Sun's Chosen, Moon's Captive

Chapter 2

Amber stirred in her bed, waking to the sound of dripping water and muffled footsteps. She sat up quickly, determined to be caught of guard if someone appeared at the cell bars. Her eyes drifted to the “Welcome to the caves of the Bloodmoon pack” booklet she had found yesterday, before she’d been interrupted by those mysterious vampires. She picked it up, flipping through pages filled with daily schedules, strict rules, ominous warnings- and one strange ritual called The Choosing. She remembered sitting cross-legged as a pup, listening to the elders whisper the legends of the Bloodmoon Clan. The fire Knight had flickered on their faces as they were telling the stories about the wolves that had never returned from the caves. Back then, amber had rolled her eyes, the stories were meant to only frighten pups into obedience. But now, staring at the faded ink, her blood rang cold and every word she had dismissed as a tale was true. She had just begun to read more about it when a voice cut through the silence. A young woman across the corridor whispered her name. Amber froze, no one here should know who she was. She moved closer to the bars but the woman has gone silent. The damn light and thick iron made it impossible to tell whether she was human or wolf. Muffled footsteps echoed again, Amber’s muscles tense- until she saw it was only a guard on patrol, checking that none of the women had escaped. Not that there was any way of getting out of these cold, damp cells, she thought bitterly. Tears welled in her eyes. She had hoped someone from the Sun Shadow pack would try to rescue her- or at least strike a treaty like they had with other vampire clans but maybe they were too afraid of the Bloodmoon vampires. She was pushing herself up from the floor when she heard it again.

Her name.

Amber stepped quickly to the bars. " Hello? " She whispered, her voice shaking. “Who’s there?”

“It’s me " came the soft reply. “Amie”

Amber’s heart lurched. Amie? How was she here? When had she been taken? How long had she been trapped in this place? Questions crowd her mind that she didn’t dare ask - not with these guards so close.

Amie had been one of her closest friends from their Daybreak pack. They’d seen each other every week… until Amie suddenly disappeared, and amber assumed she’d gone away on a trip.

They had been childhood friends, growing up side by side because their fathers were alphas of their own packs. But the woman Amber was looking at now hardly resembled her best friend. Across the corridor, Amie pressed her forehead to the iron bars, hers knees hugged tightly to her chest. She didn’t speak, but the silent shake of her head told Amber read enough. The in Amie’s eyes-wide, glassy, broken- was worse was than the words on the page. Whatever the test was, it wasn’t meant to be understood.

Amie had always had dark brown hair with honey highlights, but the highlights were hidden beneath layers if dirt. Her eyes- impossible to mistake - were still striking, even in the dim light. One copper orange, the other silvery blue. Heterochromia. Amber had always believed it was because Amie was half sun wolf and half moon wolf.

Now, those eyes looked tired.

Cuts and bruises covered Amie’s skin, and Amber could only imagine what the Bloodmoon vampires had done to her. She wore the same blood-red dress Amber had been given.

Amber sat in silence for a few moments, her thoughts racing. How could Amie have been caught? She searched for answers but found only the memory of her own capture flooding back.

She still couldn’t identify the strange scent she had been following that night—hopefully, when the wolfsbane finally worked its way out of her system, her senses would sharpen again. She remembered a shadow slipping through the trees, the snap of a twig beneath unseen feet… and then darkness, as a white rag soaked in wolfsbane was pressed over her mouth and nose.

The memory shattered at the sound of footsteps stopping outside her cell.

Amber looked up and froze. A tall, pale figure in dark armour stood outside her cell, a small plate balanced in one hand. Without a word, he slid it under the bars.

“Here you are, little wolf,” the guard said.

Her stomach twisted at the name. That was what her mum had always called her—he had no right.

“Don’t call me that,” Amber snapped.

One corner of his mouth curled up. “What should I call you then, honey?”

Amber’s eyes narrowed. “How about my name? That might be a good start, bro.”

He gave a low chuckle. “Little wolf’s got some bite. Fine—if you must know, my name’s Zane.”

Amber forced a smile laced with sarcasm. “Lovely to meet you, Zane.”

“Alright, little miss sunshine,” he said, shaking his head. “Just trying to cheer you up. You’re going to be here for a while.”

That made her pause. Why was he being… almost kind? What did he know?

Before she could ask, Zane banged the bars. “Stop daydreaming and eat your chicken and rice. You’ll need your strength for the test.”

Amber’s blood ran cold. “Test? What test?” she shouted after him. “Am I going to die? What do you need me for?”

But Zane was already gone, her questions echoing uselessly down the empty corridor.

Amber stayed by the bars for a moment, staring into the shadows where he had been. The word test kept circling in her head, making her stomach twist.

Somewhere deeper in the caves, a heavy door slammed. She thought she heard faint cries, but they were swallowed quickly by the silence. The air felt heavier now, like the walls themselves were closing in.

She stepped back from the bars, looking at the plate of chicken and rice she no longer wanted.

If this test had anything to do with The Choosing, she wasn’t sure she wanted to know.

But something told her she wouldn’t get a choice.

Amber sat back down on the cold stone floor and leant against the damp wall. Her body ached, her head felt heavy and the smell of wolfsbane still clung to her nose. She didn’t even remember closing her eyes, but before she knew it the darkness took her and she was asleep.