LOGINThe world was ending, and I couldn't stop it. The Shadow Beast rushed through the courtyard like a powerful force. Its claws broke through stone, and dark shadows swallowed everything around it. It didn’t care who it hurt or killed—soldiers, our fighters, anyone. Anyone who stood in its way ended up lying on the ground. Morgana stood on the palace steps, laughing like this was all some grand joke, blood still dripping from her mouth where the ritual backlash had clearly damaged something inside her. “Beautiful, isn’t it?” she shouted over the noise. "True chaos. No sides. No loyalty. Just pure, beautiful destruction." "She's lost her mind," Lyra whispered beside me. Maybe. Or maybe this had been her plan all along—if she couldn't control the power, she'd make sure no one else could either. Damon's hand gripped mine so tight. "The tunnels," he said again. "Selene, we have to—" “Your Majesty!” General Mark rushed toward us. His armor was damaged, and blood was running down from
3 AM – Lyra’s WarningI couldn't sleep.Damon was on the walls, getting ready for dawn. Everyone was preparing for the coming fight.I was in our room, staring at the ceiling, feeling how weak my powers had become.Lyra appeared in the doorway, supported by Zara. She was still pale from the ritual, bandages visible under her clothing.“Selene,” she said urgently. “We need to talk. It’s about Morgana.”"Where is she? After the ritual failed—"“That’s the problem,” Lyra said, stepping inside slowly, clearly in pain. “The ritual didn’t completely fail. When Zara broke the circle, the portal collapsed—but Morgana had already taken some of the power.” She swallowed. “Now she’s unstable. Desperate. And I think she’s planning something worse.”“What could be worse than summoning creatures from the Shadow Realm?”“Using the Shadow Beast to finish what the ritual couldn’t,” Lyra said, fear in her eyes. “The Beast is still tied to her magic. If she can’t open a portal, she’ll push the Beast int
Inside the Inner WallsWe barely made it inside before the gates closed behind us.The inner courtyard was full of people—civilians, injured warriors, anyone who had escaped the retreat.Outside the walls, the Council army had completely surrounded us.And the Shadow Beast was still out there, moving along the walls, waiting.“Give me a report,” Damon said. He was back in human form, covered in blood—some of it his, most of it not.“Three hundred are dead. Four hundred are injured. We have about two thousand fighters left,” General Mark said quietly. “The Council still has at least four thousand fresh soldiers.”"And the Beast?"“It’s still alive. And it’s still hunting the Queen.”Damon reached for my hand and squeezed it tightly. Through our bond, I felt how scared he really was.‘We can’t win this,’ I told him in my thoughts.‘We don't have to win. We just have to survive until dawn. Then we can—’‘Until dawn? Damon, They’ll break through the walls in a few hours.’‘Then we make ev
The courtyard suddenly became chaos.“BETRAYAL!” someone shouted, and wolves began turning on each other, confused and scared, not knowing who to trust."STAND DOWN!" Damon’s Alpha command thundered through the air. “ALL OF YOU!”The fighting stopped at once, but the air was still tight with fear and anger.Kael was still on his knees. He was bleeding, tears running down his face.“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I thought they would keep her alive. I was trying to save her—”"By telling them our defenses?" Maya snapped angrily. “By handing them everything they needed to kill us?”“I didn’t know they’d attack so soon! Victor drugged me and locked me up—”"LIAR!" Victor's voice rang out from the western wall. "The rogue is trying to cover his own guilt! Don't listen to him!"But it was too late. Guards were already moving toward Victor, and his face went from confident to desperate."Wait—no—I'm loyal to the Court! He's the traitor, not me—""Seize him," Damon ordered coldly.Victor tried to
Back in the Courtyard The pain was unbearable.. I felt my mother's pain, her terror, her desperate love for me as they drained her blood. Felt the moment they killed her and twisted what remained into this monstrosity. And underneath all that, I felt something else. A trap. The Beast wasn't just made from her blood. It was designed to drain mine. Every second I stayed connected, I felt my power flowing out, being pulled into some kind of reservoir. ‘Morgana lied,’ I realized. ‘This isn't about destroying the Beast. It's about draining me.’ I tried to pull back, but the connection had barbs—magical hooks that dug deeper the more I struggled. "SELENE!" Damon's voice, Rex's form appearing beside me. "What's wrong?" "It's a trap! The Beast is—" Pain cut off my words as more power drained away. Through the bond, Damon felt everything. Felt the trap closing around me. Rex lunged at the Beast, not trying to kill it but to break the physical contact between us. His massive jaws clo
The Battle Begins The Shadow Beast didn't just arrive. It smashed through our outer defenses like they were made of paper. I heard the screams first. Then the crashing. Then I saw it. "Oh my god." It was massive—easily twenty feet tall, made of writhing shadows that seemed to eat the light around them. Red eyes like burning coals. Claws that left tears in the air itself when it moved. And it was heading straight for me. "“EVERYONE FALL BACK!” Damon shouted. "GET TO SECONDARY POSITIONS NOW!" Warriors scattered. The shadow traps we'd spent days setting up exploded against the Beast's hide and did absolutely nothing. Arrows flew through its body like it was made of smoke. Because it was made of smoke. Corrupted, angry, murderous smoke. The Beast's eyes locked on mine, and I felt it—that connection Morgana had talked about. Like a fishhook sunk deep in my chest, pulling. No. Not pulling. Dragging. I gasped as the sensation intensified. My mother's blood. They'd killed her and
I was halfway through morning training when a wolf staggered into the camp, covered in blood, limping, barely awake. He collapsed before he even reached the fire pit.“Healer!” someone shouted.Lyra rushed over immediately, checking his injuries. He had deep claw marks on his chest, an arrow in his
Sunlight came through the cracks of the shelter when I woke up, and Kael was still holding my hand.He had fallen asleep sitting next to me, his head leaning against the wall in a way that would definitely hurt later. But he stayed there all night.The nightmare felt distant now. Less real.I caref
Training started with drills meant to wear us out.Maya made us run through the forest at dawn. We carried full packs and weapons, moving fast but quietly. The goal was to build our strength for the fortress mission and to learn how to move together as a team.I tripped over a tree root for the thi
The next morning, I woke up and saw that Kael was already gone.His bedding was folded neatly, and there was a small note written on a piece of bark beside me: Training with Maya. Eat breakfast. Rest your shoulder. – KI couldn’t help but smile. He was always looking after everyone except himself.







