Sera's POV
Tessa's fist comes at my face.
I duck too late. Her knuckles graze my cheek, and pain explodes through my skull. I stumble backward, tasting blood.
Again, Tessa orders. Faster this time.
It's been like this since dawn. Five days of training that feels more like torture. My entire body screams with pain bruises on top of bruises, muscles I didn't know I had burning with exhaustion.
I throw a wild punch. Tessa blocks it easily and sweeps my legs out from under me. I hit the ground hard, the breath knocked from my lungs.
You're thinking too much, Tessa says, offering her hand. Stop thinking. Just react.
I take her hand and pull myself up. Again. For the hundredth time today.
Across the training grounds, Kael watches from the shadows. He's been there every single session for five days, arms crossed, face unreadable. Just watching.
Water break, Tessa calls out, seeing me sway on my feet.
I collapse onto a bench, gulping water like I've been drowning. My hands shake so badly I almost drop the cup.
You're doing well, Tessa says, sitting beside me. Most people would've quit by day two.
I don't have the option to quit, I say bitterly.
Everyone has that option. You're choosing to stay. There's a difference.
I look at Kael, still watching from his spot. Why is he always there? Doesn't he have a kingdom to run?
He's making sure you don't die, Tessa says simply.
Or making sure I don't escape.
Tessa laughs. You're Moon Blessed. If you wanted to escape, none of us could stop you. Not even him.
The words should make me feel powerful. Instead, they make me feel alone.
I set down my water and march over to Kael. His eyes narrow as I approach, but he doesn't move.
Why are you always watching? I demand.
Making sure you don't die, he says, echoing Tessa's words.
Or making sure I don't escape?
If you wanted to escape, I couldn't stop you anymore. Kael's eyes bore into mine. Old law says you're free to go whenever you want.
Then why stay? I challenge. Why am I beating myself up every day when I could just leave?
Kael steps closer. You tell me. You're the one who chose revenge.
Maybe I just want to prove I'm not weak.
You were never weak. His voice drops lower, and suddenly the space between us feels charged. Suppressed. Lied to. Betrayed. But not weak. Weak people don't survive what you survived.
The words hit me like a punch but the good kind. The kind that reminds you you're still alive.
I don't know what to say. No one's ever said anything like that to me before.
Break's over, Tessa calls out. Let's go, Sera!
I walk back to the training ring, but I can feel Kael's eyes on me the whole way. And for the first time, that feeling doesn't terrify me.
The evenings are different.
After training, when my body is too exhausted to move, Elder Thorne comes to my chambers. He brings ancient books and scrolls, teaching me about what I am.
Your mother was Moon blessed too, he says on the third night. Did you know?
I'm starting to figure that out, I say quietly. How did she die?
Thorne's expression turns grim. Your father killed her. After you were born, when he realized she'd passed her power to you, he murdered her and made it look like complications from childbirth.
Rage burns in my chest. He killed her because of me?
No. Thorne's voice is firm. He killed her because he's a greedy, paranoid man who wanted to control Moon blessed power. When he couldn't control her, he destroyed her. It was never your fault.
But it feels like my fault. Everything feels like my fault.
The mate bond, I say carefully. Between Moon Blessed and Alpha Kings. Tell me about it.
Thorne's eyes sharpen. Why do you ask?
Because I need to know. I can't tell him about the curse, but I need to understand what's happening to me. I feel... something. When Kael is near. Like electricity under my skin.
The bond is forming, Thorne says slowly. It happens naturally between Moon blessed and their true mates. But Sera, you must be careful. Once the bond fully awakens
What happens? I press.
That's not a conversation for tonight. Thorne closes his books. Focus on your training. Master your power. The rest will come in time.
But I don't have time. I can feel the bond growing stronger every day, every hour. And when it fully awakens, the curse will activate.
One of us will have to die.
On the fifth day, something changes.
Tessa comes at me with a combination left jab, right cross, spinning kick. Instead of thinking, I just move.
I block the jab. Dodge the cross. Catch her ankle mid-kick and twist.
Tessa goes down.
For three seconds, we both stare at each other in shock.
Then Tessa grins. Good! Again!
We spar for another hour, and I'm actually holding my own. When we finally stop, I'm exhausted but also exhilarated.
I did it. I actually did it.
Kael approaches as Tessa leaves. He's been watching, as always.
You're improving, he says.
High praise from the legendary Alpha King, I say, trying to sound sarcastic. But I'm smiling.
I don't give false praise.
We stand in the training ring, alone. The setting sun turns everything gold and red.
Why are you helping me? I ask suddenly. You didn't want this marriage. You don't want me. Why not just let me figure it out alone?
Kael is quiet for a long moment. When he speaks, his voice is rough. Because you're mine to protect now.
I thought I was just a political bargaining chip.
You were. He steps closer. Until you weren't.
What changed?
Kael looks at me with an intensity that steals my breath. Everything.
The word hangs between us, heavy with meaning I don't fully understand.
Before I can respond, a servant runs into the training grounds, bowing frantically.
My King! My Queen! News from the South the rebel packs have attacked three villages! They're moving North toward the capital!
Kael's face hardens instantly. Gather the war council. Now.
He strides away without another word, leaving me standing alone in the training ring.
But as I watch him go, something cold crawls down my spine.
A whisper in my mind not my mother's voice this time. Something darker.
The rebels aren't the real threat. Look closer. Look at who stands beside the throne.
I spin around, searching for the source of the voice.
Nothing.
But when I look back toward the Keep, I see a figure watching from a high window.
Duke Ravon.
He's smiling.
And in that smile, I see the truth my mother warned me about.
The traitor isn't coming from outside.
He's already here.