Chapter 2 Shadows Of Betrayal

Elyra's world was a haze of pain and moonlight. Her body ached, sprawled on cold earth, the metallic tang of blood lingering in the air.

Her violet eyes fluttered open, catching the flicker of torches through the fog. The Crescent Pack's ritual ground was chaos-wolves snarling, claws slashing, and Lila's frantic voice cutting through the din.

"Elyra, get up!"

Lila knelt beside her, her curly hair wild, her hazel eyes wide with fear. Blood streaked her cheek, not hers, thank God. "They're coming for you!"

Elyra's head throbbed, her Moonseer vision still burning behind her eyes: Zane's face, twisted in betrayal, a claw pendant glinting in the shadows. Her heart clenched.

Was he the traitor who'd lured her back?

She pushed herself up, her dagger still clutched in her trembling hand. "Who's coming, Lila? What the hell happened?"

Lila yanked her to her feet, her grip bruising.

"No time! The pack thinks you're cursed. Mira's stirring them up, and Zane-" She choked on his name, her eyes darting to the chaos.

Elyra followed her gaze. Zane stood at the center of the clearing, his green eyes blazing as he held off two shifted wolves, their fur matted with blood. His leather coat was torn, the bolt wound on his arm dripping crimson.

He roared, his alpha aura pulsing, forcing one wolf to its knees. But his eyes kept flicking to Elyra, raw with something she couldn't name-guilt, fear, or worse, love.

"Zane!"

Elyra's voice cracked, anger and longing tearing her apart. She wanted to run to him, to demand answers, but the vision's claw pendant haunted her. Was it you? Her powers stirred, a violet glow sparking in her eyes, drawing gasps from the pack.

"Moonseer!" a pack elder hissed, his claw-tipped staff pointed at her. "Her curse will doom us all!"

"Enough!" Zane's voice thundered, silencing the crowd. He shoved the wolves back, his chest heaving, and strode toward Elyra, ignoring the pack's murmurs. "She's under my protection.

Anyone touches her, they answer to me."Elyra's breath caught, her heart betraying her with a flicker of hope.

Protection? After he'd banished her, broken her? She stepped back, her dagger raised.

"I don't need your protection, Zane. I need the truth. Did you send that letter? Are you why I'm here?"

His jaw tightened, pain flashing across his scarred face. "Elyra, I didn't-"A crossbow bolt whizzed past, grazing Elyra's shoulder.

She gasped, pain searing her skin, and Lila yanked her behind a boulder. The pack scattered, some shifting, others drawing weapons.

From the fog, hooded figures emerged, their crossbows gleaming, each bearing a wolf's claw pendant. Elyra's blood ran cold. The same pendant from her vision.

"Traitors!" Zane roared, shifting in a blur of fur and muscle. His black wolf form lunged, tearing into one attacker, but more poured from the shadows, their bolts flying.

Elyra's powers surged, unbidden, and another vision hit: a cloaked figure, Mira's laugh, and a blood-soaked altar. She clutched her head, the world spinning.

"Elyra, stay with me!" Lila shook her, her voice desperate. "Your eyes-they're glowing again!"

Elyra forced the vision down, her breath ragged. "I'm fine. We need to move." She scanned the chaos, spotting Mira by the altar, her white hair stark against the firelight.

The healer's hands moved in a strange pattern, chanting under her breath, her blue eyes locked on Elyra with chilling intent.

"She's doing this," Elyra whispered, her gut twisting.

"Mira's behind the attack."

Lila's eyes widened. "The healer? But she's pack!

Why-"A growl cut her off. Kael Ironclaw burst into the clearing, his amber eyes blazing, his tattoos glowing faintly under his torn shirt.

He wielded a curved blade, cutting down a hooded attacker with lethal precision. "Elyra!" he shouted, his voice carrying over the chaos.

"Get out of here! They're after your blood!"Elyra's heart pounded. Kael, here? His warning from the bridge echoed-Zane's got blood on his hands. But now he was fighting for her, his movements a deadly dance.

