Kael stood in the training yard long after the moon had dipped below the trees. Sweat rolled down his spine as he struck the wooden dummy again and again, splintering it until nothing remained but shredded bark and blood on his knuckles.
But still, it wasn't enough.
He couldn't punch away the ache in his chest. Couldn't silence the guilt or the fear clawing up from his gut.
He had broken Seren once—on purpose.
And now the world wanted to break her again.
For something she couldn't even control.
His wolf snarled inside him.
"Control it," he growled to himself. "You have to."
Behind him, footsteps crunched the gravel.
"You always fight ghosts this late?" Seren's voice cut through the night like silk over a blade.
Kael didn't turn. "Some ghosts never leave."
She moved beside him, arms crossed. "You should rest."
"I can't," he said, voice rough. "Every time I close my eyes, I see the council dragging you away."
"I'm not afraid of them," she said.
"You should be," Kael snapped. "They've killed for less than what you are."
"I'm not a what, Kael," she whispered. "I'm a who. And I'm standing right here."
He turned to face her finally, eyes blazing. "That's the problem. You're here. And I don't know how to protect you without losing everything else."
She stepped forward. "Then lose it."
He froze.
"Lose the fear. Lose the mask. Just… be him again."
"Him?"
"The boy who loved me before he was Alpha."
Kael didn't answer. Not for a long moment.
Then he said, quietly, "Come with me."
He led her past the main manor, down a hidden path lit only by the faintest flickers of moonlight. Trees bent like sentinels as they walked, tall and watchful. The woods seemed to hush around them.
They stopped in front of a crumbled stone shrine.
"This was my mother's," Kael said. "She used to come here when the world felt too heavy."
Seren knelt by the moss-covered slab. "Why did she leave?"
"She didn't," he said. "The council says she abandoned us. But I found her blood here."
Seren gasped.
"They erased her, Seren. Because she believed in the prophecy. Because she said Moonblood wasn't a curse — it was a sign of change."
She rose and turned to him. "That's why you rejected me, isn't it? You thought they'd kill me too."
His jaw clenched, but he nodded.
"And it killed me to do it," he admitted, voice cracking. "You think I walked away like it was easy? I broke my own soul to keep yours alive."
Seren stepped closer. "And now?"
He looked down at her — the woman he loved and lost and found again.
"Now… I think I'd rather burn the world than live without you again."
⸻
He kissed her.
And this time, she didn't stop him.
Their lips met like a dam breaking, years of pain and passion and prophecy crashing together in a single desperate touch.
It wasn't gentle.
It was war.
And it was home.
They didn't sleep.
They lay curled together in the old shrine, Kael's body wrapped protectively around hers, as if holding her could keep fate at bay.
But just before dawn, Kael felt it—
A shift. A silence.
He sat up.
Wolves. Dozens. Lurking at the forest's edge, cloaked in dark robes. The Council's private enforcers.
Seren rose beside him. "They're here."
Kael's eyes flared gold. "They weren't supposed to move this fast."
The lead wolf stepped forward, his eyes cold. "By order of the High Circle, the female is to be detained and evaluated. Peacefully, if possible."
Kael stepped in front of her. "She's not going anywhere."
The enforcer sneered. "Then we'll take her over your dead body."
Kael's snarl shook the earth.
"Try it."
The wind howled through the trees, thick with the scent of threat.
Kael stood at the edge of the shrine clearing, eyes glowing with a cold fury that could freeze bone. His claws extended. His canines lengthened. The Alpha in him was no longer caged.
Behind him, Seren's heart thundered in rhythm with the earth. Her hands tingled — that electric burn in her palms pulsing like moonlight trapped under her skin.
She wasn't afraid.
She was awakening.
⸻
The lead enforcer stepped forward again, this time baring his fangs. "Step aside, Alpha. This doesn't have to end in blood."
Kael took one slow step forward, the gravel cracking beneath his boots. "I disagree."
The first strike came like lightning — silent, fast, brutal.
Kael dodged left and slammed his elbow into the enforcer's ribs, flipping him to the ground. Another wolf leapt from the shadows — claws out, jaws wide — but Kael shifted midair, his wolf form a monstrous silver blur.
Seren's eyes widened. She had never seen him fully shift before.
His wolf was massive.
Not just Alpha-born — Alpha-forged.
⸻
Three more wolves circled.
Seren's body pulsed in time with the earth. Her veins shimmered. Her eyes flared white as her hands lit up with cold flame — the Moonblood magic finally answering her call.
When one of the council wolves lunged at her, she raised her hand and whispered:
"You want to bind me?"
The magic exploded from her chest — a white ring of light knocking the wolf back into a tree with a sickening crack.
He didn't rise again.
⸻
Kael fought like a storm made flesh — every strike precise, every move fueled by rage and something deeper: the need to protect her at any cost.
Blood painted the forest floor. Enforcers fell one by one.
Until the last wolf — the lead — snarled and retreated, panting, fear in his eyes.
