Triple Moon Rising

Nova's hands hurt from the hot water as she scrubbed the big pot. Her fingers were rough, like she'd been in the Shadowclaw River for hours. Her knuckles were bright red. The steam from the kitchen stuck to her face and made her dark hair stick to her cheeks. Cook yelled, "Hurry up, Omega!" "Dinner prep starts in twenty minutes, and these breakfast pots are still filthy!" "Yes, Cook. Nova mumbled, "Sorry," and scrubbed harder. If you were an omega in the Shadowclaw Pack, you were at the very bottom. Not even the dirt. And Nova had been born the lowest of the low. The kitchen door flew open. Cold winter air rushed in, along with four laughing she-wolves dressed in training gear. The cooking workers bowed their heads as they entered. Nova kept scrubbing, hoping they wouldn't notice her. No such luck. "Well, if it isn't the pack runt!" Selene's words cut through the kitchen like ice. "Still playing with soap bubbles, Nova?" Nova's shoulders tightened, but she didn't look up. Selene, the Beta's daughter, never missed a chance to tell Nova of her place. With her beautiful blonde hair and sharp blue eyes, Selene walked through the pack like she already owned it. "I asked you a question, Omega." Selene stepped closer, her expensive leather boots stopping inches from Nova's old shoes. "Just doing my job," Nova whispered, eyes fixed on the pot. Selene laughed, a sound that made Nova's stomach twist. "That's right. This is all you'll ever be good for." She knocked over a stack of clean bowls, sending them clattering across the floor. "Oops! More work for you." Nova bit her lip so hard she tasted blood. Her wolf stirred inside her—weak and small, but angry. Don't move. Don't give her what she wants. "Come on, Selene," called one of her friends. "We'll be late for combat training." "Combat training you'll never attend," Selene whispered to Nova. "Little omegas like you would just get hurt. Besides, someone has to clean the pots!" She flicked water into Nova's face and strutted away, her friends' laughing echoing behind them. Nova's cheeks burned with shame as she knelt to gather the scattered bowls. No one helped her. No one ever did. "Ignore them," whispered Tilly, an older kitchen worker. "One day they'll get what's coming." Nova nodded, but didn't believe it. In the eighteen years she'd lived in this pack, nothing had ever changed. Alphas ruled with strength. Betas enforced the rules. Omegas served. "I need air," Nova said, wiping her hands on her dirty apron. "The pots are done." Cook frowned but jerked her head toward the back door. "Ten minutes. No more!" Nova slipped outside into the crisp winter air. The kitchen yard was frozen, vegetable beds covered in frost. Beyond the garden wall, she could see warriors training in the center yard—wolves shifting forms, fighting, practicing for fights Nova would never join. She spotted them immediately. The Alpha's triplet kids, towering above the other warriors. Kai, the heir, barking directions with his father's authority. Rune, smirking as he pinned another wolf in battle. And Zane, standing apart, watching with thoughtful eyes. They were everything she wasn't—powerful, admired, free. Nova turned away, headed for the only place that gave her peace. She ducked behind the storage shed and squeezed through a gap in the stone wall that nobody ever noticed. The way to the pack library was overgrown. Few wolves bothered with old books when they could be training or hunting. Perfect for Nova. The library door creaked as she pushed it open. Dust danced in the beams of light coming through high windows. Rows of ancient shelves stretched into the shadows, filled with lost stories. "Hello, books," Nova whispered, running her fingers along cracked spines. Here, she wasn't just an omega. She was an explorer, a thinker, a wolf who knew things others didn't. Nova climbed the spiral staircase to her favorite spot. A worn cushion waited in the window seat, put there during her many secret visits. Outside, she could see the full Shadowclaw territory—pine forests, stone buildings, and beyond that, mountains touching the winter sky. From a loose floorboard beneath the couch, she pulled out her treasures: a silver locket with her mother's picture, a tattered map, and her special book—"Ancient Wolf Bloodlines and Curses." Nova's parents had died when she was a baby. Pack gossip said they