The Price of Truth

The SUV engine roared like a wounded beast. Daniel stomped the gas pedal, sending the car hurtling down the deserted suburban road toward the mountains. The speedometer needle trembled at 140 kilometers per hour, ignoring the speed limit signs.

In the back seat, the atmosphere was far more terrifying than the car’s speed itself.

Rakar sat in the middle, his hands steadying Ardan’s small body to keep him from being jostled during the sharp turns. Revira sat on the right side, pressed against the car door, turning her face toward the dark window. She deliberately put as much distance as possible between herself and Rakar, as if the touch of her husband’s skin were a deadly poison.

“He’s getting hotter,” Rakar reported, touching Ardan’s forehead with the back of his hand. “Eldric, your crystal?”

Eldric, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, turned slightly without changing his posture. “The cracks are getting worse. It’s only a temporary dam. If it breaks, the flood will be worse. We need that river water as fast as possible.”

“How much longer?” Rakar asked Daniel, his eyes alert on the rearview mirror.

“Twenty minutes until the protected forest boundary,” Daniel replied, his eyes sharply focused on the road. “But we have another problem. Radar is picking up three cars behind us. Two kilometers away. They’re chasing us.”

“Lunaris,” Rakar muttered, his jaw hardening. “They are truly hungry.”

“Wait,” Revira’s voice broke the tactical conversation. She finally turned, her eyes sharp on Rakar, red and swollen. “Explain one thing to me.”

Rakar looked at his wife. “What?”

“Why Ardan?” Revira asked, her voice trembling as she held back overflowing emotion. “Why my son? You said he was ‘special.’ That crazy doctor said he was ‘pure.’ What’s the difference between Ardan and the other… *monster*… children?”

Rakar was silent for a moment, searching for the right words that wouldn’t hurt his wife further. But before he could answer, Eldric took over from the front seat.

“Because by the laws of nature, he shouldn’t be this strong, Madam,” Eldric said flatly.

“What do you mean?” Revira frowned.

Eldric rotated his body slightly. “Human blood is dominant. If an Alpha marries a regular human, ninety percent of their children are born as normal humans. The wolf blood is diluted.”

Eldric pointed at Ardan, who was sleeping restlessly in Rakar’s lap.

“Ardan is an anomaly. His strength is not just equivalent to a pure Alpha. His strength… surpasses it. That energy burst earlier? That’s a level of power we haven’t seen in the last hundred years.”

“So my son is defective?” Revira asked sharply.

“Not defective. Evolved,” Eldric corrected. “But the question is… why?”

Eldric’s old eyes stared at Revira with an intensity that made her uneasy.

“Something went wrong the night of conception,” Eldric said. “Or when you first met.”

“Don’t talk dirty,” Revira hissed.

“This is science, Madam. Not pornography,” Eldric retorted curtly. “Try to remember. Eight years ago. When you first met Rakar. Was there anything strange? Did you eat or drink anything unusual?”

Revira wanted to snap at the old man, but her mind was racing. She tried to recall that stormy night. The night her life changed forever.

“Rain,” Revira murmured softly. “My car broke down. I walked in the woods. I heard a groaning sound.”

Rakar nodded slowly. “I was dying then. Lunaris hunter poison had nearly killed me. You dragged my body into an old cave.”

“Yes, that cave,” Revira continued, her eyes distant. “You had a high fever. Delirious. I treated your wounds.”

“And then?” Eldric pressed. “What else?”

“I was thirsty,” Revira said. “My water bottle was left in the car. My throat was so dry.”

The memory came flooding back. The burning thirst. The damp cave air. And the soothing sound of dripping water.

“There was a spring at the back of the cave,” Revira said softly. “Seeping from the rock wall. The water… the water was strange. So clear. There was a faint light in it, like liquid silver. I thought it was the moon’s reflection.”

Eldric’s eyes widened instantly. Rakar also straightened his back, realizing something terrible.

