudden light.
They stood at the edge of a misty valley. The air was heavy with silence. The trees here were twisted, their bark silver and black.
"This is where your curse belongs," one of the guards muttered.
A boot hit her stomach. She cried out, toppling forward.
"May the goddess have mercy on you," the other said.
And then they left.
Sheila lay there, bleeding and alone. The cold seeped into her bones. She curled into herself, barely able to breathe.
Tears slid down her cheeks.
I don't want to die.
But even as she thought it, something deep within her stirred.
Far across the mountains, in the sacred sealed chamber of Silverstone, the candles flickered violently.
The Oracle gasped, arching backward.
"Her blood reaches the roots," she whispered. "The veil grows thin."
A wind howled through the forest. Not a creature stirred. But the moon turned red again, and something ancient stirred beneath the earth.