Awakened by the Moon
1303 Words
Alara Pov
“I don’t need a mate. I need an army.”
Those were the last words I said before crossing into Lycan territory.
The wind was colder here. The trees are thicker. The night... heavier.
I didn’t know exactly where I was going, but I followed the path marked on Lucian’s map. Magic pulsed faintly beneath my boots with every step, guiding me forward.
I walked alone.
No guards. No wolves.
Just me, a cloak of shadows, and a heart full of vengeance.
But the moment my foot touched the edge of Lycan land, something shifted.
The sky cleared. The moon shone brighter.
And deep in my chest… something stirred.
A pull. A pulse. A bond.
“He’s close,” my wolf whispered faintly her first words in weeks.
********
By morning, I reached the high gates of the Lycan kingdom.
Black iron twisted with silver symbols. Watchtowers on either side. twice the size of my former warriors stood guard, their eyes sharp and glowing.
One stepped forward, his voice deep. “State your name and business.”
I raised my chin, choosing my lie carefully.
“My name is Nara. I’m a healer from the Northern Tribes. I seek work.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Do you carry weapons?”
“Only knowledge.”
He studied me for a long moment, then stepped aside. “You may enter. The King decides if you stay.”
Just like that, I was in.
***
The Lycan city was nothing like Silvermoon.
It wasn’t cold or hollow. It was alive. Powerful. You could feel it in the air, in the way people moved. Warriors trained in open courts. Magic sparked from lanterns. The streets were clean and guarded, but not afraid.
This wasn’t a kingdom built on fear—it was built on strength.
And at the center stood the Blackstone Castle. Tall, carved from dark rock, glowing faintly with blue enchantments.
It was beautiful. Deadly.
And it belonged to him.
********
I stood at the bottom of the royal stairs, heart pounding.
The guard knocked once on the giant door, then opened it.
“Presenting Nara, healer of the North,” he announced.
I stepped in.
And then I saw him.
Darius.
King of Lycans.
He stood by the fire, tall, broad-shouldered, dressed in a long black coat lined with silver. His skin was golden-brown, glowing softly in the firelight. But it was his eyes, deep gold, like molten sun that locked onto mine and refused to let go.
I stopped breathing.
My wolf whispered again. “Mate.”
No. No, no, no.
This wasn’t supposed to happen. I didn’t come here for love. I came for power. For revenge. I needed him as an ally, not a fated mate.
Darius didn’t speak right away.
He just watched me.
Then, slowly, he walked forward, his steps silent but strong.
“You lied,” he said simply.
I blinked. “Excuse me?”
“You’re not just a healer,” he said. “You walk like a warrior. And your scent... it’s not from the North.”
I opened my mouth, but no words came.
He tilted his head. “But more importantly why is the moon screaming your name?”
My heart skipped.
I turned away. “I’m no one.”
“No one,” he echoed, voice calm. “Yet the moment you crossed my border, the wind whispered, Darius. And when I look at you…” He stepped closer. “I see my reflection.”
I faced him. “I didn’t come here for you.”
“I know,” he said. “But you’re here. And that means something.”
We stood in silence.
My body was shaking not from fear, but from the bond growing between us. A bond I didn’t ask for. A bond I didn’t trust.
“I need a place to stay,” I said, voice low. “A chance to rest. That’s all.”
He studied me.
“You can stay,” he said finally. “But lie to me again, and I’ll send you back to whatever hole you crawled out of.”
Fair.
“Understood.”
He nodded once and turned.
“Get her a room,” he told the guard. “And alert the healer. She’s wounded.”
“I’m not” I started, but the moment I took a step forward, pain shot through my leg.
I stumbled. He caught me.
His hand around my arm was warm, steady.
Our eyes met again.
“I won’t break,” I said quietly.
“Good,” he replied. “Because only the unbreakable survive here.”
*******
That night, I lay in a soft bed, staring at the ceiling.
The room was warm, lit with soft blue flames that never burned out. A healer had bandaged my leg and given me a potion for strength.
I didn’t sleep.
I couldn’t.
My wolf was awake now, pacing in my mind.
“He’s our mate. The true one.”
“I don’t want him,” I whispered in the dark. “I don’t need another man who pretends to care while planning my death.”
“He’s not Caelum.”
“Doesn’t matter.”
The bond was pulling at my chest. I could feel it tightening.
It scared me.
Because if I let him in if I opened my heart again what if I fell?
What if I broke?
No. I had one mission: take back my throne and destroy everyone who stood in my way.
But then… Why did I feel peace when I looked at him?
Why did my soul feel like it knew him?
******,
Two days passed.
I kept to myself. Helped the palace healers. Stayed quiet. Watched. Listened.
Darius watched me too.
Every time I entered a room, he noticed. He didn’t say much. Didn’t ask questions.
But he was always near.
And each time we locked eyes, my heart betrayed me.
Until finally, I couldn’t take it anymore.
One evening, as I stepped out into the training yard alone, he followed.
“You’re hiding something,” he said.
I turned, keeping my face calm. “You’re a king. You should be used to secrets.”
He gave a half-smile. “True. But yours tastes like blood and magic.”
I froze.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” I said quietly. “But I will if you get in my way.”
He stepped closer.
“And I don’t want to fall for a stranger,” he said just as quietly. “But fate didn’t ask me what I wanted.”
The moon shone bright overhead.
I could feel it pulling at us. Binding us.
“You don’t know me,” I said.
“Not yet,” he replied. “But my wolf does.”
And then he did something I didn’t expect.
He bowed.
Not like a king. Like a warrior. Like a man showing respect.
“You are not mine to own,” he said. “But if you ever choose me… I will never betray you.”
I stood there, stunned.
No man had ever said those words to me.
Not even my father.
And just like that… the walls around my heart cracked.
But before I could speak, a sharp cry pierced the night.
A guard ran into the yard.
“My King urgent news!”
Darius turned. “What is it?”
The guard hesitated. “Silvermoon. They’ve declared war. They’re attacking neutral packs.”
My blood went cold.
Caelum had started his reign of terror.
And he wasn’t wasting time.
I looked at Darius, eyes burning. “You said you wanted the truth? Then listen closely… because Silvermoon’s new Alpha King is the one who tried to kill me.”
- Writer
