The gates opened again, and I shuddered internally. Ive heard that sound severally but this time, it was final. My fate was sealed.
"Your time is up," The guard growled, his hand clamping around my arm, digging into bruises that hadn't healed. He leaned close, his disgusting breathe hot against my skin. "The Lycan King will eat your heart."
My knees nearly gave out. Fear gripped my entire being. The name alone made my blood run cold. He wasn't just a king. He was death itself.
Thorne Vargan Rhukor.
The ruler of the entire Southern Realm. The king of the Obsidian Kingdom. I'd grown up on the stories. They said he was no man. No wolf. Just a beast… mad and cursed.
Of all the thousands of rumours that's gone around the realm, only one remained the same. The king killed his own mate and their unborn child. He ripped her organs out and fed it to the vultures.
My stomach churned with fear. I had never wanted to live more than I did in that moment, but death sounded merciful compared to what waited for me.
They dragged me from the cell. Outside, the air was icy cold. With the light from the torch, I saw the other slaves, tied together like cattles. They all looked the same, dull and eyes empty. I was no different.
We began the long march to Obsidian. I didn't speak. What was there to say? Just days ago, I had been Luna. Now, I was nothing but another slave to be sacrificed as a peace offering to the mad king.
The whispers began after the first night.
"They say the king can't die," someone murmured behind me. "They say he's cursed."
"Don't look him in the eye," another whispered. "He'll see into your soul and decide if you're worth keeping."
I tuned out their voices, it only made the rest of us agitated. I clutched my belly with trembling hands, trying to reassure my pup. I tried to reach for my wolf. Nothing. Just silence.
Even she had abandoned me.
——
The journey lasted seven days.
My legs burned. My throat dey from thirst. My skin stung from the thousand of mosquitoes., but it was the sight ahead that made me freeze.
The large mountains ahead, and beyond them… the Obsidian Kingdom.There was no sun here. No warmth. The rumors were true.
The caravan stopped. The guards who once mocked me were stiff, clearly scared. I watched one make the sign of the goddess with trembling fingers. Another muttered a prayer beneath his breath.
Then I saw them.
The soldiers of Obsidian.
They stood at the border like statues. Their Black armor made out of pure iron. Their eyes glowed silver, inhuman, otherworldly.
These weren't wolves. Not fully.
There was no soul in their gaze. No warmth.
One of Roman's guards stepped forward, voice shaking. "By order of Alpha Roman Heightens… we deliver the offering. Slaves… for His Majesty, the ruler of the realm. The Lycan King of Obsidian."
The silver-eyed soldiers didn't blink. They didn't speak. They stepped forward as one.
Chains were handed over. And that was it. I wasn't Roman's problem anymore.
I belonged to Obsidian.
The second I stepped past the border, I felt it. My bones ached and a shudder wrecked through my spine..
No one else reacted. Just me.
I swallowed hard, forcing my legs to move.
The city was unlike anything I had imagined. Not monstrous like I thought, nor was it grotesque. It was Beautiful. Mesmerizing even.
The palace stood tall. High towers stretched toward the sky, carved with ancient runes I didn't understand. The stones shimmered in the light. It was regal yet terrifying.
The gates opened without a touch and we were led inside.
A woman stayed outside, waiting. She was Tall with sharp eyes, her black hair tied tightly behind her. "Bring them all to the hall. The king will have a look."
We were taken in. The hall was silent. I stood at the very end of the line, still chained. The other slaves stood before me, heads bowed, trembling.
No one dared breathe too loud.
He was coming.
Thorne Vargan Rhukor.
I didn't need to lift my head to feel him enter. The air changed, like a god had entered.
The soldiers straightened. The women bowed low.
I risked a glance and there he was.
Taller than any man I'd seen. Dressed in black. His hair dark as midnight, swept back from a face sculpted by gods. A jaw that could cut steel. Eyes that—
Gods.
His eyes.
They were gold. Molten. Alive.
He wasn't what I expected.No. He was worse.
He was Terrifyingly beautiful.
He walked the line slowly, gaze flicking over each of us without interest. No emotion. No care.
Then he reached me and stopped.
I kept my eyes down, not daring to look him in the eye. I didn't breathe. The silence stretched. Too long.
Suddenly… his hand touched my chin. His hand was cold. So cold. He tilted my face upward to face him.
Our eyes met.
And the world froze.
His gaze locked on mine, unblinking.
Something flickered in his eyes. A flash, barely there. But I saw it.
Recognition?
No. It couldn't be.
Suddenly, his eyes burned red, and he stepped back like I'd burned him. His eyes wide now, almost like he couldn't belive it.
"It couldn't be…"