Chapter 1:The moon goddess selection
Tonight Ray would be claimed as ....
The full moon glowed over the pack grounds, casting silver light across the ceremonial circle. Today was Ray's twentieth birthday-the day the Moon Goddess would choose his Alpha.
Ray's heart thudded painfully in his chest as he stepped into the center. He didn't know who his Alpha would be, only that when the red thread appeared, it would reveal their connection-visible only to the chosen Alpha and himself.
All around, Omegas waited silently, and whispers rippled through the crowd. Ray tried to steady himself, but he felt small, fragile, and entirely exposed.
The Moon Goddess's priestess began the chant, her voice echoing like wind through the night. A faint shimmer appeared above the ceremonial circle. Then, like a living ribbon, a red thread of light shot toward Ray, coiling delicately around his wrist and revealing its other end-a figure standing slightly apart at the edge of the circle.
Leo. Calm, proud, protective. The thread glowed between them, binding them irrevocably. Ray's knees wobbled. His body trembled from the energy of the ritual and the sudden certainty of the bond.
Leo stepped forward and marked Ray, biting the side of his neck. Warmth spread instantly, and a wolf-shaped tattoo appeared on Ray's skin, glowing faintly in the moonlight. Murmurs of awe ran through the crowd. Ray could barely breathe, heart racing between wonder and fear.
And then, Drake's eyes darkened. The Pack Alpha had been watching silently from the edge of the circle, but now something fierce and possessive flared within him. Without warning, he turned and stormed out, leaving a ripple of shocked whispers behind him. A Pack Alpha never abandoned a ritual.
The Pack Chief Elder's voice thundered, silencing the murmurs. The ceremony continued, but the tension hung heavy in the air, almost choking Ray. Despite the whispers and the angered departure, the Moon Goddess's blessing glimmered brighter over him and Leo.
After the ceremony, the celebrations began-music, laughter, and cheer-but Ray hardly noticed. His thoughts were consumed by the thread connecting him to Leo, the warmth of the marking, and the strange pull in his body. The priestess had already foretold it: his first heat would arrive in seven days. Fragile, frail, and unprepared, he would need his Alpha more than ever to guide him through it.
As he was led to his chambers, Ray shivered, brushing a trembling hand over the glowing wolf tattoo. He felt watched, though he didn't dare look back. Shadows moved near the edge of the celebration grounds, and a low, deliberate chuckle reached his ears-one he didn't recognize, but that made his skin crawl.
Something was coming. Something that would change everything before his first heat even began.
And in the distance, Drake's silhouette lingered, eyes burning with a desire that refused to be ignored.
Ray swallowed hard, heart pounding. He had no idea that the night had only just begun, and the thread that bound him was about to pull him into danger he could not escape...
