Prologue: The Banishing of Blood

In a realm hidden far beyond mortal sight, where age means nothing and they remain ever young, the night was sorrowful and the howls of bitter loss filled the air.

Selvayra had lost its Luna….Their queen , to a mistake that should have never been possible.

A human had crossed into their sacred realm.

"Your highness, the human escaped" a guard announced trembling in fear of what the Trueblood might do but the king wasn't even looking at him.

Kaelen Syrus fell to his knees, shattered by grief. His trembling hands were still stained with her blood.

“She’s gone…” he choked tears running down his eyes.

Beside him, his brother—Riven whispered, “It’s going to be alright.” But even his voice sounded hollow as he stared at the bloodied body of the Luna, lifeless beneath the moonlight.

********

Fifty years later.

The skies were dark again—but this time, not from grief.

It was betrayal and dominance

Above the distant realm of Wisteria, witches raised their staffs in defense, hurling spells into the storm which did nothing to subdue the threat before them.

An Alpha who they had sheltered for years and taught their secrets ,turned against them and stole powers that should have never been tampered with, a power that corrupts whatever it touches.

The air was cold and tainted with evil as he hovered high in the storm, his cloak thrashing in the wind. Dark spells curled at his feet , his burning ember eyes were evident of malice and hatred.

His voice was poisonous.

“Wisteria will crumble.” He muttered spells.

With a flick of his hand, darkness poured from the skies. Half the realm was cursed in a blink and he vanished.

But his true destination was elsewhere.

Selvayra.

He stood at its edge now, gazing upon the peaceful land.

They didn’t sense the storm at their doorstep.

He walked through the palace with quiet pride, each step steady and unbothered. There was no rush, no fear….just the calm confidence of someone who had finally tasted power. His eyes held a strange stillness, calm… but deadly.

He entered the royal chambers.

“Riven!” Kaelen’s face lit up, joy breaking through years of sorrow. “Where have you been? I’ve searched everywhere for you.”

Riven ignores him and looks at a portrait of the late Luna at the far corner of Kaelen's chambers.

Confusion slipped into Kaelen’s eyes. “Is there a problem?

Riven turns and stares at him, eyes burning with red embers.

“She’s been dead for fifty years,” he sneered. “Why not join her?”

Without warning, he lunged.

Kaelen barely dodged, stumbling back. “Riven?! What are you doing?!”

But this wasn’t his brother anymore.

The air around Riven twisted with corrupted power. His voice deepened. His magic bled chaos.

Guards stormed in, shifting into their wolves, but they fell like leaves. One wave of Riven’s hand, and their life drained away, bodies crumpling instantly.

“I’ve always hated you,” Riven hissed. “From the moment you were born, my joy died. You were the golden child. I was the shadow.”

Kaelen’s chest tightened. “No... Mother loved you. Father did too—”

“They gave you the throne!” Riven roared. “I was born first! That crown was mine. And I’ll take it, even if I have to drown this palace in blood.”

Power surged through him as he struck again.

Kaelen fought back, dodging fire-laced spells and wild blasts that shattered the chamber. But he wasn’t defenseless.

He grabbed the ancient staff passed down through their bloodline—the one meant only for the true Alpha King.

He slammed it into the ground.

Light exploded.

The wind howled.

The walls trembled as the power of the ancestors awakened.

A deep rumble echoed.

Then ,the floor split open.

A portal tore through the ground beneath Riven, a swirling storm of black and gold. It roared loudly, pulling at him with brutal force.

“No!” Riven screamed, claws scraping stone. “You can’t do this! I’ll return…I’ll kill you! I’ll rule them all!”

Kaelen stepped forward, face grim.

“By the bloodline of Selvayra,” he declared, “I cast you into Vornyx—the realm of shadow and silence.”

Blinding magic wrapped around Riven, binding him like chains. With a final scream, he was yanked into the void. The portal snapped shut.

*******

(Vornyx; the outlands)

In the cursed silence of the Outlands, Riven howled into the emptiness. No one heard. No one answered.

But deep inside, he knew one thing:

He hadn’t been defeated.

He had planted his seed in Selvayra and he hadn’t gone to Wisteria just for power.

He had gone… for the Moonmark.