Nyx’s POV

The whispers in Ashenfang Pack carried an unease that settled deep in my bones. At first, I dismissed it as idle gossip, the kind that always swirled among wolves with too much time on their hands. But the longer I listened, the harder it was to ignore. There was something wrong—something lurking beneath the surface.

I stood at the edge of the training grounds, my gaze locked on Darius as he led the warriors through their drills. He was every bit the Alpha—strong, commanding, completely in control. Yet the air around the pack had changed. A tension ran through the ranks, an unspoken fear that no one dared to voice aloud.

"Did you hear?" a hushed voice floated from nearby.

I turned my head slightly, careful to keep my expression neutral. Two she-wolves huddled together, their words barely audible over the sounds of clashing weapons.

"About the rogues?" one of them asked.

The other nodded. "They’re organizing. Word is, they’re forming alliances. Fireclaw isn’t as untouchable as it used to be."

A chill crept up my spine. My wolf stirred uneasily, sensing my growing anxiety. Rogue alliances? That made no sense. Rogues were loners by nature—wild, unpredictable, and chaotic. They didn’t form alliances. They didn’t follow leaders.

But if they were…

I clenched my fists, trying to shake the dread clawing at my chest. It’s just gossip, I told myself. Yet, deep down, I knew better.

"Are you alright?"

Elara’s voice pulled me from my thoughts. I glanced at her, finding concern in her sharp gaze.

"I don’t know," I admitted, keeping my voice low as we walked away from the training grounds. "There’s been talk. About the rogues. About unrest in the pack."

Elara’s expression darkened. "I’ve heard the same. The warriors are uneasy. Darius is strong, but if the rogues are organizing, it could be a real threat."

I shook my head. "Why would they do that? Rogues don’t work together. It’s not in their nature."

Elara hesitated before answering, her voice grim. "Unless someone is leading them."

I stopped mid-step, her words landing like a blow to the stomach. "Leading them?" My throat went dry. "Who would be foolish enough to try?"

"I don’t know," she admitted. "But if it’s true, Fireclaw is in danger. And Darius—" She exhaled sharply, casting a glance toward the training grounds. "He might not see it until it’s too late."

A sick feeling settled in my gut. Darius had always been a strong leader, but lately, he’d been distracted. By Thalia. By the strain in our relationship. By everything except the growing danger looming over us.

"I need to tell him," I said, determination stiffening my spine.

Elara gave me a skeptical look. "And you think he’ll listen?"

I hesitated. Darius had barely listened to me about Thalia—what made me think this would be any different?

"He has to," I whispered, but even I wasn’t convinced.

---

That night, I found Darius in his office, the scent of pine and smoke wrapping around me like a ghost of what we used to be. The space was filled with scattered papers and half-rolled maps.

"Nyx, I’m busy," he said without looking up.

I closed the door behind me, my heart hammering. "I know, but this is important."

His eyes flicked up, irritation flashing in them. "If this is about Thalia again, I don’t want to hear it."

"It’s not," I said, though her name always sat bitterly on my tongue. "It’s about the pack. The rogues."

His frown deepened. "What about them?"

I took a step closer. "They’re forming alliances. There’s unrest in the pack. People are talking, Darius. Even the warriors are on edge."

Darius leaned back in his chair, his expression unreadable. "And you believe them?"

"Yes," I said firmly. "Darius, what if this isn’t just talk? What if someone is leading them? You can’t ignore this."

His gaze darkened, his Alpha presence pressing against me. "I know my responsibilities, Nyx. I don’t need you questioning how I lead."

My stomach twisted. He wasn’t listening.

"I’m not questioning you," I whispered. "I just want you to take this seriously. For the pack."

He stood, turning away. "There’s no danger," he said, his tone final. "You’re worrying over nothing."

I swallowed back the sting of his words, realizing that he had already made up his mind. He wouldn’t listen. And that terrified me.

Nyx’s POV

The night air pressed against me like an unseen force, thick with something far more sinister than just the chill of the wind. Every instinct within me was on high alert as I moved through the dense trees, keeping to the shadows, silent and watchful. For days, an uneasy feeling had coiled itself around my chest, whispering that something was wrong. Something dangerous.

