The pain came without warning.
One moment Aria was standing in the clearing, trying to make sense of the madness unfolding around her. The next, it felt as if her bones were being slowly pulled apart from the inside.
A strangled cry escaped her lips before she could stop it.
She dropped to her knees.
The world blurred into fragments — snarling wolves, shouting warriors, the sharp metallic scent of fear hanging in the cold night air.
Her fingers dug into the soil as another wave of agony tore through her body.
This is it.
Her first shift.
It was supposed to happen surrounded by her pack. Guided. Protected.
Not like this.
Not in the middle of a battlefield.
Not with him watching.
Aria squeezed her eyes shut, trying to focus on her breathing the way she had been taught.
But everything felt wrong.
Too loud.
Too fast.
Too intense.
And beneath the pain… there was something else.
A pull.
Warm. Steady. Familiar in a way that made no sense.
She didn't need to open her eyes to know he was closer now.
She could feel him.
The bond between them throbbed like a living thing.
"Stay back!" her father's voice thundered somewhere above her.
"Don't let him near her!"
Growls answered him. Heavy footsteps. The sound of claws scraping against rock.
Then another voice cut through the chaos.
Low. Controlled.
"Move."
It wasn't a shout.
It wasn't even loud.
But it carried power.
The kind that made wolves listen.
Aria forced her eyes open.
Kael Blackwell was kneeling in front of her.
Up close, he looked even more dangerous. His jaw was clenched, golden eyes burning with a storm of emotions he was clearly trying to suppress.
Why wasn't he attacking?
Why wasn't he smiling like an enemy who had just found a weakness?
Instead… he looked worried.
The realization unsettled her more than the pain.
"You're fighting the shift," he said quietly.
Another wave hit her, harsher this time. Her back arched as a scream tore from her throat.
"I don't need your help," she gasped.
"Maybe not," he replied.
"But your wolf needs her mate."
The words sent a strange shiver through her body.
Before she could argue, he reached for her.
Every instinct she had ever learned told her to pull away.
A Kingston never allowed a Blackwell to touch them.
But when his hand closed around hers…
The pain eased.
Not completely.
Not magically.
But enough for her to breathe.
Enough for the world to come back into focus.
Aria stared at their joined hands, stunned.
This wasn't supposed to happen.
Mate bonds were real — she had been taught that since she was a child. But she had never imagined they could feel like this.
Like finding solid ground in the middle of a storm.
Around them, both packs had gone eerily still.
No one wanted to be the first to move.
No one wanted to be responsible for what would happen next.
Her father's voice came again, quieter now. Deadlier.
"Let go of her."
Kael didn't.
Instead, he helped Aria slowly to her feet as another tremor ran through her body.
"You can hate me later," he murmured.
"Right now, you need to shift."
Aria wanted to argue.
Wanted to remind him who they were to each other.
Enemies.
Future leaders of packs that would one day meet in war.
But her wolf was awake now.
And her wolf didn't care about politics or ancient grudges.
Her wolf only knew one thing.
He is ours.
The moonlight brightened suddenly, almost blinding.
A deep growl rose from Aria's chest — unfamiliar yet completely natural.
Her bones began to change.
And this time… she didn't fight it.
Because Kael Blackwell was still holding her hand.