Lumen has been protected by her pack, Wolf Shadow, and her parents since she was a young girl. As a she-wolf, she has been trained by her father, the Alpha, to become his successor. On the hunt for the Blood Clan, when the Alpha King's pack arrives in her territory, Lumen discovers that she has been living a lie. The royal pack has set its sights on the territory of the Wolf Shadow pack. Her father, in order to forge an alliance and avoid being destroyed by the king, decides to provide whatever is needed for peace to continue. Lumen is seen by Seth, the king's beta son. He immediately tries to approach her, as he is strongly attracted to her. However, when Lumen rejects him, he convinces the king that one of the conditions for peace is that she be his. Lumen's father agrees to sell his daughter to the royal pride to secure his territory. And she is the last to know of this agreement... Athius, son of the Alpha King himself, is sent to capture the young girl. The moon goddess is wrong to hand her over to two wolves at the same time... Her survival will depend on her strength and her refusal to surrender.
Chapter 1 Pride of Mom and Dad
Lumen
"I wish you had lied to me.... I wish I hated you as much as I did the first day, I saw you. I would be better off now if I wanted to kill you!" I screamed, my voice cracking with pain.
The transformation was aggressive towards me. My silver she-wolf fur shimmered in front of the moon shining in the sky. In my she-wolf form, my fangs were as sharp as swords.
And even though I was so imposing and majestic, I couldn't stand up very well, the potion that had been running through my blood had dulled my senses.
I imagined that I was the strongest, that my pack trusted me to be the new She-Alpha.
And they were all lies. The huge wolf watched me with gleaming white fangs.
He said nothing, I was of no importance to him. I was a nuisance he would soon get rid of. His fur was like the cloak of night, a majestic black.
He was twice my size and his claws cut with surprising ease. He growled, stalking me like one of his prey.
With a thunderous roar that shook the treetops, the wolf leapt at me, knocking me to the ground without me being able to defend myself. It was huge, its strength incomparable to mine. I felt faint as I began to lose consciousness.
Betrayal. That was the word that kept echoing in my mind, an echo of defeat.
The panorama around me slowly darkened. The sounds stopped; the reflection of the moonlight disappeared.
Why did you do this to me, Moon Goddess, did I not have a great destiny as a warrior?
That was the last thing I thought as I looked up at the moon in the sky, blood pouring from my muzzle. And a faint promise still beating, that I would not abandon myself, even though, everyone had.
Two Weeks Earlier
"Lumen, daughter. You should go downstairs and have a snack." My mother was worried, I could tell by the tone of her voice.
The preparations always exhausted her. My mother and father were in charge of organizing the traditional annual hunt for the Silver Blood Clan.
All events would take place on our territory. Parties, dinners, other unimportant sentimental events.
I had prepared for the hunt and that was all that mattered to me.
I wanted to show my strength as the Alpha's daughter. My she-wolf was ready to outdo the others and my father would announce me as the new leader when he retired.
He promised to make the announcement at the end of the hunt.
All the wolves from the other packs would be there for the big announcement.
But that didn't make me nervous, I was ready.
I trained hard, both in strength and speed. I left behind many of those who trained with me.
I had great confidence in myself.
Many packs made up this clan, at least ten. The strongest packs and the royal pack. We were one of the strongest packs, our name was "Wolf Shadow".
My father, Zathun, was the Alpha for many years. He was one hundred and forty years old and had been Alpha for almost a hundred years. In our blood ran the ancient magic of the moon goddess, we had strength and skill, intelligence and heart.
Why do I say this? Because the wolves of other packs do not possess a very remarkable humanity.
Among the Alphas, savagery predominates. Bloodlust, hunting, land ownership, and even enslavement of those who survive a battle. I put on a dark green t-shirt and comfortable shorts. My mother was about to have a heart attack. She wanted me to change and be ready about three hours before dinner.
The opening dinner of the big hunt was almost as important to the wolves as the hunt itself. It would be held at our mansion, so my parents were the hosts.
My mother grimaced in horror when she saw me.
"Lumen! You have to change now. We have to be at least two hours early in case the guests start arriving." She paced back and forth, directing the staff so that everyone knew what to do.
The number of Omega waiters and cooks in the huge kitchen was incredible. The Omegas did this kind of work, they were the weakest in the herd, they couldn't fight. In the herd they were offered protection and work. We protected them from the dangers of other wolves from enemy territories.
Here the Omegas had their own wages and freedom. It was not like in the other packs, where wolves who could not fight were turned into slaves.
"I will. After a little more training." I said, smiling complicitly.
I noticed my father approaching, coming down the stairs. He was talking to his Beta, who was also there to help with the organization.
"Daughter." He greeted me; I had always been spoiled by my father.
"Dad. Mom won't let me train a little." I protested, looking up at him with sparkling eyes.
"Lysa." Dad looked at my mother somewhat reproachfully. "You know Lumen is a warrior she-wolf. After me, she is the strongest in the pack. This pack will depend on her when she becomes Alpha and I give her command at the end of this hunt."
His eyes shone with pride. I hugged him. Ever since I was a little girl, my father told me that I would be very strong. He trained me from the time I was a little wolf puppy who could barely walk.
My mother looked at me and smiled.
"It is true. Sometimes I forget that you're not only the most beautiful of all eighteen-year-old girls, but also the strongest." She smiled and hugged me. "Go practice, my love, I'll have your dress ready and the stylist to do your hair."
I had reached my goal. I smiled.
"I love them." I said goodbye quickly, my parents were really good to me.
They were proud of me. I had excellent grades in school, and this year I would graduate with honors. Soon I would have the honor of being named the next Alpha.
I left the mansion through one of the windows and transformed into a she-wolf. My form was the color of silver, shiny and with soft fur. I entered the forest and ran through the lush trees, blending in with them.
Our territory stretched for miles. I knew it by heart, every inch, every corner.
At least I thought I did. I should have run aimlessly through the forest until I escaped my fate.
It would have been a kinder option for me.
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