She didn't trust him, but she trusted Mira less.

"Move!" Kael reached her, grabbing her arm, his touch warm and urgent. "The cult wants your Moonseer powers. They'll kill you to get them."

"Cult?" Elyra yanked free, her dagger still raised. "What cult? And why should I trust you, Ironclaw?"

Kael's eyes softened, just for a moment. "Because I feel it, Elyra. The bond. You're my mate."

Her world tilted. Mate? The word hit like a punch, stirring something deep in her chest-a pull, primal and undeniable. But Zane's bond still lingered, a ghost of her past.

Two mates?

Impossible.

Her powers flared, a violet spark crackling between her and Kael, and he flinched, as if he felt it too.

"Enough!" Mira's voice sliced through the chaos, sharp as a blade. She stood on the altar, her hands raised, a silver amulet glowing at her throat.

"The Moonseer's curse ends tonight. Her blood will seal the prophecy!"

The pack froze, even the attackers pausing, their eyes on Mira. Elyra's stomach dropped. Prophecy. The word from her vision, from Kael's warning.

Mira's amulet pulsed, and Elyra's powers roared, a vision slamming into her: Mira, cloaked, holding a claw pendant, her family's blood on her hands.

"You," Elyra whispered, her voice breaking. "You killed them. My family."Mira's smile was venomous. "Clever girl. But you're too late." She snapped her fingers, and the hooded figures surged forward, their bolts aimed at Elyra.

Zane's wolf form tackled one, his growls shaking the earth, but a bolt struck his flank, and he staggered, blood matting his fur.

Elyra screamed, her powers exploding in a violet wave, knocking attackers back. The pack gasped, some dropping to their knees, others fleeing.

"Elyra, run!" Zane's voice, human again, raw with pain, reached her as he shifted back, clutching his side.

"I can't lose you again."

Her heart fractured. His words, so like the boy she'd loved, clashed with the vision's betrayal.

She wanted to believe him, but the claw pendant burned in her mind. Kael grabbed her, pulling her toward the forest.

"He's lying, Elyra. Come with me, now!"

Lila hesitated, torn between Elyra and the chaos. "I'll hold them off!" she shouted, grabbing a fallen crossbow.

"Go!"

Elyra's legs moved, Kael dragging her into the trees, her mind a storm of betrayal and fear. Zane's cry echoed behind her, Lila's shots ringing out.

The fog swallowed them, but Mira's chant followed, a haunting melody that chilled Elyra's bones. Her powers pulsed, another vision flickering: a hidden ruin, a Moonweaver relic, and Zane's dagger, stained with her blood.

She stumbled, Kael catching her. "What did you see?" he demanded, his amber eyes searching hers.

"Zane," she gasped, tears burning her eyes. "He's going to kill me."Kael's face darkened, his grip tightening. "Not if I get to him first."

They reached a riverbank, the water black under the crescent moon. Elyra's shoulder throbbed, her powers unstable, sparking violet in the dark. She turned to Kael, her voice trembling.

"Why me? Why this bond?"

Kael's jaw clenched, his tattoos glowing faintly. "Because you're the key, Elyra. The Moonseer who can save or destroy us all. And I'll die before I let them take you."

A howl split the night-Crescent Pack, close. Elyra's heart raced. Zane, coming for her. Or the cult, hunting her blood. She clutched her dagger, torn between Kael's promise and Zane's plea.

Her vision's warning pulsed: betrayal, blood, a claw pendant.A twig snapped. Kael shoved her behind him, his blade raised.

A figure emerged from the fog, cloaked, the claw pendant glinting at their throat. But it wasn't Zane.

It was Lila, her face pale, her pendant glowing with a strange light."Elyra," Lila whispered, her voice shaking.

"I'm sorry."

Before Elyra could react, Lila raised the crossbow, her eyes filled with tears. The bolt fired, aimed at Elyra's heart, and the world went black.