were rogues, wild wolves killed for trespassing. All she had left was the locket and weird dreams of wolves trapped in ice. The book fell open to a marked page. Nova traced the picture of a three-phase moon—crescent, half, and full—forming a circle. The Triple Moon, sign of the wolf goddess. "Someday," she whispered to herself, "I'll figure out why this symbol keeps appearing in my dreams." A bell rang in the distance. Dinner preparation time. Nova sighed, tucking her gifts away. She'd be punished if she was late. As she hurried down the stairs, a voice froze her in place. "What are you doing here, Omega?" Nova whirled around, heart hammering against her chest. Standing in the shadows was Alpha Cyrus, head of Shadowclaw Pack. His gray-streaked beard and scarred face showed years of fights won. His eyes, steel gray like his son Kai's, narrowed at her. Nova dropped to her knees, head bowed. "I'm sorry, Alpha. I was just—" "Looking at books? Omegas don't need to read." His voice wasn't angry, just confused. "What use are stories to a kitchen wolf?" Nova swallowed hard. "I like learning, Alpha." Surprisingly, he chuckled. "Curious little thing, aren't you? Just like—" He stopped himself, face hardening again. "Get back to work." "Yes, Alpha." Nova scrambled to her feet, rushing past him. "Wait." His order stopped her at the door. "Tomorrow is the Winter Moon Festival. Your eighteenth birthday, isn't it?" Nova blinked in shock. How did the Alpha know her birthday? "Y-yes, Alpha." "Interesting timing." He studied her face with an intensity that made her skin itch. "The Mate Reveal Ceremony happens tomorrow night as well." Nova's heart sank. The ceremony where wolves eighteen and older found their fated mates. Everyone knew Selene expected to be matched with one of the Alpha's sons—probably Kai, the future pack boss. "Don't look so worried, little wolf," Alpha Cyrus said, his face unreadable. "The Moon Goddess has plans for us all—even omegas." Nova nodded and slipped out the door, confusion swirling in her head. Why would the Alpha speak to her? Why remember her birthday? Racing back to the kitchen, she didn't notice Zane, the youngest triplet, watching from the shadows of the training grounds, his eyes following her with curious interest. In the kitchen, chaos met her. Warriors would feast tonight before tomorrow's party. Cook's face was red with anger. "Where have you been?" she asked. "Take these plates!" Nova grabbed the stack of plates, moving quickly between tables. As she worked, Selene and her friends entered, fresh from training. "There's our little pot scrubber," Selene announced loudly. She stepped right in Nova's path. Time seemed to slow. Nova tried to stop, but motion carried her forward. The plates wobbled in her hands. Selene's foot slid out, catching Nova's ankle. Nova fell forward. Plates smashed against the stone floor. Food spilled everywhere. The entire kitchen went quiet. Selene's beautiful mouth curved into a smile. "Clumsy omega," she whispered. "Can't even carry plates right." Nova knelt in the mess, shame burning her cheeks. Every eye in the kitchen watched. Some with pity, most with anger. "Clean it up," Cook sighed. As Nova gathered broken ceramic, her fingers closed around a jagged piece. For one wild moment, she pictured standing up, showing Selene and everyone that even omegas have limits. A shadow fell across her. Nova looked up to see one of the Alpha's kids standing over her. Her heart stopped. It wasn't Kai, the cold son. It wasn't Rune, the cruel flirt. It was Zane—the quiet one with knowing eyes. He knelt beside her, his broad shoulders covering Selene's view. Without a word, he picked up a broken plate piece. "What are you doing?" Nova whispered, shocked. Zane's green eyes met hers. "Helping." Before Nova could answer, a howl sounded from the center yard—the Alpha's call. Something important was happening. Zane stood quickly. "Tomorrow," he whispered so only she could hear. "The Moon Ceremony changes everything." He slipped a folded paper into her apron pocket, then was gone. Nova's hand shook as she felt the note burning against her hip like a hot coal. Around her, wolves rushed outside to answer the Alpha's call. In the chaos, no one noticed the strange blue glow starting to form on Nova's wrist—the first shimmer of a mark that would shatter everything she thought she knew about herself.