Chapter 2

Three months ago.

I walked towards the great hall; the heat was too strong, but I still felt cold inside me.

I sat nervously on the edge of the witness chair, squeezing my hands together until they turned pale. Those who gathered around me were the most powerful alphas and betas in the kingdom. Their faces were hard and unmoving like stone.

High council Elena Moon whisper-walked to the middle of the hall. Her footsteps echoed. She was nearly a hundred years old, yet every pack in the kingdom respected her. When she spoke, even the strongest alpha listened.

"We are here today," her voice filled the room. "To judge the crown prince, Kael Ravenrest."

The defendant's chair felt hot as my brother sat on it. I didn't need to look at him in order to feel his anger; it pressed on me like heat from fire.

After three months of searching, we were finally here. And we both knew this trial would destroy him.

"The charges," Elena said, "are hurting pack members on purpose, breaking pack law, and failing to act like a true alpha."

The council members muttered among themselves. Some had known Karl was evil, but even I didn't realize how bad it was.

Councilor Aldrich Ironforge stood up from the seat. As the alpha of the mountain clans, he towered over everyone, his shadow across the room as he spoke.

"I call Marcus Thornfield, alpha of the Northern Peaks pack, to testify."

My breath caught.

"Marcus Thronfield." His name rolled through the air like a storm front, and before I realized it, my hands had gone cold against my skirts.

Every hair on my arm stood to attention, and I couldn't look away from the doorway where he stood.

They called him Winter Wolf, a living legend among our people. A battle commander who'd never been defeated. His presence alone made other alphas bow their heads. He walked in like thunder. Every omega wanted to bow.

Elena said. "Tell us, what happened?"

Marcus spoke quietly, but anger hid in his words.

"Two years ago, Prince Kael asked to meet."

"He wanted to stop our pack. "I went as the old rules required, just me, my parents, and my younger sister for peace talks."

The room went silent. Even the fire seemed to stop moving.

"The prince met us at the old temple on Moonfall Ridge." Marcus's face twisted with pain.

"This wasn't a peace talk." "Prince Kael hurt my family for hours before killing them." "He said it was a warning to anyone who disobeyed the Raven Crest."

People gasped around me.

As I covered my mouth in shock. I knew something bad had happened to the Thronfield, but Kael had lied to me. He told me it was just a failed border attack.

"Kael made me watch." Marcus stared at me, his green eyes fierce. He said. "This is what happened to Alpha, who disobeyed him. Then he chained me with silver and left me to die as a lesson."

"How did you survive?" Elena asked softly.

"My pack found me after three days." His voice dropped. My family was already gone."

The silence felt heavy.

I looked at Kael, who used to read me a fairy tale. Who also promised to protect me is now a monster.

Kael stood, his face angry.

"The Northern Peaks pack has caused trouble for years." I only did what I had to do to keep peace. You hurt children," Marcus shouted, his anger breaking free.

Many alphas had to hold him back as he tried to reach Kael.

"You killed innocent people during peace talks."

"I'm the crown prince." Kael yelled. "Only the moon goddess can judge me."

We'd all been avoiding the truth.

Kael's lips curled into a sneer as the council shouted around him. "I am the blood of kings," he spat, shoulders squared, daring anyone to contradict him. Not even the sharpest gazes of the alphas could pierce his arrogance.

Elena lifted her hand. "Bring in the final witness."

Then followed the testimony that made me want to break out of the prison and never return. Pack members were tormented for minor issues. Omegas are beaten for rejecting him.

Betas who had gone missing because they refused to obey his evil orders. All along, Kael sat with the same evil smile, watching as if it were a comedy show instead of listening to the testimony of his own evil atrocity.

Sarah was the last witness, a young omega from the Eastern territories. Tears shadowed in her eyes, and marks of beating that had already begun to heal encircled her wrists.

"Tell us what happened when you rejected

Prince Kael." Elena asked gently.

Sarah whispered, "He said omega lives to serve alpha and that I should be grateful he noticed me." "When I said I had a mate." He...she started crying.

"Take your time," someone said.

"He killed my mate and made me watch it." Sarah cried hard. Then he said he would kill all the omegas in my pack if we refused to obey him."

The room exploded in anger. Alphas jumped up, shouting. Beta called for punishment; the omegas there wept.

Kael kept sitting; his evil smile never faded.

