The Alpha’s Warrior Luna

Prologue “You don’t believe me?” I stared at Ronan through the tears filling my eyes, my wrists trapped in the hands of two warriors. “I didn’t kill him. I could never kill the Warrior Commander.” Ronan’s expression remained cold. “You did it, Stella.” My heart broke. “Just believe me. I would never do this. I can’t… He was like a father to me.” Ronan stepped closer. “You were the last person with him. You ate with him, you drank with him, and you were the last person seen leaving his residence.” “I left him alive!” My voice shook as I struggled against the warriors holding me. “He called me to come, and I went. We talked about his retirement, just like everyone knew he was retiring soon. I left and went home. It was only after I got home that I heard he was dead.” The Warrior Commander was retiring soon, and everyone knew that Ronan and I were the two strongest candidates to replace him. I would never destroy everything I had worked for by murdering the man I was supposed to succeed, but no one believed me. The elder stepped forward. “Warrior Stella, every piece of evidence points to you. You have been found guilty of murdering the Warrior Commander. You are sentenced to seven years in prison.” My body went cold.m“No…” The warriors began dragging me away. “No! Please, I didn’t do it!” I fought against them, tears running down my face as I looked back at Ronan.m“You know I’m innocent!” He said nothing, the prison doors closed behind me and just like that, the life I had spent years building was gone. Chapter One Stella’s POV I was sitting on the edge of my bed when I heard the sound of keys turning in the lock. I looked up immediately. The prison door opened, and one of the guards stood outside. “Stella, come out.” I stared at him. For a moment, I thought I had heard him wrong. “Come out?” “Yes.” I slowly stood up. “Why?” The guard did not answer. He simply stepped aside and waited for me. I looked toward the small window beside my bed. It was still morning, and nothing about the day looked different from any other day I had spent inside that cell. My heart began beating faster. “Has something happened?” “Just come with me.” I hesitated before walking toward the door. I had learned not to ask too many questions in prison because questions rarely changed anything. Still, I could not understand why they were taking me out. My sentence was seven years. I had been here for four years, which meant I still had three years left. As I followed the guard down the corridor, I could not stop thinking about it. Maybe someone had come to visit me. Maybe there had been another hearing. Maybe they had made a mistake. When we reached the main hall, I saw several elders waiting there. I stopped. There were three of them, all members of the council that had sentenced me four years ago. “What is happening?” I asked, my voice filled with confusion. The oldest elder studied me for a moment before finally speaking. “You are being released.” I stared at him, certain that I had misunderstood his words. “What?” “You heard me, Stella. You are free to leave.” I slowly shook my head, unable to make sense of what he was saying because there was no way I could simply be released when I still had three years remaining on my sentence. “Why?” The elder exchanged a look with the others before turning back to me. “New evidence has been found.” My chest tightened. “What evidence?” “The investigation into the Warrior Commander’s murder was reopened recently. The evidence that was used against you was examined again, and it was discovered that some of it had been deliberately planted.” I could barely breathe. “So you believe me now?” The elder’s face remained serious. “We have confirmed that you did not kill the Warrior Commander.” Four years. Four years of waking up in the same small room, eating prison food, listening to people whisper about me, and wondering if I would ever get the chance to prove that I was innocent. And now they were standing in front of me, telling me they finally believed me. My eyes burned with tears, but I refused to let them fall. “Who did it?” “We don’t know yet.” My hands slowly tightened into fists, they still don’t know ? “After four years, you still don’t know who killed him?” “We only discovered that the evidence against you was false. The investigation into who actually killed him is still ongoing.” I let out a bitter breath. “So I spent four years in prison for nothing.” The elders said nothing. That silence was answer enough. A few minutes later, I walked out of the prison carrying the small bag that contained everything I had left. The gates opened, and I stopped for a moment as I looked at the world beyond them. The sky was bright, the air was fresh, and warriors moved along the road as if nothing had happened. But for me, everything had changed. I had entered that prison as a warrior. I was leaving as a woman who had lost four years of her life. Still, I lifted my head and walked forward. I was free, but freedom was not enough. The first thing I needed to know was what had happened to my position in the Warrior Corps. I had spent my entire life training to become one of the strongest warriors in the pack. I had fought in wars, led missions, and risked my life for the people who had later turned against me. I could not simply walk away from that, I needed to get myself back on track. So I headed straight to the warrior arena, the moment I stepped inside, I slowed down. The place looked almost the same, but somehow it felt completely different. Warriors were training across the large field, sparring with swords and practicing hand-to-hand combat. Commands echoed through the arena while instructors moved between the groups, correcting their fighters. I stood at the entrance for a moment, watching them. Four years ago, this place had been my second home. I knew almost every warrior here, I had trained on this field until my hands were covered in cuts and my body could barely move. I had fought against some of the strongest warriors in the pack and defeated many of them. Now, hardly anyone looked familiar, then one of the warriors noticed me.m, his movements stopped. Another warrior followed his gaze, another another. Within seconds, several people were staring at me. Whispers began spreading across the arena. “Is that Stella?” “She was released?” “I thought she was still in prison.” I ignored them and walked farther into the arena, I had spent four years listening to people talk about me behind my back, I was not going to start caring now. My eyes moved across the training ground until I saw the weapons rack. I walked toward it and picked up a sword, the weight settled naturally into my