CHAPTER 2
( The prophecy)
I started hearing the whispers before I even left the place where everything happened. The wolves were talking about me. I could hear their voices behind me as I walked away from the clearing. They were saying things like "The Alpha did not want his mate". She is an Omega". They were also saying that the Moon Goddess chose her. The Alpha still did not want her. Every word they said felt like someone was scratching my skin. I just kept walking. My wolf was very quiet inside me. The special connection that we had just felt was gone. It felt empty. It hurt. I put my hand on my chest. It did not help. The pain and the shame were still there.
The Alpha rejected me in front of the Varkryth Pack. That is what everyone was saying. The special ceremony was supposed to show us who our mates were, the ones chosen by the Moon Goddess.. Instead, it showed us that the Alpha did not want me. I got to the path in the forest. I just kept moving. I did not want to look. I did not want to see the other wolves staring at me. I did not want to hear them talking about me. I did not want to see the faces of the other Omegas.
My wolf was a little mixed up. She did not understand what had just happened. The special connection was just. Then it was broken. I could still feel it a bit like a memory of something that should have been. I made myself breathe. I said to myself "Forget it. Forget him".. My wolf did not listen. She was still feeling the pain of what happened. She had felt the Alpha, my mate, the one chosen by fate. Even though the special connection was broken, the memory of it was still there. That made the pain worse.
I kept walking to the Omega quarters. The night air was cold on my skin. My mind kept thinking about what happened. The way the special connection started. The way all the wolves felt it. The way they all looked at me when they realized that I was the Alpha's mate. Then the moment that changed everything. The Alpha's voice said the words that broke the connection. The rejection. The special connection is breaking like a thread. My wolf cried out again in my mind. The memory of the pain was still fresh.
I stopped walking for a moment. I leaned against a tree. I made myself stay up. My chest still felt tight. My wolf was still hurting. The special connection between mates is very important to wolves. Even the strong warriors are afraid to break it.. The Alpha broke it without even thinking about it. That is what I did not understand. Why did he do it? I am an Omega, yes.. The Moon Goddess chose us to be together. No Alpha says no to fate without a reason.
The thought made me a little angry. Maybe there is no reason. Maybe the Alpha just did not want an Omega as his mate. That thought hurt me. I pushed myself away from the tree. I kept walking. I did not want to cry. I did not want to break.. The truth was still with me as I walked through the forest. The Alpha rejected me.
Back at the place where everything had happened the pack was slowly leaving. The wolves were still talking about what they saw. The older wolves were still near the lake looking serious. The Alpha was standing alone near the water. He was standing straight. He still looked like the Alpha. There was something else inside him. His wolf was very angry. The beast inside him wanted to go after me. It wanted to claim me as his mate.. The Alpha was in control. He was not letting the beast take over.
The older wolves came to talk to the Alpha. One of them said, "Alpha, the Moon Goddess does not like it when we break the connection". The Alpha said, "I know". Another older wolf said, "A mate chosen by fate is a thing for the pack". The Alpha did not say anything for a moment. He was looking at the lake. The water was reflecting the moon. The special connection should have been made under that moon.. It was broken instead.
The Alpha said, "My decision is final". The older wolves did not say anything. They left him alone near the lake. The Alpha let his wolf come out a bit. The beast inside him was angry. It did not understand why the Alpha rejected me. Wolves do not reject their mates. The instinct to claim and protect is too strong.. The Alpha did it anyway.
He remembered something that the rest of the pack did not know. A long time ago a witch came to the pack's land. The warriors surrounded her. She did not come to fight. She came with a message. The pack took her to the Alpha's hall. She stood calmly even though the warriors were watching her. Her eyes were old and wise. She said, "I have a warning for the Kaelith family". The Alpha remembered feeling tense when he heard that. The Kaelith name is important in the north.
The witch said, "A time ago witches and wolves fought. During that time a curse was put on the Kaelith family". The warriors laughed. The witch did not. She said, "The mate of the Kaelith Alpha will die if they make the connection". The warriors laughed again. The Alpha did not forget what the witch said. He thought about it for years. He did not think it was important at first. The thought stayed with him.
Now he knew that the prophecy was real. His mate had been revealed. Seralyn Thorne, an Omega. The wolf from that night months ago. The special connection was undeniable. If he claimed me fully if he made the connection the curse might kill me. The Alpha closed his eyes for a moment. His wolf was still angry inside him. It still wanted me.. The Alpha was in control. He was thinking about protecting the pack. That included protecting me, his mate. Even if I hated him, even if rejecting me broke something inside him.
Draevor had made a promise to himself the day the witch left. If the Moon Goddess ever showed him his mate he would reject the connection before it could hurt me. Tonight he kept that promise. Somewhere in the territory I was walking away thinking that the Alpha rejected me because I was not good enough.
Draevor looked at the reflection of the moon on the lake. Accepted the truth that he would keep to himself. She would never know that he rejected her to save her life.