Lucian's Point of View.
"Take him out at once! I need him to be beheaded at sunrise!" I ordered as my guards dragged a man out of the hall.
"Alpha!" The man screamed.
"Please have mercy!"
"I am sorry, alpha!"
"I don't want to die!"
His plea mixed with the loud music in the hall but I didn't care, my eyes hardened in rage.
I am Lucian Blackthorn.
Alpha of the Bloodmoon Pack, ruler of the Eastern Wilds, and the most feared and desired male this side of the Broken Spine Mountains.
My name is a warning in enemy dens, my scent a promise of death on the battlefield. I built this empire claw by claw, and I bow to no one, not man, or moon, or even fate.
"May you leave long, alpha." Kenbob, one of the alphas of a smaller neighbouring pack, spoke out as he sat close to me.
I smirked, the weight gradually lifting off my shoulder.
Tonight, I was being worshipped.
Music thrummed like blood in the veins of the great hall, low, pulsing, primal. Silver sconces cast golden firelight across the vaulted stone walls, where tapestries embroidered with the history of Bloodmoon swayed gently in the heat of torchlight. The scent of spiced wine, burning cedar, and desire curled through the air like perfume.
I sat upon my throne, carved from black stone veined with blood-gold, one leg lazily draped over the armrest, goblet in hand, surrounded by soft skin and softer laughter.
"Get me more wine!" I yelled at one nearby guard who rushed out at once.
In front of us were barely clothed women from my packs, their bodies glistening with oils as they danced for me in slow, sensual rhythm.
They moved like the tide, flowing around me, brushing against my shoulders, whispering promises into my ears. One ran her fingers through my dark hair as another traced the lines of muscle across my chest with trembling hands.
"Alpha," one breathed, nuzzling my jaw. "Shall I fetch more wine? Or would you prefer I pour it down my…"
"Start with my goblet," I said, not looking at her, smirking as she obeyed.
Across the hall, alphas of neighboring packs lounged on silk-cushioned benches, already deep into their second and third rounds of drink. Their laughter was loose, slurred, echoing off the marble like music.
"You spoil us, Alpha," one of them called out, raising a goblet sloshing with wine. "Women, wine, and no patrol duties, I may never leave."
Idiots!
"I wouldn't recommend it," I drawled. "The border is less forgiving than I am."
The room erupted in laughter.
I let it wash over me like heat.
This was my pack, luxury built on dominance as fear and pleasure, both fed by my hand.
"Alpha." Another woman slipped into my lap, blonde and bold, her hands trailing down my bare chest.
"Is it true what they say?" she whispered against my ear. "That no female can satisfy the Alpha of Bloodmoon twice?"
I smirked. "That depends, would you survive the first time?"
She giggled, breathless.
Suddenly, the doors of the hall slammed wide open.
The music died instantly, globlets paused mid-air and even the firelight seemed to draw back in the sconces.
My eyes cut to the doorway.
Standing at the doorway was Voran, my pack priest.
He was wrapped in his deep violet robes, silver hair gleaming like a blade in moonlight. His expression was stone, cold, stern, and utterly unamused.
He looked around the room slowly, his eyes gliding over the half-naked women, the drunken alphas, the spilled wine, the careless pleasure, and landing, at last, on me.
I took a long sip from my goblet before flashing him a lazy grin.
"Well," I said, voice rich with amusement. "You're a sight to kill a mood, I wasn't expecting divine intervention tonight. Do you care to join the party? We've got drinks, dancers, and a girl or two who hasn't passed out."
He didn't smile nor did he speak at first.
One of the women at my side shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, her hands withdrawing from my skin.
"I need to speak with you," Voran said finally, his voice calm, but thick with authority. "Alone."
The blonde in my lap leaned into me with a laugh that tried to be sultry but landed like desperation. "Oh, he's come to scold you, Alpha," she purred. "Shall I warm your seat while he…"
I raised one hand, silencing her.
My golden eyes locked on the priest.
"This is poor timing, Voran" I said, the edge in my voice slicing through the room. "And I'm in no mood for prophecy tonight."
"It is not a request."
The silence in the room fell like a blade.
My smirk faded, I set my goblet down carefully on the arm of the throne, the sound of metal on stone echoing louder than it should have.
"You interrupt my court," I said, slowly rising to my full height. "You insult my hospitality, and you presume to dictate the terms of our conversation?"
Voran didn't flinch.
"It must be done now," he said, his voice low but unwavering. "And no one else must hear it."
His gaze swept the room once more, disapproving, grim, and returned to me with finality.
I exhaled through my nose, my jaw tightening.
I didn't like this.
The authority and urgency in his voice.
Deep rage crawled beneath my skin and swallowing my pride, I turned to the room, my voice like thunder.
"Out!"
