The dust in the training ring had settled, but the air around Simon and Evelyn still felt electrically charged. They were sitting in the dirt, breathless, their clothes stained with earth and grass, looking less like royals and more like children who had been wrestling in the mud. But the look in their eyes, the violet locking with the turquoise was anything but childish.
Simon brushed a smudge of dirt from Evelyn's cheek, his thumb lingering on her skin. The "Bond Spark" hummed contentedly against his fingertips. For the first time since the Void shadow had hissed its poison in the hallway, the knot of anxiety in his chest loosened.
"We should go back," Evelyn whispered, though she made no move to stand up. "My mother will think you've broken me in half."
Simon smirked, a wicked glint returning to his eyes. "You're the one who blasted me ten feet backward with a laser beam, little star. If anyone is broken, it's me. My ego may never recover."
Evelyn laughed, the sound bright and free. She swatted his chest. "You deserved it. You were taunting me."
"I was teaching you," Simon corrected, grabbing her hand and pulling her to her feet with effortless strength. "And now I know that if a shadow comes for you, you can turn it into smoke. That makes me feel... better."
He didn't say safe, He wasn't sure he would ever feel fully safe again, not while the voice of the Void lingered in his memory. 'The other two,' it had said. Simon shook his head, physically dislodging the thought. He focused on the warmth of Evelyn's hand in his. This was real. This was now.
As they walked back toward the Pack House, the mid-morning sun beat down on them. Usually, Simon didn't mind the heat. His dragon blood thrived in it. But today, a strange sensation pricked at the back of his throat. It started as a dry tickle, then grew into a persistent, parched ache. He swallowed, but his mouth felt like it was full of cotton and sand.
'Water,' his body demanded. Not a request, but a command.
"Simon? You're frowning again," Evelyn noted, squeezing his hand.
"Just thirsty," Simon rasped, coughing slightly. "Training takes it out of you."
But it felt like more than that. It felt like the humidity in the air had suddenly dropped to zero, leaving his skin tight and itchy.
Lunch was a less formal affair than the previous night's dinner, served on the sprawling stone patio overlooking the pack's private gardens. The mood, however, was still heavy with strategy.
Alpha Michael and Alpha David were bent over a large topographic map spread across the table, weighing down the corners with salt shakers and pepper grinders.
"The Void residue was concentrated here, in the hallway," Michael explained, pointing to a sketch of the house layout. "But the sentries found wilting plants along the southern perimeter. It suggests they didn't breach the wards; they slipped through them using the shadows of the trees."
"We need to increase the light-wards," David argued, chewing on a piece of grilled chicken. "My warriors can set up a perimeter of starlight crystals. It will burn anything dark that tries to cross."
Simon sat at the edge of the table, listening with half an ear. He had consumed three pitchers of iced water in the last twenty minutes. The Omegas kept refilling his glass, casting worried glances at the future Alpha, but the thirst was insatiable. It felt less like dehydration and more like a fire burning in his stomach that no amount of fresh liquid could douse.
"Simon, slow down," Stella admonished gently, watching him drain the fourth pitcher straight from the jug. "You're going to float away."
"I'm fine," Simon grunted, wiping his mouth. "It's hot today."
"It's sixty-five degrees and breezy," Roseline pointed out, raising a delicate eyebrow.
Simon ignored her, his gaze drifting past the patio, past the gardens, toward the shimmering expanse of the Moonlight Lake in the distance. The blue water sparkled under the sun, calling to him. It wasn't just a visual appeal; it was a magnetic pull. He could feel the volume of the water, the pressure of the depths, the silent, cold currents moving beneath the surface.
'Go to it,' a voice whispered. It wasn't the Void. It wasn't his Wolf. It was a new voice melodic, echoing, and ancient. It sounded like whale song reverberating through a canyon.
Simon gripped the edge of the table, his knuckles turning white. The metallic shimmer on his skin flared, but this time, the scales that appeared on his forearm weren't the teal of his wolf-coat. They were a deep, iridescent azure.
"Simon?" Evelyn's voice cut through the haze. She was looking at him with wide, worried eyes. The Soul-Link was vibrating with confusion. 'You feel... wet. In my mind. Like you're drowning.'
Simon blinked, the sensation fading slightly as he focused on her. "I'm okay," he lied again. "Just... tired."
He stood up abruptly, the chair scraping loudly against the stone. "I'm going to take Evelyn to the lake. We need to work on her sensory extension, and the water is a good amplifier for spirit magic."
Michael looked up, surprised. "Now? We're discussing the defense grid."
"The best defense is her knowing how to see them coming," Simon stated, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Come on, Evelyn."
The walk to the lake was silent. Evelyn sensed Simon's inner turmoil and wisely chose not to prod him. She simply walked beside him, her presence a soothing balm against the strange, chaotic itching in his veins.
When they reached the shore, the air was cooler, heavy with the scent of damp earth and pine needles. The Moonlight Lake was vast, its surface like a mirror reflecting the sky.
Simon stopped at the water's edge. He took a deep breath, expecting relief. Instead, the "pull" intensified. It felt like a hook had been set in his navel, dragging him forward. His heart rate slowed, thumping in a heavy, rhythmic cadence that matched the lapping of the tiny waves against the pebbles. Thump-splash. Thump-splash.
"Okay," Simon said, forcing himself to turn his back on the water and face Evelyn. "Sensory training. Last night, I found the shadow because I wasn't looking with my eyes. I was feeling the disturbance in the air."
Evelyn nodded, closing her eyes. "Like feeling a draft in a closed room?"
"Exactly," Simon said, his voice straining. The sound of the water behind him was so loud. It roared in his ears. "Close your eyes. Reach out with your mind. Don't look for a shape. Look for a... a wrongness. A cold spot."
