✨ Chapter 41 – When the Moon Stirs
The academy felt different that night.
Not loud.
Not chaotic.
Just tense—like every stone and brick was listening for something.
Ariana couldn't rest.
Her wolf wouldn't let her.
Every few minutes, a ripple of silver energy tried to push through her chest, but her bracelet pulsed, holding the power down, keeping her stable.
Barely.
She pressed a hand over her heart as another wave hit.
Her wolf whispered:
"Moon rising. Power rising. Change coming."
Ariana stumbled slightly.
Kai was instantly at her side—because he'd been waiting outside her door again.
"You felt it too," Ariana whispered.
Kai nodded.
"Yes. Your aura spiked."
Ariana looked up at him, uncertain.
"Kai… I think something is happening to my wolf."
Kai's eyes softened.
"Show me."
They moved to the quiet training meadow behind the Shifter dorms. The moonlight spilled silver across the grass, painting Ariana and Kai in soft luminance.
Ariana paced, trying to breathe normally.
"My wolf… she's changing," Ariana whispered.
"She feels older. Wilder. Like she wants to—"
Her chest convulsed with another pulse.
Kai stepped forward.
"Let it out."
Ariana shook her head violently.
"No. If I do, I could lose control. I might hurt someone—"
"Not me," Kai said.
Ariana froze.
Kai took another step.
"You won't hurt me. Ever."
Ariana's throat tightened.
"You don't know that," she whispered.
Kai reached out carefully, brushing her cheek with his thumb.
"I do."
Her breath caught.
Her wolf pressed forward, urgent, trembling.
"Bond. Trust. Mate."
Ariana's eyes widened slightly as her wolf's voice shifted—clearer, stronger than ever before.
"Kai…" she whispered, voice shaking.
"She's… she's speaking differently. She's waking up too."
Kai's eyes softened even more.
"Then we grow together," he murmured.
Ariana felt her chest tighten painfully.
But before she could answer—
Aster's frantic voice ripped into her mind.
Moon-sister!
Ariana gasped.
Aster?
The Moonbeast! Aster cried. I saw it—its cage—it's cracking!
Ariana staggered back.
"Aster—Aster saw the Moonbeast's seal breaking."
Kai's face darkened.
"Where?"
Ariana swallowed.
Her wolf whispered:
"Forest heart. South. Old stones."
Ariana grabbed Kai's wrist.
"We have to go. Now."
Aster's Vision
They ran to the infirmary.
Aster was sitting upright, trembling, pupils glowing bright silver.
Ariana rushed to her.
"Aster—talk to me."
Aster grabbed Ariana's hands tightly.
"I saw the seal!" she cried.
"It's underground—in the deep forest!"
Kai stiffened.
Aster continued:
"It's a circle made of old stones. Cracked. Breaking. The beast is moving… it's dreaming too loud!"
Ariana squeezed Aster's hands.
"What else?"
Aster swallowed.
"I saw fire. And runes. And… someone was there."
Ariana went cold.
"Who?"
Aster's voice dropped to a terrified whisper:
"A student."
Kai almost roared.
"A student is helping Rebirth?!"
Aster nodded rapidly, tears in her eyes.
"They stood over the seal with red light around their hands. They were… feeding it. Helping it wake."
Ariana's breath stilled.
Seraphina, standing just behind them, shook her head.
"No. A student wouldn't… who would—?"
Aster swallowed again.
"I couldn't see their face."
Into the Forest – Again
Kai grabbed Ariana's hand without hesitation.
"Let's go."
Seraphina followed immediately.
Zane, Rylan, and Calen rushed out behind them.
Ariana led the way using her wolf-sense—the ground pulling her forward.
The forest was darker than before.
Wrong.
Every tree seemed to whisper.
A faint boom rippled through the air.
Ariana froze.
Kai's eyes widened.
"That came from—"
Another explosion shook the earth—
closer, stronger.
Ariana sprinted.
Branches cracked beneath her boots.
The air filled with smoke.
Then—
They reached the clearing.
And froze.
The Seal of the Moonbeast
A huge crater had torn the ground open.
Stone fragments glowed red-hot.
Ancient runes pulsed erratically.
Smoke curled into the night like dark fingers.
In the center of the crater—
Lay a massive stone ring carved with moons and jagged symbols.
Cracked.
Cracking more.
Red light leaked from beneath it like blood.
Ariana clutched her chest.
"It's the seal," she whispered.
"The Moonbeast is right under us."
Kai growled softly.
"We need to stop this—now."
But Zane pointed sharply.
"There—look!"
Shadows flickered along the far side of the crater—
a figure running.
A student.
Too fast to identify.
Too fast to catch.
Kai lunged forward but the figure vanished into the trees.
Rylan cursed violently.
"They're one step ahead of us!"
Ariana stared at the cracked seal.
Her wolf trembled.
"It wakes. Soon."
A tremor ran through the ground.
The moon seemed to pulse above them.
Seraphina grabbed Ariana's arm.
"We need to get out of here. If that seal breaks—"
But Ariana stepped closer.
"Kai… listen."
Kai joined her, eyes shifting gold.
From beneath the seal—
A sound.
Not loud.
Not clear.
A low, muffled growl.
Ancient.
Angry.
Awakening.
Ariana's blood ran cold.
"That's the Moonbeast," she whispered.
Kai grabbed her waist and pulled her back instantly as the ground split a little more.
"We're leaving," he demanded.
A burst of red energy shot upward from the crack, throwing them back.
Ariana hit the ground hard.
"Ariana!" Kai grabbed her, pulling her against him.
"Are you hurt?"
"No," she whispered.
"I'm okay."
Kai held her tightly, not letting her move.
Seraphina stumbled over.
"We need to warn the academy. Tonight."
Zane nodded.
"This isn't just early activation. They're forcing the Moonbeast awake."
Ariana looked back at the seal—now glowing brighter than ever.
A message formed in her mind, cold and cruel:
"Moonborn… we rise."
Ariana trembled.
"We have to go."
Kai didn't let go of her until they reached the academy lights again.
Rebirth's Message
As soon as they reached the courtyard, alarms blared across the academy.
Students spilled out of their dorms.
Headmaster Solarin appeared instantly—
—and froze when he saw the sky.
Across the clouds, glowing in faint red letters, formed a message:
TWO NIGHTS
MOONBORN
ARE YOU READY
Gasps broke through the crowd.
Ariana felt her heart pound.
Aster's small voice whispered in her mind:
Moon-sister… they're talking to you now.
Ariana swallowed hard.
Kai's hand closed around hers, firm and warm.
"We'll be ready," he whispered.
Ariana squeezed back.
"I have to be."