The forest at the western border of Silver Crest was always quiet at dawn.
Tall pines stretched toward the pale sky. Mist clung to the ground like a thin veil. Patrol duty at this hour was usually calm. Routine. Predictable.
Today, nothing felt predictable.
Six warriors moved through the trees in tight formation. Their boots were silent against the damp earth. Each of them was trained. Disciplined. Loyal to Alpha Mark.
But the air felt wrong.
It pressed against their skin.
It vibrated faintly in their bones.
Gamma Eric slowed first. He raised a hand, signaling the others to stop.
"You feel that?" he asked quietly.
Warrior Cole nodded. "It is like pressure."
Another pulse rolled through the forest.
Not sound.
Not wind.
Dominance.
It slammed into them without warning.
Cole staggered back and grabbed his head.
Eric's wolf surged forward violently inside him. His vision flashed silver. His heart rate spiked.
"Control it," he muttered to himself.
But something was pushing.
Hard.
Cole's breathing turned ragged. He looked at Eric, but his gaze was unfocused.
"You are challenging me," Cole growled suddenly.
Eric blinked. "What?"
"Do not pretend," Cole snapped. His claws extended halfway, slicing through his gloves. "You think you can lead a patrol better than me."
The accusation made no sense.
They had trained together for years.
Eric felt anger rise inside him. Sharp. Irrational.
"I never said that," he shot back.
"You do not have to say it."
Another dominance wave struck.
This one is stronger.
Two other warriors dropped to one knee, clutching their chests.
Cole shifted partially without control. Fur crawled across his arms. His jaw elongated slightly.
"Stand down," Eric ordered, but his own voice trembled with aggression.
Cole lunged.
The impact knocked Eric into a tree. Bark shattered under the force. Eric's wolf surged fully forward in response.
Within seconds, two trained Silver Crest warriors were fighting like rivals during a challenge.
No control.
No restraint.
The remaining four tried to intervene, but the pressure in the air intensified. Their instincts twisted. Every dominance hierarchy inside them blurred.
One shoved another.
"Back off," someone growled.
"You are pushing me."
"I am not."
Another wave.
This time all six lost balance.
Shifting began uncontrollably. Half formed claws. Snarls. Teeth bared.
It was not personal.
It was instinct distorted.
Back at the pack house, Stacy froze mid step.
Her hand tightened around the stair railing.
She felt it.
Sharp.
Violent.
Different from earlier chaos.
This was directed aggression.
"Mark," she said breathlessly.
He was already turning toward her.
"You feel it?"
"Yes."
His phone vibrated at the same time.
He answered immediately.
"Report."
It was Gamma Eric.
But his voice was strained and broken by growls.
"Alpha… we… cannot control it."
Mark's posture straightened instantly.
"Location."
"Western border."
Mark did not hesitate.
"Do not kill. Do not escalate. I am coming."
He ended the call and grabbed his jacket.
Stacy stepped forward instinctively.
"I am coming too."
His eyes hardened.
"It is not safe."
She shook her head.
"If I can calm them, distance will make it worse."
He studied her for a brief second.
Then nodded once.
"Stay behind me."
Within minutes, they were racing toward the western border in Mark's black SUV. The engine roared through the winding forest road.
Another surge hit.
Stronger.
Mark's hands tightened on the steering wheel. His breathing became shallow for a second before stabilizing.
Stacy placed her hand lightly against the dashboard.
The pressure eased slightly.
He noticed.
He did not comment.
At the border clearing, chaos unfolded.
Two warriors were fully shifted now, massive wolves snapping and circling each other violently. The others were half shifted, torn between human and wolf.
Blood stained the grass.
Eric had a deep gash across his shoulder.
Cole's eye was swelling shut.
The moment Mark stepped out of the vehicle, his dominance flared instinctively.
"Stand down."
The command carried power, but it flickered unevenly.
The wolves hesitated.
But only for a second.
Another dominance wave ripped through the clearing.
Cole lunged again.
Mark moved instantly. He intercepted the attack with brutal precision, slamming Cole aside without killing force.
"Enough," he roared.
The sound shook the trees.
But the instability did not fully recede.
Stacy stepped out of the vehicle.
"Stay back," Mark ordered.
She ignored him.
Not recklessly.
