The Luna Awakens Silence
1032 Words
CHAPTER FOUR
The Luna Awakens
Silence.
The entire ballroom stood frozen.
Broken chandeliers hung precariously from the ceiling.
Glass covered the marble floor.
Smoke drifted through the air from shattered light fixtures.
And in the center of it all stood Aria.
The silver mark on her wrist blazed like moonlight.
No one moved.
No one spoke.
Even the remaining attackers seemed terrified.
The voice that had echoed through the ballroom lingered in everyone's mind.
"The Luna has awakened."
Aria's breathing became uneven.
"What... what just happened?"
The glowing symbol pulsed again.
A wave of energy surged through her body.
She staggered.
Lucien caught her before she could fall.
The moment their skin touched, another shock rippled between them.
Power.
Raw and ancient.
It flowed from Aria into Lucien and back again.
The sensation nearly brought both of them to their knees.
Lucien's wolf roared inside him.
Mate.
Luna.
His instincts screamed the same truth.
Aria was not simply his mate.
She was something far rarer.
Something the supernatural world had been waiting centuries for.
Something powerful enough to change everything.
"Alpha..."
Damien's voice was unusually tense.
Lucien looked up.
The members of his pack were staring.
Not at him.
At Aria.
Some looked shocked.
Others looked hopeful.
A few appeared terrified.
One older warrior slowly lowered himself onto one knee.
Then another followed.
And another.
Within seconds, half the pack had knelt.
Aria stared.
"What are they doing?"
No one answered.
Lucien's jaw tightened.
This was happening too soon.
Far too soon.
The prophecy was becoming reality before he had time to prepare.
Before he could explain anything, footsteps echoed from the ballroom entrance.
Heavy.
Deliberate.
Dangerous.
Every pack warrior immediately reached for a weapon.
Lucien's eyes narrowed.
A group of men entered.
Dressed entirely in black.
Their leader wore a silver mask.
The sight alone made Damien curse.
"The Shadow Council."
The room grew colder.
Aria looked from one face to another.
No one appeared surprised.
Which meant everyone except her knew exactly who these people were.
The masked leader stopped twenty feet away.
Then he laughed.
The sound sent chills through the room.
"After centuries of searching," he said, "we finally found her."
His gaze locked onto Aria.
Predatory.
Hungry.
Obsessed.
Fear crawled down her spine.
"You have the wrong person."
The man smiled.
"No, child."
His eyes gleamed behind the mask.
"We most certainly do not."
Lucien stepped forward.
Immediately placing himself between Aria and the strangers.
A low growl escaped his throat.
The sound was almost animal.
The masked leader seemed amused.
"The famous Alpha King."
The title stunned Aria.
Alpha King?
She stared at Lucien.
What did that even mean?
The stranger continued.
"You've hidden yourself well, Lucien."
Lucien's expression remained cold.
"Leave."
The command carried incredible authority.
Several guests actually took a step backward.
The masked leader merely laughed.
"No."
His attention returned to Aria.
"The Luna belongs to us."
The temperature inside the ballroom seemed to drop ten degrees.
Lucien's eyes flashed gold.
This time Aria definitely saw it.
There was no mistaking it.
Human eyes did not glow.
Human eyes did not shine like molten gold.
A terrifying realization began forming in her mind.
The strange voice.
The prophecy.
The mark.
The impossible healing.
Lucien's eyes.
None of it was normal.
None of it was human.
"What are you?" she whispered.
Lucien glanced at her.
For a moment, genuine regret appeared in his eyes.
He had wanted to tell her differently.
Under different circumstances.
Now it was too late.
The masked leader smiled.
"She doesn't know."
His laughter echoed through the ballroom.
"That's even better."
The man suddenly raised his hand.
Dark symbols appeared in the air around him.
Glowing black runes.
Aria gasped.
Magic.
Actual magic.
The symbols spun faster.
The room shook violently.
Guests screamed.
Several windows exploded outward.
Wind rushed through the ballroom.
The pack warriors immediately formed a protective circle around Aria.
Lucien's face darkened.
"Get her out of here."
Damien nodded.
"Move!"
The warriors obeyed instantly.
Aria barely had time to react before they surrounded her.
"What is happening?"
No one answered.
Because at that exact moment, something impossible happened.
The masked leader completed his spell.
The floor cracked.
A massive black portal opened beneath the ballroom.
Darkness poured from it.
Not ordinary darkness.
Living darkness.
It twisted and moved like a living creature.
Guests ran for their lives.
Some fainted.
Others screamed prayers.
Even the pack warriors looked uneasy.
The masked leader spread his arms.
"The prophecy begins tonight."
Then the creatures emerged.
Aria's blood turned to ice.
They weren't human.
They weren't animals.
They were monsters.
Tall.
Covered in shadows.
Glowing red eyes burning from within their bodies.
One climbed from the portal.
Then another.
Then another.
Within seconds, dozens filled the ballroom.
The smell of death followed them.
Fear exploded through the crowd.
"What are those things?" Aria whispered.
Damien's expression became grim.
"Nightborn."
The single word carried absolute dread.
The monsters charged.
Chaos erupted again.
Pack warriors collided with the creatures.
Furniture shattered.
Walls cracked.
The ballroom became a battlefield.
Aria stumbled backward.
Her heart pounded.
This couldn't be real.
Monsters.
Magic.
Prophecies.
Werewolves.
It felt like a nightmare.
Yet every terrifying second was real.
One Nightborn broke through the defensive line.
It lunged directly at her.
Aria froze.
The creature moved too fast.
She couldn't escape.
Couldn't scream.
Couldn't breathe.
Then the silver mark burned.
A blinding light erupted from her wrist.
The monster crashed into an invisible barrier.
The force hurled it across the room.
Everyone stopped.
Including Lucien.
Including the Shadow Council.
The barrier surrounding Aria glowed brighter.
Silver energy swirled around her body.
The air itself seemed to obey her.
A woman's voice echoed once more.
Ancient.
Powerful.
Unmistakable.
"The Moon Queen rises."
The room fell silent.
Even the Nightborn stopped moving.
The masked leader's confidence vanished.
For the first time, he looked afraid.
And Lucien realized the truth.
The prophecy had been wrong.
Aria wasn't destined to become a Luna.
She was destined to become something far greater.
Something the supernatural world had not seen for a thousand years.
And every enemy they had would soon be coming for her.
- Writer
