Chapter 1

• Chapter One
• The evening air in Alberta carried the last whispers of winter, crisp and cool as it settled over Calgary while the sun dipped behind the distant Rockies.
• In VaelTech’s global headquarters, the press conference room was filled with reporters, analysts, and investors, all watching and waiting.
• VaelTech Industries, a global tech powerhouse, specializing in biotech, cyber security, and Ai-driven advancements thrived under Seylan Vaelthorn. Poised before a sea of flashing cameras, he bore the moment lightly.
• From age five, Seylan outsmarted his tutors, solving in minutes what VaelTech’s brightest minds labored over for months. By twenty, the tech prodigy had reshaped innovation, his influence fueling VaelTech’s success with a brilliance that silenced all ego.
• The world sees Seylan Vaelthorn’s genius, but it knows only half his story. Beyond intellect and industry lies a power beyond human grasp: he is the Alpha Heir to the Obsidian Throne, a Lycan prince bridging tradition and future. Unmarred by arrogance, he commands like a quiet storm, effortless and undeniable.
• Sitting at a table, he was about to announce the next great VaelTech initiative that would reshape the world.
• Seylan
• Cameras flashed as I leaned into the microphone, voice steady.
• “VaelTech’s newest enterprise, the Quantum Nexus Project blends cutting edge AI with sustainable energy to not just push industries forward but safeguard our planet’s future.” “Under this initiative is the LUX Smart Glasses Project, which enhances accessibility for the blind and visually impaired through AI-driven sensory translation from our EchoNet system enabling real-time environmental feedback.”
• I gave them enough to spark awe, holding back the full weight of what I’m building.
• Reporters scribbled furiously.
• Hands shot up across the room.
• “What inspired VaelTech to repurpose the EchoNet Protocol from military use to a civilian accessibility tool?” a woman in the front row asked.
• “Can you explain how the AI sensory translation makes the LUX glasses a game-changer for accessibility?” a guy with glasses in the second row leaned forward.
• I fielded each question with ease, my answers sharp and deliberate.
• Then a gruff voice cut through the murmur. “Will this technology have government or military applications?”
• I paused, letting the silence linger, a flicker of amusement crossing my mind.
• The world’s biggest governments already run my software, clueless that a Lycan prince holds their secrets. My claws twitched beneath my human guise, but my face stayed cool.“The LUX Smart Glasses are for civilians, but their roots in battlefield tech mean they could adapt for military use,” I said, my voice smooth. “EchoNet helps with navigation, and Quantum Nexus speeds things up, but we’re focused on accessibility and keeping the planet safe.”
• “How do you handle the pressure of leading a global empire?” a young reporter all the way in the back piped up.“Pressure’s just part of it,” I said with a shrug. “I’ve been doing this a long time, I started shadowing my father at five, learning everything behind the scenes.”
• “I don’t rely on guesswork, it’s data, analysis and instinct.” “That’s how I manage the pressure by staying focused and getting it right.”
• A reporter with a sly grin, tossed out a question, “You’ve always been known for keeping things under wraps, but people are curious, who is really the man behind the suit? Is there more to the story than what meets the eye?” My Beta’s voice slithered into my mind, smug as hell.
• Just a regular mogul, closing deals by day, shredding throats and howling by night. Real work-life balance right?
• The link buzzed, Or we can clear this room by showing them exactly what you are.
• The Crown Prince of the Obsidian Throne Pack, the biggest and baddest of all lycan bloodlines, his words pressed.
• I cleared my throat to silence my beta while fighting a smirk.
• “The man behind the suit?” I said. “Just someone who works hard, takes risks, and lets results speak for themselves.”
• “Two Vaeltech employees went missing recently, are there any leads? Is the company cooperating with the investigation?” The reporter’s tone was clipped, eyes narrowing as he waited. I kept my expression neutral, though my pulse quickened, a primal instinct I’d long learned to cage.
