The moon hung low and heavy, its silver glow spreading across the hills like spilled milk. It was a blood moon—the kind that marked omens, wars, and transformations. For centuries, the packs had feared it. Revered it. But tonight, it wasn't fear that stirred in the air.
It was readiness.
Adriana stood in front of a wide mirror, fastening the dark leather gauntlets Adrian had given her. They fit perfectly, carved with runes to amplify her energy and protect her wrists from magic backlash. Her reflection looked back at her like a stranger—stronger, sharper, eyes glowing faintly with a power that hadn't been there just a week ago.
Adrian entered without knocking. He never knocked anymore.
He stopped at the doorway, eyes tracing her form. "You're beautiful."
Adriana turned, a tired smile tugging at her lips. "Even now?"
"Especially now." He crossed the room, his thumb gently grazing her jawline. "Are you ready?"
"No." She stepped into his chest and wrapped her arms around him. "But I'm going anyway."
Adrian held her like she might slip through his fingers. "We don't know how many will be there. But we know who leads them."
"Selene," Adriana whispered.
The name felt like poison in her mouth.
The vampire queen. Ancient. Vicious. The one who'd cursed Adrian's ancestors. The one who'd ordered her emissaries to kill Adriana in her sleep.
"I've only heard stories about her," Adriana said quietly.
Adrian's voice dropped. "She kills gods in her spare time."
Adriana tilted her chin defiantly. "Then she'll have to make time for me."
He didn't laugh. He kissed her instead—slow, deep, desperate. A kiss that promised nothing but fought to hold everything.
The call to arms sounded across the estate—an ancient horn that could be heard for miles. Adriana and Adrian walked out together, side by side, like king and queen. Below them, hundreds of wolves and witches stood assembled. Their army.
Alpha Elias paced in front of the gathered crowd, his energy coiled like a spring. "You've trained for this moment since you could walk. Tonight, we defend not just our home, but the future. We fight not just for territory, but for freedom."
Adrian stepped forward, voice calm and thunderous. "And we do not fight alone."
Adriana raised her hand, summoning a pillar of blue fire that roared into the sky. Around her, dozens of magic-wielders lit up the battlefield with spelllight. She felt their power feeding into hers, tethered to her core like a web of invisible threads.
Then the ground shook.
Elias turned north. "They're here."
A dark cloud rolled over the hill, blotting out the moon. Figures emerged from it—vampires in black armor, warlocks cloaked in smoke, witches with red eyes and silver blades.
And at their center—Selene.
She glided forward, not a strand of hair out of place. She was breathtaking in the way avalanches were beautiful. Elegant. Deadly.
Adriana's breath caught. This wasn't just an enemy. This was a legend come to life.
Selene's voice echoed across the field, impossibly smooth. "So this is the girl. The wolf-witch abomination. The child of prophecy."
Adrian's growl rolled through the ground like thunder. "Touch her and die."
Selene smiled lazily. "Oh, I plan to do far worse than that."
With a flick of her hand, the air exploded.
The battlefield erupted into chaos.
Adriana ducked as a bolt of black magic whizzed past her head. She threw up a barrier, the blue flames forming a dome around her. She pushed forward, casting blast after blast, weaving between wolves and enemies as spells lit up the night like fireworks.
Elias tackled a warlock and snapped his neck mid-air.
Adrian morphed mid-run, his massive black wolf tearing through vampires like paper. But Selene didn't engage. She walked through the fight untouched, waiting.
Waiting for Adriana.
Their eyes locked across the field.
Adriana broke away, sprinting toward her.
Each step felt like she was being pulled into a storm. Magic crackled at her fingertips. Her hair whipped around her like wildfire. When she reached Selene, she didn't hesitate—she unleashed a wave of power so large it knocked back three vampires nearby.
Selene caught it with one hand.
"You are powerful," she said. "Too powerful to waste on them."
Adriana circled her. "I'd die for them."
"How noble. But you're not just wolf or witch. You're celestial-born. One of the Starbound. You don't even know what you are, do you?"
Adriana hesitated. "I know enough."
Selene lunged.
Their magic clashed, blue against black, light against void. The air ripped with the sound of their power. Adriana fought harder than she ever had, throwing everything she was into every strike. But Selene moved with ancient precision.
"You could be more," Selene hissed. "Rule beside me. Become what you were meant to be."
Adriana's power surged in response. "I already have what I'm meant to be."
And she blasted Selene with a burst of pure, radiant energy—something that came not from her magic, but from her soul.
Selene screamed and vanished into shadow.
The battlefield quieted.
The enemies began retreating, their leader gone.
Cheers erupted.
But Adriana collapsed.
Adrian was by her side in seconds, human again, holding her. "Adriana. Stay with me."
She was pale. Her veins glowed faintly blue.
"She overexerted," Elias said, kneeling beside them. "Too much, too fast."
Adrian lifted her into his arms. "I'm taking her home."
---
The next few days passed in a haze.
Adriana lay unconscious, her body pulsing with unstable energy. Adrian never left her side, not even to sleep. He fed her soup, magic infusions, whispered promises into her hair.
Elias and the healers came and went. None had answers.
"She unlocked something ancient," one of them said. "Something divine."
"But she's still mortal," Adrian replied through clenched teeth. "Her body can't contain it."
"You have to give her a reason to come back," Elias said quietly one night. "If she's floating between worlds, she needs something to tether her."
So Adrian did the only thing he hadn't done yet.
He bared his soul.
He took her hand, trembling, and spoke into the silence.
"Adriana, you told me once you were afraid of becoming something monstrous. But you never were. You're light. You're fury. You're the reason I wake up every day wanting to be better. If you come back to me... I'll tell you every secret. I'll show you every corner of my heart. I'll give you the world."
Her fingers twitched.
He leaned closer.
Her lips moved.
"Dumb... wolf."
Adrian broke into a laugh, tears spilling down his cheeks. "There she is."
She opened her eyes slowly. "Did we win?"
"You beat her."
She smiled weakly. "Knew I would."
Adrian pressed his forehead to hers. "Don't ever do that again."
"Can't promise that."
In the days that followed, she grew stronger. But the victory came at a price. Their borders were weakened. Their allies tired. Selene had vanished—but not for good.
One night, as they lay tangled in each other under the covers, Adriana asked, "What did she mean? Starbound?"
Adrian kissed her bare shoulder. "I don't know. But we'll find out. Together."
Adriana looked out the window. The moon was still red, but no longer frightening.
"I'm not afraid anymore," she whispered.
Adrian pulled her closer. "You never needed to be."
And for the first time in a long while, she believed him.