Chapter 8: The King

LUNA’S POV

The Blood Guard’s armor gleams even in the silver light, sharp edges reflecting my own terrified expression.

I stumble back, heart hammering. “Wait—king?” I choke. “I’m not ready to meet a king, let alone one who wants to… kill me!”

Kaelen spins, putting himself in front of me. His chest rises and falls rapidly, eyes blazing gold. “Stay behind me. Do not move. Do not breathe. Do not think of running.”

The Blood Guard tilts his head. Heavy boots scrape against the cavern floor. “She has awakened. The seal is broken. You cannot hide her any longer, Alpha Kaelen.”

I swallow hard. The words scrape my throat. “Wait—she? You mean… me?”

Kaelen glares at me, jaw tight. “Yes. You. Your blood will either save the werewolves… or destroy everything. That is why they are here.”

I glance at the glowing crystals. They shimmer, almost pulsing with my heartbeat. Silver veins ripple across the cavern walls, reaching toward me like they know I’m in danger.

“Kaelen… I don’t even know how to fight!” I shout, panic prickling up my spine. “And you want me to save… everything? I can’t even save myself!”

He clenches his jaw. “You’re not alone. You never were. But you must trust me—and your wolf.”

I gape at him. “Wolf? I barely know what I am, let alone a wolf in me!”

The Blood Guard takes a slow, deliberate step forward, metal scraping with each movement. “Alpha Kaelen, she cannot run forever. The King’s orders are clear. Bring the Silver-Blooded girl to him… alive.”

A metallic click echoes through the chamber. A blade extends from the Guard’s gauntlet, crimson light flowing along the edge.

I feel my legs go cold. “Oh no. Oh no no no no!”

Kaelen’s hand tightens around mine. “Run. Now.”

Before I can protest, he hurls me toward the glowing passage. My stomach flips, lungs scream, and adrenaline surges like wildfire. The silver light of the Veil bends around us, humming as if the cavern itself is alive and cheering us on.

The Blood Guard lunges. Kaelen howls, a sound not human, not wolf—something ancient, terrifying. He shifts mid-stride, muscles rippling, eyes blazing gold as his body blurs between man and wolf.

I hit the ground running, heart pounding, hands scraping against crystal walls. Behind me, Kaelen fights with a power that feels unfair, unstoppable. Metal clangs. Sparks fly. The roar of his shift echoes through the cavern.

I stumble, but the Veil seems to guide me—light forming a path only I can see. The water rises at my ankles, then knees, but I ignore it. I have to survive.

A scream pierces the tunnel behind me. Kaelen’s voice. Not his usual growl, but a human shout. Fear, pain, fury—all at once.

My heart drops. I glance back. A massive wave of water, imbued with red light, barrels toward me. The Blood Guard isn’t just following—they’re controlling the cavern itself.

“Luna!” Kaelen’s roar echoes, closer now. “You are the power! Let it out!”

I stumble. My hands brush the walls. Silver energy surges through my veins. My heart races. My chest burns. Something inside me—wild, primal, unstoppable—rises.

The Blood Guard swings his blade. Crimson light slices toward me.

I close my eyes, scream, and let it happen.

Silver energy explodes from me. The water around us hisses and steams. Crystals shatter into shards of light. My scream merges with the roar of the cavern.

When I open my eyes…

The Blood Guard is frozen mid-step. Crimson blade quivers, then shatters. Kaelen’s wolf form stands beside me, golden eyes blazing, muscles tense and ready.

I—we—have stopped them.

For now.

But as I stare at the shattered crystals and the glowing water around my feet, a chill creeps into my bones.

Because I know this is only the beginning.

And somewhere in the shadows of the King’s palace, a figure watches…

And he is smiling.

The cavern shakes again, harder this time. Crystals splinter like glass under pressure. Water churns violently around my legs, now waist-deep. I clutch my arms around myself, trembling—not from cold, but from the raw, pulsing energy surging through me.

“Kaelen…” I gasp. “I—I can feel it. Something’s… inside me. It’s—”

“Good,” he growls, voice low and dangerous. “That’s her. Your wolf. The part of you you never knew. Let her guide you.”

“GUIDE ME?” I scream, panic flaring. “I don’t even know how to move, let alone fight!”

Kaelen’s golden eyes blaze brighter. He shifts again, taller, more monstrous—Alpha wolf energy radiating off him like fire. “You’re not just a girl running from a king. You are the Silver-Blooded Girl. Your blood can control the Veil, bend the cavern, stop them—if you allow it.”

I swallow. I want to argue. I want to scream. But the moment I inhale, a flash of silver light explodes from my chest. The cavern bends around me, water twisting into spirals, crystals spinning like moons in orbit.

The Blood Guard staggers backward, shielding his eyes. His armored form flickers in and out of the silver light, like he’s being burned by the energy itself.

I stumble forward, instinctively reaching for him—Kaelen. My wolf inside roars, guiding my movements, pulling me through the water. I’m trembling, but I feel… power. Raw, terrifying, unstoppable.

Kaelen’s voice cuts through the chaos: “Luna! Focus! You are the power—own it!”

The next wave of the Blood Guard’s attack crashes down—but I’m ready. My hands rise instinctively, silver energy bursting outward. Water freezes mid-air, twisted into jagged shards of crystal. Light flares, blinding, crackling like lightning.

The Guard screams, stumbling backward. Even Kaelen freezes, astonished. “You… you did that?!”

“I… I don’t know!” I gasp, heart racing. My chest feels like it’s being torn open, like something inside me is breaking free—and yet, for the first time, I don’t feel afraid. I feel… powerful. Dangerous. Alive.

The cavern falls silent, except for the rush of water and my ragged breathing. Every crystal pulse mirrors my heartbeat. I glance around—Kaelen is watching me, awe written across his face. His wolf form radiates approval, protectiveness, something… more.

And then—a shadow detaches from the cavern walls. Slow, deliberate. Human-shaped, but impossible. Dark, fluid, and dripping with black mist.

The Blood Guard… or something worse.

“Kaelen…” I whisper, dread curling in my stomach. “It’s not over.”

He growls, claws digging into the cavern floor. “No. It’s just beginning. That thing… it’s sent by the King. He knows your power has awakened.”

I step back instinctively. The figure moves toward me, gliding over shattered crystal and water as if it owns the cavern. No sound, no footfall—just malice.

“Luna,” Kaelen warns, “don’t fight alone. You can’t… not yet.”

But my wolf isn’t listening. It surges forward inside me, fierce and hungry, craving the confrontation. I feel my silver eyes ignite, glowing brighter than the cavern itself.

The shadow stops, tilts its head, and whispers in a voice that slices through the air like knives:

“So… this is the girl.”

My blood runs cold. My heart pounds against my ribs. My wolf snarls.

The next second, the shadow explodes forward, water and shards flying with it, aiming straight for me.

I scream—and my silver energy erupts outward, more violent, more wild than ever.

The cavern trembles. Crystals shatter. Water surges into impossible shapes, swirling around us like a tidal storm.

Kaelen leaps, intercepting the shadow mid-strike, claws slashing, teeth bared, golden eyes blazing like twin suns.

I realize, with a shiver that reaches my soul…

This is my fight too.

And I’m not running anymore.

But as the shadow lashes again, I sense something chilling: it knows me. Knows my blood. Knows my weakness.

And a whisper curls around my mind:

“You cannot stop what is coming, Silver-Blooded Girl. You will belong to the throne… whether you survive or not.”

The cavern freezes. The shadow recoils—then smiles.

And I realize, with a gut-punch that leaves me breathless:

This is only the first test.

To be continued...