Sage's POV
I wake up screaming.
In my dreams, I watched Marcus fall from the cliff over and over. Heard his final howl. Saw the broken look in his eyes before he chose death.
My father killed himself rather than face defeat.
Strong arms wrap around me. Through the bond, I know it's Ryder before I even open my eyes.
I've got you, he whispers. You're safe.
But I'm not safe. None of us are.
Because the bond we completed to save my life? It's changing us in ways Nova didn't warn about.
I can feel all three Alphas constantly now. Kael's icy control cracking as he mourns his Beta's betrayal. Damon's guilt over not seeing Lydia's treachery sooner. Ryder's fury that Theron hurt me.
And they can feel me. Every emotion. Every thought. Every fear.
There's no privacy anymore. No walls. We're one being in four bodies, and I'm drowning in it.
Make it stop, I gasp, pulling away from Ryder. I can't breathe with all of you in my head.
Through the bond, I feel Ryder's hurt at my rejection. Feel Kael and Damon waking in their own rooms, alerted by my distress.
Nova warned us this would be intense at first, Ryder says gently. The bond needs time to settle. Right now everything is raw and new.
How long? I demand.
She didn't say.
Kael and Damon burst through my door without knocking. They're both shirtless, hair messy from sleep, and through the bond I feel their desperate need to make sure I'm okay.
We felt your nightmare, Kael says. About Marcus.
I can't stop seeing it, I admit. He was my father. I should feel something besides
Relief? Damon finishes. Because that's what I'm feeling through the bond. You're relieved he's gone.
He's right. Beneath the horror and sadness, I'm relieved. Marcus was dangerous, unstable, and he would never have stopped hunting me.
Does that make me a terrible person? I whisper.
It makes you honest, Kael says firmly. He sits on the bed beside me. Marcus made his choice. You don't have to mourn him.
Through the bond, I feel all three of them supporting me. Loving me. It should feel comforting.
Instead, it feels overwhelming.
I need space, I say suddenly. From all of you. Just for a few hours. Please.
Three sets of eyes flash with hurt, but they nod.
We'll be nearby if you need us, Ryder says.
They leave, and I can finally breathe again.
But the bond doesn't shut off. Even through walls and distance, I feel them. Always there. Always present.
This is my life now. Forever.
I get dressed and head to the main hall, hoping to clear my head. Instead, I find chaos.
The fortress is filled with wolves I don't recognize representatives from all three territories, arguing loudly about what happens now.
The Omega is bonded to all three Alphas! one wolf shouts. That's against pack law!
The prophecy said one bond, another argues. This is wrong. Unnatural.
We should separate them, a third suggests. Force her to choose properly.
Rage floods through me not just mine, but Kael's, Damon's, and Ryder's through the bond. They're in different parts of the fortress but hearing these same arguments.
ENOUGH! I shout, and Omega power erupts from me.
Every wolf in the hall drops to their knees, forced into submission by my amplified authority.
I didn't mean to do that. Didn't even know I could.
But I'm too angry to care.
I don't care what pack law says, I announce. The bond is complete. Permanent. And none of you get a say in it.
An ancient voice cuts through the silence. But we do.
Three figures emerge from the shadows so old they look like walking corpses. Two men, one woman, all dressed in ceremonial robes.
The Council of Elders.
Through the bond, I feel my three Alphas' immediate tension. They're racing toward the main hall, but they won't make it in time.
Who are you? I demand.
We are the guardians of the old ways, the woman says, her voice like gravel. We enforce pack law across all territories. And you, Omega, have broken that law.
By bonding with three Alphas? I lift my chin. The prophecy allowed for it.
The complete prophecy, yes, one man says. But that ritual was forbidden for a reason. Every Omega who attempted it died.
We survived, I point out.
That's the problem, the woman says coldly. You're too powerful now. Four bonded souls with combined strength unprecedented in our history. You're a threat to the natural order.
My three Alphas burst into the hall, immediately positioning themselves between me and the Council.
Touch her and die, Kael says flatly.
The woman smiles. We're not here to harm her. We're here to fix this situation.
There's nothing to fix, Damon snarls.
Isn't there? The second man steps forward. You completed the Trial of Three, yes. But did you perform the Stabilization Ritual afterward?
Silence.
Through the bond, I feel my Alphas' confusion matching my own.
What Stabilization Ritual? Ryder asks.
Oh dear, the woman says, though she doesn't sound concerned at all. Your witch didn't tell you? The Trial of Three requires a second ritual within thirty days to stabilize the bonds. Without it, the power will consume all four of you from the inside out.
Horror floods through me. Nova didn't mention that.
Perhaps she didn't know, the first man suggests. The knowledge was suppressed after the last failed attempt. Very few records survived.
Then tell us how to perform it, Kael demands.
We could, the woman says slowly. But the Stabilization Ritual requires something you won't want to give.
Name it, all three Alphas say simultaneously.
The woman's smile is vicious. The ritual requires the Omega to sever two of her three bonds. Keep only one Alpha, as the prophecy intended. That's the price of stabilization.
My world tilts.
You're lying, I whisper.
We don't lie, the second man says. Those are the rules set down by the ancients. Three bonds create too much power. The only way to stabilize is to reduce to one.
Through the bond, I feel my Alphas' devastation.
And if we don't perform this ritual? Damon asks quietly.
Then in approximately twenty-seven days, the unstable bonds will tear all four of you apart from the inside. It will be agonizing. And fatal. The woman looks at each of us in turn. So you have a choice, Omega. Sever two bonds and live with one mate. Or keep all three and die with all of them.
She pauses for effect.
Choose wisely. You have until the next full moon.
The Council members vanish in a shimmer of ancient magic, leaving us standing in the ruined main hall.
I look at my three bonded Alphas the men I just risked everything to save.
And realize I might have to destroy two of those bonds to keep any of us alive.
Through our connection, I feel their hearts breaking.
Because we all know the truth.
After everything we've been through, after finally completing the impossible bond, we might have to rip it apart.
Or die trying to keep it.