Aria's POV
The void spawn crashed through the windows.
Shadowfang wolves met them with fangs and claws. But normal attacks did nothing. The creatures were already dead you can't kill what doesn't live.
Silver! Dante shouted. Use silver weapons!
Wolves grabbed silver blades. The weapons worked barely. Each strike made the void spawn dissolve into black smoke, but more kept coming.
I stood frozen, watching the battle. Power screamed inside me, begging to be released.
Use us, the old gods whispered. Save your pack. All you have to do is let go.
Don't listen to them, Kael snarled beside me. He'd shifted to his massive wolf form. We can handle this without you.
A void spawn leaped at him. Kael tore it apart, but three more took its place.
A scream. One of the younger wolves a girl maybe sixteen was surrounded. Five creatures closing in.
I moved without thinking.
Silver light exploded from my hands. Not a blast. A shield. It wrapped around the young wolf, protecting her.
The void spawn hissed and recoiled from the light.
Yes! the old gods roared in my mind. MORE!
I felt it. The seals weakening. Cracks forming in ancient barriers.
But the girl was safe. That had to matter.
Aria, stop! River grabbed my arm. Every time you use your power, the seals break more. You're doing exactly what they want!
Then what do I do? I screamed. Let them die?
Find another way! River's eyes blazed white. Your power isn't just destruction. The First Luna created as much as she destroyed. Think!
Created. Not destroyed.
I looked at the void spawn. They were darkness given form. Absence of life.
What if instead of fighting darkness with light, I gave them what they'd lost?
I closed my eyes and reached deep. Past the destructive power. Past the Alpha command. To something softer. Warmer.
Life.
I opened my eyes. They blazed not silver, but gold. Pure life energy.
And I sang.
Not with my voice. With my soul. A melody of growth, of healing, of everything the void wasn't.
The void spawn froze. Their red eyes flickered.
Then one by one, they began to dissolve. Not violently. Peacefully. Like snow melting in spring sun.
Within minutes, they were gone.
The packhouse went silent.
I collapsed. Kael caught me, shifting back to human form.
What did you do? he whispered.
I didn't fight them, I gasped. I reminded them what they used to be. Before they became weapons. They... let go.
River knelt beside us, his hands checking my pulse. Brilliant. You didn't use destructive power, so the seals didn't weaken. You found the loophole.
Is she okay? Kael's voice was rough with worry.
Exhausted. But alive. River smiled. Your mate is extraordinary, Alpha.
The young wolf I'd saved approached shyly. Luna. Thank you. You saved my life.
I managed a weak smile. What's your name?
Emily, Luna.
You're pack, Emily. I'll always protect pack.
She bowed deeply, tears in her eyes.
Kael carried me to his room closer than mine, safer. He laid me on his bed gently.
Rest, he ordered.
The old gods
Will wait. They've waited three hundred years. They can wait one more night.
He started to leave.
Stay, I said quietly. Please.
Kael froze. Aria...
I almost died tonight. We both know it. And I'm tired of being alone. I met his eyes. Stay with me. Just until I fall asleep.
He studied my face. Then nodded and sat on the edge of the bed.
I took his hand. The mate bond hummed between us, warm and safe.
Thank you, I whispered. For believing in me. For not treating me like I'm fragile.
You're the strongest person I've ever met. His thumb traced circles on my palm. You faced a goddess, stopped an undead army, and saved my pack. All in one day.
I'm terrified, I admitted. Of the old gods. Of this power. Of failing everyone.
Then we're both terrified together. Kael's voice was soft. But we face it together. Always.
I started to drift off, feeling safe for the first time.
Then I felt it.
A pull. Strong. Irresistible. Coming from outside.
My eyes snapped open. Kael.
What's wrong?
Something's calling me. I need to I tried to stand but my legs wouldn't work right.
The pull got stronger. My body moved on its own, sliding out of bed.
Aria! Kael grabbed me. What's happening?
I don't know. I can't stop. It's pulling me toward I looked toward the forest. The forest. Something in the forest.
River burst through the door. The Mark! The Mark of the Void on her wall it's glowing!
What does that mean? Kael demanded.
It means they've activated it. It's a summoning mark. It's calling her to them. River's face was pale. If she goes, they'll take her. Use her. Break the seals.
Then we cut it off. Kael's eyes blazed. Break the mark.
It's not on a wall anymore. River pointed at me. Look.
I looked down at my left arm. The Mark of the Void was burned into my skin, glowing red.
When did how did
When you used your power to shield Emily, River said. The void spawn weren't just attacking. One of them marked you before it dissolved.
The pull intensified. My feet moved toward the window.
Kael held me back. Fight it, Aria. You're stronger than this.
I'm trying! But my body wasn't listening. The mark controlled me like a puppet.
There has to be a way to break it, Kael snarled at River.
There is. But you won't like it.
I don't care. Tell me.
River's voice was heavy. The mark binds her power to their will. To break it, she has to sever the connection. Give up her power. Become human.
The impossible choice. Again.
No, Kael said flatly. Find another way.
There is no other way! River's voice cracked. Either she gives up her power, or the old gods use her to escape. Those are the only options.
My feet were at the window now. The forest called to me. Come. Come. COME.
How long do we have? I gasped.
Hours. Maybe less. Once the sun rises, the mark completes. You'll walk into the forest and you won't come back.
Kael's arms wrapped around me from behind, holding me in place. Then we have until sunrise to find a third option.
There isn't one, I whispered. Through the window, I could see shadows moving in the trees. Red eyes watching. Waiting.
The bracelet on my wrist burned hot. Not with power this time. With warning.
And I heard my mother's voice. Not a memory. A message left in the bracelet itself.
If you're hearing this, my daughter, then you've awakened. And they've found you. Listen carefully. There is a third path. But it requires trust. Complete trust. In the wolf who holds your heart.
My mother, I breathed. She left a message. In the bracelet.
What does it say? Kael demanded.
I looked at him. At the mate bond connecting us. At the man who'd believed in me when no one else did.
She says there's a third option. But I have to trust you. Completely.
Kael's eyes met mine. Gold fire and silver light.
Then trust me, he said.
The bracelet pulsed once. Twice. Then a compartment I'd never noticed opened. Inside was a single silver needle.
And carved on it in ancient script: The bonding ritual. Two souls, one power. What one cannot do alone, two can do together.
River gasped. The true mate bond. The one the Moon Goddess banned because it makes mates too powerful.
What does it do? I asked.
It merges your powers. Your souls. You become one being in two bodies. River's voice shook. But if it fails, you both die.
Outside, the red eyes grew closer.
Dawn was coming.
And I had to choose.