Book 1 – The Lycan’s Curse Smoke ‘N Mirror

Rio left quietly, heading back to his home. He didn’t quite understand what was happening to him, but his feelings for Aliyah were growing stronger, suffocating him every time he saw her close to Giuseppe. The sight of them together made his stomach churn. He leaned against the outside wall of his house, lost in thought.

“Good evening, Alpha Rio!” Davin, the beta’s son, greeted as he passed by, preparing to patrol the border with the others.

Rio lit a cigarette and took a long drag, exhaling slowly before sighing. “Hey, Davin, good to see you,” he greeted back. ” but how many times do I need to tell you that don’t call me alpha.”

“Everything okay?” Davin asked, his tone tinged with concern.

“Not really,” Rio admitted. “I just need to figure things out on my own.”

Davin nodded before changing the subject. “So, how’ve you been?”

“Never better,” Rio said with a sarcastic chuckle. Then, with a mischievous grin, he added, “You need to see this.”

Rio waved his hand, and the smoke from his cigarette twisted and shimmered in the air, transforming into a miniature version of the aurora borealis. Davin’s eyes widened in awe.

“Whoa! How did you do that?” Davin exclaimed, utterly shocked.

“Magic, I guess? It’s not that surprising, and It’s complicated,” Rio chuckled.

“But you don’t have a witch’s bloodline. How is that even possible?” Davin asked, his confusion deepening.

“Witch baptism,” Rio responded casually.

“Witch baptism? What’s that? Some kind of creepy ritual or dark magic?” Davin pressed.

“Something like that,” Rio muttered with a grin.

“Can I get baptized too?!” Davin asked, clearly intrigued. Rio nodded.

“Sure, but you’d need to find an ancient witch to do it… or a tribrid to perform it,” Rio explained, watching Davin’s nonchalant reaction. “At the very least, the witch or tribrid would need to come from the first or second generation of the original bloodlines. Alastair belongs to the second-generation bloodline.”

“Who is Alastair?” Davin asked again, his curiosity relentless.

“A new friend of mine,” Rio said with a sly smile playing on his lips. “And the best part? I can use my full speed without needing to shift into my wolf form.”

“That’s insane, bro!” Davin exclaimed, his admiration evident.

The mood shifted when Davin asked, “Where’s Aliyah, by the way?”

Rio’s expression darkened instantly. “She’s with Giuseppe.”

“Giuseppe Sarnataro? He’s already back?”

“Yeah, and now he’s a vampire already,” Rio replied, rolling his eyes. “ things change suddenly. ”

Davin smirked knowingly. “You’re jealous, man. I can see it in your eyes.”

“Yes, obviously! Say it again, and I’ll skin you alive. I’ll crush your bones and chop you into pieces,” Rio threatened, though his chuckle at the end gave him away, sounding more like a guilty child than a predator.

Davin laughed before waving goodbye. “I’ve got to go now.”

“See you later,” Rio said, dismissing him with a wave, still leaning against the wall, lost in the whirlwind of emotions swirling inside him.

Rio made his way to Aliyah’s house, intending to slip in unnoticed, but his plan was quickly foiled. He had forgotten about the invisible barrier surrounding the house, one that only allowed Aliyah and her family to enter freely.

“What do you want, Rio? How many times do I have to tell you not to sneak into my house? Haven’t your parents taught you how to knock?” A woman in her thirties appeared at the door, arms crossed, scolding him with a stern look.

“I just wanted to see if Aliyah is around,” Rio lied, but the woman scoffed.

“Boy, I don’t like liars either,” she said, rolling her eyes.

“Okay, fine. I was planning to steal a few spell books,” Rio admitted, a sheepish grin tugging at his lips.

The woman grinned knowingly. “Useless. Also, you can’t read them without the owner’s permission, and you cannot use every spell without the owner’s permission,”

She folded her arms tighter. “Where’s that book that I gave to you and Aliyah?” she asked.

“She’s still using it, but I need to practice on my own,” Rio retorted, trying to maintain his calm. The woman’s brows furrowed in suspicion. She stepped closer, placing her hand on Rio’s forehead. Her eyes widened in disbelief as she sensed something unusual.

“Can you still transform into your wolf form?” she asked, her tone more serious now.

Rio hadn’t thought much about it, he had grown lazy about shifting lately. But now, he tried to transform, concentrating, willing the change… yet nothing happened. He felt empty, a hollowness he couldn’t explain. Panic began to settle in as his eyes widened in horror.

“What?!” he whispered, his voice trembling.

“You’re not a pure-blooded shifter anymore. You’ve become a tribrid creature,” the woman replied, her voice low and measured, her words weighing heavily on him.

“How the hell did that happen?!” Rio exclaimed, disbelief etched across his face as he tried again and again to shift, but to no avail.

“When someone from the ancient generations, first or second, baptizes you, it enhances your power and awakens parts of you that were dormant. You inherit something from them—something that changes your very nature. You’re no longer just a pure shifter,” the woman explained, watching him closely.

Rio let out a breath, the tension leaving his body as relief washed over him. “I thought something terrible had happened to me… but this is a good thing. I’m stronger than ever now. I don’t even need to shift into my wolf form anymore.”

The woman twitched her lips, a mix of amusement and concern in her expression. “You’ve lost your identity as a pure shifter, but you’re still a wolf in human form. It’s t state, but it is what it is. You won’t need to transform, but you can use your full strength and potential. ”

With a wave of her hand, she added, “Come inside. I’m granting you permission now.”

Rio nodded, following her as she turned and led him into the house, his mind racing with the new reality of who—no, what—he had become.