Rogue King’s Wild Luna

A shiver of excitement ran through me and I felt goosebumps erupt in my arms —Today was the day!

“Scarlett,” my best friend, Aria, whispered, linking her arms with mine. “I can't believe this, we are finally going to shift.”

I nodded, a smile dancing on the corners of my mouth. I couldn't let it show how enthusiastic I was about this but deep down, my stomach had tightened around itself and I was eager for what the shift held.

The Rite of Transformation was held for young werewolves who'd just turned eighteen and we were to be led to the forest where we would be left under the moonlight and the Goddess’ care so we could shift into our wolf form “What color do you think your wolf is going to be?” My younger brother, Finn, asked sneaking up behind us.

I frowned at him. “You are not supposed to be here,”

“Why not? No one is watching.” He shrugged, unfazed.

I glanced around us and the older members of our pack were scattered around, discussing amongst themselves. I caught a glimpse of Caspian and he smiled at me before turning back to something his father, the Alpha of the Moonlake pack—our pack— was saying.

Caspian and I were engaged and we were to get mated after our Rite of Transformation ceremony. We’d been close friends since childhood so it made sense to everyone that we were to get mated.

“Black,” I said, turning to my brother. “I think my wolf’s color is going to be black.”

Someone scoffed behind me. “A black wolf has not been seen in centuries. What do you think you are?”

I ignored her.

“How can you be so sure? A black wolf is incredibly powerful and they're known to be one of the greatest kind of wolves to have ever existed.” Aria said, a hint of nervousness in her tone.

I folded my arm across my chest. “And that's exactly why I want one. I'm going to be the most powerful…”

A sharp voice cut me short, it was my father, the Beta. “Today, you will take a step toward becoming your true selves. Do not be scared of what is to come, you are all powerful werewolves, and tomorrow you will wake up to that!”

Cheers exploded in the air but my eyes remained on my father. I noticed the way his eyes kept darting through the crowd and I registered something strange in his expression. All of that died down when he approached me and placed a hand on my shoulder, affection brimming in his smile not noticing my brother who immediately slunk off, blending with the walls.

“Tonight, darling. Are you scared?” My father asked.

“No, Beta,” I said.

He chuckled, shaking his head at me. “I know you'll do great. You always do and I'm proud of you.”

I quietly took the compliment and said nothing in response. We were led through the thicket by the Alpha, Beta, Priestess, and a few other pack members, deeper and deeper we traveled into the dark forest. Leading my group, all twelve of us, right behind his father was Caspian and he looked every inch like the leader he was being honed to be.

Pride swelled in me at the sight. Caspian was going to be Alpha one day and I would be right by his side as Luna and one of the most powerful werewolves– I felt it in my heart and I knew without a doubt.

“Wipe that smirk off your face,” Someone muttered, bumping into me as we came to a stop in the heart of the forest where a ring of well-placed stones surrounded us.

The priestess stepped forward with the blessed goblet and each of us moved toward her to take a drink. Caspian took the first sip and stepped aside. I went next, the liquid was bitter and thick, coating my throat with its ugliness as I swallowed. I felt its warmth spread through me as I walked away to stand next to Caspian.

Our fingers brushed and I felt the air cackle with electricity. My heart rate increased and from the corner of my eyes, I saw the blush that spread over Caspian’s face at our closeness.

“Good luck,” he whispered.

“Here you will begin this journey on your own.” The Alpha announced, his voice carrying through the unnerving silence of the forest as they slowly backed away, leaving us to ourselves. “Go on and be great!”

Instantly, pain seared through me, consuming me and a wave of unbearable heat ripped through my veins forcing me to my knees. From the screams that echoed all around me, I could tell I wasn't the only one suffering this reaction.

A gasp escaped me as I felt the breath leave my body, my bones cracking as they broke and reformed, my skin stretching to accommodate something. And then, suddenly, it all went dark.

It must have been minutes after but the next time my eyes opened, the world had changed right before me. The forest was sharper, every detail of it painfully clear in my head, sounds were harsher, resounding in my eardrums so loud I feared I would go insane. I could feel something powerful coursing through my bones; wild and untamed and I knew something was wrong.

Its presence was dark, clawing at the edges of my mind, teetering me to the brink.

Before I could react, a savage growl erupted deeply from my throat, causing the world around me to tremble in raw fear. I lunge forward, controlled by something dark and powerful, the rage thrusting me forward.

