4

The moment Selene’s feet touched solid ground, she gasped, disoriented by the sudden shift in her surroundings. The oppressive darkness that had swallowed her during the fall was gone, replaced by a vast, open space bathed in an eerie blue glow.

She pressed her palm against the cold stone floor beneath her, her breath coming in quick, shallow gasps. Her heart pounded in her chest, the lingering ache from the mate bond’s rejection mixing with a new, foreign sensation—something ancient and powerful humming beneath her skin.

Slowly, she lifted her gaze, and what she saw stole the air from her lungs.

The ruins stretched before her like the remnants of a forgotten empire, massive stone pillars reaching toward the cavern’s arched ceiling. The walls, etched with intricate carvings, glowed faintly in the moonlight that filtered through cracks in the stone above. Large wolf statues, their faces solemn and wise, stood as silent sentinels, their glowing blue eyes locked onto her as though waiting for her next move.

Selene’s throat tightened. She had never seen anything like this before. It felt… sacred.

A forgotten place lost to time.

She swallowed hard, pushing herself to her feet. The energy in the air felt different here, heavier, charged with something unspoken. It prickled against her skin, whispering through the mate bond that still throbbed faintly in her chest.

She took a slow step forward, boots scraping against ancient stone. Her fingers trailed along the wall, tracing the symbols carved into the surface. They were old—older than any written language she had ever seen.

But somehow, she understood them.

Her fingers stilled over a particular marking, and a shiver ran down her spine.

"Daughter of the Moon… Return to us."

Selene inhaled sharply, her pulse spiking. The words hadn’t been spoken aloud, but she heard them—echoing inside her skull, resonating deep in her bones.

Something inside her stirred, an unfamiliar warmth spreading through her veins. It was as if something inside her recognized this place—as if it had been waiting for her.

She turned, scanning the cavern with new awareness. This wasn’t just an old ruin. It was a temple. A sanctuary.

The whispers in the air grew louder.

Selene squeezed her eyes shut, gripping her arms as a strange pressure built inside her chest. It was too much—too overwhelming.

Then the ground beneath her trembled.

Her eyes snapped open just as one of the glowing wolf statues shifted.

Selene stumbled back, her breath catching in her throat. No, that wasn’t possible. It was just stone, nothing more—

The statue moved again, its head tilting ever so slightly, as if acknowledging her presence.

Selene’s heart slammed against her ribs.

And then it spoke.

"You have returned."

The voice was deep, ancient, carrying the weight of centuries. It wasn’t a spoken language, not in the way she had learned to communicate. It was something older—something woven into the very fabric of existence.

Selene’s lips parted, but no words came.

The statue’s eyes burned brighter, locking onto hers.

"Do you remember who you are?"

She shook her head, stepping back. “I don’t understand.”

The whispers in the air intensified, swirling around her like a thousand voices speaking at once.

"You will."

Before she could react, the cavern pulsed with raw energy, the glow from the markings on the walls intensifying. The power in the air slammed into her chest, stealing her breath.

Her vision blurred. Her knees buckled.

And then everything went black.

Selene didn’t know how long she had been unconscious, but when she finally awoke, she wasn’t in the temple anymore.

She was somewhere else. Somewhere... unreal.

A vast silver landscape stretched before her, endless and empty, except for the shimmering full moon that hung low in the sky. The air was thick with power, humming with a presence she couldn’t see but felt deep in her bones.

A dream? A vision?

She turned slowly, searching for some kind of explanation.

And then she saw her.

A woman stood a few feet away, her figure bathed in soft silver light. Her features were ethereal—sharp yet delicate, her silver eyes mirroring the moon’s glow. Long, flowing white hair cascaded down her back, shifting like liquid starlight.

Selene’s breath hitched. She recognized this woman. Not from memory, but from something deeper. Something instinctual.

The woman smiled.

"You are awakening, my child."

Selene swallowed hard. “Who… who are you?”

The woman stepped closer, her gaze filled with something ancient and knowing.

"You already know the answer."

Selene shook her head. “No, I don’t. I don’t understand any of this.”

The woman reached out, brushing her fingertips against Selene’s forehead. A rush of warmth flooded through her veins, burning and soothing all at once.

Images flashed in her mind—wolves running beneath the silver moon, a pack that did not exist in the present world, a sacred bond shattered by betrayal.

And then she saw herself.

But it wasn’t her.

It was another version of her, standing at the center of the temple, bathed in moonlight, power radiating from her very being.

A goddess.

Selene gasped, jerking away.

The woman simply watched her, serene and patient.

"You are more than you have been led to believe, Selene. More than the rejections you have endured. You are the last daughter of the Forgotten Pack. The heir to a legacy lost to time."

Selene’s mind reeled. This couldn’t be true.

She was nobody. She was nothing.

The woman’s expression softened.

"You are everything."

The words struck something deep inside her. A memory she didn’t know she had. A truth buried beneath years of rejection and loneliness.

Selene staggered back, shaking her head. “No… no, this—this isn’t real.”

The woman tilted her head.

"Then wake up, and see for yourself."

Selene’s eyes snapped open with a sharp inhale, her body jerking upright.

She was back in the temple. The wolf statues had returned to their frozen state, the glow from the markings on the walls fading.

But something was different.

Something inside her had shifted.

Her pulse thrummed with an unfamiliar power, her senses sharper, more aware.

She wasn’t the same.

And neither was her fate.

Whatever had been locked away inside her for years was stirring now, rising like the first breath of a long-forgotten storm.

Selene clenched her fists, her nails biting into her palms.

For years, she had been the outcast. The weak one. The girl no pack wanted.

But that ended now.

She wasn’t just a mate to be rejected.

She was something far more.

And whether Alec, Kael, or Lucian liked it or not, she was about to prove it.