Rex Pov
"Rex I need to tell you something."
I looked up from the border patrol reports I was reviewing. Alpha Urdon stood in the doorway of my den looking more relaxed than I'd seen him in months. Tomorrow was his mating ceremony with Luna Freda, he practically glowed with happiness.
"What is it Alpha," I said.
"I love her," Urdon said. He walked in and sat down across from me. "I know that probably sounds obvious, I needed to say it out loud to someone. I actually love her Rex, this isn't just a political match or a duty. When I'm with Freda I feel like I can finally breathe."
I smiled. Urdon was my closest friend and had been since we were pups. Seeing him this happy made something warm spread through my chest.
"I'm glad," I said honestly. "You deserve this. You've carried so much weight for the pack. It's good to see you thinking about your own happiness for once."
"The ceremony is going to be perfect," Urdon said. His eyes were bright with excitement. "Freda is nervous but she's going to be an amazing Luna. The pack already loves her, everything is finally falling into place."
"It is," I agreed. "Luna Freda will be good for the pack. Good for you."
"Luna Freda," Urdon repeated softly. He shook his head like he couldn't quite believe it. "Tomorrow she'll officially be my mate."
The moment he said her name something sharp stabbed through my skull.
I gasped and pressed my paws against my head. The pain was sudden and overwhelming like someone had driven claws directly into my brain.
"Rex," Urdon said. He jumped to his feet. "What's wrong."
"I don't know," I managed to say. The pain pulsed behind my eyes. "I have an headache, bad one."
"Should I get the healer," Urdon asked.
"No," I said quickly. The pain was already starting to fade. "I'm fine. It's passing."
But it wasn't fine. Because as the pain faded something else took its place. Memories that couldn't possibly be mine.
A wolf lying dead with his throat torn open, blood soaking into dirt. An Alpha's cold eyes pronouncing judgment, being dragged across a border while the pack howled their approval.
"Rex," Urdon said. He sounded worried. "You don't look fine. You're shaking."
I was shaking. My whole body trembled with something I couldn't name.
"I'm okay," I said. I forced myself to take steady breaths. "Just tired I guess, i haven't been sleeping well with all the ceremony preparations."
Urdon didn't look convinced but he nodded. "Get some rest then. I need my Beta at full strength tomorrow."
"I will," I said. "And Urdon congratulations. I'm happy for you."
He smiled and left. The moment he was gone I collapsed onto my side. My head still throbbed but worse than the pain were the images that wouldn't stop coming.
A mate bond snapping into place. Joy so pure it hurt. Then waking up to find him dead.
But these weren't my memories. I'd never had a mate, I'd never been accused of murder. I'd certainly never been banished as a rogue.
So why did it all feel so real.
I closed my eyes and tried to push the images away but they kept coming and stronger now. More insistent and with them came whispers.
"Traitor."
"Liar."
"They deserve to suffer."
"Stop," I said out loud. "This isn't real."
But my voice didn't sound like my own. It was layered somehow, like two wolves speaking at once.
The headache surged again and I bit back a howl. More images flooded my mind, the moon rising over pack lands. A vow made in desperation, centuries passing in darkness.
Then something shifted. The memories weren't just showing me the past anymore. They were showing me the present, Alpha Urdon smiling as he talked about his mate. Luna Freda getting her hair braided with flowers, the whole pack preparing for tomorrow's ceremony.
And I felt rage. Pure burning rage that had nothing to do with me and everything to do with someone else. Someone who had been waiting a very long time.
"No," I said. I tried to hold onto myself. My own thoughts, my own identity. "I'm Beta Rex. I'm loyal to Alpha Urdon, i would never hurt him."
"Loyal," a voice whispered. It came from inside my own head. "Like William was loyal, look what good it did him."
William. That name meant something but I couldn't remember what. The memories kept shifting and changing until I couldn't tell what was mine and what belonged to whoever was doing this to me.
I staggered to my feet and looked at my reflection in the water basin. My eyes stared back at me but they looked different and older, filled with centuries of hatred.
"Who are you," I whispered to my reflection.
"You know who I am," the voice said. "You've always known. You just forgot."
More memories crashed over me, standing before a council. Defending a she wolf accused of murder. Watching helplessly as she was banished, the guilt and the shame. The knowledge that I should have done more.
"I tried to save her," I heard myself say, but it wasn't me talking. It was someone else using my voice.
Then I understood. This wasn't just memories, this was possession. Someone had been waiting inside me all along, waiting for the right moment to wake up.
And that moment was now.
The name on my lips wasn't Luna Freda anymore. It was the Alpha who once condemned me.