Chapter 28 Chapter 28
Sable’s POV
The growl beneath the temple didn’t just shake the stone.
It shook me. It rolled through the ground and climbed up my legs like thunder crawling beneath my skin. The silver light surrounding my body flickered violently, reacting to the sound rising from the depths below.
Even though I wasn't fully conscious of my surroundings, I could feel something down there that knew me.
Something ancient.
Something that has been waiting for a long time.
My chest tightened as the temple floor cracked again, the fractures spreading like spiderwebs beneath the glowing symbols.
The Guardian’s words echoed in my mind.
'The beast beneath the temple has heard its Queen. Queen.'
The title felt heavier now than it had ever felt before,
And it was terrifying.
Another tremor slammed through the temple. The stone pillars groaned loudly as dust rained from the ceiling. The ancient symbols spinning beneath the Alphas flickered wildly, struggling to contain the storm of power erupting around them.
My body trembled again.
But this time—
The tremor didn’t come from the ground.
It came from inside me.
A violent surge of silver energy burst through my veins like lightning.
I gasped.
The pain exploded behind my ribs as if something inside my chest had just woken up.
Around me, the Alphas froze.
Even in their wolf forms, their attention snapped instantly back to me.
I could feel their gazes burning brands across my skin.
Leonidas stood next to me the closest. His massive gray wolf was tense, muscles coiled and ready to strike, but his silver eyes were fixed on me with something far more complicated than anger or dominance.
Fear.
Not the fear of me but the fear for me.
Another roar thundered beneath the temple.
Closer this time.
The ground split open with a deafening crack.
A deep crack tore across the temple floor between the glowing circles where the Alphas stood. Jagged stone ripped apart as something enormous shifted beneath the earth.
The Guardian stepped forward quickly.
"Everyone move back."
Marcus snarled.
"The hell we will!"
The Guardian didn’t even look at him.
"You don’t understand what you have just awakened."
Asher’s face had gone pale.
His eyes were locked on the growing crack spreading across the temple floor.
"I do."
The crack widened as a powerful wave of heat rushed upward from the darkness below, carrying with it the scent of something ancient and wild.
My heart began racing faster.
Because I could feel it now.
Not just hear it.
Or sense it.
But feel it.
A massive consciousness is stirring beneath the temple.
It brushed against my mind like the edge of a storm cloud.
Hungry.
Curious.
And aware.
The silver light around my body surged again, brighter than before,
making the temple respond instantly.
The glowing symbols beneath the Alphas spun faster.
The barriers surrounding them flickered violently as the ancient magic struggled to maintain the trial.
Kael’s wolf growled low in his throat.
"Something’s coming up."
Leonidas’s wolf stepped closer to me.
Protective.
Ready.
But even he couldn’t hide the tension rolling off him now. Another violent quake struck as the temple floor exploded outward.
Stone shattered as the fissure split wide open across the center of the temple.
A massive claw slammed into the broken stone from below.
Everything stopped.
Even the Alphas went completely silent.
Because the claw wasn’t just large, it was monstrous.
Black scales glistened under the moonlight pouring down from above. Each claw was longer than a wolf’s entire leg, curved like blades forged from obsidian.
The claw tightened against the edge of the broken temple floor.
Then slowly—
Something began pulling itself upward.
Marcus took a step back.
"What the hell is that?"
The Guardian’s voice was calm. But grim.
"The first Guardian."
Asher turned toward him sharply.
"That’s impossible."
The creature rose higher.
Another claw gripped the stone. Then a massive scaled head emerged from the darkness beneath the temple.
Gasps filled the chamber.
Even the Alphas looked stunned.
The creature was enormous.
Easily three times the size of the largest Alpha wolf present. Its body was covered in dark scales that shimmered like liquid shadow under the moonlight.
But its eyes—
Its eyes were glowing silver.
The same silver light that surrounded me.
The beast lifted its massive head slowly as it climbed fully out of the temple floor. The ground shook with every movement of its colossal body.
Wings unfolded behind it.
Massive.
Ancient.
A dragon.
No one spoke.
No one moved.
Because the creature wasn’t looking at the Alphas.
