Chapter 12 – Wolves in the Light
852 Words
The Lunar Council gathered in the Circle Chamber, cloaked in silver and rage.
Chiseled marble walls wrapped around them, etched with the names of Alphas past. Above, a crystal dome shimmered beneath moonlight. And at the center sat the throne—not for a king, but for power.
Kaelen stood before it now, wearing no crown.
His voice was low and calm—but cold as steel.
“Do you want war?” he asked.
Councilor Varn narrowed his eyes. “You’ve allowed a girl to shame our bloodline before nobles and heirs. What we want is stability.”
“She spoke the truth.”
“The truth is dangerous.”
Kaelen took a slow step forward. “Then maybe it’s time we were honest.”
The council members shifted. Some with discomfort. Others with disdain.
“She is claiming the gift of the Seer,” Varn said, rising. “You know what that would mean. She would outrank the council. Even you.”
Kaelen’s lips curved faintly.
“I’m not afraid of her.”
“Then you’re a fool.”
“No,” he said, voice sharp now. “I’m a King who’s watched this kingdom rot behind tradition and illusion. We kill the girls fate favors. We call it prophecy. But what we’re doing—what you’re doing—is slaughter in silk.”
Varn slammed his palm on the table. “The prophecy ensures survival!”
“Whose survival?” Kaelen growled. “Yours?”
The room fell silent.
Then, like smoke through glass, the chamber’s side door opened—and the Seer entered.
Draped in her bone-colored robes, moonfire glinting in her pale eyes, she floated rather than walked.
“King Kaelen,” she said, her voice like velvet laced with ash. “You called me.”
“I summoned the truth,” he replied. “And now you will speak it.”
The Seer tilted her head. “Truth is heavy. Can you bear it?”
Kaelen didn’t blink. “Start with the girl before Aurelia. Lyra.”
The Seer hesitated.
Rael’s sister.
The council waited, pretending to frown. But they already knew.
“She was chosen,” the Seer said slowly. “Marked by the moon. The prophecy called for her.”
“And?”
“She resisted.”
Kaelen stepped forward. “Did you kill her?”
The Seer’s lips twitched. “No. But I made it easy.”
Varn stood. “What does that mean?”
Kaelen answered first.
“It means she lit the path, let the girl believe she was safe, then stepped aside when the blade came. Who held the knife hardly matters. She guided it.”
“You dare—” the Seer hissed.
“I dare everything now,” Kaelen snapped. “Because you lied to me. You hid the true prophecy. You erased bloodlines. And now you’ve awakened something you can’t contain.”
The Seer’s eyes narrowed. “You’re speaking of Aurelia.”
“I’m speaking of fate, returning to the one who owns it.”
Varn slammed his cane on the floor. “This is blasphemy!”
“No,” Kaelen said. “This is rebellion. And it’s long overdue.”
---
Elsewhere in the palace, Aurelia felt it—deep in her chest.
Something shifting.
Something breaking.
She stood in the Garden Chamber, surrounded by glowing moonflowers. Elena was beside her, carrying small vials of tonic meant to weaken the Seer’s protective warding. Garran the scribe stood near the door, watching for movement.
Tonight was their first act.
Sabotage.
Rael was already beneath the Temple Wing, ready to slip the neutralizer into the Seer’s sacred basin. The tonic was brewed from dreamroot and viper fern—deadly to any magic drawn from deception.
“Elena,” Aurelia said, her hands trembling slightly, “Are you sure you’re ready?”
The young maid nodded. “My sister worked in the Seer’s chambers. She came home blind.”
Aurelia swallowed hard. “She’ll see again.”
“No,” Elena said. “But the Seer won’t.”
---
Back in the Circle Chamber, Kaelen faced the council and the Seer like a wolf among wolves.
“You can try to silence her,” he warned. “But this time, she has allies. And this time, I won’t stand aside.”
“You would stand with her?” the Seer said, voice rising. “Even if it breaks your throne?”
“I would burn the throne if it meant ending this curse.”
The Seer’s mouth curled into something inhuman.
“She is not what you think. Her heart will undo you.”
Kaelen’s voice softened now—but it didn’t shake.
“Then let it. Because if she is fate, then I’d rather fall with her than rise against her.”
---
Deep beneath the Temple Wing, Rael poured the final drop of dreamroot into the Seer’s basin.
The magic shimmered—then snapped.
A ripple went through the palace like a sigh.
The Seer screamed.
And the silver thread on Aurelia’s wrist blazed to life.
---
- Writer
