9

The Great Hall of Black Fang had never felt so tense. Long banners bearing the Black Fang crest hung from towering stone pillars. A blazing fire crackled in the massive fireplace, but it did little to warm the icy atmosphere inside. Representatives from six neighboring packs sat around the circular council table.

At the head of the room, Alpha Darius Ravencrest. To his right stood Beta Kael. Meanwhile, Serafina remained outside the chamber under guard. She wasn’t invited. She wasn’t trusted. Yet every conversation inside revolved around her right now.

“The rumors are true, then.”

Alpha Cedric of Silver Crest leaned back in his chair, his gray eyes fixed on Darius.

“You’ve invoked the Right of Claim.”

“Yes, I have.”

“And the assassin still lives.”

“She does.”

A murmur swept through the room. Another Alpha folded his arms.

“Did you realize what the other packs are saying about it?”

Darius remained calm. “I rarely concern myself with rumors.”

“They’re questioning my authority.”

Silence fell. No one challenged them. There was a difference. A significant one. The elder who had visited the training grounds earlier finally spoke. His name was Alpha Aldren of Moon River Pack. Unlike the others, he hadn’t taken his eyes off Darius.

“Whether she’s under your claim or not, she’s still a Shadow Fang assassin.” His voice was smooth but calculating.

“Today she trains beside your warriors. Tomorrow she learns your defenses. And the day after...” He paused deliberately. “She returns to Shadow Fang and will attack your pack.”

Several council members nodded in agreement. Beta Kael remained silent. He didn’t like Serafina, but he disliked outsiders questioning Black Fang even more.

“What exactly are you proposing?” Darius asked.

Alpha Aldren smiled faintly. “Hadn her over. We’ll execute her ourselves.”

Kael’s eyes hardened. “She’s Black Fang’s prisoner. She’s Black Fang’s problem.”

“Exactly.” Aldren spread his hands. “So let us solve it.”

Before Kael could respond, Darius spoke. “No.” One word, calm and final.

Aldren’s smile disappeared. “You refused rather quickly.”

“I didn’t need time.”

“You would choose one assassin, over peace between our packs?”

Darius leaned forward slightly. “I choose my own laws. And my claim isn’t open for negotiation.”

The tension in the room became almost unberable. Outside, Serafina sat alone on a wooden bench beneath the covered hallway. Two warriors stood several feet away. She stared at the rain falling into the courtyard. She couldn’t hear the conversation inside. But she knew it concerned her.

She always became the problem. Always the reason people argued. Always the burden no one wanted. She let out a quiet breath. Maybe, things would’ve been easier if Darius had simply allowed the execution. At least then, no one else would to carry the consequences of her existence.

“You look miserable.”

Serafina looked up. Finn stood nearby, holding two steaming cups. He awkwardly scratched the back of his neck.

“I brought tea.”

She blinked. “For me?”

“Well...” He smiled sheepishly. “I wasn’t sure if you’d take it.”

She accepted the cup cautiously. “Thank you...”

Finn leaned against one of the pillars. “For what it’s worth, I don’t think you should’ve died after all.”

She looked at him in surprised. “I defeated you before.”

“You did.”

“And... I embarrased you too.”

He laughed. “You made me realize how much I stil have to learn.”

Serafina stared into the tea. People here, they were stange. Shadow Fang taught that defeat created enemies. But Black Fang treated defeat as a lesson. She still couldn’t understand it.

Suddenly, the doors to the council chamber burst open. Raised voices echoed into the hallway immediately.

“This is unacceptable!”

Alpha Aldren stormed out first. His expression was darker than before. As he passed Serafina, his steps slowed. Their eyes met. For one strange moment, he looked almost shocked. Not angry or disgusted, but shocked.

“You...” He whispered so quietly only Serafina heard. “It can’t be.”

Before she could ask what he meant, another Alpha called his name. “Aldren!”

He blinked, as though waking from a trance. Without another word, he walked away. Serafina frowned. What had that been?

Inside the chamber, only Darius, Kael, and the remaining Black Fang elders remained. Kael closed the doors with a heavy sigh.

“I don’t trust Aldren.”

“Neither do I.”

Darius walked toward the window. “He recognized something.”

Kael frowned. “In Serafina?”

“I think so.”

“But that’s impossible, Alpha.”

“Maybe.” Darius folded his arms. “Or maybe we’ve been asking the wrong questions.”

Kael looked at him. “What do you mean?”

“We’ve been trying to figure out who trained her.”

He turned back toward the council table. “What if the real question is who she was before Shadow Fang found her?”

The room fell silent. None of them had considered that possibility.

***

That evening, Serafina wandered into the library once again. She couldn’t explain why, but something about the old Blood Moon book kept drawing her back. The glass case now stood empty. Darius had removed the book earlier that day. She approached the shelf where it had once rested.

Without thinking, she ran her fingertips across the carved wooden surface. Nothing happened. She let out a quiet breath. Perhaps yesterday’s vision had only been exhaustion. She turned to leave. But then a faint whisper drifted through the silent library.

“Serafina...”

She froze. Slowly, she looked over her shoulder. No one. The room was empty.

“Who’s there?”

Silence. Then the whisper came again. Softer this time. “Find me...”

A sudden gust of wind swept through the library. Several books fell from the shelves with loud thuds. One olf scroll rolled across the floor until it stopped at Serafina’s feet. Her heartbeat quickened. She bent down and picked it up. The seal had long since broken. One symbol immediately caught her attention. A crimson moon, surrounded by silver vines.

The exact same symbol that had been engraved on the ancient book. Before she could read another word, the library door opened. Darius stepped inside. His gaze fell first on Serafia, then on the scroll in her trembling hands. His expression changed instantly.

“Where did you get that?”

Serafina swallowed. “It rolled to me...”

Darius looked at the parchment in stunned silence. Because he knew exactly what she was holding. It wasn’t just an old scroll. It was a map. And according to Black Fang’s oldest records. The map lead to the ruins of the long forgotten Blood Moon Kingdom.