All around me, screams echoed but I barely registered anything other than my own bloodlust as I attacked.

***

I slowly woke up to the noise around me—it sounded distant and foreign to my ears. I let out a small hiss and murmured to myself, swearing at Finn to be quiet.

I turned to my side to get more comfortable and it hit me that I was lying on the ground, thorns and twigs piercing my skin. I shot up just as someone yelled:

“What have you done?” The priestess cried, falling to her knees, her mournful voice echoing.

I glanced around me, my eyes registering the mauled bodies around me, bloodied and disfigured.

“No…” The word was a whisper, a plea toward Caspian or what was once Caspian. I crawled toward him, my hands shaking. “This can’t be, please, Caspian, no.”

But it was. I did this. The realization hit me like a blow, and I felt a sob rise in my throat. The visual memory was fuzzy in my head but the sounds were imprinted permanently in my brain; the cries, the pleas, the sounds of agony, the desperation to live.

How could I have done this? How did I lose control so completely? What kind of a monster am I?

“Wild Wolf!” The shout came from the edge of the clearing, and I turned to see someone pointing a shaky finger at me. “She is a Wild Wolf!”

I managed to force myself to stand upright and twelve mauled bodies lay lifeless around me, the smell of blood and death hung thickly in the air.

My father stood opposite me, his face pale with horror. “You… you are a Wild Wolf?” He whispered, his voice laced with disgust and hatred.

I shook my head, silent tears falling down my face. “No, Dad, please…” my voice broke in a mix of pain and fear.

It wasn't possible, I couldn't be a Wild Wolf. Wild wolves were violent, bloodthirsty monsters who killed without remorse. Wild wolves got a thrill from violent killings and they were untameable, no one was spared from their brutality.

But when my eyes caught the body of my best friend hanging discarded on a tree’s branch, her insides violently torn by what must have been claws, it hit me squarely on the chest —I was a Wild Wolf and I had murdered twelve people last night.

“She is to be killed!” Someone yelled. “Kill the Wild Wolf!”

Panic surged in me and I glanced at my father for help but his eyes were cold and distant, contempt brimming in his expression.

“Murderer!” He spat.

“My son,” The Alpha’s broken voice whispered, as he took Caspian’s lifeless hand in his, tears streaming down his face. “She killed my son...”

The ground was stained with blood, mingling with the crushed grass and broken branches. Everywhere around us was glaring evidence of what I had done, the grave unforgivable sin I'd committed last night, and the pain twisted my insides—I killed everyone. I killed my friends, my mate. They all had their families waiting back home for them and I murdered every single one of them.

“I'm sorry…” The words fell from my lips, weak and useless. “Please, please, I didn't mean to… I don't know how it happened.”

As the crowd began to gather and with the realization of what had happened, their tears and screams intensified until it felt like a thousand knives stabbing me from all sides. Pain ravaged me, tearing at my soul ferociously until I could no longer bear to be in my own skin.

The Alpha straightened up, his face contorted in sorrow, his eyes brimming with tears.

“The rules of the land forbid us from killing a Wild Wolf,” he declared, his voice breaking with grief. “And that is the only reason she is to be spared.”

Another wave of cries erupted from the crowd. I'd never felt so devastated and I felt the weight of my guilt crushing me. Fear shook my core and I could only watch in agony.

“Leave, and never return, Scarlett Reed!” The Alpha commanded, his voice cold and final. “You are no longer a part of the Moonlake Pack and have been deemed a Wild Wolf and a rogue. Any attempt to return will be met with violence. If your family chooses to leave with you, they too will be stripped of their position and will no longer be considered members of this pack.”

All eyes turned to my father, the Beta, who bowed his head in submission. “The loyalty of my family lies with the Moonlake pack and to you, Alpha. I have no ties with a Wild Wolf.”

The Earth shattered at his words. For a moment, it was silent, and then the world exploded around me. Each broken fragment slammed into me, forcing itself into my skin and piercing every inch of me, pain crumbling me from the inside out.

My legs shook in fear and I swayed, my surroundings faded into nothingness. The only words that echoed in my head were my father’s denouncement: “I have no ties with the Wild Wolf.”

—I was no longer his daughter, no longer the Scarlett he was proud of. I was nothing more than a Wild Wolf, a murderer banished from her pack.

