CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
992 Words
17: Blood Moon Rising
The air was thick with the scent of blood and smoke.
The Graves Pack’s stronghold trembled as the Blackwood warriors crashed through its gates. The explosion from Kieran’s attack had torn through the stone entrance, sending debris cascading down like an avalanche. The battle cries of wolves—both in human and beast form—filled the cavernous den, the sound reverberating off the walls in a violent symphony.
Kieran didn’t wait.
His wolf form surged forward, massive and dark, his golden eyes burning with fury. His claws raked across the first enemy that lunged at him, sending the wolf crashing into the ground with a strangled yelp.
Elena.
The bond between them pulsed with desperate urgency. She was here, close, but her presence was faint—weakened. He could feel the sharp edges of her fear, the pain threading through her body.
He had to get to her.
Shifting back to his human form mid-stride, Kieran caught a silver dagger thrown by Lila and hurled it at a Graves warrior blocking his path. It struck home—right between the ribs—and the man collapsed with a strangled gasp.
Kieran didn’t slow.
He tore through the battlefield, his father’s warriors holding the enemy back as he pushed forward, deeper into the ritual chamber.
The Blood Moon was high in the sky.
And time was running out.
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Elena—The Ritual Begins
Elena could barely breathe.
Her body was bound to the stone altar, the chains heavier than before, laced with silver that burned against her skin. The magic in the air was thick, cloying—Marcus’s twisted ritual was already beginning.
He stood over her, his wounded arm wrapped in cloth, eyes burning with anticipation.
"You’ve made this far harder than it needed to be," he mused, brushing fingers over the glowing mark on her collarbone. "But no matter. The Blood Moon is here, and that means—"
A red light pulsed through the cavern.
Elena gasped as heat seared through her veins, an invisible force binding her body to the ancient symbols carved into the stone beneath her.
Marcus grinned, lifting a blackened dagger above her heart.
"This," he whispered, "is where you accept your true purpose."
Then he plunged the blade down.
NO!
A crash shattered through the chamber—
And then Kieran was there.
The Clash of Alphas
Kieran hit Marcus like a storm.
One moment, the Graves Alpha was raising his dagger—the next, Kieran had tackled him off the altar, the two rolling across the stone floor in a violent blur of claws and fists.
Marcus snarled, shifting mid-fight, his wolf towering over Kieran’s.
But Kieran was faster.
He dodged a swipe meant to rip his throat out and countered, his teeth sinking into Marcus’s shoulder. The Graves Alpha howled, lashing out with his claws, tearing into Kieran’s side.
The force of the blow sent Kieran skidding backward, blood dripping from his ribs.
Marcus grinned.
"You’re too late," he panted, rising to his full height. "The ritual has already begun."
Elena screamed.
The magic was consuming her, her body convulsing as the Blood Moon’s power poured into her.
Kieran’s eyes flashed gold.
He didn’t think—he moved.
Charging forward with everything he had, he slammed into Marcus, this time sending them both crashing into the ancient stone pillars surrounding the altar.
Marcus’s head cracked against the rock, dazing him.
Kieran took his chance.
Grabbing a silver dagger from his belt, he drove it into Marcus’s side.
The Graves Alpha roared in agony.
"You think this will stop me?" Marcus snarled, blood running from his mouth.
Kieran didn’t answer.
He twisted the dagger deeper.
Marcus choked.
His body convulsed, his blood sizzling against the stone. The ritual magic that had been feeding off Elena suddenly turned—shifting toward Marcus instead.
The cavern shook.
Marcus’s screams filled the air.
And then—his body collapsed, unmoving.
Elena’s Transformation
Elena gasped.
The power running through her didn’t stop.
It was still building, rising like an unstoppable tide. Her skin burned, her bones shifting against her will.
Kieran turned, his golden eyes wide.
"Elena?"
She couldn’t answer.
The mark on her collarbone was now glowing like fire, her veins streaked with red light.
The ritual wasn’t just meant to kill her.
It was meant to remake her.
Elena let out a raw, primal cry as her body snapped. Her limbs lengthened, her muscles stretched, and then—
A new wolf stood in her place.
But she wasn’t like the others.
Her fur was silver, almost luminous, glowing in the Blood Moon’s eerie light.
The room fell silent.
Lila and the Blackwood warriors stared.
Even the remaining Graves wolves froze.
Because Elena wasn’t just another wolf.
She was something else.
Something more.
The air hummed around her, thick with ancient energy.
And when she turned to Kieran, her eyes weren’t just gold.
They were glowing white.
A Luna Alpha had been born.
The Aftermath
The last of the Graves Pack fell quickly after that.
Leaderless, their warriors fled into the night, the Blackwood wolves hunting down those who resisted.
Marcus’s body lay still at the base of the altar, his blood soaking into the ritual symbols that had once promised him power.
But Elena was the one who had been changed.
She stood at the center of the chamber, still in wolf form, her breath steady, her senses sharper than ever before.
Kieran shifted back, his own wounds forgotten as he reached for her.
"Elena?" he murmured.
Slowly, she shifted back.
But when she met his gaze, something was different.
The mate bond had changed.
She wasn’t just his.
She was something greater.
The moment stretched between them, filled with unspoken words.
Then—
Elena smiled.
And for the first time since this nightmare began, Kieran let out a breath of relief.
She was alive.
And she was his Mate now.
- Writer