With focus.
She walked slowly toward the clearing, heart pounding but steady.
The aggression in the air clawed at her skin. It felt like static electricity, sharp and biting.
She closed her eyes.
Breathe.
Her wolf rose inside her, not wild, not angry.
Calm.
She extended that calm outward.
Not as a command.
As reassurance.
The pressure shifted.
One of the half shifted warriors blinked and stumbled backward as clarity returned.
Cole, still in full wolf form, froze mid snarl.
Eric's breathing slowed.
Mark felt it instantly.
The dominance waves softened.
The clearing grew quieter.
One by one, the warriors dropped out of partial shift.
Cole collapsed onto the grass, breathing heavily.
Silence replaced chaos.
Only the sound of wind through pine trees remained.
Mark turned slowly toward Stacy.
She stood still, eyes open now, but something about her presence had changed.
The forest felt steadier around her.
Eric pushed himself up painfully.
"Alpha," he said hoarsely, "it felt like a challenge. But no one started it."
Mark nodded once.
"I know."
Cole wiped blood from his mouth.
"I thought he was trying to take rank," he muttered, shame flooding his expression.
Eric shook his head. "I was not."
They both looked confused.
Not angry anymore.
Confused.
Mark stepped forward, scanning each warrior carefully.
"No one is punished," he said firmly. "This was not personal failure."
The men visibly relaxed.
Stacy moved closer to Mark, but kept a respectful distance.
"You felt it too?" she asked Eric gently.
He nodded.
"Yes, Luna. It was like someone turned the volume of instinct too high."
Her stomach tightened.
That was exactly what it felt like to her.
Dominance amplified without anchor.
Mark looked at her thoughtfully.
"It worsens during patrol," he observed.
She understood immediately.
"Because they are away from pack center."
He nodded.
Silver Crest territory radiated pack bond energy strongest near the Alpha house.
The farther warriors moved from center, the weaker stabilizing influence became.
Which meant something terrifying.
If the instability was tied to her presence…
Then distance mattered.
Another low pulse rippled faintly across the land.
Weaker than before.
Because she was standing here.
Mark's gray eyes met hers.
"Stay."
It was not a command.
It was a realization.
He turned to his warriors.
"Return to pack house. Medical check for everyone. No solo patrols until further notice."
They obeyed immediately.
As the clearing emptied, Mark remained beside her.
The forest felt unnaturally quiet now.
He spoke quietly.
"This is spreading."
"Yes."
"It is not random."
"No."
He inhaled deeply, steadying himself.
"If border patrol destabilizes first, outer packs will collapse before central territories."
She nodded slowly.
"And if multiple Alphas fall at once," she added, "rogues will rise."
He did not argue.
He already knew.
The political consequences were terrifying.
She looked at him carefully.
"Do you think the Council knows this?"
"They will," he replied.
A brief silence passed between them.
For five years, she had stood beside him in ceremonies.
In meetings.
In pack gatherings.
But never like this.
Never as someone essential.
He looked at her again, not as a former wife.
As a stabilizing force.
"You kept them from killing each other," he said.
Her voice was quiet.
"I did not mean to cause this."
His jaw tightened.
"You did not cause it alone."
That was the closest he had come to admitting shared responsibility.
Another faint tremor moved through the land.
This time she sensed it from farther away.
Not Silver Crest.
Another territory.
She exhaled slowly and focused.
The tremor eased.
Mark watched her carefully.
"How far can you feel it?" he asked.
She swallowed.
"Farther than before."
The truth settled between them.
Her power was growing.
Or awakening.
And with each dominance wave, the continent edged closer to chaos.
Mark stepped closer, but still kept respectful space between them.
"You will not leave my side during the summit," he said calmly.
This time she did not resist.
"Then do not stand too far from me either," she replied softly.
He held her gaze.
For the first time since she signed the papers, something unspoken passed between them.
Not romance.
Not regret.
Recognition.
They were tied to something larger than their marriage.
The forest wind shifted direction.
Carrying distant howls.
Silver Crest had survived this patrol.
But it was only the beginning.
Across the continent, more borders would break.
More warriors would turn on each other.
And every time it happened, the truth would grow clearer.
The divorce had not weakened the world.
It had exposed its fragile foundation.