"Enough."

Elena's sharp voice silenced the chaos.

"Prince Kael, you are charged with breaking pack law, betraying sacred oaths, and acting in ways that make you unworthy to rule."

Kael stood slowly, standing over the crowd. For a second, I saw that he could become powerful, regal, and commanding.

"I am the rightful owner of the throne by blood and birthright." He said.

"Is that your answer?" Elena asked.

"Yes," Kael replies rudely. "These people have forgotten their place. A true king rules with strength, not soft words."

His voice turned colder. "When I am king, such weakness will be removed."

"Silence."

The atmosphere turned icy. Even his royals shifted uncomfortably.

Elena gave a slow, grim nod. "So bit. The council will decide."

The next hour dragged on like forever. I watched in silence as the world's most powerful leader determined my brother's fate without realizing it. Mine too.

If they declared Kael unworthy to rule… There was only one option left. And that is me. The council returned. Elena's face gave nothing away.

"After deliberation." She declared, "Crown Prince Kael is found guilty. By law, he is not worthy to rule us."

Kael's roar shook the wall around us. "You have no right." "The throne belongs to me by blood."

"I am Alpha."

"You are a monster," Elena said, her voice quiet but unshaken. "And monsters do not get to rule good people."

Kael's composure shattered. "Then who?" He sneered. "There is no one else." "I am my father's only son."

Elena's eye turned to me, and suddenly, I felt the future press down on me, heavy as armor.

"Princess Lyra Ravencrest," Elena's voice rang clear, "by bloodright and council law, you are now crowned heir to the Northern throne."

The hall went deathly still.

Me? An omega?

Every face mirrored the same disbelief. Some looked horrified; others were calculating. Never in many years has Omega ruled alone.

"No," Kael shouted, furious. "She is too weak to rule."

The room felt heavy. This changed everything.

"An omega cannot rule an alpha..."

Elena's voice cut through the murmur. "A kind omega rules better than a cruel alpha."

Then she added the world that would chase for months. "But ancient law demands one thing: first an omega queen must take an alpha mate before claiming the throne".

"Princess Lyra has one year to choose a mate. If she fails, the crown goes to another." My blood ran cold.

The next heir was my cousin, Roderick Blackfang; he is even more dangerous than Kael.

Kael's laugh echoed through the hall, sharp and full of triumph. "One year to find an alpha who'll treat a pathetic omega as an equal." Kael laughed coldly. "When you fail, little sister, the throne returns to me."

He walked out; his royal guard followed behind like a wolfpack. But his cruel words stayed with me, even when he was gone. He wasn't wrong.

An alpha sharing power? Impossible. Alphas treated omegas as pets or breeding stock. The idea of one ruling as an equal. It wasn't just radical. It was dangerous. The council ended; I couldn't move.

I was a queen.

I'd spent my life as an invisible spare; now the Northern throne waited for me. If I could find an alpha willing to stand beside me, not over me.

Marcus Thronfield entered as the crowd cleared. He was even more imposing, a mountain of muscle and scars that told stories no bard could sing.

"Your Highness." With respect, he bowed, deep and proper. "For what it's worth."

Marcus said, "The council made the right choice. Your brother deserved more than banishment."

"Gracias." I whispered, my voice rough. Then softer. "I'm sorry about your family. What Kael did, there are no words." His breath caught. Surprise? That I'd remembered his loss?

"Princess," he said firmly, "his crimes are not yours to carry."

"But when you're queen," his voice turned to ice, "justice will come, one way or another."

With another bow, he left, letting the threat linger in the silence.

"Justice?" What would that mean for Marcus? And what price would my kingdom pay?

Long after everyone had gone. I sat alone in the hollow hall, staring at the empty throne that would soon be mine, my throat tight, my chest heavy as if all the stone walls of the keep had settled on my shoulders. One step closer, and my knees nearly buckled.

Kael called me weak.

The council doubted me. The kingdom would scorn an omega queen.

Good

Let them all learn what happens when an omega rises. I stood tall, smoothed my dress, and walked out with my head held high.

I have one year to find a mate, claim my throne, and protect everything I loved from my brother's madness.

The question was: Would a year be enough? I climbed to my chambers, unaware that the answer would arrive on the wind, sharp with pine and winter's bite.

Three months later, on the battlefield far from here.

Fate had other plans for justice.

And for love.