FAZER LOGINBeneath the Mountain The tremor nearly knocked them off their feet. Dust fell from the ceiling as the stone chamber groaned around them. Guards stumbled backward, panic showing on their faces. Somewhere above, wolves howled in alarm. Aria steadied herself against the wall, her heart racing. The humming beneath the mountain grew louder. Closer. Alive. Rowan carefully grabbed her arm despite the pain etched on his face. “We need to leave. Now.” But Aria couldn’t move. Something was calling to her. Not with words. With recognition. The cracked symbol on the floor pulsed faintly beneath her feet, and suddenly the air turned unbearably cold. Kieran cursed under his breath. “Everyone out of this chamber!” The guards didn’t hesitate this time. They hurried toward the corridor just as another violent quake shook the fortress. A deep roar echoed from somewhere underground. Not an animal. Not exactly. Aria’s breath caught. The sound carried grief. Rag
The Earth Remembers Night had fallen again before Rowan finally woke. The room was dim, lit only by a low-burning lantern near the far wall. Rain tapped softly against the windows, and the scent of herbs filled the air. For a moment, Rowan couldn’t move. Pain spread through his body in slow waves, heavy and deep, but manageable. Alive. Barely. His eyes shifted toward the chair beside the bed. Aria sat there with her head resting on her folded arms, finally asleep. Rowan stared at her quietly. She looked exhausted, not physically, but in a deeper way. It was as if the weight of the entire world had settled onto her shoulders overnight. Moonlight slipped through the curtains, touching the silver strands hidden in her dark hair. Even as she slept, he could sense the power pulsing softly beneath her skin. It's different now. Not just lunar. Something older. Something the world itself recognized. Rowan pushed himself upright slightly, wincing. The movemen
The Ones Who Kneel Dawn didn’t bring the calm everyone hoped for. It crept in slowly, pale and chilly, as if even the sun was hesitant about what it might uncover. Aria stood at the edge of the clearing where the Sentinels had struck, her bare feet sinking into the damp earth, the moonlight still faintly kissing her skin. The forest around her buzzed with low murmurs—wolves shifting, guards changing positions, scouts returning with their updates. The night had changed everything. Again. Rowan approached from behind, surprisingly quiet for someone of his size. He held a folded cloak, draping it over her shoulders with a gentle touch. “You haven’t slept,” he remarked. She didn’t turn to face him. “Neither have you.” “That’s not the point.” Finally, Aria turned to him, her silver-flecked eyes softer than the power that simmered beneath the surface. “I needed to feel the ground. I had to make sure it’s still real.” Rowan let out a slow breath and stood beside her.
The Night That Struck Back The first arrow flew through the air without a sound. It sliced through the darkness like a whisper, just grazing Rowan’s shoulder before embedding itself deep into the tree behind him. The impact was sharp enough to splinter the bark. Rowan reacted in an instant. “Down!” He twisted, pulling Aria down with him as a second arrow zipped through the space where her head had been just a heartbeat before. They hit the forest floor hard, leaves and dirt flying as Rowan rolled, positioning himself between her and the encroaching shadows. Aria’s heart pounded against her ribs. Not out of fear. But recognition. “They followed us,” she said, already reaching inward—toward the lunar thread humming beneath her skin. Rowan was on his feet in a flash, his eyes blazing silver. “Stay behind me.” “I won’t,” she replied, her voice steady. The forest responded before he could argue. Branches creaked. Shadows thickened unnaturally, pooling between
When the Council Cracks Morian’s screams didn’t linger for long. The silver chains constricted, pulsing with a fire that mirrored the moon, forcing him down to his knees in the heart of the shattered oath circle. Smoke spiraled from his skin where the runes seared into his flesh, binding both truth and guilt. But what truly unsettled Aria wasn’t his suffering. It was the silence from the elders. They stood there, frozen—five figures who once wielded absolute power—now laid bare under the Moon’s judgment. Their robes fluttered weakly in the breeze, no longer emblems of authority but remnants of a deception too ancient to withstand the light. Rowan was beside Aria, blood drying on his forearm, his posture protective yet restrained. He felt it too—the moment when the world’s balance shifted. Finally, the iron-eyed elder spoke again, her voice stripped of its usual chill… now strained. “This was never meant to happen.” Aria turned to her slowly. “No,” she replied so
The Trap Beneath the OathThe summons came at dawn.Not through a messenger.But by oath.Aria sensed it the moment the moon slipped below the horizon—a sharp tug at her chest, like invisible fingers tightening around a thread that only she could feel.Rowan stirred awake at the same moment.He shot up, his eyes already glowing silver. “They’ve called for you.”Aria nodded slowly. “An Oath Beacon.”His jaw tightened. “That means the Council is invoking ancient law.”“Yes,” she replied softly. “One they think I can’t refuse.”The beacon pulsed again—subtle yet unyielding—drawing her toward the old neutral grounds where treaties had been made and broken in the same breath.Rowan swung his legs over the bed. “So they expect you to go alone.”“They do,” Aria confirmed.“And you won’t be going alone.”She offered a faint smile. “No.”By midday, the pack was prepared.Not an army—too conspicuous.Not a council—too exposed.But a shadow force.Trusted warriors moved quietly through the
The Moment the Moon Selected HerThe world jolted back into alignment with a violent shock.Aria stumbled forward, gasping as if the very air had been torn from her lungs. Her knees struck the cold stone. Rowan’s voice was faint behind her—calling her name, swearing, demanding explanations—but she
When the Moon Remembers Your NameAria did not breathe—not initially.The vision that Selene had revealed to her continued to blaze behind her eyes. Her mother’s visage… her tender smile… the anguish in her last moments. The treachery. The ambush. The familiar scent of wolves—wolves she had trusted
THE INSTANT THE WORLD FROZEThe world did not shatter in the manner Aria had anticipated.There was no searing agony. No violent tug. Merely an abrupt stillness—so profound it felt as though her breath had been confined within her chest.The instant she entered Selene’s radiance, everything surroun
When the Dust Finally SettlesThe world returned gradually.Not with illumination. Not with sound.But with suffering.Aria inhaled sharply as her lungs struggled to take in a quivering breath. Her vision was hazy, colors blending together like wet paint. For a brief moment, she was uncertain wheth







