Aiden bolted the moment the weight lifted.
Theron had shifted back, silver eyes still glowing faint with Alpha heat, but Aiden didn't wait. He ran. Paws tore across dirt, claws biting into earth, until the training grounds and the watching stares of the betas vanished behind him.
Shame clung to him heavier than the scent of blood on his fur.
Why couldn't I fight back? Why did I submit?
His chest heaved, breaths ragged, as he ducked between trees, letting the shadows swallow him. The forest whispered with crickets and owls, but all he could hear was the echo of his own whine. His tail tucked tighter just remembering it.
He hated it. Hated Theron. Hated the bond that made his body betray him.
At last he collapsed near the edge of the river, shifting back into his human form. His knees slammed into damp earth, hands gripping the grass until it tore between his fingers. His whole body shook with fury.
"I'm not weak," he whispered, voice raw, breaking. "I'm not—"
But the words strangled, because deep inside, a part of him knew the truth: it wasn't weakness. It was instinct.
The bond had teeth, and he had no idea how to fight it.
Behind him, footsteps approached.
He stiffened, scenting before he turned. Ronan. Not Theron. The older beta stood a few feet away, hands tucked into his pockets, watching Aiden with quiet eyes.
"You fought well today," Ronan said simply. No mockery. No judgment. Just truth.
Aiden barked a humorless laugh, dragging a sleeve across his face. "Yeah. Until he showed up."
Ronan crouched beside him, gaze steady. "That wasn't weakness. That was instinct. Don't confuse the two."
Aiden snapped his head up, teeth clenched. "Instinct that makes me bow to him? Makes me… less?"
For the first time, Ronan's calm faltered. His jaw tightened, eyes shadowing. "…It makes you an omega, Aiden. And that doesn't mean less. It means different. Strong in a way no beta will ever understand."
Aiden's stomach dropped. The word rang in his head like a bell tolling a funeral. Omega.
He shook his head violently, clutching his hair, voice rising in panic. "No. I'm not—no, I'm a beta, I've always been a beta—"
Ronan's hand landed firm on his shoulder, grounding him. "You've always been you. The bond just… woke something you didn't know was there."
Aiden's breath stuttered. His chest felt too tight, his heart caught between fury and fear. He wanted to scream. To deny it. To believe Evelyn's words instead, that he was just Aiden, just normal. Not fate's plaything.
But when he closed his eyes, he felt Theron's growl vibrating through his bones, felt the way his body had bent without his permission. And somewhere, deep, deep down—
—he felt the truth of it.
He was an omega.
And nothing would ever be the same.
(Theron pov)
The moment Aiden ran, every muscle in Theron's body screamed to follow.
His wolf clawed at the edges of his skin, furious, restless, demanding he drag the boy back, sink his teeth into his scruff, and remind him what he belonged to. What they belonged to.
But Theron held himself still. Barely.
His chest heaved, his pulse a drumbeat in his ears. He could still taste Aiden's scent on the air—wild, sharp, laced with a sweetness that made every alpha in the training ground twitch in their skin. That was what made his fury burn hotter than fire.
Not the fight. Not Ronan's blade clashing with Aiden's.
It was the way every other alpha had turned their head when Aiden's pheromones spiked. The way their eyes lingered. Hungry. Calculating.
His wolf nearly broke through right there.
He's mine. Only mine.
Theron had never felt such a violent need before. Not in battle. Not in claiming territory. This was primal, raw, carved straight into his bones. And it terrified him.
He turned away from the training ground, ignoring the whispers that followed in his wake. His steps carried him into the forest before he even realized where he was going. His wolf led, nose low, ears pricked. Following him.
Aiden.
The boy's trail was fresh, sharp with adrenaline and grief. Every paw print pressed deep, every snapped twig crying his flight. Theron slowed as he neared the river, the scent of water mingling with Aiden's storm. He froze before stepping out into the clearing.
Ronan was already there.
The older beta crouched beside Aiden, hand firm on his shoulder. Theron's eyes narrowed, claws pressing through the ends of his fingers as jealousy surged black and choking through him. His wolf rose, ears flat, tail high, demanding he tear Ronan away—
But he forced himself still.
The sound of Aiden's voice carried to him. Broken. Cracked.
"No. I'm not—no, I'm a beta, I've always been a beta—"
Theron's breath caught. His chest squeezed tight at the words. He should step forward. Should tell Aiden the truth, tell him what his wolf already knew. That this was no curse, no shame, but destiny.
But when he saw the boy's trembling hands, the way he shook his head like he could tear the word omega out of himself, Theron stayed in the shadows.
Watching.
Waiting.
Protecting him from afar, even when Aiden thought he wanted nothing to do with him.
The wolf inside Theron growled, restless. Soon. He'll know. He'll understand. And when he does… there will be no running from me again.
(back to Aiden pov)
The scent hit him first.
Thick. Dominant. Impossible to ignore.
His lungs tightened, his body reacting before his mind could catch up. Every nerve in him buzzed, sharp and hot, and his wolf stirred with an instinct he didn't understand—or didn't want to understand.
Slowly, almost against his will, Aiden turned his head.
Blue eyes locked with burning amber.
Theron.
