Chapter 7: The Crown’s Trial

The silver doors opened.

Beyond them lay a vast chamber illuminated by hundreds of floating crystals. Their pale light reflected across a black marble floor, revealing a throne at the far end.

Upon it rested a crown.

It was unlike anything Kael had ever seen.

Silver metal twisted into delicate crescent shapes, with three dark gemstones set along its center. A faint blue flame burned inside each stone.

Kael stopped at the entrance.

His heart began to race.

“That’s the Moon Crown?” he whispered.

Lysander nodded.

“The crown of your ancestors.”

Rowan stood beside him, his expression solemn.

“Your father wore it only once.”

“During the final battle.”

Kael stared at the throne.

“Why did he lose?”

Neither man answered immediately.

Finally, Lysander said, “Because he trusted the wrong people.”

The words settled heavily between them.

Kael thought of Lucien.

The rejection.

The crowd.

The way Lucien had looked at him as though he were nothing.

He had trusted fate.

He had trusted the Moon Goddess.

And he had been wrong.

“What do I have to do?” Kael asked.

Lysander pointed toward the center of the chamber.

“Walk to the throne.”

“That’s all?”

“No.”

“The crown will decide whether you are worthy.”

Kael gave a humorless laugh.

“After tonight, I’m beginning to hate things that decide my fate.”

Rowan almost smiled.

But the sound of another explosion cut through the chamber.

The stone doors behind them shook.

A deep crack appeared along their surface.

Lysander turned sharply.

“They’re breaking through.”

Rowan drew his sword.

“How long?”

“Minutes.”

Kael looked at the crown.

Then at the door.

“What happens if I don’t claim it?”

Lysander’s expression hardened.

“Your enemies will find you.”

“And once they do, they will never stop hunting you.”

Kael swallowed.

He had spent twenty-two years being told he was weak.

He had survived the rejection.

He had survived the journey.

He had survived an attack by people who wanted him dead.

Perhaps survival was all he had ever been good at.

But now, for the first time, he wanted something more.

He wanted answers.

He wanted to know why his parents had died.

He wanted to know why Black Fang Kingdom had lied to him.

And he wanted to understand why Lucien had rejected him so easily.

Kael stepped into the chamber.

The moment his foot touched the marble floor, the floating crystals dimmed.

The crown began to glow.

A voice echoed through the room.

“Blood of the Moon.”

Kael froze.

“What do you seek?”

He looked toward the throne.

“Truth.”

The crown pulsed.

“And what will you sacrifice for it?”

Kael hesitated.

Then he answered.

“Whatever it takes.”

The chamber fell silent.

The three gemstones on the crown ignited.

A wave of silver energy swept across the floor.

Kael gasped as pain shot through his body.

His knees buckled.

Images flashed before his eyes.

A burning palace.

His mother holding him close.

His father standing before a massive army.

And a young boy with golden eyes.

Kael’s breath caught.

Lucien.

He was much younger, perhaps six or seven years old.

He stood beside a man wearing Black Fang’s royal crest.

The man placed a hand on Lucien’s shoulder.

“Remember, son.”

“Never trust the Moon heir.”

The image vanished.

Kael staggered backward.

“No…”

The crown’s voice returned.

“The truth is buried in the blood of your enemies.”

A second image appeared.

This time, Kael saw his mother.

She was kneeling beside a silver cradle, tears streaming down her face.

In her hands was the same crescent pendant Rowan had shown him.

A man stood behind her.

His face was hidden beneath a hood.

But his voice was unmistakable.

“Your son will survive.”

“I swear it.”

Kael stared.

That voice…

He had heard it before.

At the shrine.

Rowan.

The image disappeared.

Kael turned toward him.

“You knew my mother.”

Rowan’s expression changed.

For the first time, fear crossed his face.

“Kael…”

“You knew her.”

“Tell me the truth.”

The stone doors behind them exploded inward.

A wave of dark smoke filled the chamber.

The pack leader stepped through the ruined entrance, his sword dripping with black blood.

His eyes locked onto Kael.

“There he is.”

Rowan moved forward.

But the pack leader raised a hand.

“Wait.”

His gaze shifted to the crown.

Then back to Kael.

A slow smile spread across his face.

“Your Highness…”

“You have no idea what your mother did to my family.”