Her breath burned dry, her pant heavier than the roar of a storm threatening disaster. The rattling footsteps were no longer audible but something felt even more alarming as she stood rooted to the ground. The scent! her nose could clearly tell as it flared across the seemly deem forest.
The wind carried blood.
Her head tilted slightly, drawing a slow breath through her nose. Even the forest around her held its breath in the moment. No night creatures stirred, no leaves rustled. The river that cut through that part of the rogue territory had quieted as well. Nature stood in silence.
"Something powerful had recently bled here." Aria glared, one hand gripping the hilt of her silver blade and the other curling into claws beneath her skin. It was faint at first, she couldn't pick where exactly it was coming from. Just like a whisper under the damp scent of moss and pine—but unmistakable. Sharp. Metallic. Laced with something wild.
"Alpha blood." She hummed.
Her wolf instincts paced beneath her skin, restless and alert. But then, she knew she ought not to get into whatever it was. "Don't get involved." She mumbled those words to herself a thousand times. "Stay out of pack wars~ Don't follow blood trails. Keep your scent masked. Survive, Aria, survive." She urged on.
But her feet, without warning or hesitation, kept moving. The scent wrapped around her like invisible fingers, tugging. Curiosity took the better of her –It didn't feel like a coincidence, it felt like a summons.
Carefully, yet precisely, she traced along the path her nose had led her. A branch suddenly snapped somewhere up ahead. This made her even more cautious, her wolf instincts ready to strike at any given chance.
Soundlessly, Aria approached on– weaving between trees. Her muscles coiled. Kept to the shadows, her wolf vision picked up faint movement where the moonlight spilled onto a small clearing.
That's when she saw him.
A man—or rather, a wolf trapped in human form. Aria instinctively took a dug–he was slumped against the base of a fallen trunk. From a distance, she could tell his condition. He was in a dredged state. Between life and death, laid his faith.
She noticed his chest rose and fell in shallow and uneven breaths. His wound was quite huge– blood slicked the ground around him. Dark but shining in the moonlight.
Despite his wounds, Aria could tell by his broad shoulders– coiled with power in every line of him, even in pain, that he was no ordinary wolf. She could feel the Alpha aura pouring off him like heat from a wildfire. It made the air heavy, thick and alive.
Her heart stuttered. Her wolf froze.
Yet, Aria threaded on– His scent hit her like a punch as she knelt next to him. Smoke. Pine. Like a storm after lightning had strike. It wrapped around her senses, seeped into her bones—dangerous and addictive.
Her eyes glowed, "Mate." The word slammed through her skull like a howl. She stumbled back, hands curling into fists.
"No," she breathed, shaking her head. "No. No, no, no~ you can't be my mate….. that's never possible."
She lamented. Fate can't work in such a way–totally unacceptable by her. She was a rogue and rogues don't get bonds.
Especially not with Alphas. But it seemed fate had its own path this time around –not caring about rules or what it says.
He moved, his breath hot and pained—a groan rumbled deep in his chest as his head lifted. Even as half-conscious as he was, his golden eyes didn't miss her. They found her with terrifying precision. Her nerves instinctively stiffened and she felt that look journey down to her bones.
"You…" His voice trembled, rough and dark, like gravel and smoke. His hand weakly clenched to hers, her eyes spontaneously traced to it. " you're Mine."
Aria's pulse thundered in her ears. She tried to breathe around it, but the bond had already snapped into place—an invisible tether pulling her closer no matter how she tried to resist. After a bit of a struggle, she managed to calm her nerves, snatching away her hand in the process. His hand faintly collapsed to the ground.
" Get hold of yourself…Ria." She cried.
Just then, it hit her. Her jaw clenched and she crouched low, scanning the tree line. If he was there, meaning his pack might be close and finding her standing over their bleeding Alpha, shouts danger– they'd tear her apart before she could explain.
Aria stumbled back, her gaze scanning through the woods. " I should get going". She said but instead, found herself stepping forward. The closer she got, the louder her wolf grew, clawing to the surface. Her skin tingled and her heartbeat synced to his ragged breaths.
"Damn it," she whispered under her breath as she knelt beside him once again. " I hate this side of me–I just can't leave him here to die."
His shirt was torn open where the gash sliced across his ribs, still bleeding and deep. "Silver…" She gasped. "It had to be silver. That's why its not healing. Whoever attacked him wanted him dead."
She continued, her hand pressed against his chest to slow down the pressure of the blood while her gaze spontaneously scanned around for an effective herb to stop the bleeding.
"You're an idiot,"Aria whispered . She couldn't fathom the level of her carelessness but then, she spotted what she was looking for. " Here you are "she muttered, reaching for it.
Quickly, yet gently, she rubbed it in between her palm–dropping down the juice of the herbs into the wound. His blood was hot, sticking to her palms, and her wolf roared at the contact. Sparks danced through her veins like wildfire.
Damien's head rolled slightly, his gaze locking on her face. His voice came low, rasping, but powerful even in pain. "You smell like… moonfire," he whispered. "I've been looking for you."
The words slammed into her chest and she jerked back slightly, her heart pounding against its wall– threatening to pop out anytime soon. "He's been looking for me?"
She thought but then Aria immediately shook it off and pressed harder on the wound. "Shut up. You'll bleed out before you finish whatever creepy thing you're about to say."
A broken laugh escaped him. "Even bleeding out… I'd still find you."
His hand twitched, reaching out. His fingers brushed the hem of her jacket. She stiffened but didn't pull away. Something about that touch felt like an oath—a dangerous, unbreakable promise whispered between fated souls.
"Why me?" she whispered. She hadn't meant to say it aloud.
His lips curved into the faintest, blood-streaked smile. "Because the moon chose you." It didn't make sense to her but then, it felt warm and comforting, drifting her thoughts deeper.
A distant howl soon cut through the forest. Aria's head snapped toward the sound. " Another…. they're here… Closer." She sensed it. The Bloodfang Pack was near and she had seconds to decide. Leave him to die—or save the Alpha who'd just called her his mate.
Her wolf answered before she did. " Go, I'll be fine…I'm gonna find you again." He promised but then she couldn't . How can she abandon someone who just called her his?–also lots of questions went unanswered to which she needed answers to.
Without hesitation, Aria swiftly hooked her arms under his shoulders and hissed, "If you die on me, I swear—"
He groaned as she held him up, heavy and solid, but he didn't fight. Instead, he let his head fall against her shoulder, warm breath ghosting over neck. It burned. The bond burned.
Aria gritted her teeth, dragging him deeper into the woods, away from the howls. She wasn't doing this for him. She wasn't doing this for fate. She was doing this because something inside her—something wild and ancient—had already decided.
And fate… never lost.