It was looking at me.
My heart pounded violently in my chest.
The dragon’s silver eyes studied me with an intelligence that felt older than the mountains themselves.
Then it lowered its massive head.
Closer.
Closer.
Until its breath washed across my skin like a hot wind. I should have been terrified.
But strangely enough, I wasn’t.
Instead, a strange warmth spread through my chest.
A recognition.
Like seeing something familiar after a lifetime of forgetting.
The dragon exhaled slowly.
Then—
It bowed.
Every Alpha froze.
Even Kael’s wolf looked stunned.
The Guardian nodded quietly.
"As it should."
Marcus stared.
"Did that thing just bow to her?"
Asher’s voice was barely a whisper.
"Yes."
The dragon remained bowed for several seconds. Then its enormous head lifted again. Its silver gaze swept across the Alphas surrounding the temple.
And its expression changed.
The warmth vanished.
Replaced by pure, ancient hostility.
The dragon growled.
The sound shook the entire temple. Kael’s wolf lowered into a defensive stance instantly.
Leonidas’s wolf stepped directly in front of me.
Protective.
Possessive.
The dragon noticed as its eyes narrowed slightly.
Then—
It spoke.
Not with words.
But with something far more powerful.
A voice echoed directly inside every mind in the temple.
Something ancient, deep, and unmistakably powerful.
"Only one Alpha may stand beside the Queen."
The Alphas stiffened instantly.
The dragon’s massive tail slammed against the stone floor.
The temple trembled again.
"The trial continues."
The glowing symbols beneath the wolves flared violently once more. The barriers between the circles snapped back into place with a flash of silver light.
Asher cursed under his breath.
"It’s forcing the trial to continue."
Marcus growled.
"Even with that monster here?"
The dragon’s glowing eyes turned toward him slowly, making Marcus shut his mouth.
Another barrier shattered.
Two Alphas were forced together again.
Their wolves lunged instantly as the fight resumed.
Claws slashed. Jaws snapped.
Blood splattered across the ancient temple floor.
But now the tension in the room had changed completely.
Because the dragon wasn’t just watching the fight.
It was judging.
Every Alpha.
Every movement.
Every strike.
And I could feel it.
The connection between us.
A strange thread of power links my mind to the massive creature now circling slowly around the temple.
The dragon’s voice whispered inside my thoughts.
"You are the Queen."
My heart skipped.
What are you?
The dragon’s silver eyes turned toward me again.
"I am the first Guardian."
Another violent clash erupted between two wolves.
One slammed the other against a pillar with bone-crushing force.
But the dragon didn’t look away from me.
"And I protect the throne."
The realization settled slowly in my chest.
"You protect... me?"
The dragon’s massive wings shifted slightly.
"No."
A pause.
Then—
"I protect the world from whoever sits upon it."
My breath caught.
Before I could respond—
Another deafening roar shook the temple. But this one didn’t come from the dragon.
It came from the forest outside. Dozens of wolves howled at once.
The sound echoed across the mountains surrounding the temple.
The Guardian turned sharply toward the entrance.
"They’re here."
Leonidas’s wolf growled deeply.
Marcus frowned.
"Who’s here?"
The Guardian’s voice was tight.
"The packs."
Asher’s eyes widened.
"All of them?"
Another massive howl echoed outside.
Closer now.
The Guardian nodded slowly.
"Yes."
He looked around the temple grimly.
"The entire wolf world just felt the Queen awaken."
Another violent tremor shook the temple floor.
More cracks spread across the ancient stone.
The dragon lifted its head toward the sky as we all felt the moon above had changed again.
Dark clouds were beginning to gather around it.
The dragon’s voice echoed one final time inside our minds.
"The trial must end quickly."
Kael’s wolf stepped forward again. His golden eyes were burning with excitement.
"Well then."
He looked straight at Leonidas.
"Let’s finish this."
Behind him—
Another Alpha wolf collapsed.
Defeated.
The temple symbols flared.
Only four circles remained glowing now.
Four Alphas left standing.
The dragon watched silently.
The temple trembled, the packs outside were getting closer.
And the trial for the Queen’s Alpha..
Was far from over.