Chapter 5

Aaronne's POV

A thousand needles prick at my skin–suddenly, I feel sick in my stomach and my finger tips are chilling cold. 

But Ronan isn’t finished yet. He raises a hand again, and the room slowly quiets, eager for more.

“This is not a new dream!” he proclaims, his voice rings passionately. “It is my grandfather’s dream! He had always dreamt of a pure world, a strong world, ruled by the true power of the Wolf!”

Ripples move through the crowd. Everyone is saying something yet I cannot hear anything. 

“A world where the Wolf will reign supreme and other shifters will cower at our feet!!” Roman continues to declare. 

Alpha Borin shifts in his seat, his proud smile tightens by a fraction.

“My own father’s… recent ill health,” Ronan continues, glancing at Borin, who now stares stiffly ahead, “has delayed our family’s destiny. But no more! He has handed over the baton to me. After my wedding, I will officially be pronounced Alpha and we will go on to conquer new lands.”

My father gives Alpha Borin a side glance and he nods.  

Ronan slams a fist gently on the table, making the cups jump. “I know what others deny! The swans are NOT extinct! They hide, like cowards, using tricks and magic to cloak their filthy nests!”

A gasp, then murmurs, ripples through the pack mates. Many doubt his words due to the fact that it was well known that Swans are extinct. 

My father leans forward in his chair, looking at Ronan as he asks, “Magic, you say? What proof do you have of this, Ronan?”

Ronan turns to him, dropping his voice like he is about to share a dark secret. “The lakes that cannot be found on maps, Alpha Kieran. They cloud the minds of weaker creatures and hide their homes with glamours. But I have studied the old ways and I can pierce their veils.”

Stepmother Lyra clasps her hands together, her eyes wide with excitement as she giggles, “How clever to find what is lost!”

Ronan nods at her, tipping his head in a show off style as he adds, “Exactly, Lady Lyra! And when their magic fails, they will be out in the open helplessly where my wolves and I will be waiting.”

Excusing himself from the round table, he starts pacing before the dais, painting a picture with his words. “I will not stop at one nest. I will hunt them to every hidden lake. I will cleanse ten of their packs! Twenty! Their feathers will line our halls and their silence will prove our dominance!”

My stepmother lets out a thrilled little laugh, clapping her hands happily, leaning towards my father as she says, “Such vision, Kieran. I'm so proud. Our daughter will be mated to a true visionary!”

But he isn't listening to her, his eyes are calculating as he watches the exchange but I knew he is weighing the cost against the prize. Finally his lips moves and he says, “This is a dangerous pursuit, Ronan. If they have magic…”

“They have weak magic!” Ronan interrupts confidently, his fingers waving dismissively. “The magic of illusion and fear. We have the magic of tooth, claw, strength and will!” 

My lips quiver as I stare at the exchange in the room. Suddenly, Ronan appears beside me, stroking my hair carefully as he went on, “I know things about them others have forgotten. They are bound to the half-moon’s pull, not the sun. Their power wanes in the daylight where they cannot shift quickly. This is their most vulnerable time because they are creatures of water. Trap them on land, and they will be slow and clumsy.”

‘On the good side, I was finding out more about the species I was so curious about,’ I think, trying to divert my attention and curb the unease I am feeling in my belly. But each fact is a dagger twisting in my gut. 

Ronan is doing a lot of digging, he isn’t relying on myths. He had studied his prey and he knew how to kill them… us… me.

“Their greatest weakness,” he continues, his voice drops to a conspiratorial tone that the whole hall strains to hear, “is sentiment. They mate for life. They will die to protect a mate, or a cygnet. To kill one, you simply threaten the other.”

The whole hall explodes in guffaws but where I sit, I stare at my hands on my lap, the tears sting my eyes at the cruelty my mate is planning. It isn't just murder he planned. It is torture, the destruction of everything swans are.

Alpha Borin finally speaks up, clearing his throat to restore order in the hall, his voice is gruff and he has a prideful look in his eyes.

“The boy has the heart of a conqueror. This is the next generation, Kieran. They do not just want to hold territory. They want to define it.”

“I’ve not seen a young he-wolf this brave in a long time,” My father replies. “My heart bears so much joy that he is betrothed to my daughter.”

Alpha Borin grunts. “I say we should let them. We should let the young conquer!!” 

My father looks from Borin’s hardened face to Ronan’s fiery one. He looks at the eager faces of the warriors in the hall, from both packs, united by this bloody dream.

Standing carefully to his feet, he raises his cup high declaring, “To Ronan! To the future! To a world made strong and pure! To Wolf Supremacy!”

The hall explodes in reply, raising their cups as well as they chant, “TO RONAN! TO THE FUTURE!! TO WOLF SUPREMACY!!!”

The toast is a seal on such a terrible pact. Stepmother Lyra is clapping, her cheeks flush while my father and Alpha Borin clasp arms, talking in low tones.

Ronan returns to my side and takes his seat, leaning to me, his face expecting some sort of praise. “You see, Aaronne? This is the world I will build for you, for our sons.”

I can only stare at him, unable to say a word. Not like I know what to say anyways. My eyes try to look for Anya but Ronan tips my face back to him as he gives me a cheeky smile.

“The wedding,” my father announces, cutting through the noise. “It will be on the night of the third full moon from now. A fitting time for wolves to unite!”

“Three months,” I whisper, letting out a chuckle. Ronan smiles in return, turning to dig into his meat.

‘I had such a laughable fate.’

The musicians begin a slow tune to signal the first dance which is for the betrothed who will be leading the celebration.

“Our dance, my lady,” Ronan says, extending a hand to me, as he stands up but he does not wait for me to take it before he reaches down and grabs my hands. 

Pulling me up, he leads me along till we are at the center of the floor. His arm finds my waist but his grip is way too tight.

“Dance,” he whispers, leaning into my ears and immediately I follow his lead, moving when my leg should, twirling when he let me. I am like a puppet in my own father's hall and in my own pack.

Suddenly he pulls me close, his mouth near my ear so only I could hear. “You are quiet,” he murmurs. “Are you not impressed by my plans?”

I try to speak but I cannot find my voice so I clear my throat subtly, as I respond, “They are… they are vast plans.”

“They are. And you will be by my side for all of it. The first queen of a purified world.” He chuckles, spinning me until I am so sure I am beginning to see nothing. “We will start with the lake nearest our new combined borders. I have had reports… strange lights on the water. It will be our first hunt together and a gift for my bride.”

The music swells, coming to an end. The wolves cheer for us and we both take a small bow, Ronan's hand securing tightly around my waist like I am not allowed to move an inch.

“It hurts,” I whimper a bit--when the grip is a lot but he does not stop. He then just walks to our chair.

My mind is reeling. I need advice.

What do I do? Do I hunt the hunter before I become the hunted