The bathroom mirror was fogged with steam, but it couldn't hide the panic in Simon's eyes. He stood gripped by the porcelain sink, his knuckles white, staring at his left hand. The tap was running full blast, the cold water cascading over his skin, but it wasn't washing away the truth.
There, in the soft webbing between his thumb and index finger, was a patch of scales the size of a coin. They weren't the metallic teal of his wolf-coat, nor the faint gold of his dragon-blood. They were a deep, mesmerizing azure, iridescent like the inside of an abalone shell. They felt slick to the touch, cool and slimy, alien against his warm mammalian skin.
"Go away," Simon hissed at his own hand, scratching at the scales with his fingernails.
They didn't flake off. If anything, the friction made them shimmer brighter, pulsing with a faint, rhythmic bioluminescence that matched the beating of his heart.
'The tide rises, Wolf,' the phantom voice from his dream echoed in the back of his mind. It was fainter now, awake, but still persistent a constant, low-frequency hum that sounded like the ocean roaring in a seashell.
Simon grabbed a roll of medical gauze from the cabinet. His hands were shaking. He wrapped his left hand tightly, layer upon layer of white fabric, until the blue patch was completely hidden. He looked like he had suffered a burn or a nasty cut a plausible lie for a warrior in training.
He shut off the tap. The silence that followed was heavy. He reached out with his mind, checking the Soul-Link. It was there, but he had erected a mental wall around his own emotions—a thick, gray fog to keep Evelyn from feeling the terror roiling in his gut.
He wasn't afraid of the scales. He was afraid of what they meant. He was afraid that if Evelyn saw them if she realized he belonged to the Ocean just as much as the Moon she would look at him with disgust. Or worse, she would leave, believing she wasn't enough for him.
"Simon?"
The soft knock on the bathroom door made him jump.
"I'm coming," Simon called out, his voice rough. He cleared his throat, forcing his vocal cords to relax. "Just... washing up."
He opened the door. Evelyn was standing there, dressed in a fresh set of training leathers that Stella had commissioned for her overnight. They were white and silver, matching her Starlight heritage, but cut in the practical, rugged style of the Moonlight Pack. She looked stunning.
But her violet eyes were narrowed. "You're blocking me," she said, cutting straight to the chase.
Simon lifted his bandaged hand. "I cut myself. On a loose nail in the floorboards. It... stung. I didn't want you to feel it."
Evelyn's gaze dropped to the bandage. Her brow furrowed. "A nail? Simon, you have Alpha healing. A scratch should have closed in seconds."
"It was a rusty nail," Simon lied, the falsehood tasting like bile on his tongue. "Iron slows the healing. You know that."
Evelyn reached out, her fingers hovering over the white gauze. "Let me see. My light can purge the iron toxin."
Simon pulled his hand back sharply. "No."
The word came out harsher than he intended. Evelyn flinched, hurt flashing across her face.
Simon immediately softened his posture, hating himself. He stepped forward and kissed her forehead, breathing in her scent sandalwood and moon-lilies. It grounded him, pushing the smell of brine and salt to the back of his throat.
"I'm sorry," he whispered against her skin. "I just... I don't want you to waste your energy on a scratch. We have the joint training today. You need every ounce of power to show your father what you're capable of."
Evelyn hesitated, searching his turquoise eyes for the truth. Whatever she saw or didn't see she decided to let it go. "Okay. But don't block me, Simon. The fog... it feels lonely."
"I'll try," Simon promised, knowing he would break that promise the moment the scales started to itch again.
The joint training maneuvers were being held in the Great Valley, a massive expanse of flat grassland bordered by the dense forest on one side and the rocky foothills on the other. It was neutral ground within the Moonlight territory, perfect for large-scale drills.
The contrast between the two packs was stark.
On the left stood the Moonlight warriors. They were a sea of earth tones leathers in browns, greens, and greys. They were broad-shouldered, scarred, and laughing loudly, shoving each other with camaraderie. They fought with brute strength, claws, and teeth.
On the right stood the Starlight warriors. They were uniformed in pristine white and silver armor that glinted in the sun. They stood in disciplined rows, silent and watchful. They were leaner, faster, and armed with weapons silver-tipped spears and bows enhanced by their spirit magic.
"It looks like a rugby team facing off against a choir," Stella commented from the sidelines, sipping a thermos of iced tea.
Alpha Michael and Alpha David stood on a raised wooden platform, overseeing the assembly.
