Chapter 3
1340 Words
"So, you're saying the entire royal family vanished overnight a hundred years ago?" Sarah leaned against the cabin's rough-hewn wall, turning the crystal vial of Moonlight Essence in her fingers.
"Not vanished," Alexander corrected, wincing as he attempted to flex his still-stiff arm. "They were exiled."
"Because of a prophecy?"
"Because of fear," Alexander's golden eyes glittered in the flickering candlelight. "The prophecy spoke of the royal bloodline ushering in a great upheaval, interpreted by some as a harbinger of doom."
Sarah was about to question him further when her ears pricked up. "Someone's coming!" she hissed, leaping to her feet. "Hide!"
Before she'd finished speaking, a dark figure burst through the cabin door. It was Emily, Sarah's best friend.
"Sarah! Bad news…" Emily's words trailed off as she stared, wide-eyed, at the stranger inside.
An eerie silence filled the cabin.
"I can explain…" Sarah began, flustered.
"Explain what?" Emily sneered. "Explain why you're harboring a man with such an unusual aura?"
Alexander tensed, instantly alert, but Emily waved a dismissive hand.
"Relax, mystery man," she said, her tone surprisingly calm. "If I wanted to report you, I would have done so already." Turning to Sarah, she added, "But you'd better have a good explanation. William, that old fox, is already suspicious."
"William?" Alexander's eyes flashed with cold fury. "He's still alive?"
"What?" Emily raised an eyebrow. "Seems you know our dear Elder."
"He was a key figure in the royal family's exile," Alexander gritted his teeth, "and the architect of this curse."
"Wait!" Sarah interrupted. "Emily, you said bad news?"
"Right!" Emily slapped her forehead. "I'm here to warn you. William's pushing your coming-of-age ceremony forward—to three days from now."
"What?" Sarah's face paled. "That's impossible. The ceremony needs at least two weeks of preparation…"
"Unless," Alexander said gravely, "he's discovered something."
Just then, a wolf's howl pierced the night. All three looked towards the window.
"Damn it," Emily cursed. "It's a search party. They're tracking magical signatures."
Sarah thought quickly. "Emily, go back. Pretend you know nothing." She turned to Alexander. "Can you shift?"
Alexander tried to summon his bloodline's power. A flash of golden light, and he transformed into a black wolf with golden eyes, but immediately stumbled.
"I can barely hold it for fifteen minutes," he gasped.
"Enough," Sarah also transformed into a silver wolf. "Follow me. I know a hidden passage."
"Wait!" Emily pulled a talisman from her pocket. "My mother's relic. It masks auras." She placed it around Alexander's neck. "Protect our princess, my prince."
Alexander nodded solemnly. Two wolfish shadows, one silver, one black, disappeared into the night.
Emily watched them go, whispering, "So, Mother's prophecy was about this? The silver-eyed princess and the exiled prince…" She shook her head and hurried away from the cabin.
The tunnel was dark and damp. Sarah led the way, Alexander close behind.
"You anticipated this search?" Alexander asked.
"I planned for this contingency," Sarah's voice echoed in the damp tunnel. "After all, this is the 'Rebel Princess's' secret hideout."
"Rebel Princess?"
"Don't mind it. It's Emily's nickname for me," she paused. "The exit's just ahead, leading to the deeper forest. Your wounds…"
"I'm fine," Alexander said, but the exhaustion in his voice was undeniable.
Sarah turned, her silver eyes glowing softly in the darkness. "After this blows over, I'll come find you."
"This is too dangerous."
"Quiet," Sarah nudged him with her nose. "Your story isn't finished yet."
Alexander chuckled. "As you command, my princess."
They exchanged a look and silently split up. One to return to the pack and deal with the search, the other to continue deeper into the forbidden forest.
"What are the search results?" William stood in the center of the council chamber, his sharp gaze sweeping over the wolf warriors below.
"Nothing, Elder," the lead warrior reported, bowing his head. "But a strange aura was detected deep in the forbidden forest."
William was about to speak when the doors were flung open. Sarah strode in, head held high.
