HEARTS OF DIVINE RUIN (The MoonGoddess and The AlphaKing)

The sound of chattering voices echoed through the dimly lit room, pulling Alex from the haze of unconsciousness. His mind felt thick, like a fog he couldn't clear away. Bits and pieces floated in, fragments of memories that didn't quite fit together. He slowly blinked his eyes open, his vision blurry at first, but it soon cleared enough to make out the faces surrounding him. His pack members were there, their voices a soft murmur beneath the overwhelming sense of disorientation.
Charlie's voice cut through the noise, sharp and unmistakable. "Timmothy, for the last time, don't try to roast marshmallows with your damn sword!" He sounded exasperated, but Alex could hear the edge of amusement in his tone. "You almost set the entire forest on fire!"
Timmothy, standing with an awkward grin, was trying to stifle a laugh. "It was a very advanced technique, Charlie! The fire was under control."
Charlie threw his hands up in the air, his eyes rolling. "Under control? You were cooking marshmallows with fire magic! Who does that?"
Alex shifted slightly, groaning as a dull ache shot through his head. He glanced around, but the room was unfamiliar—he didn't recognize the faces of the pack members crowded near him, their concerned stares blurred in his mind.
"What happened?" His voice was rough, as though he hadn't used it in days.
Charlie's attention snapped to him immediately, cutting off his tirade at Timmothy. He moved with surprising speed, crossing the room in a few long strides before kneeling beside Alex's bed. "Hey, you're finally awake." He clapped him lightly on the shoulder, a grin breaking through the tension. "You've been out cold for the better part of a day. We were getting worried."
Alex squinted at him. "What do you mean? Why am I... injured?" His memories were fragmented, nothing making sense. The last thing he could remember was—nothing. Just darkness. "I don't... remember anything."
Charlie shook his head. "Well, we were searching for that rogue Alpha and some other wolves. Things got... chaotic." He glanced briefly at Timmothy, who was still poking fun at him from across the room. "You got knocked out in the skirmish. You fainted, actually. The pack doctor said it was just exhaustion, though."
Alex tried to piece it together. "Exhaustion?"
Charlie nodded, his face serious now. "You pushed yourself too hard. The doc warned you about it, but you never listen. You've got to take care of yourself better, Alpha." He sighed, as if exhausted by Alex's stubbornness.
As Alex processed this, a strange feeling tugged at him—like something was missing. Something important.

He stretched and yawned, his body protesting. His gaze wandered, and that's when he saw her.
At the door frame stood a woman, her silver hair flowing like moonlight, her ocean-blue eyes shimmering with a depth that caught him off guard. There was a softness in them, something familiar. The air around her seemed to hum, a quiet magic that wrapped around him, pulling him in as though he'd known her for lifetimes. Her soft lips curved up in a faint and pure smile and Alex couldn't help but smile back at her .
"Who is she?" His voice came out hoarse, tinged with a curious reverence he couldn't explain.
Charlie followed Alex's gaze, but the moment he looked, the doorway was empty. 
"Uh... What woman?" Charlie asked, his brow furrowing as he glanced back at Alex.
Alex's eyes narrowed. He was sure he'd seen her. "She was just standing there, right in the doorway."
Timmothy, ever the joker, jumped up. "Ghost!" he yelled, his voice overly dramatic. "We've got a ghost in the pack, and Alex is seeing things!"
Alex looked at them, confused. "I'm not talking about a ghost. She was—" He turned to where she had stood, but the space was empty now, as if she'd never been there at all.
"See?" Timmothy smirked. "Nothing there!"
Alex's heart raced as he looked back at Charlie, but the beta was already shaking his head in confusion. "There's no one here, Alex."
His mind raced, his confusion deepening. Was it a hallucination? But no, it had felt too real. He could almost hear her whispering to him, something soft, something just for him, but the words didn't reach him.
"I swear I saw her," Alex muttered, his gaze fixed on the spot she'd been. But there was nothing. Only the lingering sense of magic, like the faintest scent of something long lost.
Charlie chuckled awkwardly. "Must've been a dream or something. You've been out for a while."
"Yeah, maybe you're just seeing things," Timmothy teased, earning a slap on the back of the head from Charlie.
Alex frowned, his mind still swirling with questions. That woman... she felt important. But why couldn't he remember her? Why did it feel like a connection he should've known?
Before he could dwell on it further, Charlie slapped him lightly on the shoulder again. "Come on, Alpha. You need to take it easy. No more fighting until you're fully healed, okay?"
Alex nodded absentmindedly, his eyes still on the spot where the woman had stood. Something was off, but he couldn't put his finger on it.
Just as Alex tried to clear his thoughts, his attention was pulled away by the sound of hurried footsteps approaching the room. A royal guard, his armor clinking as he moved, stepped into the room, a look of uncertainty on his face.
"Alpha Alex, Beta Charlie, Timmothy," the guard began, his voice filled with a mix of caution and confusion. "We've found something... unusual." He glanced nervously between the three of them. "A human girl. She's—well, she's been wandering near the pack boundaries. Apparently, she got separated from her college trip and ended up way past where she should've been. We brought her in, but we don't know what to do with her."
The trio exchanged confused glances. "A human?" Alex's voice was laced with disbelief. "How could a human find their way to our pack?"
Charlie raised an eyebrow, looking between Alex and Timmothy. "This doesn't make sense. No one should be able to cross our borders unnoticed."
Timmothy chuckled darkly. "Well, seems like someone's breaking the rules today."
Alex frowned, pushing himself up from the bed, ignoring the lingering ache in his body. "Show us."
The three of them got to their feet, exchanging a quick glance as they made their way to the door. The guard led them through the winding corridors of the palace and into the open air. The morning sun was just beginning to rise, casting a soft golden glow over the grounds. As they reached the open courtyard, Alex's eyes scanned the gathered pack members, who were standing around a small, delicate figure.
There, in the center of the gathering, stood the girl.
She was stunning, but there was something almost otherworldly about her. Her hair, a soft, silvery blonde, was styled in a high bun, but delicate strands fell loosely around her neck, glowing faintly in the light. She looked... ethereal, like she didn't belong in the mundane world.
Her ocean-grey eyes shimmered like a storm-tossed sea, and as she turned to face them, they locked with Alex's, sending a sudden jolt through his chest. His heart skipped a beat, and for a moment, the world seemed to still, like time itself had frozen. The intensity of her gaze was magnetic, and everything else faded away.
He couldn't breathe. His mind raced as he found himself inexplicably drawn to her, to the beauty in her eyes, to the way she seemed to be more than just human. It felt like an eternity passed in that one heartbeat, but it was only a moment.
"Can you... can you see her too?" Alex asked quietly, still unable to tear his eyes away from the girl, his voice strained with confusion. He glanced to Charlie, then Timmothy, needing confirmation, needing some kind of explanation.
Timmothy shrugged nonchalantly, his eyes still on the girl. "Only a blind man could fail to see that beauty," he said, his tone almost bored as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.