Lahat ng Kabanata ng Crowned by the Moon, Rejected by the Alpha.: Kabanata 31 - Kabanata 40

The walk back through the clearing of the Flame Guardian seemed to be walking through his own grave. With every step, he pushed forward into the ranks of the ones that he needs to deceive, into the heart of his partner whom he has to destroy with his silence. The scar within his heart throbbed with every movement so that it kept reminding him of the solemn oath that he took and of the price that rests upon his shoulders.He stood outside the inner circle and observed Aria working healing those hurt in their recent conflicts. Herculis stroked her hands, where she radiated gentle light, and gazed at the holy power passing through her increasingly freely. She was maturing into that which she was intended to be—a protector, a guardian, an entry between the world of man and the world of spirits.And she was also developing into something he could no longer touch.The change of the crown had worked on both of them, but in a different way. As Aria shone all the more radiant with each passing

Their council of war convened at sundown, once the last gossamer thread of evil ash had finally stopped falling. Aria was seated at the top of the gigantic oak table hewn from a single tree that was centuries old when felled. In front of her were the alphas of the three neighboring packs, their second-in-commands, and older wolves whose combined recollection extended back to dark times.Sever's attitude and mood of doing nothing while Draven is gathering his forces."Four hundred people," growled Northern Ridge pack leader Magnus Ironfoot. His scarred hand went white on top of the table as he poked fingers around the table edge. "Disappear into thin air with nary a scream. And we're going to take some small grove of yours' word better than we took stone and steel?""The sacred grove has seen dark times before," announced Aria freely, despite the crawling of her skin under the unceasing burden of all these glances. She was younger than twenty-four, younger even t

Invasion was heralded with the first pale light of morning, when mist yet clung about the grove like ghostly sentries that would not quit their charge. Aria was early-risen, wandering about the peripheries with tense vigor that testified to sleepless vigil and accumulating fears. Enemy scouts, after being spotted, had retired within the forest’s amicable shade, but the warning was enough in plain text: the rapture of waiting was nigh its end.She crouched upon the twisted watchtower that perched upon the highest point of the grove, sharp senses stiff against the predawn darkness. The camp below her seethed with the schooled enthusiasm of warriors on the eve of battle. The oil-smeared steel and pine resin smoke merged with the acrid flavor of fear-sweat, its aroma filling her nostrils with the flavor of war’s concord."Malamatash movement in the easter

The war council convened at midnight, the moon a silver crescent over the grove and shadows privy to too many confidences. Aria sat on the great oak table, running her fingers over the grooved grain where the generations of leadership had lain down choices that determined the fate of their folk. The allied alphas formed a circle around her, faces set with the tension of the day's discoveries—the extent of Draven's army, the unearthly make of his forces, and the unnerving element that their first attack had been more probing than full assault.It was, however, Kale's development that had put them off the most.He sat to the right of her, as he tended to, but the gaze of every other alpha's eyes inevitably tracked to him. The fire, as before, no longer glowed visibly beneath his skin, but the warmth persisted, as well as the subtle offness to his scent that sent every wolf's hackles up. Magnus Ironfoot had been scowling since his arrival, his scarred face distorted in something like sus

The moon bled. Not a metaphor. In reality, it bled, dripping red into the dusk as if the sky had taken a punch it couldn’t shake off.Aria leaned over the edge of the old watchtower, fingers digging into the stone so hard her hands probably looked like bone claws. The moon above? It was wrong. Too big, too raw, spilling red where silver should’ve been. Like some cosmic crime scene, and everybody knew what that meant, wolves especially. Blood moon: you might as well shout “run,” because nothing stays the same after a night like this.Tonight, it wasn’t just about monsters in the woods. The real monster was the thing clawing at Kale’s soul.“It’s starting early,” Elena puffed as she made her way up, every step careful, like she was rationing strength for a fight she knew she’d lose.“Old texts say it shouldn’t kick off till the moon’s at the top.”Aria didn’t blink. “The old texts never had a volunteer.” Her gaze was glued to the bleeding sky. “Kale wants this, and that’s sped it all up