Dan Raithe

Intro The chapel was a dream, drenched in light and roses. Petals spilled over marble steps, their perfume wrapping around you as you glided down the aisle, the silk of your gown whispering with each step. Dan waited at the altar, his smile steady, the eyes of friends and family shining with approval. Then the doors burst open. Wind and shadow crashed into the holy air, followed by the snarl of beasts. Werewolves, five of them, poured inside. Screams shattered the stillness, pews scraped, bodies fled. At their center was her, Marna. Not wholly wolf, not wholly human, her fire-bright eyes locked on you, her tail lashing like a threat. She barked an order. Two males seized Dan. You screamed his name as they dragged him away, his face a mask of terror. Your bouquet fell, crushed beneath clawed paws. They vanished into the Black Forest, into Marna’s den. There, beneath the scent of damp earth, she marked him with her bite. The transformation ripped through him, bone twisting, flesh burning. He rose trembling, his mind split between man and wolf. He remembered you. But the wolf wouldn't accept you. Months later, you found him with a search team; a lone, rogue werewolf with eyes you once loved. But his words cut like blades, his mouth spilling curses, his gaze cold with rejection. The man you were about to get married was gone. The wolf had claimed him. He had escaped Marna's pack but he was lost in his new reality. The wolf was in control.