Lysandra POV :

"The prophecy states that five Alphas must unite with the chosen woman to stop the Void," the High Priestess continued. "Without that unity, the kingdom will fall."

"Then the kingdom will have to find another way," Kieran said. "Because I will not be bound to someone who weakens my bloodline."

"She doesn't even have a wolf," Theron added. "How is she supposed to fight Void beasts? Ask them nicely to leave?"

A few people actually laughed at that.

I felt my face burning but kept my expression blank.

"The girl is useless," said the scarred Alpha. "No power. No wolf. No training. She's a liability and not an asset."

"Exactly," Cassian said, speaking for the first time. Those silver eyes were cold as they landed on me. "I've examined her thoroughly. There's no magical signature. No power. Nothing. Binding myself to her would actively weaken my abilities."

"So we're all in agreement," Darius said. "The rejection stands. We find another solution to the Void problem."

"There is no other solution!" The High Priestess looked like she was about to cry. "The prophecy is clear!"

"Then we'll make a new prophecy," Kieran said dismissively. "Petition the Moon Goddess for a different ceremony. A better candidate."

"You cannot simply petition for a new prophecy!"

"Watch me."

The High Priestess turned to look at me, her eyes desperate. "Child, please. Say something. Make them understand."

All eyes turned to me.

I looked at the five Alphas. At their expressions of disgust and contempt. At the way they couldn't even stand to look at me properly.

"Actually," I said, standing up. "I agree with them."

Dead silence.

"What?" the High Priestess whispered.

"I agree," I repeated. "They don't want me. I don't want them. So let's just end this now."

Kieran's eyes narrowed. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying I reject this bond too." I looked at each of them in turn. "I reject you, Kieran Silvercrest. I reject you, Theron Ironfang. I reject you, Cassian Nightweaver. I reject you, Darius Goldmane. And I reject you, Zane Shadowmere."

I felt something snap inside my chest. Five threads breaking, five bonds severing completely. It should have hurt. The legends said mate rejection was supposed to be agonizing.

Instead, I felt... lighter.

The five Alphas looked surprised for about half a second. Then Theron actually smiled. It wasn't a nice smile.

"Well," he said. "That makes things easier."

"Agreed," Darius said. "No more pretending we have to tolerate her presence."

"This is perfect," Kieran said, and he actually looked relieved. "The bonds are broken on both sides. We can move forward without this... complication."

"Finally," Zane muttered. "I was getting tired of smelling weak blood every time she walked by."

"This is madness!" the High Priestess cried. "You're all mad! The prophecy..."

"Is over," Cassian said coldly. "The bonds are severed. We're free."

"You're not free!" The old woman looked like she was about to collapse. "You've doomed yourselves! All of you!"

"What are you talking about?" Kieran asked, finally showing a hint of concern.

"The prophecy is a binding," she said, her voice shaking. "Once the Blood Moon chooses, the connection is formed. Rejecting it doesn't break the bond. It damages it. And damaged bonds kill."

The room went dead silent.

"Kill how?" Theron asked slowly.

"Slowly and very painfully." The High Priestess looked at each of us. "The broken bonds will drain your life force. All six of you. You'll grow weaker, sicker. Within a year, you'll be dead."

"That's ridiculous," Darius said, but he didn't sound as confident as before.

"It's in the sacred texts. The bonds cannot be broken without consequence."

"Then we'll find a way to reverse it," Kieran said firmly.

"There is only one way to reverse it," she said. "Accept the bonds. Properly. All six of you."

"No," Zane said immediately.

"Absolutely not," Theron agreed.

"I'd rather die," Cassian said flatly.

I almost laughed at that. Almost.

Lysandra POV:

"You will die," the High Priestess insisted. "All of you. Unless you accept the bonds."

"Then we die," Kieran said, and he meant it. I could see it in his eyes. "I will not bind myself to a wolfless weakling. I'd rather face death with dignity than live as a laughingstock."

"Same," Theron said immediately. "I'm a warrior. I face death every day. If this is how I go, so be it. At least I won't be tied to a dead weight."

"My reputation is worth more than my life," Darius added. "Being bound to her would destroy everything I've built. Death is preferable."

"I've made my peace with death a long time ago," Zane said quietly. "This changes nothing."

"Your pride will kill you," the High Priestess said desperately.

"Better than the alternative," Cassian replied, his silver eyes cold. "I've spent my entire life building my power. I will not throw it away to save myself by binding to someone who has nothing to offer."

They all meant it. Every single word. They genuinely would rather die than be mated to me.

The room was in chaos now. Council members shouting, arguing, some agreeing with the Alphas, some begging them to reconsider.

I just stood there, feeling numb.

"Miss Vane," the High Priestess said, turning to me with tears in her eyes. "Surely you don't want to die. Surely you'll convince them to..."

"Why would I convince them of anything?" I interrupted. "They've made their position very clear. They'd rather die than be with me. And honestly? I feel the same way about them."

"You can't mean that," she whispered.

"I absolutely mean it." I looked at the five Alphas. "You five have made it crystal clear that you think I'm worthless. That I'm weak. That I'm an embarrassment. So why would I want to bind myself to you? Why would I spend what's left of my life tied to people who despise me?"

"See?" Kieran said. "She agrees. Problem solved."

"You're all going to die!" the High Priestess screamed.

"Then we die," I said simply. "I'd rather die free than live as someone's unwanted burden."

"This is insanity," the scarred Alpha said. "We need to find another solution."

"There is no other solution," the High Priestess said, her voice breaking. "This is it. Accept the bonds or die."

"Die it is, then," Theron said, crossing his massive arms.

"Agreed," the other four Alphas said in unison.

