The Hidden Luna
Chapter 1
In the Silver Crest Pack, everyone knew their place.
At the top stood the Alpha - powerful, commanding, feared. Beneath him were the Betas, the second in command and Gammas, warriors whose strength protected the pack. And then there were the rest: the families, the young wolves still learning their shifts, the elders who carried the pack's history.
And finally...
The omegas.
The ones who existed mostly to serve.
Lira had grown up knowing exactly where she stood in that order.
At the very bottom.
The morning bell echoed through the packhouse just before sunrise. It was the signal that the day had begun, but Lira was awake long before it rang.
She always was.
Years of habit had trained her body to rise early, quietly, before anyone could accuse her of being lazy or flog her being slow.
The packhouse kitchen smelled faintly of smoke and warm bread as she moved across the stone floor, sweeping away the dust that had gathered overnight and took away the leftovers from the night before . Outside, the training field had already come alive with the sounds of warriors sparring.
The clash of fists.
The thud of bodies hitting the ground.
Occasionally, the sharp voice of Beta Rylan correcting someone.
Lira tried not to look through the open window while she worked.
Watching them sometimes made something in her chest ache - something she didn't fully understand.
She had never trained with the pack.
Never learned to fight.
In fact, she had never even shifted.
At nineteen years old, she was still completely human.
Which was another reason the others called her weak,stupid and useless.
"Lira!"
The voice cut through the kitchen.
She immediately straightened.
"Yes, Beta?" she answered quickly.
Beta Rylan stepped inside, tall and broad-shouldered, his presence filling the room like a storm cloud. His sharp eyes swept across the kitchen before settling on her.
"The Alpha has guests arriving tomorrow for the Full Moon Gathering," he said.
Lira nodded.
"Yes, Beta."
"You'll be helping prepare the hall."
"Yes, Beta."
"And try not to embarrass the pack."
His words were blunt, but they weren't unusual. I had heard this so many times.
Lira lowered her eyes.
"Yes Sir, I won't."
Rylan studied her for a moment longer before turning and leaving again.
The door shut behind him with a heavy thud.
Only then did Lira release the breath she had been holding.
She had long ago learned something important about surviving here.
Speak less.
Stay quiet.
Be useful.
It was easier that way.
Lira didn't remember much about her life before the pack found her.
Just fragments.
Cold air.
Trees.
Running.
A woman's voice whispering softly in the dark.
But those memories were hazy, like dreams fading after waking.
What she knew for certain was that the Silver Crest pack had found her near their territory border when she was barely five years old.
Alone.
Hungry.
Barefoot.
No one knew where she came from.
No one knew who her parents were.
And because she had no wolf scent back then, the pack elders assumed she must have been abandoned.
The Alpha at the time allowed her to stay.
But the kindness stopped there.
She wasn't family.
She wasn't blood.
So she grew up as something in between.
Not quite a pack member.
Not quite an outsider.
Just... there, A slave
A girl who cleaned floors and carried trays.
The omega or even less.
Later that morning, Lira carried a basket of laundry across the packhouse courtyard.
The sun had risen higher now, warming the stone paths beneath her feet.
A group of young wolves sat near the training field, laughing loudly while they watched two warriors spar.
As Lira passed by, one of the girls noticed her.
"Look who it is," she said.
The others turned.
Lira recognized them immediately.
Clara and her friends.
Clara was the Alpha's daughter.
Beautiful.
Confident.
And very aware of the power that came with her name.
"Well, if it isn't our favorite servant," Clara said, tilting her head slightly.
Lira kept walking.
It was better not to respond.
But Clara wasn't finished.
"Tell me something, Lira," she continued loudly.
Lira stopped.
Slowly.
"Yes?"
Clara leaned back against the wooden fence, a mocking smile on her face.
"You're nineteen now, right?"
"Yes."
"And still no wolf?"
A few of the others snickered.
Lira felt the familiar sting of embarrassment rise in her chest.
"No," she said quietly.
Clara pretended to gasp.
"How tragic."
More laughter followed.
Lira tightened her grip on the basket.
"Maybe she's just broken," one of the girls added.
Clara shrugged dramatically.
"Maybe the Moon Goddess forgot about her."
The words lingered in the air.
For a moment, something strange stirred deep inside Lira's chest.
A faint warmth.
A whisper of something she couldn't explain.
But it vanished almost as quickly as it appeared.
Lira lowered her gaze.
"I should finish my work."
Clara waved dismissively.
"Yes, go on then. Someone has to keep the floors clean."
Lira walked away without looking back.
That night, long after the packhouse had grown quiet, Lira stepped outside.
The forest surrounding Silver Crest territory stretched endlessly beneath the moonlight.
This had always been her favorite time of day.
When the world felt calm.
When no one was watching her.
She walked slowly toward the edge of the trees, her bare feet brushing against the cool grass.
Above her, the moon hung full and bright in the sky.
Something about it always made her feel... peaceful.
Connected.
She didn't know why.
Lira closed her eyes and tilted her face upward.
A soft breeze moved through the forest.
And somewhere deep inside her...
Something stirred again.
A quiet pulse.
Almost like a heartbeat.
Far away.
Hidden.
Waiting.
But before she could understand what it meant-
A howl echoed across the mountains.
Deep.
Powerful.
Dominant.
It wasn't from the Silver Crest pack.
Lira's eyes snapped open.
Even from this distance, she could feel the strength behind that sound.
The kind of strength only an Alpha possessed.
And miles away, in the territory of the Nightfall Pack...
Alpha Kael lifted his head toward the moon.
His wolf stirred restlessly inside him.
For years he had waited.
Searched.
Hoped.
Because somewhere out there...
The Moon Goddess had created a mate meant only for him.
And soon...
Fate would finally bring them together
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