Alison’s POV
The walls of the Crimson archive room loomed around me, their towering shelves packed with ancient tomes that seemed to hold the weight of the world. I leaned back in the creaking chair, my fingers brushing over the worn leather of a centuries-old book. My eyes burned from the strain of scanning text that had faded over time. But I couldn’t stop. I wouldn’t stop. Somewhere in these archives, there had to be a solution.. something, anything to stop the looming threat of war.
Xander had called again this morning. His voice, usually a balm to my frayed nerves, had only grated against my current mood.
“Alison, you’re shutting me out,” he’d said, the concern in his tone sharp as a dagger.
“I’m not,” I’d replied curtly. “I’m just… busy.”
“You’ve been busy for days. Anything you might like to share with me?.”
I’d sighed, fighting the guilt that tugged at my chest. “I know you care about me, but it’s nothing that should worry you, I just have a lot to finish up.”
“Promise you would let me know if something is happening?” His voice softened, breaking through my walls.
“Of course my love”
I couldn’t bring myself to tell him because this war could tear apart everything he had built. His pack would once again blame me for bringing them close to war again. Instead, I ended the call with a weak excuse and promised to call him later. I knew I wouldn’t… not until I had answers.
Hours stretched into days, the routine of my search becoming maddeningly monotonous. My guards lingered outside the archive doors, their muffled chatter a constant reminder of the world outside… a world I couldn’t face until I uncovered something substantial.
“Nothing,” I muttered under my breath, slamming another book closed. Dust puffed into the air, tickling my nose. I coughed, reaching for another tome.
“Still nothing?” a voice interrupted.
I looked up to see Simone, the shock on my face was second to none, I didn’t even hear her cane sound against the bare floor, I stood up hurriedly to help her come in and seat down beside me.
“Not a single thing,” I replied as I joined her, my frustration laced in my tone. “Every lead ends up being useless.”
Simone traced her fingers through the book before me cautiously. “Maybe you’re just looking in the wrong place. These texts seem to mostly be about Crimson Pack history, not exactly something that would give you what you seek.”
“How do you know what I’m reading without even seeing it,” I said, looking surprised as she smiled. “anyways, I’m looking for anything, an ancient pact, a forgotten weapon, even a prophecy that can give us an edge against Alpha Cedric.”
“I have a scoop for you, that’s why I came,” Simone repeated, her lips pursing. “I had been trying to wrap my head around why is he so determined to make you marry his son, It didn’t make sense at first.”
I bit my lip. “That’s the point, it doesn’t make sense? What’s his end game? Felix doesn’t even seem to want me, I get this feeling he is just following his father’s orders like a good little puppet.”
Simone chuckles, her fingers tracing the edge of a scroll. “What if it’s not about Felix? What if it’s about you? Or the Crimson Pack? You need to figure out the connection between Crimson Pack and Red Dawn Pack”
Her words lingered in the air like a challenge. My wolf, Maya, stirred uneasily. She might be onto something.
“I should do that,” I said, though my voice wavered. I glanced at the books piled around me. “I guess I should regroup then.”
It was late afternoon when a sudden dizziness first hit me.
I was hunched over a particularly thick tome, its brittle pages sticking together as I carefully flipped through them. The words swam before my eyes, and I blinked rapidly, trying to refocus.
“What the hell?” I muttered, rubbing my temples. The air felt… heavier somehow, charged with a faint energy that prickled my skin.
A soft breeze stirred through the room, ruffling the pages of the book in front of me. There were no windows in the archives, and yet the breeze felt as real as the chair beneath me.
“Did you feel that?” I called out to Simone, who was reading some thing I couldn’t understand how She was doing it.
“Feel what?” she asked, her face shifting into one of confusion.
But before I could answer, the dizziness returned, stronger this time. My head swam, and I gripped the edge of the table to steady myself.
“Alison, are you there?” Simone’s voice sounded distant, like she was speaking to me from the other side of a tunnel.
