Ares POV
I had never been good with emotions. Feelings were dangerous, like fire. Beautiful, but if not controlled, they burned everything to the ground. That was why I kept them buried, hidden deep inside. But Aria… she was different. She was a fire I could not extinguish. Her presence alone had a way of cracking through the walls I built around myself, and I hated how vulnerable that made me feel.
Training had been a refuge, something that kept my mind busy, my emotions at bay. But even there, it was hard not to notice how different Aria was becoming. There was a strength in her now that had not been there before. Something fierce, something that made her stand taller, walk prouder. And I could not stop watching her. I knew it was dangerous. I knew it would be a mistake, but I could not look away.
Her movements were graceful, controlled. The kind of precision a warrior possessed, not a servant. She was no longer just the Omega I had written off. No. She was becoming something more, something I had not seen before in someone of her bloodline. She was learning to fight, not just for survival, but to prove she had a right to stand beside us. As we sparred, my eyes kept drifting to her. I could not deny the shift that had taken place. It was not just physical. There was something else. Something unspoken that lingered between us. Every time our gazes met, there was an understanding. I had no words for it. But I could feel it. Her fire. My wolf responded to it, and it made me question everything I thought I knew.
After the session, I approached her. She did not flinch when I came close. That too was new.
"You are becoming a warrior," I said quietly, not sure if I was praising her or warning myself.
She gave me a look, sharp and calculating. "Maybe. But you should know, Ares, I am not doing this for you."
I knew. But the words stung all the same. I nodded, accepting the truth. There was no room for selfishness between us. Not anymore.
The days felt longer now. The weight of what had happened and the uncertainty of what was to come pressed heavily on me. Clara was still a threat, and every whisper in the halls made me wonder if someone else was plotting against me. But there was something else too.
Every time I saw Aria, I felt a tug in my chest. It was not the same hate I had once held for her. It was not the same bitterness either. It was something more. Something dangerous. I was starting to understand it now. It was attraction. Desire. The pull of a bond that had been buried beneath pain and anger.
But I could not allow myself to be distracted. Not by her. Not by the way my heart beat faster when our eyes met. Not by the way her gaze lingered on me just a moment too long. I had to focus. I had to become stronger. Because if I did not, if I let myself be weak again, everything would fall apart. I could not afford that. Not anymore.
James POV
I watched the two of them, Ares and Aria, with growing unease. There was something shifting between them, something I could not quite put my finger on. And I was not sure it was a good thing. I had always known that Ares was more than just an Alpha. He was a protector, a leader. But even he was not immune to the effects of his emotions. And Aria… I had seen her rise from the depths of despair. I had seen her become more than just a broken servant. But now, I was starting to wonder if she was heading into something she could not control.
"She is changing," I said to Ares one evening after a long day of training.
Ares looked up from his papers, his expression unreadable. "What do you mean?"
"She is stronger. But she is also more distant. More closed off."
He did not answer immediately, but I saw the flicker of something in his eyes. Guilt maybe. Regret. Whatever it was, it was enough to make me speak again.
"I am just saying, Ares, that you need to be careful. You are not the only one who feels the shift in her. She is becoming someone else, and I do not know if it is a good thing."
Ares did not respond, but I could see the weight of my words settle on his shoulders.
"Do not forget who you are, Aria," I whispered under my breath, hoping she could hear me.
I did not sleep that night. I could not.
The feeling in my gut was familiar. The same hollow dread I had felt the night Clara first betrayed us. It was like the air itself was pulsing with tension, warning of something that had not yet arrived. Something close.
I rose before the sun, heading straight for the lower tunnels. I had ordered the warriors to seal half of them the night before, but I needed to be sure. If Clara was using these underground paths to move, she knew them better than we ever did.
I carried only a dagger and a small lantern. The tunnels were damp, the walls carved out centuries ago. Back when the packs feared human hunters and had to build secret escape routes. Most warriors thought they were legend.
But I knew better. I ducked under a low arch and stopped at a wall of ancient stone. There. Fresh markings. Blood. Not enough to indicate a fatal wound, but just enough to confirm movement. I crouched, running my fingers through the red streak.
Not wolf. Human. That ruled out random rogues. Clara was hurting. Or she was using blood to throw us off. Either way, she had been here less than twenty four hours ago. And she was not alone.
I stood, senses prickling. A breath too loud. A whisper of motion behind me. I turned. Too late. A hard strike to the back of my head sent me crashing to the ground, stars bursting across my vision. I rolled, instincts kicking in, and barely dodged a second blow. My attacker lunged from the shadows. Not Clara. A male. Young. Fast. And from the look in his wild eyes, completely feral.
"You should not have followed," he hissed, voice cracked and unfamiliar.
"I do not even know who you are," I grunted, dodging a swipe and jabbing my dagger into his side.
He screamed, but it was not pain. It was fury. As if I had just confirmed everything he feared.
"She will rise," he spat. "You cannot stop it. None of you can."
Then he turned and fled, disappearing into the shadows as fast as he had come.
I staggered to my feet, blood roaring in my ears.
She will rise?
Who was she?
Clara?
Or…
My heart sank.
Aria.
I returned to the surface just as the sky turned gray. My head pounded. My ribs ached. But my mind was reeling. Something was wrong. Deeply wrong. Clara was not just hiding. She was building something. Gathering people. Maybe even followers. And worse, she was not doing it for power alone. She was doing it for Aria. Not to help her. Not to kill her. But to use her.
I stormed into the war chamber where Ares was reviewing patrol reports. He looked up, brow furrowed.
"You look like hell."
"There is a reason," I snapped, throwing the bloodied cloth onto the table. "Clara has allies. One attacked me in the tunnels. And he said something. Something that chilled me to the bone."
Ares stood, alert now. "What?"
I looked him dead in the eyes. "He said, she will rise."
His jaw clenched. "It could be Clara."
"No," I interrupted. "It was not said like a threat. It was said like a prophecy."
Ares paled slightly, and in that moment, I knew he had heard something similar before.
"What are you not telling me?" I demanded.
He hesitated. Then slowly, he pulled something from his coat. A torn scroll, brittle with age. Symbols written in red ink. Not just words. Marks. Sacred. Forbidden ones.
I stared. "Where did you get that?"
"The Silver Forest. Same night Aria collapsed."
"You think this is about her lineage?"
"No," he said quietly. "I think this is about her destiny."
I swallowed hard. Then we both turned toward the window, where the first rays of morning light touched the horizon.
And I could not help but whisper, "Goddess help us if Clara knows more than we do."