Back in Shadowfang territory, tension filled the Alpha council chamber.
Elder Rowan stood before the gathered wolves, his expression unusually serious.
“Something ancient has awakened,” he said slowly.
Several warriors exchanged confused looks.
Kael leaned forward slightly.
“What are you talking about?”
Rowan’s voice lowered.
“The power of the Moon Goddess.”
The room fell silent.
Most wolves believed the Moon Goddess was nothing more than a spiritual legend—an ancient myth tied to the origins of their kind.
But Rowan’s tone carried no doubt.
Kael frowned.
“And what does that have to do with our territory?”
Rowan hesitated.
“The awakening was strongest in the northern forest.”
Kael’s chest tightened again.
The same forest Ava had fled into the night before.
At that exact moment, miles away beneath the trees, Ava stood beside Lycan King Darius staring at the glowing mark on her wrist.
Her life had changed in a single night.
The girl who had been rejected and humiliated in front of the entire pack was gone.
In her place stood something new.
Something powerful.
Darius looked toward the rising sun.
“The world is about to change,” he said quietly.
And deep within Ava’s veins, the power of the Moonborn continued to grow.
The Moon Goddess was awakening.