I tried to respond, but my tongue felt heavy. My vision blurred, and a sharp light pierced through the haze, forcing me to squeeze my eyes shut.
When I opened them, I wasn’t in the archive anymore.
The world around me was bathed in an ethereal glow. The air shimmered with a faint golden hue, and a figure emerged from the light. Their form was indistinct at first, but as they stepped closer, I could make out the features of a man tall and imposing, with a commanding presence that made my wolf stir with both respect and unease.
“Who are you?” I demanded, my voice trembling slightly.
“I am a messenger,” he replied, his voice deep and resonant. “You have sought answers, and the Moon Goddess has deemed you worthy of receiving them.”
I swallowed hard, my throat dry. “Answers about Alpha Cedric? About the war?”
The figure nodded. “Alpha Cedric’s motives are not what they seem. His insistence on uniting his son with you is a facade for a far greater plan.”
“What plan?” I asked, stepping closer.
“He seeks to claim the Crimson Pack’s territory as his own,” the figure explained. “By tying his bloodline to yours, he aims to solidify his claim through a supposed union. Once the bond is formed, he will use it to dismantle the pack from within.”
Anger bubbled in my chest. “He thinks I’ll just roll over and let that happen? That I’d marry Felix willingly?”
“You will not,” the figure said firmly. “But you must tread carefully. Confronting him directly will lead to unnecessary bloodshed.”
I took a deep breath, trying to steady my racing heart. “Then what do I do? How do I stop him without starting a war?”
The figure extended a hand, and in it, a glowing orb appeared. As I reached out to touch it, images flooded my mind, maps of the Crimson Pack’s borders, ancient treaties, and a hidden weapon buried deep within the territory.
“The answers you seek lie in the Crimson Vault,” the figure said. “There, you will find the means to expose Alpha Cedric’s true intentions and protect your pack.”
When I opened my eyes, I was back in the archives. My head throbbed, and my vision swam, but the vivid images from the vision remained burned into my memory.
“Alison?” Simone’s voice broke through the fog. She was kneeling beside me, her face pale with worry as she couldn’t see what was happening “What’s happening? Someone help!.”
“Hey Simone, I’m fine,” I said, though my voice was hoarse. “I just… ” I paused, unsure how to explain what I’d just experienced.
“What?” she pressed, her brows furrowed as she stared into what seemed like space.
“I think… I think I know what to do, I had a Vision,” I said, pushing myself to my feet. My legs wobbled, but I steadied myself against the table.
“What do you mean?”
I met her gaze, determination hardening my features. “There’s something in the Crimson Vault, I think I have seen a vault in my father’s office, something that can help us. I need to find it.”
Simone traced for her cane. “The Crimson Vault? But I heard that’s been sealed for decades. No one even knows how to access it, rumor has it that the last Alpha who knew the combination had gone missing hence the vault sat pretty within the castle.”
“I’ll figure it out,” I said firmly. “I have to, I have about a few days before the doomed war.”
The air outside the archives was crisp and cool, a stark contrast to the suffocating atmosphere within. As I made my way back to the main hall, my mind raced with the implications of the vision. If what the messenger had said was true, then this wasn’t just about Felix or even Alpha Cedric.. it was about the survival of the Crimson Pack itself.
I paused in the hallway, pulling out my phone. My fingers hovered over Xander’s number, but I hesitated. How could I explain all of this to him? Would he even believe me?
With a sigh, I slipped the phone back into my pocket. For now, this was my burden to bear.
By the time I reached my room, exhaustion had settled into my bones. I collapsed onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling as the weight of everything threatened to crush me.
“Moon Goddess,” I whispered, my voice barely audible. “If you’re listening… please keep guiding me. I don’t know if I’m strong enough to do this on my own.”
The silence that followed was deafening, but I clung to the hope that the vision had given me.
I would find the combination to the Crimson Vault. I would uncover the truth. And I would protect my pack… no matter the cost.