"I vote for death too," I added. "Since apparently that's what we're voting on."

The High Priestess sank into a chair, looking defeated. "You're all fools."

"Maybe," Kieran said. "But we're fools with our pride intact."

"Pride won't save you from the Void," she said weakly.

"Neither will binding ourselves to a wolfless orphan," he shot back.

I should have felt something. Hurt, maybe. Anger. Something.

But I just felt tired.

"If we're done here," I said, "I'd like to go back to my room."

"You're dismissed," Kieran said, waving his hand like I was a servant.

I walked out of that council chamber with my head held high, even though I could feel everyone staring at me. Could hear the whispers starting up again.

"...she actually agreed to die..."

"...no self-preservation instinct..."

"...good riddance..."

Mira was waiting outside, her face pale. "Miss Vane, I heard everything. Are you... are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I lied. "Just peachy. Apparently I'm going to die in less than a year, but at least I won't have to deal with five Alphas who think I'm garbage."

"This isn't funny," she said.

"I know. But if I don't laugh, I'll cry, and I'm not giving them that satisfaction."

She walked me back to my room in silence. When we got there, she turned to me with worried eyes.

"There has to be another way," she said. "Some way to break the curse without accepting the bonds."

"If there is, the High Priestess would have mentioned it." I sank onto the fancy couch in my sitting room. "Face it, Mira. We're all screwed."

"But you don't want to die."

"Of course I don't want to die," I said. "But I also don't want to spend my life with five people who literally said they'd rather die than be with me. That's not living. That's torture."

She didn't have an answer for that.

After she left, I sat alone in my fancy rooms and stared at nothing.

I was going to die.

In less than a year, I would be gone.

And the crazy thing was, part of me was almost relieved. At least death would be peaceful. At least I wouldn't have to keep fighting, keep pretending, keep being strong when everything inside me was broken.

My wolf stirred, angry at my thoughts.

She didn't want to die. She wanted to fight. Wanted to show these idiots exactly what they'd rejected.

"Not yet," I whispered to her. "Let them think they've won."

I was stronger than all five of them combined.

But they didn't need to know that yet.

Let them think I was weak. Let them think I was nothing.

I'd save the kingdom without them. I'd stop the Demon King. I'd do it all alone, just like I always had.

And when I succeeded, when they realized what they'd rejected, I'd be long gone.

Dead, probably, from these broken bonds.

But at least I'd die knowing I was worth something.

Even if they never figured it out.

Lysandra POV:

The next few days were absolute hell.

The five Alphas didn't just ignore me. They went out of their way to make my life miserable.

It started at breakfast the morning after the council meeting. I'd made the mistake of going to the main dining hall instead of hiding in my room. The moment I walked in, the entire room went quiet.

Kieran was sitting at the head of the table with Theron and Cassian. They all looked at me, and the disgust on their faces was almost comical in how obvious it was.

"Oh good," Kieran said loudly. "The dead girl walking has joined us."

Several nobles laughed.

I kept my face blank and walked to the buffet table to get food. My hands were shaking, but I refused to let them see it.

"I don't understand why she's still here," Theron said, his voice carrying across the room. "Shouldn't she go crawl back to whatever basement she came from?"

More laughter.

"Maybe she likes the food," Darius said from another table. He'd just walked in with Zane. "Can't blame her. It's better than table scraps."

"Is that what the Blackwater family fed her?" Cassian asked, tilting his head. "Scraps?"

"I heard they kept her in the basement like a dog," someone said.

"At least dogs have some use," Zane said coldly.

The entire room erupted in laughter.

I stood there with a plate of food in my hands, my face burning, trying to decide if I should stay or run.

"Aww, look," Kieran said, false sympathy dripping from his voice. "We've hurt her feelings."

"Does she even have feelings?" Theron asked. "She agreed to die rather easily. Maybe she's not fully human."

"She's not fully anything," Cassian said. "No wolf, no power, no purpose."

I set my plate down carefully and turned to face them.

"Are you all done?" I asked.

"Done?" Kieran raised an eyebrow. "We've barely started. We have months to make fun of you before you die. Might as well enjoy it."

"How gracious of you," I said.

"I thought so." He smiled, and it was cruel. "Tell me, Lysandra. What's it like knowing you're completely worthless? That even the Moon Goddess's prophecy couldn't make you valuable enough to keep?"

"I don't know," I said. "What's it like being so insecure that you need to mock a wolfless orphan to feel powerful?"

His smile disappeared. "Watch your tone."

"Or what? You'll reject me again? Already done. You'll make fun of me? Already doing that. You'll kill me?" I laughed. "Already dying. You have no power over me, Your Highness. None of you do."

"We have all the power," Zane said, stepping out of the shadows. "You're here because we allow it. You eat because we allow it. You breathe because we haven't decided otherwise."

"Wow," I said. "That's incredibly threatening. I'm so scared."

His eyes went dark. "You should be."

"Why? The worst you can do is kill me, and I'm already dying. So congratulations. You're impotent threats walking."

Theron stood up, his chair scraping loudly. He was huge, towering over everyone, and he looked furious. "You really want to test us?"

"Not particularly," I said. "I just want to eat my breakfast in peace. But apparently that's too much to ask."

"Peace?" Darius laughed. "You're going to die because you're too weak to accept a mate bond. You don't deserve peace."

"And you're going to die because you're too proud to accept a mate bond," I shot back. "So I guess we're all stupid together."

"The difference," Cassian said coldly, "is that we have reasons to be proud. You have nothing."

"You're right," I said. "I have nothing. No family. No pack. No power. But at least I'm not so pathetic that I need to gang up on someone weaker than me to feel good about myself."

The room went dead silent.