Then I saw her—Thalia.

She stood at the edge of our territory, her posture rigid, her gaze locked onto the darkness before her. But she wasn’t alone. A figure lingered just beyond the treeline, cloaked in shadow, their presence exuding an unfamiliar, almost menacing energy. This wasn’t a Fireclaw wolf. This was something else. Something wrong.

Lowering myself, I pressed against the trunk of a tree, my breath slow and measured. I strained to hear them over the rustling of the leaves, my heart hammering in my chest.

"I told you," Thalia’s voice was sharp, cutting through the night like the edge of a blade. "Darius is blind. He’ll never see it coming. Once I get my hands on that stone, it’s over."

A chill spread through me. My fingers curled into the damp earth as I tried to process her words. Darius? What was she planning?

The figure shifted, stepping slightly into the moonlight. Their face remained obscured, but their voice was rough, skeptical. "And you’re sure you can handle him? He’s not weak, Thalia. If he catches even a hint of what you’re doing—"

She laughed then, a sound devoid of warmth, of anything remotely human. "I have him wrapped around my little finger," she sneered. "He’s been eating out of my palm since the start. Darius is too blinded by his own desires to see the truth. His so-called mate," she spat the word like it disgusted her, "is nothing but a footnote in his story. When I take over the Ashenfang Pack, she won’t even be a memory."

My stomach lurched.

It wasn’t just manipulation—it was a game to her. A calculated, deliberate deception designed to strip Darius of everything, and he… he didn’t even see it.

The realization felt like ice settling in my bones.

But Thalia wasn’t finished.

"Once I control Fireclaw, the royals are next," she continued, her voice brimming with confidence. "The rogues are already falling in line. When the time is right, we’ll move against them. No more hierarchy. No more ruling class. We’ll take it all."

The blood in my veins turned to fire.

The rumors had been true. Every whispered warning, every hushed conversation behind closed doors—Thalia had been orchestrating something much larger than I could have imagined. This wasn’t about Darius, or me, or even Fireclaw. This was a war.

The figure watching her seemed unconvinced. "Darius is loyal to the royals," they reminded her, their voice low, cautious. "He won’t just turn against them."

"Not willingly," Thalia admitted. "But once I have full control of the pack, he won’t have a choice. He’ll either submit, or he’ll fall like the rest of them."

I pressed a hand against my mouth to stop the growl rising in my throat. She was planning to turn Fireclaw against the royals. Against the kingdom. And she thought Darius would be too far under her spell to stop her.

I needed to warn him. Now.

But as I shifted, trying to ease back into the cover of the trees, the conversation took a darker turn.

"What about her?" the figure asked, nodding toward the packhouse in the distance. I stiffened.

Nyx. They meant me.

Thalia’s expression twisted into something cruel. "She’s insignificant," she said dismissively. "Once Darius claims me as his Luna, she’ll be forced out. And if she refuses…" She paused, her eyes gleaming with malice. "I’ll handle it."

A sharp, icy terror shot through me. She wasn’t talking about exile. She wasn’t talking about pushing me aside politically.

She was talking about eliminating me.

For a long, tense moment, I stayed frozen, every muscle locked, my breath shallow as I tried to keep my fury in check. My wolf howled inside me, desperate to tear through the trees, to confront her right then and there. But I couldn’t. Not yet.

Because if I did, she’d find a way to twist it.

Darius wouldn’t believe me—not without proof. Not when she had already sunk her claws so deep into his mind. If I went to him now with nothing but accusations, she’d make me look like a jealous fool.

I had to be smart. I had to be patient.

Gritting my teeth, I carefully backed away, my movements slow, deliberate. Every step away from that clearing felt heavier, as if the weight of what I had just heard was pressing down on me.

But one thing had become painfully clear.

Darius was in danger.

The pack was in danger.

And whether or not he believed me, I wasn’t going to let Thalia tear Fireclaw apart. Not while I still had breath in my body.