Chapter 5 THE MOON REMEMBERS

Aria sat with her legs crossed on the grass, her hands pressed against her belly, feeling the rhythmic movements of the twins within her. Their energy was stronger now-like a hum beneath her skin. Constantly Growing and Alive.

Tonight, the air felt different for Aria.

Thicker with magic. Heavier with meaning.

As the moonlight kissed her skin, Aria closed her eyes and allowed herself to drift-breathing with the wind, syncing with the heartbeat of the valley. Elaria had told her that full moons opened doorways-between memories, powers, and destinies.

Tonight, something was opening.

She just didn't know what.

"Breathe deeper," Elaria's voice whispered beside her. "Let go of thought. Let the Goddess show you what you're ready to see."

Aria inhaled. Exhaled. And let go.

She felt herself falling-not in body, but in spirit-plunging into a pool of silver light. Time scattered. Space dissolved. And suddenly... she was standing in a dream that wasn't a dream at all.

She was in Moonstone Pack.

Her breath caught.

The landscape was gray and muted, like a memory half-remembered. Warriors ran through the woods, their bodies torn, their howls filled with terror. Fires lit the treetops. Blood soaked the earth.

Then she saw him.

Damon.

His face was drawn, his body bloody and exhausted. But his eyes still held fire. He shouted orders, shielding pups, dragging a young warrior away from the flames.

And then he stopped and looked up as if he felt her watching.

Aria stepped back, heart racing.

Could he... sense her?

He took a single step toward the empty air where her spirit stood, his brows drawn in confusion. "Aria?"

Her soul trembled.

It was only a vision. He couldn't see her. But her name on his lips cracked something deep inside her.

Suddenly, a roar shook the trees, and from the shadows emerged a monstrous figure-a rogue Alpha, twisted by dark magic, with red eyes and claws like blades. He leapt toward Damon.

Aria screamed.

And the vision shattered.

She gasped awake, drenched in sweat, uneven breath and the twins kicking wildly inside her.

Elaria knelt beside her, alarmed. "What did you see?"

Aria's voice was hoarse. "The pack... it's going to fall. They need help. He needs help."

Elaria's face was grave. "Then the time is coming faster than I feared."

Aria shook her head. "I'm not ready."

Elaria looked at her gently. "You will be. You must be."

Meanwhile, far from the valley, Damon stood in the ruins of a village near the eastern ridge. His heart pounded as he crouched beside the charred remains of a fallen rogue. The creature's body reeked of Corruption, its fur matted with black blood.

But that wasn't what caught his attention.

It was the symbol carved into the tree behind it.

A crescent moon wrapped in flames.

Julian approached, his boots crunching on broken branches. "Alpha, we've seen that mark before-on three other attack sites. It's not just random raids anymore. Someone is organizing them."

Damon's jaw clenched. "A dark pack."

"Or something worse," Julian muttered.

Then Damon spotted something on the ground-a torn strip of fabric half-buried in the dirt. He picked it up carefully. It was soft... familiar. A faded scent clung to it

Aria Damon shouted

His knees nearly buckled.

She had been here.

"Alpha?" Julian asked, noticing the change in him.

"She was here," Damon whispered. "Recently."

"Aria?"

Damon nodded, gripping the fabric like it was a lifeline. "Find the nearest witch. I want a tracking spell done immediately."

Julian hesitated. "Are you sure it's safe to"

"I don't care," Damon growled, eyes flashing. "If she's alive, I'm going to find her."

Even if she never forgave him. Even if she spit in his face and told him she hated him.

He had to see her again.

He had to know.

-

Back in the valley, Aria could feel her powers stirring like a storm beneath her skin.

She was no longer the broken Omega who had fled in shame.

Her body moved with more grace now. Her senses were sharper. She could feel the pull of the moon even during daylight, like a heartbeat syncing with hers. The valley's magic had become part of her.

But something was... changing.

The twins, once peaceful, had begun to stir more violently. Sometimes, at night, she could hear them whisper in her dreams-words she didn't understand, glowing symbols floating through her thoughts.

Ancient language.

Ancient power.

"What's happening to them?" she asked Elaria one morning as they walked by the Sacred Pool.

"They are waking," Elaria replied. "They are of your blood... and his. A true fated bond, even broken, still leaves a trace. And your children carry both sides of that truth."

Aria swallowed hard. "What if I'm not enough for them?"

"You are more than enough," Elaria said firmly. "You are their anchor. Their guide. The strength of your heart... it will shape them."

Aria looked down at her belly. "They don't even know their father."

"They will," Elaria said quietly. "Whether you like it or not... the fates will bring you together again."

Aria's throat tightened. "And if I refuse?"

"Then fate will twist," Elaria warned. "It always finds a way. But not always a gentle one."

Aria turned away, conflicted. Part of her longed for Damon's face, his touch, the warmth that once made her feel safe. But another part the louder part remembered the pain and the betrayal. The night he chose another over her after sharing the most intimate part of her soul.

"I don't want to forgive him."

"You don't have to," Elaria said. "But you do have to face him."

A gust of wind blew through the valley then, carrying the scent of something foreign-burning wood, blood, and...

Aria froze.

Wolves.

Several.

Near the borders.

Elaria's expression darkened. "Something's coming."

Aria pressed a hand to her belly. The twins kicked hard-both at once.

They felt it too.

Whatever peace she'd found here in the valley... it was nearing its end.

And the past she tried to outrun?

It was coming straight for her.