Chapter 7 : Priestess

LUNA’S POV

The first thing I notice is the silence.

No howls.

No rushing water.

No Kaelen shouting my name.

Just… quiet.

Too quiet.

My eyes flutter open, and for a moment, I think I’m dreaming. Above me stretches a ceiling of glowing crystal vines, soft silver light dripping down like moonbeams. The air smells sweet—like rain and flowers—and the ground beneath me feels warm, not cold like the cavern before.

“Am I… dead?” I whisper.

My voice sounds normal again.

Human.

Relief crashes over me—until I sit up and notice the silver glow pulsing faintly beneath my skin.

“Oh no,” I mumble. “That cannot be normal.”

“You are not dead, child.”

I freeze.

That voice.

Soft. Calm. Powerful.

I slowly turn my head.

Standing a few steps away is a woman dressed in flowing silver robes. Her hair is long and white, shimmering like liquid moonlight. Her eyes glow the same shade as mine did in the cavern.

And the way she looks at me…

It feels like she’s known me forever.

“Who are you?” I ask, scooting back a little. “And more importantly—where is Kaelen?”

“He is safe,” she says gently. “Resting nearby.”

Relief loosens the knot in my chest. “Good. Because if anything happened to him, I’d have to… well, I don’t know what I’d do, but it would be dramatic.”

A faint smile curves her lips.

“You are exactly as the prophecy described,” she murmurs.

I stiffen. “Please don’t say the word prophecy. I’m still emotionally recovering from that conversation.”

She steps closer. The silver light around her flickers like soft flames.

“I am Selene,” she says. “Guardian of the Moon Veil. The last priestess of the old throne.”

My stomach drops.

“Throne?” I repeat weakly. “As in… royal… throne?”

She nods once.

“The Moon Throne. The seat of the Silver-Blooded rulers.”

Oh.

Oh no.

I press my palms against my face. “This is too much. Yesterday I was worried about paying rent, and now I’m apparently some kind of magical royal wolf with a throne.”

Selene watches me quietly. “Your life was never ordinary, Luna. It was only hidden.”

“Yeah, well, I liked it hidden.”

Before she can respond, I hear footsteps behind me.

“Luna!”

I turn just in time to see Kaelen rushing toward me. His hair is damp, his clothes torn, but he looks very much alive.

Relief floods me so fast I almost cry.

“You’re okay!” I say.

He stops in front of me, scanning my face like he’s checking for damage. “Are you hurt? Do you feel strange? Dizzy? Is the power still surging?”

“I mean, emotionally? Yes. Physically? I think I’m fine.”

His shoulders relax slightly.

Then his eyes shift to Selene. “Priestess.”

She inclines her head. “Alpha.”

I blink between them. “Wait. You two know each other?”

Kaelen’s jaw tightens. “I know of her.”

Selene’s smile is calm, but there’s something deeper behind it. “And I have waited many years for both of you.”

A strange tension fills the air.

I point between them. “Okay, clearly there’s some history here, and I would love to be included in the gossip.”

Kaelen ignores me, eyes locked on Selene. “Why is she here? The Veil was never meant to awaken this soon.”

“Because the seal on her blood has broken,” Selene replies. “The prophecy has begun.”

I groan. “There it is again. The P-word.”

Kaelen looks at me. “Luna, this is serious.”

“I know it’s serious! I just… I don’t want my life to be some tragic legend people whisper about while dramatic music plays.”

Selene steps closer, her silver eyes softening. “The prophecy is not only about destruction, child. It is also about choice.”

“Choice?” I repeat.

“Yes. The Silver-Blooded girl can either save the werewolf race… or end it. But the prophecy never says which path she will take.”

I swallow hard.

“So it depends on… me?”

“It always has.”

Kaelen’s expression darkens. “Then we need to get her out of here. The King’s hunters will not stop. And now that she’s shifted, her scent will be impossible to hide.”

My stomach flips. “Wait—so I smell different now?”

He hesitates. “Yes.”

“Great. I’m a walking supernatural perfume.”

Selene lifts a hand. “There is little time. The King has already sent his strongest enforcers. They are closer than you think.”

A chill runs down my spine. “How close?”

Before she can answer, the ground trembles.

A deep horn echoes through the tunnels—long, low, and menacing.

Kaelen’s head snaps toward the sound. “That’s not a Feral.”

Selene’s eyes narrow. “No. It is worse.”

My heart starts pounding. “Define worse.”

Kaelen’s voice turns grim. “The King’s Blood Guard.”

“Is that like… elite soldiers?”

“They are not soldiers,” Selene says quietly. “They are monsters the King personally created.”

The horn sounds again—closer this time.

Kaelen grabs my hand. “We have to move. Now.”

“Move where?!” I ask.

Selene steps aside, revealing a narrow passage glowing with silver light. “Through the inner Veil. It will lead you to the old territories—beyond the King’s reach.”

Kaelen hesitates. “And you?”

“My duty is here,” she says simply.

Another tremor shakes the chamber. Dust falls from the crystal ceiling.

Footsteps echo in the distance.

Heavy.

Slow.

Deliberate.

Someone—or something—is coming.

Kaelen pulls me toward the glowing passage. “Luna, run.”

I glance back at Selene. “Will we see you again?”

She smiles gently. “That depends on the choices you make.”

The horn blasts one last time—right outside the chamber.

A shadow stretches across the entrance.

Tall.

Armored.

Eyes glowing blood-red.

The Blood Guard has arrived.

Kaelen tightens his grip on my hand.

And the armored figure steps forward, voice cold as steel.

“Silver-blooded princess… your king is waiting.”

To be Continued...