h4Chapter 307: Blessings/h4

    Zane~

    The world blurred around me—fire, wind, heat, and madness—as Red burst forth from within me, shifting my body into my towering wolf form. My paws mmed against the scorched ground with such force that the earth beneath cracked and trembled like it was in awe. Lava hissed and leapt aside as if bowing in fear. I had never felt power like this before—raw, untamed, ancient. It was as if the fire around me fed my limbs instead of burning them.

    "This... this is insane," I growled through our mind link.

    "No," Red’s voice thundered through me. "This is who we are now. The Night Alpha. The earth recognizes its king."

    I darted forward, heatshing against my fur as fire-birds spiraled above. Beside me, Jacob shifted mid-stride—one second, he was theid-back, calm storm of a man, and the next, he was Mist, the original wolf, his silver fur streaked with smoke and starlight. He ran with a grace that defied reality, his paws not touching the ground but gliding over it.

    Above, Eagle sliced through the red-gold sky, eyes glowing like beacons. "Four me-tigers to your left! Twova stags behind the ridge!" he shouted.

    "Mine!" Fox bellowed, racing ahead. Fire whipped around him like a second skin, and in a heartbeat, a massive tiger of living me lunged toward him. The thing was beautiful and terrifying—a creature with molten eyes and ws like burning sabers.

    Fox leapt,ughing wildly, flipping through the air, andnded on the tiger’s back. "Down, kitty!" he shouted and mmed a fist into the beast’s shoulder—fire meeting fire. The ground beneath them erupted in a spray of sparks.

    Tiger moved silently beside me. He didn’t shift. He didn’t need to. He raised a hand, and the trees bent forward, vines shooting out like living ropes. Two crimson wolves lunged from the foliage, only to be yanked backward by the trees themselves, snarling and twisting mid-air.

    Bubble, graceful as ever, danced across theva like it was water. And for him, it was. He summoned crystalline spikes of water from the air,unching them with precise, deadly elegance. "You know," he said with a grin, "this is exactly the cardio I needed today!"

    "Watch your left!" Sebastian yelled.

    I turned in time to see a fire-boar charging at me, tusks glowing with inner magma. I didn’t think. I stomped. The ground beneath cracked like shattered ss, sending a shockwave that ttened trees and sent the beast tumbling backward with a stunned squeal.

    Jacob appeared beside me, still in his wolf form, voice calm in my mind. "You feel that?"

    "Yeah," I said, stunned by my own strength. "What the hell is happening to me?"

    He looked at me, his glowing golden eyes full of pride. "Your soul has aligned. You are no longer hiding. No longer half a man and half a wolf. You are the Night Alpha, Zane. Every part of the realm knows it. Your powers will only grow."

    The words hit something deep in me. A memory of darkness, of loneliness, of pushing love away. And then... Natalie. Her eyes. Herugh. The way she teased me and kissed my scars like they were treasure maps. I had found my home in her. And now I found my home in universe too.

    Suddenly, a massive stag burst through the trees, crowned in ming antlers. Its roar shook the sky.

    Sebastian—still very much in his vampire glory—leapt from a cliff,nded on the stag’s back, and screamed, "YIPPIE-KAY-YAY, MOTHER—" before being flung off like a ragdoll and smashing into a tree.

    I winced. "You good?!"

    From the crumpled foliage came a groan. "So worth it..."

    Fox tackled the stag next, sliding under its legs,ughing like a lunatic. "This is better than tequ and forbidden dancing!"

    I couldn’t help it—I howled, and Red’s voice joined mine, a sound that rippled through the jungle like thunder.

    The hunt raged on. Fire, water, wind, earth, teeth, ws, magic—us. The beasts were fierce, but they weren’t enemies. They tested us. Challenged us. And when we finally surrounded thestva wolf, Bubble held up a hand.

    "Enough," he said gently.

    Fox, panting, nodded. "They’ve done their part. We’ve done ours."

    Jacob stepped forward, his eyes softening. "Release them."

    One by one, the elemental spirits dimmed their powers like someone turning down the volume on a storm. I let Red pull back into the depths of my soul, and as I shifted back into my human form, my lungs burned with every breath. Sweat clung to my skin, mixing with soot and ash, streaking down my arms like war paint.

    The beasts—all fire and fang and fury—lowered their heads.

    And then... they were gone. No smoke, no howl, no scream. Just a breath of fire, a whisper of air—and silence. Like they’d never existed. Like ghosts slipping back into the me.

    Back into Fox’s realm.

    Beside me, Sebastian stumbled out from under a scorched bush, brushing leaves and what might’ve been a squirrel’s tail out of his hair. "I can’t feel my ribs, my dignity, or my left eyebrow," he wheezed, swaying slightly. "But I regret nothing. That was insane."

    I couldn’t help theugh that broke from my chest. "You screamed like a man beingunched out of a cannon into an active volcano."

    He gave a lopsided grin. "Still not the worst date I’ve had."