“You drank it?” Rakar asked quickly.

“Yes,” Revira answered. “It tasted sweet. Cold. And after drinking it… my tiredness disappeared. I felt… strong.” Revira’s cheeks flushed slightly, remembering what happened next. “After that, we… you know…”

Silence. Only the roar of the car engine slicing through the night.

Eldric sighed deeply, leaning back into his seat, shaking his head in disbelief.

“Tears of the Goddess,” Eldric whispered.

“What?” Revira and Rakar asked simultaneously.

“It’s an ancient legend,” Eldric explained. “A sacred spring that appears and disappears at will. That water contains pure lunar energy. For us, it’s a miracle healer. But for humans…”

Eldric looked at Revira through the rearview mirror.

“That water purified your womb, Madam. It turned your body into a temporary sacred vessel. And because you drank it right before… well, before you conceived Ardan…”

Rakar turned pale. He remembered that night. The fever. The delirium. And the unbearable passion as his wolf instinct sought healing through union.

“So…” Rakar’s voice was choked. “This is my fault? And the water’s fault?”

“A deadly combination,” Eldric concluded. “Alpha seed meeting a womb purified by lunar energy. The result is Ardan. The Heir of the Moon Blood.”

Revira covered her mouth with her hand. Her eyes were teary.

“So all this… because I drank some random water?” she whispered, tears falling onto her cheeks. “My son is sick, hunted, suffering… because I was thirsty that night?”

“It’s not your fault,” Rakar tried to hold his wife’s shoulder. “Revira, listen—”

SLAP!

Revira roughly slapped Rakar’s hand away. The sound echoed loudly in the confined car.

“Don’t touch me!” Revira screamed. Her breath hitched. “You… your world… it’s all insane! Magic, springs, monsters… I hate all of it!”

“I know,” Rakar said, slowly pulling his hand back. “I know you hate it.”

“It’s not just hate,” Revira hissed. She looked at Rakar with a cold gaze Rakar had never seen before. A look that killed hope.

Revira raised her left hand. She held the gold ring on her ring finger. Their wedding ring.

Rakar’s heart seemed to stop beating. “Revira… what are you doing?”

“I’m fed up,” Revira said. “I’m fed up with being lied to. I’m fed up with being a puppet of your destiny.”

She pulled the ring off. It was a little difficult because her finger was swollen from stress, but she forced it.

“Don’t,” Rakar pleaded. His voice cracked. An Alpha never begged, but tonight he did. “Please, not now.”

“Why not?” Revira challenged.

Clink.

The ring came off.

Revira held it briefly, then placed it roughly on the dashboard behind the driver’s seat. The sound of metal hitting plastic was final.

“We’re done,” Revira said. Her voice was no longer a scream, but a deadly whisper. “After Ardan is safe, never look for me again.”

Rakar was silent. It felt like an invisible hand was crushing his heart to pieces. He looked at the ring, then at his wife’s face, which was hard as stone.

“I understand,” Rakar whispered. He picked up the ring and clenched it tightly, putting it in his pocket.

“Focus, Boss!” Daniel suddenly yelled. “Enemy on the right!”

SCREEECH!

Daniel slammed the steering wheel to the left. The car swerved violently. Revira screamed, instinctively hugging Ardan to keep him from being thrown. Rakar braced both of them with his back, letting his body hit the car door hard.

CRASH!

“What was that?!” Revira cried in panic.

“Lunaris!” Daniel answered. “They hit us!”

Rakar looked out the back window. Another black SUV, without lights, had just tried to ram them from the right side. Inside the car, Rakar saw the driver. Their eyes glowed red in the darkness. Their toothed grin was clearly visible, full of fangs.

“Don’t let them pass!” Rakar ordered. His voice changed. The sadness on his face instantly vanished, replaced by killer instinct. “Ram them back if necessary!”

“Copy that, Boss! Hold on!”

