Winter Moon Novels & Stories

Three weeks ago. The night of the blood moon. I ran alone through the high passes, heavy with young—nine moons along, the pup quickening with every step. The trail gave way. I tumbled, striking stone and ice, wedged in a crevice where the cold would finish what gravity began. I sent my call through the spirit-web to the healers. Needed the Alpha's permission to cut the pup from my dying flesh. Ninety-nine summons. Silence. The hundredth time, the bond stirred.

They were the very reason he could draw a breath without the metallic tang of silver-poisoning. But above the vibrant sun, something else was moving. A second moon had appeared. It was a massive, silver-white orb that lacked the iridescent glow of the Lunar Council’s authority. It was flat, matte, and terrifyingly silent. For a wolf, the world was defined by its scent—the smell of rain, the musk of the pack, the iron of blood. But this new celestial body was a void in the sensory world. It was a "Dead Moon." It had no scent. It didn't even have a shadow. It was a cataract over the eye of the universe, and as it descended, the vibrant colors of the Silver Peaks began to fade.

Can you tell me all about it? [Sure. They don’t call it a year like you do—it’s called a Lunar Cycle. We are currently in the 19th day of Velyra, 812 LC. The months of the Lunar Cycle are as follows:] --- Dawnhallow — equivalent of January. Meaning “Birth of Light.” Season: Winter. Lunar Magic Effects: Rebirth & Divine Blessings; spells of renewal are strongest. Frostmere — equivalent of February. Meaning “Frozen Stillness.”

She hovered above the fountain, her light so bright that it made the lanterns look dim, and she raised her hands to cast a shimmering dust over the thousands of wolves waiting below. "You have proven your loyalty and your strength during the long winter of the shadow, and now I bring you the gift of the future as a reward for your brave hearts. Now everyone who still single could feel the mate bond pulling at their souls, so look around you and find the one that the stars have chosen to walk by your side forever," the Moon Goddess said. Her image began to fade into the night air, but the magic she left behind was tangible, causing a wave of gasps and whispers to break out across the entire f

The air in the Maw didn’t just grow cold, it became thin, as if the mountain itself were gasping, outside, the Blood Moon had reached its zenith, casting a bruised, rhythmic crimson light through every fissure and vent in the stone, it wasn't just a celestial event, it was a cosmic siphon, Kaelen was using the Lunar Cult’s forbidden Tides to pull the child toward the surface, dragging the heir out of the dark before it was ready to be born.

Leo was grinning, batting at a stray droplet of water that had escaped a canteen, watching it wobble like a translucent jellyfish. But it was Luna who caught my breath. Her hair, as white as mine, fanned out around her head like a halo of silk. Her eyes weren't on the Earth, and they weren't on the cabin. She was staring fixedly at the Moon—the glowing, jagged crescent that loomed ahead of us like a curved ivory blade. "It’s calling," Luna whispered. Her voice had that hollow, rhythmic quality that usually preceded one of her prophecies. "The Great White Wolf isn't on the Moon, Mama. She is the Moon. And she’s angry that the metal-men are crawling on her skin."

I will do the stupid Hide and Go Seek in the woods. ‘Thank you. And Sugar?’ “Yeah?’ ‘Whatever happens during the ritual, don’t run and don’t fight me.’ ‘Excuse me?’ He doesn’t answer. I pace my room. The once full blood moon is starting to become a waning gibbous. I always preferred a waxing gibbous. My chest is tight and it feels as if something is trying to claw its way out. I look away from the window and instead sit on my bed and stare at the ceiling. I barely slept because of the strange feeling.

“Last one. Winter Moon, daughter of Ronan.” Winter felt a jolt of pure panic. Her feet wouldn’t move. She was rooted to the spot, her head bowed, her hood pulled as far forward as it would go, trying to make herself disappear.

He gulps the last of his water, crushes the empty bottle in his hand until it scrunches into a ball, then hurls the fisted plastic into the farthest depth of the forests beyond us at inhuman speed. The baritone in his voice drops a notch below. “We’ll end him.” I'm about to ask what the plan will be in detail, when my mind drifts to the date of the next full moon. Only a few days away now, the date coincides with… the night of the School's Winter Formal. Shane balls both his hands into fists, inhaling, then stares up at the reddening sky. “Dreadborn will fall on the next full moon. I'll make damn certain of it.”

I instructed Mayra in a stiff voice, but my wolf stirred inside me. It made me more restless than I already was. I put my hands on the handles of the crash cart and leaned down a little. “Give the injection right at the same place. Inject Winter, Luna Hailley, and my mother first.” I added and then looked out of the window. It was dark outside, but I saw the Moon shining brightly in the sky. “It’s a blood moon tonight.” I whispered while tilting my head a little. “What about it? This is not the time to be distracted, Maddie.” Mayra asked me worriedly, sounding distressed and frustrated.