"I hear the Elder is looking for me?" Her tone was faintly defiant.
William narrowed his eyes. "Princess, why aren't you in your chambers at this hour?"
"Practicing for the coming-of-age ceremony," Sarah met his gaze. "Since the Elder insists on moving it forward, I must prepare, mustn't I?"
Just as the tension peaked, hurried footsteps approached. A guard burst in.
"Bad news!" the guard panted. "The Prophecy Stone… it has new markings!"
The council chamber erupted in murmurs. The Prophecy Stone was the pack's most sacred relic, dormant for a century, said to only reveal prophecies when a major event was imminent.
"Take me to it," William rose, heading towards the sanctuary. Sarah and the other elders followed. Adwin, having received word, also arrived.
Inside the sanctuary, a black stone, half a man's height, emitted a faint blue glow. New markings were slowly appearing on its surface.
"It's… ancient wolf script?" someone exclaimed.
Adwin stepped forward, his finger trembling as he pointed at the markings. "Silver eyes and golden eyes, the exiled and the guardian. When the moon's shadow overlaps, the ancient oath will be awakened…"
"Nonsense!" William interrupted. "The rest is too faded. Don't speculate."
But Sarah had already read the words. Her heart pounded—this prophecy clearly referred to her and Alexander.
"Princess," Adwin quietly pulled Sarah aside. "I have something to say."
They moved to a secluded corner.
"The prophecy speaks of him, doesn't it?" Adwin whispered.
Sarah looked around cautiously. "What do you know?"
"Not much, but enough to be deadly," the old pack doctor produced a yellowed parchment. "This is the complete prophecy from a hundred years ago. William and the others hid the most important part."
Sarah unfolded the parchment, quickly scanning it by the moonlight. Her pupils constricted.
"This is impossible…" she whispered.
"That's why they exiled the royal family," Adwin sighed. "Because the prophecy said the union of the royal bloodline and the silver-eyed bloodline would end the elders' rule."
"That rebellion wasn't to protect the wolf pack…"
"It was for power," Adwin nodded. "But they didn't expect the two people in the prophecy to actually meet a century later."
Footsteps approached from afar. Adwin spoke quickly. "Beware of William. He's noticed something. Your coming-of-age ceremony… it's a trap."
Before Sarah could respond, Emily's voice echoed in her mind—the wolf pack's telepathic link.
"Sarah! Go to the forbidden forest! He's in trouble!"
Sarah's heart sank. "Pack doctor, I have to go."
"Go," Adwin pressed a small pouch into her hand. "Take these medicines. You'll both need them."
Sarah hurried through the corridors, her mind a whirlwind. The truth of the prophecy, William's scheme, Alexander's danger, and the approaching ceremony. Everything was tangled together, a tightening net.
But at least now, she knew what to do. In the moonlight, a silver figure leaped, disappearing towards the forbidden forest.
From the shadows behind her, William's dark gaze followed her retreating form. He muttered, "Finally, it's all going according to plan…"
"What is he looking for?" Sarah hid in the forbidden forest's canopy, watching William and his wolf pack search below.
"Probably this," Alexander pulled out the Blood Moon Stone. The dark red stone glowed eerily in the moonlight. "The royal family's relic, and the key to breaking the curse."
"Quiet!" Sarah's ears pricked up, instinctively leaning closer to Alexander.
William's voice came from below. "Search this area thoroughly. The Blood Moon Stone must be nearby."
"Elder," a wolf warrior hesitated. "This is the silver-eyed clan's territory…"
"What?" William sneered. "Are you questioning the council's authority?"
A gust of wind brought a strange scent. William looked up at the canopy.
Sarah and Alexander held their breath, perfectly still.
"There!" William suddenly pointed in another direction. "Movement!"
The wolf pack charged off. Just as William was about to follow, he stopped, a cold smile playing on his lips. In a voice only he could hear, he murmured, 'Hide-and-seek. How amusing. But you're a much more interesting game, little princess. I've been expecting this.'
- Writer