Daniel stomped the gas again. The engine roared. The enemy car tried to get closer again, its nose aiming for their rear tire.

BAM!

A heavy impact shook the car. Ardan whimpered in his sleep.

“They’re trying to flip us!” Eldric shouted. He opened the window slightly. The night wind rushed in.

Eldric stretched his hand out the window, muttered something, then threw a handful of silver powder toward the enemy car.

FWOOSH!

The powder exploded into a mist in front of the enemy car’s windshield. The Lunaris driver was blinded for a moment. Their car swerved, hitting the guardrail.

The enemy car spun out, rolling over the asphalt behind them.

“One down!” Daniel reported. “Two more behind!”

Rakar looked in the rearview mirror. Two pairs of headlights were still chasing, getting closer.

“How much further to the Veil?” Rakar asked.

“Five minutes!” Daniel answered. “But the road ahead narrows!”

“Break through that conservation gate barrier,” Rakar ordered coldly. “Don’t hit the brakes.”

“Rakar, are you insane?!” Revira screamed. “We could die!”

Rakar turned to his wife. His eyes shone bright yellow in the dark cabin.

“I won’t let you die,” Rakar said. His tone was not a husband’s sweet promise, but an Alpha’s oath. “Duck!”

Daniel saw the iron barrier of the protected forest gate ahead. He didn’t slow down.

BLAM!

The car smashed into the iron barrier. The barrier flew off. The car sped onto the rocky dirt road.

The jolting was brutal. Revira let out a small scream.

“Keep going!” Rakar snapped. He opened his own window, sticking his head out slightly to sniff the air.

The wet scent of the forest. The scent of pine. And the scent of… ozone.

“We’re almost there,” Rakar said, pulling his head back in. “I smell Velmora.”

“And the smell of wet dogs behind us is getting stronger,” Eldric added.

“Up ahead!” Daniel shouted. “Old gate! Dead end!”

An ancient iron gate wrapped in large tree roots appeared at the end of the road. There was no more road. Only dense, dark forest behind it.

“Brake!” Rakar commanded.

Daniel slammed the brakes as hard as he could. The car skidded on the wet ground, stopping just inches from the iron gate. Dust flew up. The car engine died suddenly.

Silence for a moment.

Then the sound of other engines approaching from behind.

“Get out,” Rakar ordered quickly. He opened the door. “Take Ardan. Fast!”

Revira didn’t argue. She jumped out, pulling Ardan with her. Rakar immediately took Ardan into his arms.

“Run to that gate,” Rakar told Revira. “Don’t look back.”

“But it’s a dead end!” Revira protested, looking at the dense thicket behind the gate.

“It’s the Veil!” Eldric, who had already gotten out, yelled. “It’s an illusion! Just run through it!”

Daniel got out last, holding a pistol. “They’ll be here in ten seconds, Boss.”

Rakar looked back. Three large, dark gray-furred wolves were running toward them at full speed. Their teeth gleamed.

“RUN!” Rakar roared.

Revira ran. She closed her eyes and slammed herself into the old iron gate, penetrating the illusion of the thicket.

It felt like hitting cold water.

Rakar followed behind her, carrying Ardan, followed by Daniel and Eldric. Just as Rakar’s foot crossed the threshold of the gate, an enemy wolf leaped to attack. The wolf’s jaws snapped shut on empty air.

They had crossed the boundary.

The sound of car engines and wolf growls behind them suddenly vanished.

Silence.

Revira opened her eyes. The ordinary pine forest she had seen earlier was gone.

In front of her, giant trees with jet-black trunks towered into a purple sky. Their leaves were silver. And above, a massive full moon hung low.

Revira took a step back in shock. “Where… where is this?”

Rakar slowly lowered Ardan. He stood tall, straightening his jacket which held his wife’s ring, then looked at Revira.

“Welcome to Velmora,” Rakar said. “We’ve arrived. But the real journey has just begun.”