Rise Of The Mute Omega

Chapter Five

The courtyard had never been so silent.

Dozens of wolves stood frozen, the Blood Moon’s silver glow bathing every face, every pair of stunned eyes locked on me. The whispers of shock cut the air like knives, disbelief and outrage mingling in the hushed crowd.

And then I felt it.

The bond.

It snapped into place as if it had always been there, invisible until now. My chest burned with it, a pull so strong I staggered where I stood, my wolf instincts urging me toward the tall figure in the center of the courtyard—Kael.

His gray eyes locked onto mine, and the world seemed to fall away. The noise, the crowd, even the moon itself—all faded, leaving only the searing connection that pulsed between us. His wolf stirred behind his gaze, ancient and powerful, and I knew—without words, without logic—that I belonged to him, and he to me.

I wanted to run. I wanted to surrender. I wanted both at once.

Lyra’s scream shattered the moment.

“No!” Her voice rose, wild and desperate. She pushed past her friends, her gown swirling like fire in the moonlight. “This isn’t happening! She isn’t your mate, Kael. It’s supposed to be me!”

Gasps rippled through the crowd. Pack members turned to each other, murmuring, unsure of what they had just witnessed.

Kael didn’t flinch. He didn’t look away from me. His voice carried like thunder when he finally spoke. “The bond doesn’t lie.”

His words were simple, but their weight shook me to the core. My heart pounded, each beat syncing with the invisible thread tying me to him. It was terrifying. It was intoxicating.

Lyra’s face twisted, her beauty marred by fury. “She’s an omega! A nothing! She doesn’t deserve you!”

I backed away, claws scraping against the cobblestones. My wolf trembled beneath my skin, torn between instinct and fear. Every eye on me burned with judgment, and shame crawled across my fur.

The Alpha’s voice cut through the tension, low and commanding. “Kael. This cannot stand. She is beneath you.”

For the first time, Kael tore his gaze from mine. His shoulders squared, his jaw set. “With respect, Father,” he said, his voice sharp with defiance, “I do not choose the bond. The Moon Goddess does.”

A ripple of shock spread through the pack at his open challenge. The Alpha’s glare hardened, but he did not argue.

Lyra stepped forward again, trembling with rage. “I won’t let this happen. She’ll ruin everything!” She turned her fury on me, eyes glowing with hatred. “You don’t belong here, Elara. You never did!”

Her words struck like blows, and I felt myself shrinking, pulling inward. But the bond pulsed again, warm and insistent, and Kael’s wolf growled low in his chest, a sound that silenced even the boldest whispers.

Fear overwhelmed me. I couldn’t breathe beneath the weight of their stares, the pressure of the bond, the fury in Lyra’s eyes. My instincts screamed one command.

Run.

And so I did.

I bolted through the courtyard gates, paws striking stone before I even realized I had shifted fully into wolf form. Gasps and shouts followed me, but I didn’t look back. The forest called, and I obeyed.

The trees swallowed me whole, moonlight flickering through the canopy, shadows stretching long across the earth. My wolf ran with a speed I’d never known, my senses sharpened to unbearable clarity. Every leaf, every breath of wind, every c***k of twig vibrated in my ears.

But I wasn’t alone.

The bond tethered me to Kael, even as I fled. I could feel him—distant yet near, like a heartbeat echoing against my own. It terrified me. It thrilled me.

I skidded to a halt at the edge of a clearing, chest heaving, fur bristling. My paws sank into the soft earth, and my ears twitched at the sound of rustling ahead.

The scent hit me then: bitter, rancid, wrong. Rogues.

Shapes emerged from the shadows, eyes glowing red, teeth glinting in the moonlight. One, two, three—no, more. They circled the clearing, snarls rumbling like thunder.

Panic shot through me. I crouched low, tail stiff, claws digging into the dirt. I wasn’t ready for this. I had never fought before. The rogues closed in, their hunger palpable, their growls vibrating through the trees.

Then, deep inside, a voice stirred. Not my own, not Kael’s. Something older. Something vast.

Daughter of the Moon. Do not fear. Rise.

Silver light flared beneath my paws, spreading like ripples across water. The rogues recoiled, their snarls breaking into yelps of pain as the glow intensified. My fur shimmered, my wolf form bathed in lunar fire, and the energy surged through me like a second heartbeat.

I moved without thinking, lunging forward with a strength I hadn’t known I possessed. My claws tore across one rogue’s flank, and light seared into the wound, burning brighter than flame. The beast shrieked and fled into the trees.

Another lunged, but the light from my body flared brighter, forcing it back. The rogues hesitated, fear replacing hunger. They had seen something they did not understand, something they could not fight. One by one, they scattered into the shadows, howls fading as they vanished into the forest.

Silence returned, heavy and absolute. I stood trembling, my chest heaving, my fur still glowing faintly with silver light. My claws dug into the earth, and for a moment, I didn’t recognize myself.

The voice whispered again, softer this time, almost tender. You are not what they think you are, Elara. You are mine.

The light dimmed, leaving me alone beneath the Blood Moon. My body ached, my heart thundered, and the bond with Kael tugged at me relentlessly. He was out there—searching, calling—but I couldn’t face him. Not yet.

I sank to the ground, curling against the roots of an ancient oak. The forest whispered around me, alive with secrets.

Everything had changed. The mate bond had chosen me. The Blood Moon had awakened something within me—something dangerous, something divine.

I was no longer just the shadow of Blackwood Manor. I was something else entirely.

And the pack would never see me the same again.