hand. For the first time since leaving prison, something felt familiar. I turned the sword in my grip and looked toward the training field. One of the younger warriors was practicing against a training dummy, but his movements were slow and careless. I watched him for a few seconds before stepping forward. “Your stance is wrong.” He stopped and looked at me. “What?” “Your back foot is too far forward. If someone attacks from your left, you won’t have enough balance to defend yourself.” He glanced down at his feet. “Now again.” He repeated the movement. This time, it was better. I nodded. “Good.” I turned away, but before I could take another step, a familiar voice came from behind me. “You haven’t changed.” My body stiffened. I knew that voice. Slowly, I turned around. Ronan stood at the other end of the training field. He was wearing the black uniform of the Warrior Commander, and the silver emblem on his chest immediately caught my attention. For a moment, I simply stared at him. Four years ago, he had stood before me while I was being sentenced for a crime I did not commit. Now he was standing in the place I had once believed I would occupy. His eyes moved from the sword in my hand to my face. “I heard you were released.” “I was.” He walked toward me, and the warriors around us became strangely quiet. I looked at the emblem on his chest again. “So you became Warrior Commander.” His expression did not change. “Yes.” I tightened my grip around the sword. Four years ago, Ronan had been my greatest competition. Now he was the man wearing the position we had both fought for. I looked him directly in the eyes. “I want to know when I can return to active duty.” Ronan was silent for a moment. Then he said, “We need to talk about that.” Something about his tone made my instincts sharpen. “What is there to talk about?” “A lot has changed since you left.” “I can see that.” His gaze hardened. “You have been away for four years, Stella. You can’t expect to walk back into the Warrior Corps and continue exactly where you stopped.” “I don’t expect everything to be the same.” I stepped closer. “But I expect to be given back what was taken from me.” Ronan’s expression remained cold. “That won’t be that simple.” I stared at him. “What does that mean?” “It means you will have to start again.” My fingers tightened around the sword. “Start again?” “Yes.” I looked around the arena, then back at him. “I spent four years in prison because someone framed me. I did not choose to leave the Warrior Corps. I did not abandon my position.” Ronan’s eyes narrowed. “Regardless of why you were gone, you were gone.” His words struck something deep inside me. I had only been free for a few minutes, yet already I was being told that the life I had lost was no longer mine. I stepped closer to him. “Then tell me exactly what has changed.” Ronan held my gaze. “You are no longer a ranked warrior.” For a moment, I said nothing. Then I slowly lowered the sword. “Who made that decision?” “I did.” The answer came without hesitation, my eyes hardened. Of course, he had not only taken the position, he had made sure I would have to fight to get mine back and I had a feeling he had no intention of making that fight easy. I turned away from Ronan, too angry to say anything else. I turned away from Ronan, too angry to say anything else. Wayne was waiting for me near the entrance. He had clearly heard the conversation because the moment I reached him, he shook his head. “I can’t believe he said that.” I looked at him. “You heard?” “I heard enough.” I let out a frustrated breath. “He wants me to start from the lowest rank.” “After everything you did for this pack?” I nodded. Wayne looked back toward the training hall where Ronan had disappeared. “He can’t be serious.” “He is.” Wayne was quiet for a moment before looking at me again. “Then go to the Alpha.” I frowned. “Jaxon?” My entire body went still. I looked at him as if he had just mentioned the one person I had spent years trying not to think about. “Jaxon?” “Yes.” I shook my head. “No.” “Why not?” “You know why.” Wayne sighed. “I know you two have a past, but that doesn’t change the fact that he is the aloha now. If Ronan refuses to listen to you, Jaxon is the person who can review his decision.” I looked away. The moment Wayne mentioned Jaxon, memories I had buried for years began coming back. Before I left for advanced warrior training, Jaxon and I had been together. He had wanted us to build a life together, but I had been determined to become one of the strongest warriors in the pack. I was afraid that a relationship would distract me from the path I had chosen, so I ended things with him and left for training. At the time, I believed I was making the right choice. I never imagined that I would one day have to stand in front of him and ask for his help. “I left him,” I said quietly. Wayne nodded. “I know.” “I was the one who walked away.” “I know that too.” “And now, after years, I am supposed to walk into his home and ask him to fix my problem?” Wayne gave me a small smile. “You don’t have to ask him to fix your life. You only need to ask him to give you a fair chance.” I looked at him for a long moment. He was right, and I hated that he was right. I had spent four years behind prison walls, and now I was not going to let my pride stop me from getting my life back. “I’ll go.” Wayne nodded. “Good.” I left him soon after and made my way to the Alpha’s residence. The walk gave me too much time to think about what I was about to do. Jaxon was no longer the man I had left behind. He was the Alpha now. And I had no idea what he would think when he saw me. When I reached the entrance, two guards immediately stopped me. “Do you have an appointment with the Alpha?” “No.” They looked at each other. “Then you can’t see him.” I took a breath. “Just tell him Stella is here.” The guard looked at me carefully before turning toward the entrance. “Wait here.” I stood outside, trying to remain calm as I waited. A few minutes later, the guard returned. “The alpha said you should come in.” My heart began beating faster. I followed him through the entrance and into the main hall. The moment I stepped inside, I saw him. Jaxon stood near the large windows at the end of the room, dressed in the dark alpha uniform that made his authority impossible to miss. He turned when he heard my footsteps, our eyes met. For a moment, neither of us spoke. Four years disappeared in that single look. Then his gaze moved over me, taking in the woman standing before him, before returning to my eyes. His expression was impossible to read. Finally, he spoke. “Four years, Stella, and the first time you come looking for me is because you need something.”