Chapter 9: Aveline's Warning
572 Words
The forest was too quiet.
Serena pushed through the tangled underbrush, guided by instinct more than sense. The moon hung low—thick and golden like a hunter’s eye—and the air shimmered with something old and powerful. Even the trees seemed to bow under its weight.
Each step forward drew her deeper into a silence so complete it felt like the world was holding its breath.
Then, from the stillness, came a glow.
Not fire. Not moonlight.
A figure.
She stood in the clearing like she had always belonged there. A woman cloaked in silver mist, her hair cascading like a river of starlight, her eyes the color of frost and sorrow.
Serena froze. Her heart pounded.
“Who—?”
“I am Aveline,” the spirit whispered. “Queen of the Moonblood Line. And you, child, carry what remains of me.”
Serena felt her knees weaken. “You’re... real. You’re not a myth.”
Aveline’s gaze pierced through her. “I was flesh. Now I am what remains when truth is buried too long.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You will.” Aveline stepped forward, and the mist followed her like a veil. “There is a fire waking inside you, Serena. It is not just strength. It is legacy. Curse. Gift. And it is dangerous.”
“I didn’t ask for any of this,” Serena whispered, voice shaking.
“No one does,” Aveline said. “But the flame has chosen you. And fire… must be anchored.”
Serena stared at her, confusion and fear clawing at her chest. “Anchored how?”
“By will. Or by love. By truth, or by sacrifice. Choose your tether wisely, or the power will eat through everything you are—everything you love.”
The clearing flickered, darkening at the edges.
Serena stepped closer, desperate. “Why me?”
“Because you are the last,” Aveline said, voice like a fading hymn. “Because he will need you when the night turns red.”
“Who?”
“The King. The flame and the wolf must walk as one—or die apart.”
A gust of wind blew through the trees. The mist scattered.
Aveline vanished, her final words etched in the air:
“Do not trust the moon when it bleeds.”
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Serena gasped and sat upright, her fingers gripping the earth beneath her. The fire had died down, leaving only ash and smoke.
Jace appeared beside her within seconds. “Serena! What happened? You were out cold.”
“I… I saw her. Queen Aveline.”
Jace stilled. “That’s impossible.”
“She spoke to me. Said the fire inside me is Moonblood. That it’s old magic. And if I don’t control it, it will destroy me—and everyone around me.”
His eyes widened, concern taking hold. “That’s… serious.”
“She said I need a tether. Something to anchor the power. Or someone.”
Nyra stepped into the firelight, arms crossed. “Then you need training. And fast.”
“Ilya told stories of Moonbloods,” Jace muttered. “But I thought they were legends. Now you’re saying you carry it?”
Serena stood slowly, the lingering echo of Aveline’s presence still humming in her chest.
“I’m saying the legend is real,” she said. “And it’s inside me.”
——
- Writer