At once, the alphas fumbled upright, their robes disheveled with bruised pride. The women scattered like leaves in the wind, gathering silks, while keeping their eyes low.
Within minutes, the great hall was empty except for me and Varon.
"Speak now!" I ordered, my eyes not leaving him.
The old bastard had aged like carved granite, his eyes were blades enough.
"You've turned the royal hall into a brothel," he said at last, voice echoing against the stone like a hammer to bone.
I descended from the dais slowly, step by step, every movement deliberate, radiating control I refused to surrender. The polished floor clicked beneath my boots as my robe swung open at my chest, exposing the scars of war.
"I'd suggest you choose your words more carefully," I said, tone silk over steel. "This is my pack, my hall, and you're the uninvited guest."
"And you're the Alpha of nothing if this continues," Varon snapped, his voice sharper now, crackling with divine fire.
I narrowed my eyes. "You forget your place, priest."
"And you forget your bloodline," he growled. "You spit on the legacy your father bled for. This hall reeked of desperation, of wine, flesh, and weakness."
My brows furrowed as my eyes hardened.
"You came here to judge my parties?" I asked with a cold laugh, circling him like a predator eyeing an intruder. "To moralize like a dry old monk?"
"I came here," he said, stepping toward me, closer than anyone would dare, "because your reign is circling the drain of its own arrogance."
I stopped walking.
We stood eye to eye, tension crackling like lightning before a storm.
"My personal life," I said slowly, voice low and full of venom, "is none of your concern. Just because you were friends with my father does not mean you speak to me like I answer to you. He's dead and I wear the crown now. I am the Alpha."
Varon didn't flinch. "Yes, you are Alpha, but for now."
I blinked, fury sharpening behind my eyes. "Speak plainly, old man."
"You always did hate riddles," he muttered.
"I hate being summoned like a child," I snapped. "And I hate being lectured by someone who hasn't held a blade in decades."
"You don't need a blade when you speak with the voice of the Moon goddess."
I scoffed in deep irritation.
"Spare me the mysticism," I snarled. "If you've got a prophecy, spill it and leave."
Varon exhaled slowly, like he needed to cool the fire rising between us, but his eyes never left mine.
"You have three years."
I narrowed my gaze. "For what?"
He took a single, measured step closer, as if delivering a sentence.
"Three years to drink, party, to sleep around with different whores. Treat your throne like a tavern seat and when the time is up, the Moon Goddess will bind you, she will give you your mate."
I stood in silence as shock crippled me.
The words didn't register at first.
"What?" I spat out loud.
A mate?
After all these years?
No!
"Hell no! You're lying."
"No," he said. "I'm delivering."
"Bullshit!" I spat. "I've never had a mate. Alphas younger than me have already been given theirs and if I was meant for one, it would've happened years ago."
"You weren't ready," Varon said calmly.
"And I am now?" I barked. "Look around you, do I look like I need a mate to rule?"
Varon didn't say a word but his eyes never left me.
I laughed bitterly, raking a hand through my hair.
"Why would I tie myself to one woman?" I snapped. "I'm not built for it, I don't want it. A mate bond is nothing but a golden leash."
"You think the bond is a burden?" Varon asked, finally letting emotion crack his voice. "You arrogant child! The bond is power, it is purpose and holds honor."
"Honor?" I barked. "There is no honor in being chained to a stranger because a goddess said so. It's barbaric."
"It is sacred."
"It is insanity and I won't do it."
"You will," he said, calm now, too calm. "Because she has spoken."
My breath was ice in my chest.
Varon lifted his chin, voice echoing in the high stone chamber.
"Your fate is sealed dear alpha, and your time begins now. When the three years pass, the bond will take hold, whether you welcome it or not."
I stepped forward, my voice a snarl. "And if I refuse?"
He didn't blink. "Then your throne will refuse you."
There was sudden silence, it shattered something inside me.
"What did you say?"
"The pack needs an Alpha with a Luna," the priest said, unwavering. "It has been written since the first Alpha rose from the blood of war. Without a mate, you are half a soul, temporary and unworthy."
My fists clinched in fury.
That word, Unworthy.
It hit like a punch to my chest and immediately, my body burned with anger.
"You dare…" I began, voice rising but before I could utter another word, Varon turned around and began to walk out of the hall.
"Don't you dare walk out on me!"
"I am not done talking!" I roared but Varon didn't listen. His robes swept behind him like shadows as he walked down the center of the empty hall, back straight, with his head high.
I stood there shaking with fury, gold fire blazing in my eyes.
Immediately, I grabbed the nearest goblet, it was full of dark red wine, and I hurled it across a nearby wall as it smashed into pieces.
"Dammit!" I cussed out loud in fury, my heart racing nonstop.
Glass shattered all over the floor as wine ran down the stone like blood.
"Over my dead body will I let this happen, never!"