48. The Ashes.

Damion Pov

The throne room was colder than usual today.

Not because of the weather—our kingdom sat buried beneath ancient stone that never warmed—but because something in the air felt wrong. An itch in my senses. A disturbance in the night that wouldn’t let my instincts settle.

I felt it long before anyone said a word.

My court gathered at a respectful distance, heads lowered, careful not to meet my eyes. I wasn’t in the mood to tolerate anyone’s trembling, so the silence served me well. I leaned back on my throne, waiting for the inevitable bad news I already felt creeping toward me like a whisper on rotten wind.

When the double doors burst open, my suspicion hardened into certainty.

A young vampire—blood-scent still fresh on his armor—ran inside. He didn’t stop at the usual ten-pace distance. He crossed it. He practically stumbled to his knees right in front of me, panting, terrified.

Good. Fear was appropriate.

But interruptions were not.

I let the silence stretch, just to watch him twitch.

Finally, he raised his shaking head.

“Your Majesty… I bring news.”

“News?” I repeated slowly, my voice echoing through the hall. “Then stand and deliver it properly. I do not converse with anyone kneeling unless I ordered them to kneel.”

He scrambled back onto his feet.

“Y-Yes, Your Majesty.”

Around us, the nobles stiffened, leaning slightly forward, afraid and curious at once.

I folded my arms. “Speak.”

“It’s— it’s General Kastian.”

My eyes narrowed.

Kastian.

A retired general, yes. No longer active in my army, yes. But still a man whose name carried weight… and secrets. A soldier with a history soaked in unspoken wars. His strength had once been remarkable—until age stole most of it. But regardless, he was still one of ours.

“What about him?” I asked.

The soldier swallowed so loudly the sound echoed off stone.

“He is dead.”

The words hit the air like a dropped blade.

Every vampire in the room froze.

Dead.

A vampire general—retired or not—should not die so easily. Not in his own home. Not guarded by trained soldiers.

My jaw tensed.

“How.”

“Wolves, Your Majesty.”

The hall erupted with murmurs.

I shot one glare toward the council seats and silence swept through the room instantly.

My voice came out smooth, deadly calm. “Explain. Slowly. And correctly.”

The soldier nodded rapidly, his scent filled with fear.

“We found his estate destroyed… the defensive sigils ripped apart. No sound of battle reached neighbouring houses. Whoever did this moved quietly. Efficiently. Every guard was eliminated.”

“Every guard?” I repeated.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

My fingers curled around the arm of my throne.

An organized wolf attack.

A clean one.

Not the work of pups or rogues. Not the careless destruction typical of ordinary wolves. This was something else. Something trained. Something deliberate.

I leaned forward. “And the general?”

The soldier trembled. “Ashes , Your Majesty.”

A hush swept the hall.

Burned wasn’t unusual.

But he didn’t stop there.

“And his ashes… were taken.”

The hall’s silence transformed into shock.

Even I felt my body go still.

Ashes taken?

Wolves do not touch vampire ashes. They hate us, yes. They kill us when they can—yes. But they leave the ashes untouched. Because they know what vampire ashes mean. They only move ashes when they're trying to cover up the scene for the pathetic humans.

My voice turned sharp.

“Are you certain?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. The urn he used for personal rituals was emptied. The ashes were scooped out—clean. As if someone needed them.”

The room tightened.

I felt something bitter twist in my chest.

Needed them.

Why?

What purpose?

What were they planning?

My mind instantly raced through possibilities, but I shoved them aside. I needed facts before conclusions.

“Do you know which wolf did it?”

“No, Your Majesty.”

Of course they didn’t.

Cowards always hide their faces.

I rose from my throne.

A ripple of fear passed through the hall as every vampire bowed instinctively. Even my highest commanders lowered their heads. I could feel the tension crackling in the air like lightning.

“When was this?” I asked.

“Just before dawn.”

“And you came straight to me.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Good. At least someone in this kingdom remembered how to move correctly.

I walked down the steps of the throne dais, each footfall echoing against the polished stone. The torches dimmed as if reacting to my mood.

