All Chapters of Echoes of Moonfire: Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

~EiraWhy are we still here?The question pounded inside my head as steadily as the pulse in my wrist. Hours had passed—or maybe longer. It was hard to tell time in a place where sunlight only filtered through in thin, reluctant threads. The cage we were held in stank of rust and damp moss, and the silence outside pressed in like a second skin.Ryan exhaled beside me for the hundredth time.“Why are we still here?” he finally said aloud, like the universe had taken my thoughts and thrown them into his mouth. “Shouldn’t we have blasted our way out of here by now? You know you can do that.”I turned to look at him. His arms were folded, his jaw clenched tight. He wasn’t wrong. I could’ve melted the bars with half a thought. But something stopped me. Something about this place… about these people.“We’re not trying to make them fear us,” I said quietly. “They’re victims, too. It’s fear that’s making them act like this.”Ryan huffed. “Even so. We can’t just stay here. We have a mission to

~Omniscient POV The corridor outside Lyric’s chamber was still, lit by the soft glow of moonlight that filtered through the stained glass windows. The castle had quieted for the night. Most of the guards had retired to their posts, and the halls, once humming with tension and footsteps, now felt like a sanctuary. Kade walked with slow steps, his hands clasped behind his back. He hadn’t intended to wander this way. At least, that’s what he told himself. But somehow, his feet knew the path too well—knew where her room was, how many paces from the end of the hall, how the light from the sconces fell just outside her door. He paused when he saw it. The door was slightly ajar. Warm candlelight spilled into the hall, flickering like an invitation. A trap, maybe. Or a moment he didn’t deserve. Inside, Lyric sat by the vanity, her hair cascading down her back like a waterfall of night. She mo

~Lyric The shadows chased me through the forest like wolves. The forest was endless. Black trees scraped the sky like claws, and the ground beneath my bare feet was wet with something thicker than water. I ran. I ran because the thing behind me wasn’t just a creature. It was something older. Hungrier. Godlike. It didn’t growl or roar—it simply breathed, and that was enough to make the trees bend and my bones feel hollow. “You can’t run from this,” the wind whispered. It had a loud echoing voice. I tripped, fell into the mud, and turned—only to see nothing. And then I woke. My chest heaved. Sweat slicked my skin. The room was too quiet, too perfect. The soft rustle of rain against the windows reminded me I was safe—or something like it. I rose from bed, pulling on a robe and stepping lightly across the cool marble floor. The palace was a sleeping beast, all halls and candlelight and echoing silence. I didn’t know where I was going, I just knew I had to walk somewhere

~Aeron The wind howled through the hollow ribs of the building we had claimed as shelter. It was little more than crumbling stone, a skeleton of a place someone had once dreamed into existence but never finished. We found it three days ago—half-built walls, broken archways, a roof that leaked in two dozen places. But it was perfect. Hidden behind thorn-thick trees near the edge of the Enchanted Forest, where no sane soul wandered for fear of what lived in the mist. Exactly the kind of place we needed. I stood near the edge, where the shattered wall gave a perfect view of the moonlight streaking across the distant plains. The stars bled silver. The night smelled of moss and rust and potential. “Caelum,” I said, not turning around. “Yes, Alpha?” he answered without hesitation. I didn’t waste time. “I need to get Lyric back. We need to take Obsidian back. We’ve been living like refugees long enough. We’re royalty. Obsidian belongs to us. It’s high time we took it back.” He

~EiraThe portal spat me out like lightning.I hit the ground in a tumble, hard and graceless, the world spinning as I scrambled to my feet. My lungs were on fire. My hands trembled. I didn’t know how long it had been. Seconds? Minutes?Ryan…I staggered through the streets of Moon Shadow. The once-familiar village was now too quiet. No laughter. No scent of bread in the air. No guards walking their usual routes.Just the wind. And the weight of my desperation.I ran to the first person I saw—an older woman gathering herbs at her doorstep. “Please—you have to help me! They’ve taken the palace. Queen Seraphina’s missing. The Horax are here! Ryan—” My voice cracked. “We need fighters. Now.”She blinked at me slowly. “I’m sorry, dear. I’m just a healer. I don’t know how to fight.”I grabbed her hands. “Then tell me who does!”She pulled away, eyes wide with fear.I moved on. A baker. A smith. A pair of teenage boys with slings.Nothing.Every plea was met with the same quiet shake of the