The Alpha King stood at the edge of the clearing, half in shadow, half in silver moonlight. His wolf aura rolled out in waves, pressing down, demanding submission. His ears were pinned back, his tail high in dominance, body taut with restraint, but the fury in his eyes was unmistakable.
Aiden's breath caught, chest rising too fast, too shallow. His tail twitched, his ears pressing flat, a growl itching at his throat—except nothing came out. His body refused him.
His instincts betrayed him.
Every fiber of him screamed to snarl, to prove he wasn't weak, wasn't what Theron accused him of being. But instead, heat crawled under his skin, his pulse stuttering in his throat. His knees trembled, not from fear but from something deeper, something that made his heart clench with shame.
Theron stepped forward, slow, deliberate, his gaze locked on Aiden alone. Ronan shifted back instinctively, lowering his eyes, sensing the shift in the air—sensing that this wasn't his place.
"Get away from him," Theron growled, voice layered with wolf and man, low and vibrating through the ground itself.
Ronan didn't hesitate. He dropped his hand from Aiden's shoulder and backed off, head bowed, slipping into the trees without a word.
Leaving Aiden alone.
Alone with him.
The bond inside his chest pulled taut, sparking sharp enough to hurt. Aiden wanted to run, to lash out, to do anything but stand there frozen with his wolf caged by instincts he didn't understand.
His voice cracked as it finally tore out of him:
"Stop—stop looking at me like that!"
But Theron didn't stop.
His eyes burned brighter, his wolf pressing harder, curling around Aiden's form like invisible chains. His growl deepened, and Aiden swore he felt it echo inside his bones.
"Because you can't fight what you are," Theron said, his words a blade, brutal and final. "Because you're an omega."
The word split the night like thunder.
Aiden's breath shattered. His ears pinned harder to his skull, shame and fury colliding in his chest until he couldn't tell which was stronger.
"I'm not—" he snapped, but the denial broke halfway, voice shaking. "I'm not weak!"
His body betrayed him again. His tail tucked close, his throat bare as his head jerked back, instincts screaming submission where his heart screamed defiance.
And then—he ran.
Shoving past the weight of Theron's aura, forcing his legs to move, crashing into the trees, branches snapping and claws digging into earth. He didn't look back.
Couldn't.
Because if he did, he knew what he'd see—Theron's amber eyes, full of fire and claim.
Theron growled low in his chest, dragging a hand through his hair, frustrated silver strands catching the moonlight. His voice, deep and raw, cracked the air.
"Aiden, stop fighting instinct. Accept—"
The words cut off.
From across the river, another sound rippled through the night. A low, mocking growl.
Aiden stiffened, his ears twitching as his body responded before his mind did. The bond tugged, his wolf stirring at the sudden shift in Theron's attention. The Alpha King had gone still, muscles tensing, amber eyes narrowing dangerously.
Then, through the mist rising off the riverbank, a figure stepped out.
Human form. Barefoot. Ragged.
Gray hair hung in uneven clumps around his face, his skin scarred and weathered. His eyes gleamed a sharp, unsettling green that glinted like broken glass in the moonlight. His voice was rough, scraping, carrying the weight of someone who had spent too long beyond law or pack.
"Well, well…" the rogue drawled, lips curling back to show sharp teeth. "How cute." His gaze flicked deliberately between Theron and Aiden, lingering on Aiden just long enough to make his stomach knot. "And here I thought I'd have to sneak my way into the Alpha King's den to find his little… weakness."
Aiden's heart jolted. He took a step back instinctively, tail twitching, chest tightening as the rogue's scent hit him—feral, sour, threaded with blood. His wolf growled inside, caught between fear and rage.
Theron moved instantly. One step forward, body angled protectively between Aiden and the intruder, shoulders broad, aura flaring out like a shield. His growl was a weapon in itself, vibrating through the air, through the ground, through Aiden's bones.
"You've already crossed the wrong border," Theron snarled, voice deep, dangerous. His claws slid free, his wolf pressing close to the surface. "And you'll regret it."
The rogue only laughed, the sound jagged and humorless. "Regret? No, Alpha. I think I've just found fun."
His nostrils flared, his gaze cutting back to Aiden. The green of his eyes darkened, hunger sharp and unhidden.
"I can smell it on him. Heat. Submission. Omega." He licked his teeth slowly. "No wonder the rogues are circling your pack like vultures. You've been hiding him."
Aiden's ears burned, fury sparking hot under his skin, but the shame tangled it until he couldn't breathe. He wanted to shout, to tell the rogue he wasn't weak, that he wasn't prey. But his body betrayed him again, his wolf flattening beneath the rogue's invasive scent.
Theron's roar split the air, savage and unrestrained. In a blink, his form shattered into white fur, massive paws crashing into the earth as his wolf took over.
The ground itself seemed to tremble with the force of his dominance.
"i can't let the boss wait" the said before he shifted too, gray fur exploding across his body, his form lankier but no less lethal. The river churned between them, foam hissing as two predators locked eyes across the current.
Aiden stumbled back, his claws half-formed, torn between fight and flight. His heart slammed in his chest. He could feel it—the pull of Theron's bond, the demand to stay back, to let him fight.
But the rogue's words still echoed, cutting deeper than claws:
Omega. Weakness.
Aiden's jaw clenched, his fists curling tight.
Not weak.
Never weak.