Chapter 18: Elder’s Wisdom

Words : 1378 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

Chapter 18: Elder’s Wisdom Lily Carter POV The hot tea splashed across my wrist as I jerked backward, gasping. My Triple Moon mark had suddenly flared with burning pain, like someone had pressed a hot iron against my skin. "What’s happening?" I cried, holding my arm. Elder Iris set down her teapot quietly, as if omegas screaming in pain was perfectly normal. "Your mark is trying to tell you something important. Show me." I rolled up my sleeve with shaking fingers. The three crescents glowed bright silver, pulsing like a heartbeat. But something was different - one of the moons was flashing between silver and deep red. "Oh my," Elder Iris breathed, leaning closer. "I haven’t seen a mark react like this in seventy years." "React to what?" Panic filled my voice. "Elder Iris, what’s wrong with me?" "Nothing’s wrong, child. Your mark is warning you." She stood and walked to her bookshelf, pulling out a leather notebook. "One of your potential mates is in terrible danger." My stomach dropped. "Which one?" "The mark will tell us." She opened the notebook to a page covered with strange symbols. "Place your hand here and think about each brother." I pressed my palm against the page and pictured Aiden first. My mark warmed slightly, a gentle heat like sunshine on skin. Then I thought of Brock. Again, warmth, but nothing frightening. When I focused on Caleb, pain shot through my wrist so intense I nearly screamed. "Caleb," I whispered. "Something terrible is happening to Caleb." "The connection is stronger with him," Elder Iris said thoughtfully. "Interesting." "What do you mean, connection?" She sat back down, studying me with old eyes. "Child, has no one explained what the Triple Moon mark really does?" "Everyone just says it means I’m mated to one of the Alpha’s sons." "That’s only part of the truth." Elder Iris flipped through her notebook until she found a drawing of three intertwined crescents. "The Triple Moon mark doesn’t just recognize your mate. It forms a bond that lets you share strength, feelings, even danger with all three brothers until your true mate is revealed." I stared at her in shock. "You mean I can feel what they feel?" "In times of great need, yes. That’s why your mark is burning - Caleb is afraid, probably hurt, and your bond is trying to help him." "How can I help him from here?" "You can’t. But understanding your link might help you make the right choice when the time comes." She turned to another page in her notebook. "Tell me, Lily, what do you know about omega gifts?" "Gifts?" I felt confused and overloaded. "Omegas don’t have gifts. We’re just... omegas." Elder Iris made a displeased sound. "Foolish modern thought. Omegas have the greatest gifts of all - we see what others miss, heal what others can’t fix, and bring peace where others cause conflict." "I can’t do any of those things." "Can’t you?" She looked at me knowingly. "You knew the rogues were coming before anyone else during the pack run. You noticed Luna’s betrayal before she acted. You calmed the scared pups during the attack without even trying." Now that she mentioned it, those things had happened. But I’d thought they were just chances. "The Triple Moon mark appears only when the pack needs an omega with fully awakened gifts," Elder Iris continued. "Your abilities are still growing, which is why your connection to the brothers is so strong." My mark pulsed again, and suddenly I could feel something else - determination mixed with fear, like someone making a brave but dangerous choice. "That’s Aiden," I said without thinking. "He’s planning something risky." "Good. You’re learning to tell them apart." Elder Iris smiled happily. "Now, let me teach you something that might save all their lives." She reached into a small wooden box and pulled out a pendant made like the Triple Moon symbol. "This belonged to the last omega who bore your mark, Sarah Moonwhisper." "What happened to her?" "She made a choice that saved our pack but cost her everything." Elder Iris held up the pendant, and it began to glow with soft silver light. "She learned to use her connection to give her strength to others across great distances." "How?" "Focus on the brother you’re most worried about. Picture him clearly in your mind, then imagine sending him your courage, your drive, your love." I closed my eyes and thought about Caleb. Sweet, gentle Caleb who always helped the younger pups and never made me feel stupid for asking questions. In my thoughts, I could see him tied up somewhere dark, scared but trying to be brave. My mark grew warm, but this time it felt good, like wrapping someone in a soft blanket. I imagined all my strength moving toward him, telling him he wasn’t alone. "Excellent," Elder Iris said. "He can feel that, you know. Your support will help him stay strong." I opened my eyes, feeling tired but hopeful. "Will this help me figure out which brother is my true mate?" "The mark will reveal that when you prove yourself worthy." "Worthy how?" Elder Iris got serious. "By showing you can put the pack’s needs before your own wants. By showing wisdom beyond your years. By showing you understand what it truly means to be Luna." "What if I’m not worthy? What if the mark was wrong about me?" "Child, look at me." Her speech was firm but kind. "You’ve already shown more wisdom and guts than wolves twice your age. You saved the pups during battle. You stood up to Luna’s bullying. You accepted this burden even though it scared you." My mark suddenly flared with new pain, different from before. This felt like sadness mixed with desperate determination. "Brock," I gasped. "Something’s wrong with Brock too." Before Elder Iris could reply, the door burst open. Alpha Marcus stood there, his face pale with fear. "They’re gone," he said. "All three of my sons are gone." My world turned sideways. "What do you mean, gone?" " Aiden and Brock went to help Caleb. I just found their tracks going to the Whispering Canyon, but the trail ends at the cliff edge. There’s no sign of them anywhere." "The Shadow Wolves," Elder Iris whispered. "They’ve taken all three." I jumped to my feet, my mark now burning like fire. "We have to go after them!" "Absolutely not," Alpha Marcus said strongly. "I won’t lose you too." "You don’t understand!" I could feel all three brothers now - their fear, their anger, their hopeless hope that somehow I would save them. "They’re counting on me. The mark links us, and I can feel them calling for help." "It’s too dangerous," the Alpha maintained. "It’s more dangerous to leave them there," I shot back, surprising myself with my bravado. "The Shadow Wolves took them to get to me, right? So let’s give them what they want." "Lily, no," Elder Iris said quickly. "You’re not ready. Your skills are still awakening, and without knowing which brother is your true mate—" "Then I’ll have to figure it out while I save them." I walked toward the door, my mark burning brighter with each step. "I won’t let them die because I was too scared to act." Alpha Marcus grabbed my arm. "I can’t let you do this." The moment his hand touched me, my mark burst with silver light that filled the entire room. When the light faded, all three of us were looking at each other in shock. "What just happened?" I whispered. Elder Iris looked at me with something like awe. "Your power just awakened fully. But child, this changes everything. You’re not just any Triple Moon bearer." "What do you mean?" "You’re the one the prophecy spoke of. The omega who will either save both realms or destroy them totally." Before I could ask what forecast she meant, the window exploded inward. Three bone-faced creatures poured through the hole, their eyes glowing red in the darkness. "Too late," one of them hissed. "The ritual begins now, whether you’re ready or not." As shadowy claws reached for me, I realized with increasing terror that everything we’d planned was about to go horribly wrong.

Chapter 18: Elder’s Wisdom

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