Aria's POV
There's something in the shadows, I whispered to Kael. Red eyes. Watching us.
He went instantly alert. Where?
I pointed to the corner where I'd seen them. Nothing. Just empty darkness.
I saw them. I swear I
I believe you. Kael's voice was tight. Everyone, search the packhouse. Now. Something got in during the attack.
Wolves scattered, searching every corner.
River approached us, his face grave. Luna, describe what you saw.
Red eyes. In the shadows. And a voice it said the old gods were waking. That they wanted what I carry.
River went pale. No. That's impossible.
What's impossible? Kael demanded.
The old gods were sealed away before the Moon Goddess took power. They've been imprisoned for millennia. They can't River stopped, his seer eyes going distant. Unless...
Unless what? I grabbed his arm.
Unless someone with First Luna blood breaks the seals. Your power is the key. River looked at me with horror. That's why they want you. You're not just a threat to the Moon Goddess. You're a weapon the old gods can use to escape.
My blood ran cold. I would never
You wouldn't have to do it willingly. If they get close enough, they can force you. Use your power against your will.
Kael pulled me against his chest protectively. Then we make sure they never get close.
Alpha! Dante's voice echoed from upstairs. You need to see this!
We ran up to my bedroom. Dante stood in the doorway, his face ashen.
My room was destroyed. Furniture overturned. Walls scratched with claw marks. And on my mirror, written in something dark and wet:
WE'VE WAITED THREE HUNDRED YEARS. YOU CAN'T HIDE FOREVER.
Is that blood? I whispered.
River touched it carefully, then jerked back. Worse. It's essence. Pure dark magic.
The message started to glow red. The letters burned brighter, hotter.
Get back! River shouted.
The mirror exploded. Shards flew everywhere. Kael shielded me with his body.
When the glass settled, something remained. A symbol burned into the wall behind where the mirror had been. Ancient. Terrible.
River's hand trembled as he traced it in the air, not touching. The Mark of the Void. The old gods' signature.
What does it mean? Kael growled.
It means they've claimed her. Marked her as theirs. River's voice shook. They'll come for her. Soon.
Then we fight them, I said.
You can't fight the old gods, Luna. They're primal forces. Chaos and destruction given form. Even the Moon Goddess feared them enough to seal them away rather than destroy them.
Then what do I do? Panic clawed at my throat. Hide? Run? Live in fear until they catch me?
Kael's arms tightened around me. No. We find a way to strengthen the seals. Make sure they can't break free.
The seals can't be strengthened, River said quietly. They can only be broken or maintained. And with the First Luna bloodline awakened, they're already weakening.
So I'm making it worse just by existing?
Your power resonates with the seals because the First Luna helped create them. River met my eyes. Your ancestor didn't just challenge the Moon Goddess. She helped imprison the old gods. That's the real reason they want you revenge.
The bracelet pulsed hot on my wrist.
And suddenly I was somewhere else.
A vision. A memory. Not mine hers. The First Luna.
I saw her standing on a battlefield. Silver hair flowing. Eyes blazing with power. Around her, five massive creatures made of shadow and flame. The old gods.
You will not have this world, she declared. I seal you in the name of free will. In the name of choice.
The gods screamed as silver chains wrapped around them, dragging them down into darkness.
But before they vanished, the largest one eyes burning red spoke.
Your bloodline is ours now, daughter of light. We will wait. We will endure. And when your descendants awaken, we will be free. And we will feast on everything you tried to protect.
The vision shattered.
I gasped, back in my destroyed room. Kael held me up as my legs gave out.
Aria! What happened?
I saw her. The First Luna. She sealed the old gods. My voice trembled. And they cursed her bloodline. Cursed me. I'm not just the key to their prison I'm their revenge.
River nodded grimly. That's why your family has been hunted. Every generation, the old gods send their servants to kill First Luna descendants before they can fully awaken. Your mother must have hidden you so well even they couldn't find you until now.
But Marcus found me.
Because the Moon Goddess led him to you, River said. She wanted you raised weak, powerless. She thought if your power never awakened, the seals would stay intact and her rule would be safe.
But then I woke up anyway.
And now both sides want you. Kael's voice was hard. The Moon Goddess wants to control you or kill you. The old gods want to use you to escape.
There has to be a third option, I said desperately.
There is. River's seer eyes glowed white. But you won't like it.
Tell me.
You strengthen the seals yourself. Use your power to reinforce what your ancestor created. But it will require a sacrifice.
What kind of sacrifice?
River hesitated. Your power. All of it. You'd have to pour your essence into the seals. Become human again. Permanently.
The mate bond flared with Kael's horror. No.
It's the only way to ensure the old gods never escape, River said. If she gives up her power, she's no longer useful to them. The seals strengthen. Everyone is safe.
Except her, Kael snarled. She'd lose everything. The bond would break. She'd
Live, River finished quietly. She'd live. As a human. Free.
I looked at Kael. At the mate bond connecting us. At the power thrumming through my veins.
How long do I have to decide? I asked.
The old gods are patient, River said. But their servants aren't. They'll send hunters. Demons. Things from the void. And they won't stop until they have you.
Then we prepare for war, Kael said.
A howl split the night. Not a wolf. Something else. Something wrong.
Dante burst through the door. Alpha! The perimeter alarms. Something's coming through the wards.
How many?
We don't know. They're not registering as wolves or humans or Dante's voice cracked. Alpha, they're not alive.
The temperature dropped. Frost spread across the walls.
And through the broken window, I saw them.
Figures made of shadow and bone. Dozens of them. Eyes glowing red in skeletal faces. Moving toward the packhouse with inhuman speed.
The void spawn, River whispered in horror. The old gods sent their dead army.
The bracelet burned so hot I cried out. Power exploded from me involuntarily, silver light blazing.
And I heard it. A voice in my head. Ancient. Terrible. Hungry.
Yes, daughter. Call to us. Use your power. Break the seals. Set us FREE.
The more power I used, the weaker the seals became.
But the void spawn were coming. And if I didn't fight, everyone would die.
Aria, Kael grabbed my face, forcing me to look at him. Whatever happens, we face it together. You're not alone.
The shadow army reached the packhouse walls.
And began to climb.