Kastian was old, but he was not careless. Whoever killed him had training. Skill. Precision. And enough power to take out several vampire guards without raising alarm.

That meant high-ranked wolves.

Maybe even a general.

Or worse… an Alpha’s inner circle.

But what rattled me most was the ashes.

The ashes were not taken by accident.

Someone wanted them.

Someone planned this.

Someone understood what vampire ashes could do.

That knowledge was forbidden to wolves.

Unless…

Unless someone whispered it to them.

Unless someone had help.

Unless someone on our side betrayed us.

I clenched my jaw.

“Who discovered the body?” I asked.

“A patrol unit, Your Majesty. They arrived for routine health inspection, but found the estate silent. When they entered… they saw what was left.”

“And the guards?”

“All dead. Throats ripped out. Chests opened. One body displayed… almost as a warning.”

Displayed.

I felt the anger pulse in my core.

“Pathetic,” I murmured. “Sloppy intimidation. Wolves always try too hard when they want to prove themselves.”

“But… Your Majesty…” the soldier whispered. “This wasn’t sloppy. It was too clean. Too controlled. Too silent.”

I stared at him.

He wasn’t wrong.

If wolves wanted to brag or threaten me, they would have left a mess. A massacre. A message. But this? This was surgical.

And surgical kills meant intention—not rage.

“What of the neighbours?” I demanded.

“No one heard anything,” he said. “It was as if the entire block was muted.”

Muted.

That was magic beyond the average wolf. Maybe even beyond their high ranks.

I tapped my fingers against my side.

There was something else crawling beneath my skin. A sense of time running out. A sense of something vast shifting in the shadows, just out of sight.

I hated not seeing threats.

“Where is the general’s family?” I asked.

“They were sent away on a political errand three nights ago.”

So the wolves struck when he was alone.

Calculated.

Planned.

This was not random.

I inhaled slowly and released a cold breath that misted into the air.

One of my commanders cleared her throat. “Your Majesty… shall we prepare retaliatory measures?”

I waited.

One heartbeat.

Two.

Three.

Then I spoke:

“No.”

The hall trembled with shock.

They stared at me like I had just forbidden blood itself.

I smirked. “Not yet.”

I walked toward the massive window overlooking the dark forest that separated our lands from the wolves’.

“The wolves will expect retaliation. They will prepare for it. They will brace their borders. They will strengthen their Alpha ranks.” I tilted my head. “We will not give them what they expect.”

“Then… what shall we do?” one of the elders asked.

“Investigate,” I murmured. “Find every scrap of evidence. Track the scent. The magic. The burn patterns. The footprints. Everything.”

I turned sharply, cape sweeping behind me.

“And do it quietly.”

No war cries.

No public declarations.

No roaring retaliation.

Not yet.

They bowed deeply.

“As you command, Your Majesty.”

I stepped closer to the soldier who brought the news.

“And you…” I said softly.

He tensed.

“You did well. But if even one detail of this leaks outside this hall—your tongue will decorate my gate.”

He swallowed hard. “Understood, Your Majesty.”

I walked past him and returned to the center of the hall.

Now, the final piece.

“Send scouts to every border,” I ordered. “But keep it discreet. If they sense we are watching, pull them out and send new ones.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

I stared into the distance, beyond the mountains, beyond the forest, beyond everything visible.

Because something else was pulling at my senses.

And that something… was the Luna.

The one I still hadn’t found.

The one the prophecy whispered about.

The one who would destroy or save everything.

I clenched my fists.

I still didn’t know her identity.

But the wolves did.

Or they would soon.

I felt it in the air, in the earth, in the trembling of shadows under my feet. This attack wasn’t random. It was connected to her. Somehow. Some way.

“Find me the identity of the Luna,” I ordered coldly. “Before the wolves discover her. Before the world shifts.”

The hall bowed low.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

And as the torches flickered behind me, I made a silent vow:

Whoever killed Kastian, whoever dared steal vampire ashes, whoever moved against my kingdom—

I would find them.

And when I did…

I would burn the world around them.