"The Void utilizes stealth and psychic attacks," David was explaining, gesturing to the field. "My warriors are trained to detect disturbances. Yours are trained to crush bones. We need to integrate the lines. Every squad needs a 'Shield' one of your wolves and a 'Seeker' one of mine."
"Agreed," Michael nodded. He turned to the gathered armies. "Simon! Evelyn! Front and center!"
Simon jogged onto the field, Evelyn keeping pace beside him. The sun was nearing its zenith, and the heat was already rising. Simon felt the dry air sucking the moisture from his skin. The "thirst" hit him again, a sudden, parched cramp in his stomach. He ignored it, focusing on putting one foot in front of the other.
"Today, we demonstrate integration," Michael announced, his voice booming. "Simon and Evelyn will lead the first mixed squad. Your objective is to capture the flag in the center of the woods. Opposing you will be a squad led by Beta Mark."
Beta Mark of the Starlight Pack was a formidable man. Tall, blonde, and possessing a gaze that was far too calculating for Simon's liking, he stepped forward with a smirk.
"Don't go easy on them just because they're royals, Mark," David called out.
"Wouldn't dream of it, Alpha," Mark replied smoothly. He glanced at Simon's bandaged hand. "Injured already, pup? Did the domestic life bite you?"
Simon's wolf snarled in his chest. "Just a scratch, Mark. Don't worry, I have another hand to break your nose with."
"Enough," Michael barked. "To the woods. Begin!"
The drill started fast. Simon and Evelyn led their mixed squad three Moonlight brawlers and three Starlight scouts into the dense tree line.
"Spread out," Simon commanded, his voice naturally dropping into Alpha mode. "Starlight, keep to the trees. Use your eyes. If you see a shimmer, call it out. Moonlight, stay low. You're the ambush."
Evelyn stayed close to Simon. She moved better than she had the day before, her confidence bolstered by their private training. "I can feel Mark's team," she whispered. "They're circling to the east. Upwind."
"Smart," Simon muttered. He wiped sweat from his brow. He was sweating profusely too much. His shirt was already soaked through. The "thirst" was becoming a roar. He needed water. A cup. A bucket. A lake.
'Simon?' Evelyn's voice touched his mind. 'You're burning up.'
'I'm fine,' he snapped through the link, clamping the mental wall down tighter.
They moved deeper into the forest. The air was dry and dusty here, far from the lake. Every breath felt like inhaling sandpaper. The bandage on his hand felt constricting. Underneath the gauze, the scales were itching maddeningly, pulsating with a need to be submerged.
Crack.
A twig snapped to their left.
"AMBUSH!" a Starlight scout screamed.
Beta Mark's team dropped from the canopy. It was a coordinated strike. Starlight arrows (blunted for training) rained down, while Starlight warriors dropped flash-bangs of magical light to blind the Moonlight wolves.
"Shields up!" Simon roared.
He lunged forward, tackling a Starlight warrior who was aiming a spear at Evelyn. They hit the dirt hard. Simon rolled, coming up in a crouch.
The chaos of battle usually fueled him. The Wolf loved the fight. The Dragon loved the heat. But the Lagoon... the Lagoon hated it.
The exertion drained his hydration levels instantly. Simon's vision blurred at the edges. His mouth was so dry he couldn't produce saliva to growl properly. His limbs felt heavy, as if he were trying to move through molasses.
Beta Mark emerged from the bushes, spinning a silver staff. "You look sluggish, Tribrid," he taunted, circling Simon. "Is the heat too much for you?"
Simon lunged, but he was a fraction of a second too slow. Mark sidestepped and cracked the staff against Simon's ribs.
Thwack.
It hurt. It shouldn't have—Simon's bones were dense—but it stung like fire.
"Simon!" Evelyn cried out. She raised her hands, blasting a wave of light at Mark to force him back.
"I got him," Simon gasped, pushing himself up. But his legs were trembling.
'Water,' his body screamed. 'Find water or die.'
He looked around wildly. There was no stream here. No puddle. Only dry earth and pine needles.
Panic set in. Not the panic of losing a fight, but the biological panic of a fish flopping on the deck of a boat. His heart hammered an arrhythmia against his ribs.
Mark came at him again. Simon tried to block, but his coordination was shot. He took another hit to the shoulder, then a sweep to the legs. He hit the ground hard, dust filling his mouth.
"Pathetic," Mark sneered, raising the staff for a finishing tap to signal the 'kill'. "And this is the Alpha who is supposed to lead us?"