    Then Jacob lifted his hand, and the forest around us—still crackling, glowing, alive—began to twist and fold in on itself,yer byyer, like origami made of me and shadow. The sky cracked open above us, stars bleeding through as the fire dimmed.

    And there it was.

    Fox’s pce.

    An impossible cathedral carved straight into jagged obsidian cliffs, glowing like the heart of a volcano. The walls pulsed with heat veins, like magma flowed just beneath the stone. Molten chandeliers swayed overhead, their firelight dancing across the slick ck floors.

    Inside, the scent hit me first—sweet, smoky, savory. A feast.

    I blinked at the sight: Roasted meats dripping with golden juices, glowing fruits that shimmered like starlight, sparkling wines humming with magic so intense I could feel it vibrating in the air.

    Sebastian didn’t hesitate. He basically dived headfirst into a tter of blood wine and something that looked dangerously close to sentient cocktail shrimp.

    I eased into the seat beside Fox, who looked unfairly radiant, lounging like a smug inferno.

    "Did you actually cook all this?" I asked, one brow raised.

    Fox flipped his hair—literally flipped it, like he was in a shampoomercial. "Darling, I am the culinary fire god. The secret to great food is passion. And maybe a touch of dragon breath."

    Bubble floated over, beaming like sunlight, and poured me a drink that fizzed and sparkled in my cup. One sip, and my mouth lit up—cinnamon, starlight, and something unceably electric.

    "You did well tonight, Night Alpha," Bubble said with a proud little nod.

    I blinked. "You all keep calling me that..."

    Eagle stepped forward, eyes sharp and voice steady. "Because it’s time."

    The atmosphere shifted instantly. The teasing vanished like smoke on wind.

    The five elemental brothers stepped around me, a slow orbit of power. Jacob stood at the center, calm and eternal, the weight of ages in his gaze. His arms lifted slightly, and the air began to pulse.

    "This is not just a celebration," he said, voice deep, steady, infinite. "It’s a rite. A blessing. One long overdue."

    They formed a circle around me. The energy changed—deeper, richer, sacred.

    Tiger spoke first, his voice a low thunder. "By the forest’s roots and the breath of the wild skies, I name you kin."

    Eagle followed, unwavering. "By the wind’s truth and every whisper it carries, I name you brother."

    Bubble stepped closer, his eyes glowing with joy. "By the memory of the sea, by the tides that remember, I wee you home."

    Fox’s voice was molten. "By the me that never dies, I bind you to us—with warmth, with mischief, and with the courage of kings."

    Then Jacob, his voice the howl of the cosmos:

    "By the Wolf. By the first howl.

    By the night and the stars that guide it, by the moon...

    I name you ours.

    Zane Anderson Moor, Night Alpha, mate of our sister, protector of this realm—

    Be weed. Be blessed. Be seen."

    Power hit me all at once. Like the whole world exhaled into my soul.

    me wrapped around my heart. Wind tangled in my hair. Leaves spun around my feet. Water kissed my skin. And stars—stars lit my veins.

    My breath caught. My knees almost buckled.

    But I wasn’t afraid.

    Because I had never felt more alive.

    Red was roaring inside me—not with fury, but with joy. A kind of ancient, primal joy I didn’t know I’d been missing until now.

    And then, silence.

    The circle broke.

    Jacob stepped forward, cing a hand gently on my shoulder, grounding me. "You’re not alone anymore," he said softly. "You never will be."

    My throat tightened, emotion rising like a tide I couldn’t fight. "Thank you," I managed.

    Bubble handed me a new ss of that glowing wine and winked. "Toote to back out now. You’re stuck with us."

    Fox threw an arm around me like we were old drinking buddies. "Hope you like chaos."

    Eagle offered the tiniest, most reluctant smile. "And discipline."

    Tiger simply nodded, the gesture holding more weight than words ever could.

    Sebastian, still clutching a half-eaten blood sausage in one hand, raised his ss high. "To family. The weirdest, wildest, and most absurdly powerful band of maniacs ever thrown together."

    We raised our sses and drank.

    And then Jacob raised his hand onest time. "Let’s go home."

    The pce shivered.

    And in a breath—a rush of air, light, and sparks—it shattered. Gone.

    The next breath I took was clean and cool, echoing through the familiar, grand halls of my own pce.

    I stood in the main atrium, golden chandeliers glowing like captured moonlight overhead. Outside, the sky stretched wide, the moon full and perfect, casting silver shadows over everything.

    Home.

    The others shimmered into ce around meughing, catching their breath, alive with adrenaline and magic.

    But my heart... my heart was somewhere else.

    Natalie.

    Her name pulsed through me like a drumbeat. Apass. A promise.

    I would see her soon. I would hold her soon.

    But tonight...

    Tonight, I had walked with legends.

    Tonight, I had been blessed by gods.

    Tonight, I hadn’t just survived.

    I had risen.

    I had be.

    Zane Anderson Moor.

    Night Alpha.

    And her future husband.