"This isn't over," he spat. "You've declared war."
Kael shifted back, blood dripping down his arms.
"No," he growled. "You did."
The enforcer vanished into the woods.
⸻
🌒 After the Battle…
The silence that followed wasn't peaceful.
It was charged.
Kael turned to Seren, his chest rising and falling.
"You called the Moonblood," he said.
She nodded. "It answered."
"Does it hurt?"
She looked at her hands. "No. It feels… like it's always been mine."
Kael stepped forward, eyes still wild. "Then they'll come harder next time. With more than enforcers. They'll bring Elders. Laws. Magic."
Seren held his gaze. "Let them come."
⏳ Hours After Dawn…
The silence in Redfang territory was deceptive—too still, too heavy.
Kael could feel it in the ground beneath his boots as he stood just beyond the manor's gates. The earth trembled softly, almost reverently. A warning. A whisper. Something was coming.
Inside the manor, Seren stood barefoot in the training yard, palms lifted, her body swaying in slow rhythm. The Moonblood inside her thrummed like wildfire. Controlled. Barely.
Aelin watched from the sidelines, brow furrowed. "It's growing."
"It's waking," Seren corrected, eyes still closed. "And it wants out."
🔔 A Bell Rings — A Summon in the Wind
A low bell rang through the valley—twice, then three times.
Kael turned immediately. His wolf surged forward inside him, hackles rising.
"Three chimes," Aelin said quietly. "The Council moves."
He met Seren's eyes across the yard. "They've called a judgment."
"For me?" she asked.
"For us."
🏛 The Pack Court – Midday
Unlike the formal Council vault, the Pack Court was open to witnesses—Elders, guards, highblood nobles, even warriors from allied territories. It was rare, and political. A performance disguised as justice.
Kael and Seren entered side-by-side, both cloaked, both silent. Whispers followed them like shadows.
"She shouldn't be here."
"He brought her anyway?"
"Is she cursed?"
"Or crowned?"
Elder Thorne stood beneath the stone arch, a scroll in hand.
"This is not a trial," he began, "but a declaration. Redfang faces instability. The reawakening of the Moonblood bond is both miracle and threat. The Alpha stands compromised by emotion."
Kael's voice cut in, clear and cold. "My bond is not a threat. It's a legacy."
"You think legacy means safety?" Thorne laughed. "Legacy means power. And power must be controlled."
🩸 The Blood Oath Circle
Thorne motioned to the center of the court. A bloodseal shimmered across the floor—a circle of ancient runes, activated only for sacred tests.
"The female shall enter the circle," he announced. "To confirm the bond's nature. If she speaks falsehood, the circle will cut her. If she speaks truth, the flame will burn blue."
Seren stepped forward without hesitation.
A hush fell.
🔥 Trial Begins
She stood in the center, moonlight pooling around her like a gown. Her voice rang clear:
"I am Seren Blackthorn. I carry Moonblood by birthright. I was rejected under a Blood Moon. And I survived. I return not for revenge—but for truth."
The runes glowed.
"I did not seek Kael out. The bond found me. It is alive. And it is real."
Blue fire flared around the circle's edge. Not just light—heat.
A ripple of awe moved through the crowd.
Kael stepped forward, uninvited. "And I stand with her. As her Alpha. And her mate."
Gasps followed.
"You defy our ruling," Thorne barked.
"I defy your fear," Kael growled.
🧊 Tension Escalates
Suddenly—ice cracked across the stone steps. A councilor's fingers were trembling.
"She's affecting the seal."
"No," Aelin whispered from the crowd. "The bond is."
Kael's mark glowed faint under his collar. Seren's did the same. The court flared with light—and then snapped dark.
A second later, a shockwave of pure energy rippled outward from the circle. Half the Elders were thrown back a step. A wolf howled in the distance.
Power. Ancient. Divine.
⚖️ Aftermath
Silence returned like a hammer.
Thorne rose slowly. "So be it. The bond stands. But Seren Blackthorn is hereby forbidden from leaving Redfang territory until further evaluation. And should her powers escalate—she will be brought back before us."
Kael's eyes narrowed. "And if I refuse to let her go?"
"Then we strip your rank. And your name."
The threat hung in the air.
Seren stepped beside Kael. "We're not running. Not this time."
🌒 That Night – In the Manor
Seren sat by the window again. The fire was low, her hands wrapped around a steaming mug. Kael entered quietly, no longer armored.
"They're watching us," she said without looking up.
"I know."
She looked over. "Would you really give up your title for me?"
He stepped closer. "I already did once. When I rejected you, I gave up everything good in me. I won't do it again."
She blinked hard, heart aching.
"I don't need a throne," he added. "I need you."
She rose, stepping into his space. "Then stay. And let's figure out how to burn the world down if we have to."
Kael didn't answer.
He just kissed her—finally, fully, desperately.
And the fire didn't just glow this time.
It roared.