Bound by the Sage moon

The air was sharp that night, filled with the bitter bite of autumn as the last light of day bled away behind the jagged hills surrounding Crescent Hollow. Lyra pulled her worn cloak tighter around her shoulders, her fingers trembling-not from the cold, but from the strange heaviness pressing on her chest. She paused at the edge of the woods, staring up at the sky where a blood-red new moon hung low, casting the land in a sickly glow.

Why does it feel like the world is holding its breath?

She shook her head, forcing herself to move. The narrow trail into the forest loomed ahead, and she hated it more than anything. But she had no choice tonight. Her uncle, drunk as usual, had sent her out to deliver herbs to Old Miri at the edge of the Hollow. If Lyra returned empty-handed, she knew she'd face his wrath.

Her boots crunched over fallen leaves, the sound loud in the eerie silence. No owls called. No night creatures stirred. Just the whisper of the wind through the trees, and the soft, steady beat of her heart that seemed far too loud in her own ears.

---

Crescent Hollow wasn't safe-not on nights like this. Not when the Savage Moon Pack ruled the forests.

Stories were whispered in the dark corners of taverns: of the pack that answered only to the bloodthirsty Alpha, Kael Black. A beast of a man who was said to be more wolf than human, with eyes like molten gold and scars that told of countless battles. No one crossed him and lived.

Lyra had never seen him. But she'd heard enough to know that if she valued her life, she would keep to the shadows and pray the moon wouldn't turn its gaze her way.

But tonight... tonight something felt different.

---

Kael Black stood on a high ridge, the breeze carrying the scents of the forest to him-pine, moss, earth... and something else.

He stiffened, nostrils flaring as that other scent hit him like a blow.

Soft. Sweet. Wild.

It called to him in a way nothing had in years. His wolf stirred beneath his skin, claws itching to tear free, to seek the source.

"Alpha?" came a voice from behind him-Ronan, his second.

Kael didn't answer. His golden eyes glowed in the dark as he scanned the forest below. There. A figure moved along a narrow trail, small and cloaked. Human, it seemed.

But the scent... gods, the scent was wrong. No ordinary human smelled like that.

His jaw clenched. A low growl rumbled from his chest. He took a step forward, instincts warring inside him. Claim. Protect. Destroy.

"Stay here," Kael ordered, voice rough.

And then he leapt from the ridge, silent as a shadow, vanishing into the trees.

---

Lyra's breath came faster now. The path seemed to stretch endlessly before her, and with every step, the sense of being watched grew stronger. She glanced over her shoulder, heart hammering.

"Just the wind," she whispered, trying to convince herself.

But it wasn't. She felt the eyes on her. Felt the weight of them, burning against her skin.

Run.

She didn't know where the thought came from, but suddenly her feet were moving faster, her cloak streaming behind her as she dashed down the trail. Branches clawed at her hair, tore at her clothes. The bundle of herbs slipped from her grasp, forgotten.

Somewhere behind her, a twig snapped.

Panic surged. She veered off the path, plunging deeper into the woods.

---

Kael followed easily, his long strides eating up the distance between them. His wolf was close to the surface now, straining against his control.

Why is she running? he thought, even as he already knew the answer.

She had sensed him. Somehow, this slip of a girl had felt his presence in a way no ordinary human could.

And her scent-wildflowers after rain, storm-washed earth, and something darker, something hidden.

Wolf-blood.

The realization hit him hard, stopping him in his tracks. No. That wasn't possible. He would have known if there was another of their kind in Crescent Hollow. He would have felt it long before now.

Yet the truth was undeniable. It thrummed in his blood, echoed in the bond his kind shared.

---

Lyra stumbled into a small clearing, chest heaving, heart pounding against her ribs like a caged thing. She spun, searching the shadows, but saw nothing. The forest was silent. Empty.

Or so it seemed.

And then he stepped from the trees.

Tall. Broad-shouldered. Dark hair falling across his brow, eyes like liquid gold glowing in the moonlight. Scars marked his bare chest, his arms, his face-stories written on his skin.

She froze, unable to look away.

Kael stared at her, his wolf raging inside him. So small, she was. Fragile. But her eyes-silver in the moonlight-held a fire that belied her delicate frame.

"Who are you?" His voice was low, dangerous.

Lyra opened her mouth, but no sound came. Her throat was dry, terror locking the words inside.

Kael took a step forward. She flinched, but didn't run. Brave little thing.

"Why are you here?" he asked, softer now, though the growl never left his tone.

"I-I was just-" She swallowed hard. "I'm no one. I don't want trouble."

Trouble. He almost laughed. Too late for that, little wolf.

---

The air between them crackled with tension, the pull between them undeniable. Kael could feel it, deep in his bones-a connection he didn't understand, but couldn't ignore.

For a long moment, neither of them moved.

And then, with a will that cost him dearly, Kael stepped back.

"Go home, girl," he said. "Before I change my mind."

Lyra blinked, stunned. But she didn't wait for him to say it again. She turned and ran, her heart thundering, the memory of his eyes seared into her soul.

Kael watched her vanish into the trees, his fists clenched at his sides.

"This isn't over," he muttered to the night.

The Savage Moon had risen. And with it, the hunt had begun.

---