In The Lion's Den

After completing his agenda.

He turned and walked away, his guards following in ghostly silence.

The room erupted in gasps and whispers.

Mira hissed, “She’s manipulating you!”

But Kade didn’t move. Didn’t speak. Didn’t fight.

He let her go.

Anana’s voice cut one final time through the noise. “I loved you. I bore your name. I gave you every part of me. And when I bled for you, you didn’t flinch.”

“I reject you, Alpha Kade”

She turned her back on them all.

Knowing she's no longer his anymore. And he'd be killed if he ever claimed her.

“I reject you, Luna Anana” He sparked loud enough for her to hear.

And with that, she walked away towards the God of War, toward the unknown, toward freedom or ruin. Anything was better than being forgotten in her own home.

She didn’t look back.

…

The sun hadn’t yet risen. The sky was painted in shades of pale indigo and soft gray, the air thick with silence that weighed down on the pack like a burial shroud. Anana stood at the edge of the main courtyard, her small leather bag slung over her shoulder. Every part of her ached not from physical pain, but from the emotional toll of everything she was leaving behind and the fear of where she was going to.

Elia stood beside her, arms crossed tightly over her chest, lips quivering from unshed tears. Her usually defiant spirit was dimmed, her eyes locked on Anana as though memorizing her.

“I can’t believe you’re actually doing this,” Elia whispered, her voice hoarse.

Anana gave a soft, sad smile. “What choice did I have?”

“You could’ve let him take someone else. Mira, even. Someone who deserved it more than you.”

Anana gently tucked a strand of Elia’s hair behind her ear. “You know I wouldn't be able to live with that.”

Elia blinked back tears. “You’re too good, Anana. Too selfless. And he never deserved you.”

Her voice cracked on the last word, and the tears finally slipped free.

“I’m scared,” Elia admitted. “He’s… the God of War. He’s cold. Dangerous. He doesn’t keep anyone. What if you disappear into his world and never come back?”

Anana’s gaze softened. “Then at least I’ll disappear on my terms. Not as a forgotten Luna, not as someone bleeding alone in silence… but as someone who made a choice.”

Elia clutched her. They stood in silence, hugging tightly. Anana closed her eyes and let herself feel it, the pain of goodbye, the ache of every moment Elia had held her together when no one else could. Her heart fractured at the thought of leaving her behind.

Elia pulled away, wiping her face roughly. “Still... maybe it’s better this way. You deserve more than Kade. More than this place. If he couldn’t fight for you, then let him live with the memory of letting you go.”

A slow rumble of hooves and wheels echoed across the stone path.

The God of War had arrived.

Anana turned to see the black carriage stop before them. Sleek, ominous, and guarded by two armored wolves on horseback. One of the guards stepped down and opened the door.

Inside, Lucien sat like a shadow come to life, cloaked in silence and steel. His piercing eyes locked onto Anana without a word.

Elia grasped Anana’s hand one last time. “Be strong. And if he hurts you, may the moon curse him tenfold.”

Anana gave a soft laugh, but her throat ached from holding back tears.

She climbed in.

The door closed behind her with a finality that echoed in her bones.

…

The carriage rumbled over uneven terrain for what felt like hours. Anana kept to her corner, eyes staring blankly out the small glass window. She could feel Lucien’s presence like a weight in the air. Silent. Watching.

“Who are you really?”, he finally spoke, breaking the silence.

Stuttered by the question, “I'm the Luna of the Crescent moon pack”

With his cold blue eyes, he stared at Anana as if the answer was written on her face with an emotionless gaze.

“Do you regret it?”

His voice was sudden and rough like stone dragged across steel.

Anana turned her head slowly. “Regret what?”

“Offering yourself.”

She studied him. His face was unreadable. He was handsome with every feature complementing one another but he wasn’t handsome in a traditional sense, too sharp, too brutal but there was something compelling in the lines of his jaw, the cold precision of his eyes.

“I regret staying as long as I did,” she said quietly.

Lucien tilted his head. “Why?”

“Because I kept believing love would save me.”

A long silence passed.

“You’re different from the others.”

Her brows furrowed. “Others?”

“The ones offered to me,” he replied. “They cry, they beg, they hate. You don’t. Not yet.”

“I’m too numb to hate right now.”

Lucien leaned forward slightly, just enough for the tension to crackle in the air between them. “You will learn, Anana. There’s no room for weakness where we’re going.”

“Weakness would be your end”

“Brace yourself cause it'd be far different from your royal life”

“I’ve lived with weakness all my life,” she replied, tone low. “Wearing a Luna crown while my skin tore open every night. Watching my mate fall in love with someone else and barely having anyone on my side. You think you can scare me with cold words?”

A flicker of something passed through Lucien’s eyes. Not respect, but recognition.

Then he smirked. “We’ll see.”

…

Night had fallen when they reached the Crimson Blood Pack’s territory. The gates were iron and ancient, carved with runes that pulsed faintly in the moonlight. The packhouse itself was built like a fortress, stone towers and high walls cloaked in shadow.

As the carriage rolled in, dozens of warriors bowed. Anana caught their eyes, few of them had anything resembling empathy. They looked at her the way wolves watched prey.

Lucien exited first. His boots hit the ground with a heavy thud. Then he turned and offered her a hand.

She was shocked and hesitated.

Then placed hers in his.

It was warm.

Stronger than she expected.

He guided her down, but didn’t let go.

“This is your cage now,” he said, voice quiet. “Make sure you learn how to survive in it.”

She raised her chin. “Even cages can be broken.”

Lucien let out a low laugh. “I look forward to seeing you try.”

And as the gates closed behind her, Anana felt the final tether to her old life snap. She was in the lion’s den now.

Reality began to dawn on her, there was no escaping now.

Life would be different from her old life

Expecting something better would be foolish. 

Touching her cheeks to shake off the tears that threaten to fall.

“At least I won't suffer from the painful nights of fresh wounds” she smiled, her lips curling slow and steady. Though the shimmer of her eyes betrayed the tremble beneath her calm.