• Unlike many werewolf clans that remain isolated, Obsidian Lycans have seamlessly integrated into human society. We own businesses, run corporations, and influence politics, all while remaining hidden.
• However, our pack has strict laws against unnecessary violence or exposure, maintaining a careful balance between our primal nature and modern civilization. Lycans who can’t control themselves don’t last long.
• Unfortunately, these two employees became a liability.
• “It’s deeply troubling,” I said, meeting the reporter’s gaze. “VaelTech’s working closely with the authorities.” “We’ve also provided financial assistance to their families and will continue to support them for the long haul.” “Our priority is ensuring the well-being of our team and honoring those we’ve lost,”
• “Final question,” i added.
• An unfamiliar woman seized the moment.
• “Seylan, you’re young, successful, and at the height of your career, the public wants to know, is there a special someone in your life?”
• Of course they had to ask the one thing I hated.
• My jaw tightened, I barely held back my irritation.
• My personal life was off-limits, I had made that clear countless times.
• And yet, every press event, they kept asking for concision.
• My mate was out there, chosen by the Moon Goddess, her identity still veiled by fate. Human notions of flings or dating meant nothing to me, my heart waited for her alone, bound by a primal pull no reporter could comprehend.
• So I kept my face impassive, my response neutral.
• “VaelTech is my sole focus,” I said, leaning slightly forward. “Right now, my focus is on building the future, not chasing distractions.”
• The words hung in the air, final, as I held the reporter’s gaze a moment too long.
• The press conference ended with forced smiles and a barrage of camera flashes, but as I stepped off the stage, the reporter’s question gnawed at me. Every time, the press fixated on my personal life, as if my relationship status mattered more than VaelTech’s breakthroughs. I should’ve brushed it off, but the ache lingered, not just from their prying, but from the unspoken truth beneath it.
• Though I hide it well, the absence of my fated mate leaves a subtle emptiness in my heart that no amount of success can fill.
• Maybe because, deep down, I already felt the absence of something. The pull of a bond I hadn’t yet found.
• Vaughan, my Beta and best friend, grinned as he fell into step with me. His silver-blue eyes, unnervingly bright even in the dimmest light, carried the weight of the wolf within him.
• “Alright, that was painful, but I know just the thing to fix your mood, drinks, good music, and beautiful women.”
• I shot him a dry look, already knowing where this was going. Vaughan had always struggled to understand my patience, my unwavering faith in waiting for a mate. He respected it, sure, but he didn’t believe in it the way I did. He didn’t like the idea of fate dictating his life.
• He was what humans might call a ‘Zoomer,’ questioning tradition, skeptical of old structures, valuing freedom over preordained roles. The Lycan world didn’t have such classifications, but we weren’t immune to modern influence. Sure, some of the younger wolves were more worldly, less bound by the expectations of our kind, but most still craved the mate bond’s certainty. As their leader, my resolve to wait strengthened theirs, a silent promise that fate would deliver.
• Vaughan? He didn’t.
• That didn’t mean he was reckless or some kind of playboy. If anything, I admired his honesty in relationships. He wasn’t a gentleman in the old-fashioned sense, he didn’t chase lifelong commitments but he never misled anyone by stringing women along.
• He never entertained multiple lovers at once, save for those wild nights at L’Havre. When things ended, they ended cleanly, no false promises, no lingering attachments.
• His pragmatic attitude eerily mirrored his physical features.
• He was all sharp angles and effortless grace, a contradiction of lethal strength wrapped in something almost too beautiful to be real, a gift from his fae bloodline that made him look more like a fallen prince than a warrior.
• I already knew where he wanted to take me.
• Most nights, I’d refuse, but tonight, the press’s prying about my mate stirred a restless ache I couldn’t ignore. I needed the distraction, if only to dull the sting of her absence.
• I sighed, loosening my tie slightly. “Fine, one drink,” I muttered.
• Vaughan’s eyes gleamed with triumph, his smirk widening as he clapped my shoulder. “That’s my Alpha.” He led the way, and a prickle of unease stirred in my instincts