Something inside Simon snapped.
It wasn't the Wolf. It wasn't the Dragon. It was the primal, desperate instinct of the Deep.
If he couldn't find water, he would take it.
Simon's eyes rolled back, the turquoise swallowed by black. The bandage on his hand ripped open as his hand expanded, the fingers lengthening, the claws turning into hooked talons of translucent bone.
He didn't growl. He let out a shriek a high-pitched, ultrasonic sound that shattered the crystals on Mark's staff.
Mark staggered back, clutching his ears. "What the hell "
Simon moved. He didn't run; he slithered through the air, his movement fluid and unnatural. He slammed into Mark, pinning the Beta to a tree.
Simon's hand the scaled, webbed hand gripped Mark's throat. But he wasn't crushing the windpipe. He was... draining.
Mark's eyes bulged. His skin began to grey rapidly, moisture evaporating from his pores. Simon inhaled deeply, the moisture from Mark's body feeding the thirst in his own.
It felt euphoric. It felt wrong.
"SIMON! NO!"
Evelyn's scream pierced the haze.
She threw herself at him, not attacking, but wrapping her arms around his waist and yanking him back. "Stop! You're killing him!"
The touch of the Bond the pure, clean Starlight jolted Simon. The black receded from his eyes. The thirst paused, shocked by the sudden influx of his mate's energy.
Simon released Mark. The Beta slid to the ground, gasping and coughing, looking like a dried-out husk of a man. He was alive, but barely.
Simon stared at his own hand. The bandage was gone. The blue scales were gleaming in the dappled sunlight, fully visible to everyone. The webbing stretched between his fingers like a monster's fin.
Silence descended on the clearing. The mock battle had stopped. Every wolf Moonlight and Starlight alike was staring at the mutation.
"What is that?" a Starlight scout whispered, horror in his voice. "Look at his hand."
Simon backed away, his chest heaving. He looked at Evelyn.
She wasn't looking at Mark. She was looking at Simon's hand. Her expression wasn't disgust, but it was confusion. Deep, terrified confusion.
"Simon?" she whispered. "What did you just do?"
Simon couldn't answer. He couldn't explain that he had almost vampirized the moisture from a man because his body was rebelling against the land.
He did the only thing a cornered animal could do.
"Don't touch me!" he roared, shoving Evelyn away gently, but firmly enough to break contact.
He turned and ran. He didn't run back to the Pack House. He ran toward the smell of damp earth. He ran toward the only place where the monster made sense.
He ran for the lake.
"Simon! Wait!" Evelyn called after him, but he was already a blur of silver and teal, tearing through the underbrush.
Behind him, Beta Mark coughed, his voice raspy and dry. "He... he tried to drink me. He's not a wolf. He's an abomination."
Evelyn spun around, her eyes flashing with a dangerous violet light. "One more word, Mark, and I will finish what he started."
She turned to follow her mate, but the heavy thud of Alpha Michael landing in the clearing stopped her.
"Where is he?" Michael demanded, sensing the distress in the bond.
"He ran," Evelyn said, her voice trembling. "He ran to the water. Alpha Michael... his hand. It was... it was scaled."
Michael closed his eyes, a look of profound resignation crossing his face. "So soon," he muttered. "I thought we had more time."
"Time for what?" Evelyn demanded. "What is happening to him?"
Michael looked at the young girl, seeing the fear and the fierce love warring in her eyes. "The Lagoon is calling him, Evelyn. And if he doesn't answer... it will consume him."
Simon reached the lake in record time. He didn't stop to take off his boots. He didn't stop to breathe. He threw himself off the small cliff overlooking the deep end.
Splash.
The water enveloped him. The cold was a shock, but then... bliss.
The burning in his veins stopped instantly. The dryness in his throat vanished as he opened his mouth and let the water rush in not into his lungs, but through the gills that were violently tearing open along the sides of his ribs.
He sank. Down, down, down into the dark.
He curled into a ball on the sandy bottom, twenty feet below the surface. He looked at his hand. The blue scales were spreading, creeping up his wrist.
He closed his eyes, floating in the suspension of the deep. He was safe here. But above him, on the surface, he knew he had just shattered the fragile trust he had built. He was a monster who ate moisture and grew fins.
How could the Star ever love the Deep?
'Because the stars reflect in the water, you fool,' the Whale-Song voice whispered.
Simon stayed on the bottom, watching the sunlight shimmer far above, terrified to surface and face the girl he loved.