Rise Of The Forsaken Luna

Chapter 5

FREYA

The room fell into a stunned silence.

The warrior remained on his knees, his eyes darting desperately from Nero to Zarek, waiting for someone...anyone...to take charge. He looked like a dying man clinging to his last hope, as if the Alpha’s voice alone could somehow steady the crumbling walls of our pack.

Zarek’s jaw was tight, fists clenched at his sides. He was waiting too...for Nero’s orders, for that spark of leadership we had always believed the Alpha carried. But what happened next left even me stunned, though I should have known by now not to expect much from him.

Nero’s gaze swept the room slowly. First, the warrior kneeling in his own blood. Then, at me...still on the floor, my cheek stinging and my ribs throbbing from the beating he’d just given me. I hadn’t even caught my breath yet, hadn’t even managed to push myself upright. And then his eyes flicked to Zarek.

And then… he said it.

“Take care of this, Zarek.”

His tone was so casual, so dismissive, as if he were delegating some trivial task. As if this wasn’t a battle—our people screaming outside, our warriors falling. If those Cryptic Moon warriors make it past this place, they'll head straight into the main territory, and they'll sleep everything on sight. Nero of all people knew that.

For a moment, even Zarek didn’t move. His eyes narrowed, confusion flashing across his face. He was a good warrior, always had been. He would fight any battle at Nero’s command. But usually, they fought side by side. They had always fought side by side. Why was Nero speaking like… like he was sitting this one out?

Before Zarek could even voice the question burning in all our minds, Nero turned. His eyes softened—not for his warriors, not for his pack, not even for me lying bruised on the ground. No, he turned to Lilith.

“Can you stand?” he asked her gently, his voice so different from the one he had used with me just minutes ago.

Lilith fluttered her lashes weakly, pressing a hand to her side as if she were the victim in all this. “I don’t… I don’t think so.”

“Scratch that,” Nero murmured, almost tender. Without hesitation, he scooped her up into his arms.

My stomach twisted. The same arms that had just thrown me to the floor, the same hands that had struck me with such force, were now carrying her like a precious jewel.

Zarek found his voice then. “Alpha, Where are you going?”

Nero didn’t even pause. He spoke as though his words should make perfect sense to us all. “Can’t you see Lilith isn’t in good condition? I have to take her to safety before I can join the fight.”

The screams outside grew louder, echoing down the hallways, rattling the walls of the hospital wing. They must have broken through, and the battle was heading towards the pack house already.

Nero adjusted his grip on Lilith, kissed her temple, and hurried toward the back exit with her cradled in his arms like she was his world.

No one said a word. The warrior on the floor just stared in disbelief, his lips parting but no sound coming out.

Nero didn’t look back...the Alpha was exiting the pack house, leaving the rest of the pack members to rot.

It was Zarek who shook off the shock first. His boots thudded against the floor as he moved toward me. I flinched at the nearness of another man, my body tensing, still raw from the blows. But instead of more pain, I felt his hands...steady, slip under my arms, helping me upright.

For a heartbeat, I wanted to resist. Every part of me screamed not to lean on him. How could I forget? He was part of it. He had stood by Nero when I was tricked into that surgery. He had known. He had carried that guilt and still let me walk into it...in fact, he made the call that brought me here.

But then I remembered the way he had stepped in earlier—blocking Nero’s rage, taking a hit meant for me. He could have stayed silent, like always. He didn’t. For once, he defied the Alpha...and it was for my sake.

So I let him steady me.

“Stay here, Luna,” he said firmly. His voice was low, almost urgent. “Hide in one of the closets. Don’t make a sound. I’ll come back for you," he added confidently.

My lips parted, ready to argue. To demand why. Why was he speaking to me as if my safety mattered to him? Why was he pretending I was anything more than the pack’s weapon? Everyone knew the truth—they all needed me only for the dragon fire. Not for who I was. Not as a woman, not as their Luna....only as fire.

I wanted to scream at him. I wanted to tell him not to bother with his fake concern. But before I could force the words out, shock still clutching my throat, he was already gone...disappearing through the doorway with the speed of a true warrior.

The silence he left behind pressed on my chest.

I stood there trembling, leaning against the wall, his words replaying in my head. Hide. Wait. I’ll come back for you.

Why? Why speak to me like that? Why not drag me outside and command me to unleash the flames, like Nero would have done without hesitation? Why tuck me away like something precious when everyone knew I was nothing more than a weapon? They all probably knew all along. I was the fool to think the sudden love Nero began to show me after I got marked by the dragon fire was genuine.

The warrior on the floor groaned, dragging me back to the present. Outside, the screams grew sharper, the clash of steel and snapping of bones carrying through the windows. It sounded close, even though I knew they were still a bit far from the pack house.

My jaw clenched. He wanted me to hide. To wait...for what exactly? They didn't stand the chance at winning against the cryptic moon warriors without me, and they knew it. He probably wanted me to stay as backup just in case they realized they had no choice but to turn to the rejected Luna for help.

"To hell with you all," I said.

They could all drown in their own blood for all I cared. I was done. Done bleeding, done sacrificing, done setting myself on fire for people who would never see me as anything but a tool.

I pushed myself off the wall, my body screaming in protest. Pain shot through my ribs. My vision blurred for a moment, but I forced myself forward. One shaky step, then another.

Normally, I would have healed by now. Normally, my wolf would have risen, knitting my wounds, restoring my strength. But I wasn’t normal at the moment.

Not after the surgery.

The drugs they had used to subdue my wolf before they carved me open… they had slowed everything. My system felt sluggish, my body heavy. Each movement was agony, and healing was a crawl instead of a rush.

For the first time, I wondered how humans survived like this. So fragile, so slow...and weak.

I dragged myself to the door, one hand braced against the frame. My breath came harsh, uneven. Somewhere deep inside, the fire flickered, restless and dangerous, begging to be unleashed. But I shoved it down.

No...not for them anymore.

I pressed my ear into the wood. Beyond it, the world was chaos—roars, snarls, the thunder of paws, the clash of teeth and steel. I heard warriors shouting commands, the guttural cries of the Cryptic Moon tearing into my people.

For one long moment, I just stood there, my pulse pounding in my ears.

Part of me wanted to turn back, and find my way out. It wasn't too late to protect myself. I could escape through the back door too and let Silver Shadow burn. To let them face the consequences of their choices...their betrayal, their blindness.

But another part of me… the part that still remembered the children’s laughter in the courtyard, the elders who had blessed me when I became Luna, the few pack members who had looked at me with hope in their eyes everytime I saved them...and thanked me genuinely.

That part wouldn’t let me.

I clenched the doorframe until my knuckles ached, my teeth grinding together.

I hated Silver Shadow, I hated Nero. I hated what he had done to me, hated how he carried Lilith like she was worth protecting, hated that he left us all to die.

But I couldn’t stand the thought of innocents screaming outside, running around trying to find safety before the enemies swallowed them up. They were praying to the moon goddess loudly, waiting for someone to save them.

I knew they weren't going to get any answers from the moon goddess. She already gave them one once...me. And they'd all perish if I didn't intervene.