“No!” Someone yelled, and I slowly registered it as my brother’s voice “No, please! Please, don't!” Finn continued to beg but my older sister, Alyssa held him back to stop him from running to me.

“Let me go with her, please. I will go with Scarlett, please, please, let me go…” Finn pleaded but Alyssa continued to restrain him, a distant cousin assisting her. Beside my sister, my mother stood quietly, her hands clasped in front of her and she watched me with blank eyes.

They hated me. They all hated me and wanted nothing to do with me.

“Go!” My father barked. “Get the hell out of here and never return!”

I took one last look at Caspian, his eyes, once so full of life and laughter, were now empty, staring up at the sky. I stumbled back, bile rising in my throat.

This couldn’t be real. It must be a nightmare. But as I staggered away from them, tears blurring my vision and my heart shattering with each step, I didn't wake up still, the thorns painfully piercing through me as I stumbled deeper into the forest, desperate to escape my own self. The reality sunk in and I'd never felt so alone in my life.

The wilderness blurred around me as I ran deeper into it, ignoring the pain that snagged at me. My legs moved on their own, fleeing to get away from the echoes of the cries and insults that I could still hear being hauled at me from the distance.

I’d been banished, and the reality was beginning to set in slowly. I, Scarlett, who'd never stepped out of our region had now been expelled from my pack. I had nowhere to go but still, I ran because it gave me a sense of purpose. If I was lucky enough, death could find me soon.

I wished they'd killed me too. But even death wouldn’t be enough as an atonement for my sins.

‘‘Stop or you'll end up falling to your own death at this rate. Don't be stupid!’’—a scathing voice resounded in my head, its tone laced with arrogance and bitterness.

I came to a startling halt in the middle of the forest.

“What are you?” I asked shakily, balling my hands into fists.

‘Wild Wolf,’ She replied, her voice cold and detached. "That is what your kind address me as, no?’

She was my wolf and she was communicating. My wolf that had killed twelve people in a fit of rage, the one who’d killed Caspian and Aria and ruined my life by getting me banished from the pack, branding me as a rogue.

Being branded as a rogue was one of the worst things that could happen to any werewolf. As a rogue, a werewolf was subjected to a lawless life where they either kill or be killed.

‘‘It's good you know that so you best quit your pity party and get yourself prepared. The worst is yet to happen,’’ my wolf said haughtily.

“You killed my friends!” I yelled enraged, in the silence of the forest, my voice bounced back at me, ricocheting through still air. “You killed my mate and ruined my life!”

My wolf’s response was devoid of remorse. “Good riddance. That boy was no fit for someone like us”

A scathing response lay at the tip of my tongue but before I could retort, the rustle of bushes cut me off and I watched in horror as a group of five armed men emerged, their leader, a bulky, heavily built man stepped forward, his blade scraping the floor as he approached.

“What’s a pretty girl like you doing out here?” He asked, his voice slippery with lust. “Come here, sweetheart, let me show you what a real man feels like.”

Laughter echoed from behind him and the other men looked at each other, sadistic expressions on their faces. “I advise you to stay away from me.” I warned in a loud, clear voice.

The leader raised an eyebrow. “And if we don’t?”

I eyed them with a bored expression. “Fine, if you are going to kill me then you better make it quick.”

Lethal silence met my words and they glanced at each other once again but this time, questions in their eyes. I didn't care about living anymore, there was nothing to live for.

I didn't deserve to live not after what I’d done, not when I was still drenched in the blood of the people I had killed. If these men were going to harm me, I would gladly take it.

“You are the Wild Wolf, aren't you?” One of them asked, his voice quiet and uncertain.

I didn't respond but my silence seemed to confirm their suspicions. The leader’s eyes gleamed with renewed interest. “Is that so? I heard we had a Wild Wolf running around this region but I didn't think I’d have the honor of meeting you this soon.”

Another man stepped forward. “And killing you,” he said with disgust, pulling out his blade and taking a fighting stance.

“You are nothing but dirt polluting our blessed land. You and your kind do not deserve to live!” Someone else spat at me.

“Get her!” The leader commanded and the men lunged toward me with their weapons, rage consuming their expression.

“Kill the Wild Wolf!” They barked, blades poised in the air, glinting, ready for attack.

I stood still and held my breath, my eyes shutting on their own as I waited for death to come.