Chapter 5 Rise of the True Moon

The aftermath of the Rite of Bloodlight left Velaris shaken to its core.

The false Luna had fallen. The Alpha had nearly died. The truth had burned across the night sky like a banner from the gods themselves.

But there was no peace.

Not yet.

Not with Callista still free.

Not with Seraphina carrying twin heirs that were now the center of a prophecy powerful enough to crumble centuries of rule.

And not with the pack split loyalty frayed between those still blinded by fear and those who finally saw the light.

Kael awoke three days later in the sacred healing chambers of the Temple, Seraphina sleeping beside his bed, her face pale, body curled protectively around her womb. Even unconscious, she guarded what mattered most.

Kael stared at her for a long time.

His hand found hers.

"You saved me," he whispered, barely able to speak through the emotion. "Again."

She stirred gently, eyes fluttering open.

"Don't you ever do that again," she said hoarsely. "If you die again, I'll kill you myself."

A soft, cracked laugh escaped him. "Deal."

Then silence fell charged, warm, fragile.

Until Kael broke it.

"Is it true?"

Seraphina touched her belly. "Yes. Twins."

He exhaled deeply, eyes wide.

"And the Moon... she told me they'll be born under her highest blessing. Her light will mark their foreheads. Moonborns."

Kael sat up slowly, pain still humming in his bones. "Then we have no time. Lyra's not our greatest threat anymore."

Seraphina nodded. "Callista wants them. Not for power. For control."

But something else weighed heavily on Seraphina.

Her dreams were changing.

No longer just fragmented images of the past now, she saw future wars, crying infants, a kingdom set ablaze.

One vision, above all, came nightly now:

A silver tower torn in half. A twin screaming. A wolf turning to stone.

And one word repeated over and over again.

"Umbra."

The ancient word for "eclipse."

In secret, the High Priestess brought Seraphina to the Hall of Echoes - where prophecy lived in carved stone and silent spirits.

"What does 'Umbra' mean in this context?" Seraphina asked, her voice echoing.

Mireya traced her fingers over a forgotten rune. "There is an ancient part of the prophecy we rarely speak of. It was hidden because of fear. It says: 'When the Luna returns, two shall rise. One to heal. One to break. Born of light, shadow will chase them.'"

Seraphina's breath caught. "You mean... my twins?"

"One will save us," Mireya said slowly. "And the other could destroy us all."

Meanwhile, Lyra was imprisoned deep in the stone vaults. Her powers were bound, but her mind? Still sharp. Still vengeful.

She didn't scream.

She didn't cry.

She waited.

Because betrayal was never her only weapon.

It was love.

And someone still loved her.

That night, Elias came.

The man who had chosen honor over obsession... but had not yet killed the feeling completely.

"I shouldn't be here," he said quietly.

"But you are," Lyra whispered, her voice like honey dipped in poison.

He didn't meet her eyes.

"Was any of it real?" he asked. "What we had?"

Her gaze softened, just a little. "It was the only thing that ever felt real."

Silence. Pain. Guilt.

"Help me," she said. "Let me out. We can still fix this. I know where Callista hides."

Elias hesitated. His wolf snarled inside him.

Then... he stepped back. "Not for you. For Velaris."

And he turned to leave.

But her last words chilled his spine.

"She'll lose one of them, Elias. The Moon can't protect them both."

Back in the keep, Seraphina stood before the gathered Elders once more.

Kael beside her now not as a protector, but as her equal.

"As true Luna of Nightfang, born of Luna Liora, blessed by the Moon," she declared, "I accept the bond with Kael Draven. Let the Goddess bear witness."

Gasps again.

A few roars of approval.

One or two snarls of protest.

But no one could deny it anymore.

Kael took her hands. "I never wanted a throne," he whispered, "until I saw it next to you."

They kissed under the moonlight as a silver glow wrapped around them, binding soul to soul, Alpha to Luna no longer forged in ceremony but in divine will.

The celebration that followed was muted by tension.

Yes, the kingdom had a rightful Luna again.

Yes, Kael lived.

Yes, Seraphina carried the Moonborn heirs.

But prophecy loomed.

And so did the absence of Callista.

Late that night, Seraphina slipped into the Temple alone. Her belly was beginning to swell - a soft curve of fate taking form.

There, in the moonpool, she saw her reflection ripple.

And suddenly a voice behind her.

"You think this is over?"

Seraphina spun.

Callista stood in the doorway, cloaked in ash and shadow, her eyes glowing red.

"You carry the future. But you forget... I still hold the past."

With one wave of her hand, the flames in the room extinguished.

A bitter cold filled the air.

And the voice that came next was not Callista's...

It was older.

Angrier.

"Umbra rises. One twin must fall."

Before Seraphina could scream, moonlight struck again blinding, pure.

Callista vanished.

And in the pool below, Seraphina saw two infants.

One smiling.

One... with black eyes.