Evelyn frowned in concentration. "I just feel you, Simon. You're... loud. You feel like a bonfire."
"Push past me," Simon instructed, gritting his teeth. "Feel the trees. Feel the birds. Feel the..."
...the salt.
Simon stopped speaking. He smelled salt. Not table salt, but the sharp, briny tang of the ocean.
We are four hundred miles inland, his logical mind argued. There is no ocean here.
But the smell was undeniable. It coated his tongue. A wave of dizziness hit him, and he stumbled, one boot splashing into the lake water.
The moment the water touched his skin even through the leather of his boot a shockwave traveled up his leg. It wasn't electricity; it was pure, liquid power.
His vision blurred. For a split second, the pine trees of the Moonlight territory vanished. Instead, he saw towering cliffs of coral, glowing with bioluminescent moss. He saw schools of silver fish darting in unison. He felt the crushing weight of a thousand miles of water pressing against his chest, not hurting him, but holding him.
And he saw a face.
It wasn't Evelyn.
It was a girl with hair the color of seaweed and pearls, her eyes a startling, piercing green. She was looking right at him, her lips moving, blowing bubbles as she spoke a name he couldn't hear.
"Simon!"
Evelyn's scream shattered the vision.
Simon gasped, falling to his knees in the shallow water. He was back. The trees were back. The coral was gone. But he was soaking wet not from the lake, but from sweat that tasted unmistakably like brine.
Evelyn was kneeling beside him, her hands glowing with frantic healing light. "Simon! Your eyes! They rolled back! You stopped breathing!"
Simon coughed, water expelling from his lungs water he hadn't inhaled. He stared at the lake surface. His reflection stared back.
But it wasn't his normal reflection. His eyes were fully dilated, the turquoise iris consumed by black, and patches of blue scales were rippling across his neck and face, flaring in and out of existence like a malfunctioning hologram.
"I..." Simon croaked, his voice sounding wet and gargled. "I saw..."
He looked at Evelyn. She looked terrified. If he told her he saw another girl a girl in the water it would break her. They had barely survived the Void shadow. She was still insecure about the bond. He couldn't drop this on her. Not now.
"I saw the Void again," he lied, the taste of salt bitter on his tongue. "It tried to pull me under."
Evelyn's face hardened. Fear was replaced by anger. She stood up, wading into the water in her expensive boots. She slammed her palms onto the surface of the lake.
"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" she screamed.
A pulse of Starlight magic erupted from her, shooting into the water. The lake glowed bright white for a hundred yards, boiling with light. The energy was purifying, meant to burn away shadows.
But deep down, Simon knew the truth. It hadn't been a shadow. It had been a call.
The "Second Pull" had begun. The Lagoon Kingdom was waking up inside him, and it was demanding to be heard.
That night, Simon refused to sleep in the hallway. He insisted on sleeping in the room, on the chaise lounge at the foot of Evelyn's bed. He claimed it was for her protection, but in truth, he was afraid to be alone with his own mind.
The exhaustion of the day finally claimed him around midnight. But sleep brought no relief.
He was dreaming.
He was flying no, swimming. He was moving through water with incredible speed. He looked down at his body. He didn't have legs. He had a powerful, muscular tail covered in silver-teal scales that glittered in the darkness of the deep ocean.
He wasn't a wolf. He was a merman. Or something ancient that predated both.
He swam toward a massive underwater castle, its spires made of white pearl and abalone shell. The gates were open, and a celebration was happening. Merfolk were singing, their voices weaving a haunting harmony.
He swam closer, drawn by a scent that cut through the water. It smelled different from Evelyn. Evelyn was the sky air and light. This scent was deep sea salt, amber, and tropical rain.
He entered the throne room. On a dais of coral sat a King and Queen, but Simon's eyes were drawn to the figure standing beside them.
It was the girl from his vision. The mermaid.
She turned, her green eyes locking onto his. She didn't look surprised. She looked... impatient.
"You're late, Wolf," she said, her voice bubbling clearly through the water. " The tide is rising. If you don't come soon, the darkness will take the sea before you even learn to breathe."
She reached out a hand. Her fingers were webbed, delicate and translucent.
Simon reached back. He wanted to touch her. The "pull" in his gut was agonizing, a hunger just as strong as the one he felt for Evelyn, but different. This was a need for balance, for depth, for the cool quiet of the abyss.
His fingers brushed hers.
ZAP.
Simon woke up with a violent jerk, falling off the chaise lounge and hitting the floor with a loud crash.
"Simon?" Evelyn shot up in bed, clutching the sheets. "What happened? Is it the shadow?"
Simon lay on the rug, his chest heaving. He was drenched in sweat. He touched his face. His skin felt slick, slimy even. He looked at his hand in the moonlight.
There, in the webbing between his thumb and forefinger, was a patch of scales. Real scales. They didn't fade this time. They sat there, glistening, mocking him.
"No," Simon whispered, clenching his fist to hide the mark. "Just a nightmare. Go back to sleep, Star."
Evelyn watched him for a long moment, her violet eyes searching his. The Soul-Link was murky, blocked by Simon's sheer will. Finally, she lay back down, though she didn't close her eyes.
Simon sat in the dark, staring at his hand. The Tribrid nature wasn't just a genetic quirk. It was a ticking clock. The Wolf had found its mate. The Dragon was restless. And now, the Sea was screaming.
He had lied to Evelyn. He had lied to his parents. But he couldn't lie to his own blood.
Somewhere, in the Kingdom of the Lagoon, a girl named Joanna was waiting. And Simon was terrified that finding her would mean losing the girl sleeping in the bed behind him.
The first 100 chapters were supposed to be about love. But as Simon stared at the blue scales on his hand, he realized they were going to be about survival.