Chosen By Three Alphas

The Forgotten Promise

BOOOOOM!

The temple shook violently.

Cracks spread across the silver walls.

Ancient runes flickered.

Dust rained from the ceiling.

Evelyn clutched her mother's journal tightly.

Her heart raced.

Outside, something was attacking the temple.

Something powerful enough to damage a structure that had survived for thousands of years.

The Moon Goddess stared toward the entrance.

Her expression had changed completely.

She wasn't afraid.

She looked sad.

Very sad.

"He's finally remembered."

Evelyn frowned.

"Remembered what?"

Another explosion shook the temple.

The goddess closed her eyes.

"The truth."

Silver light gathered around her hand.

A new vision appeared between them.

At first, Evelyn saw only darkness.

Then the image cleared.

A younger Orion stood beneath the moon.

Beside him was the Moon Goddess.

They were laughing.

Holding hands.

Looking happier than Evelyn had ever imagined.

The sight felt wrong.

This wasn't the monster from the stories.

This was someone completely different.

"What happened to him?" Evelyn whispered.

The Moon Goddess watched the vision silently.

"For a long time, I blamed greed."

The image shifted.

Orion standing alone.

Watching generations grow old.

Watching friends die.

Watching kingdoms disappear.

Century after century.

Loss after loss.

Pain after pain.

Then the goddess spoke.

"But loneliness can break even the strongest heart."

Evelyn's chest tightened.

The vision continued.

The Void King appeared.

Not as a monster.

As a voice.

A whisper.

Always whispering.

Always tempting.

Always waiting.

For centuries.

Until finally Orion listened.

The vision vanished.

The Moon Goddess lowered her head.

"I failed him."

The words carried enormous regret.

Before Evelyn could respond—

BOOOOOM!

A massive crack appeared in the temple floor.

Silver energy erupted upward.

The Heart of the Moon was reacting.

Responding.

Warning them.

Something terrible was approaching.

Then the journal in Evelyn's hands suddenly opened by itself.

Pages flipped rapidly.

One page stopped.

A hidden entry.

Written by Lyriana.

Evelyn immediately began reading.

"If you are reading this, then I was right."

Tears filled her eyes.

Her mother's handwriting.

Her mother's words.

"The prophecy is incomplete."

The Moon Goddess smiled softly.

"Your mother was very stubborn."

Evelyn continued reading.

"The sacrifice ritual was created after Orion's betrayal."

"But older records speak of another method."

The pages glowed brighter.

Ancient symbols appeared.

A completely different ritual.

One based on unity instead of sacrifice.

Evelyn's eyes widened.

"Unity?"

The Moon Goddess nodded.

"The original ritual."

Hope stirred inside her.

Then she read the next line.

And her hope faltered.

"The ritual requires six hearts bound by absolute trust."

Silence.

Six hearts.

The journal continued.

"The Heir."

"The First Wolf."

"The King."

"The Alpha."

"The Shadow Lord."

"And the Betrayer."

The temple fell silent.

The Betrayer.

Orion.

Evelyn slowly looked up.

"He's part of the ritual?"

The Moon Goddess nodded.

"Always was."

Shock flooded her.

The man who caused everything.

The man who betrayed a goddess.

The man who guarded the temple for thousands of years.

Without him, the ritual could never be completed.

Then a terrible realization struck her.

"What if he refuses?"

The Moon Goddess didn't answer.

That silence was answer enough.

BOOOOOM!

The temple entrance exploded.

A shockwave tore through the chamber.

Silver flames were extinguished instantly.

The doors that had stood for thousands of years shattered.

Stone debris flew everywhere.

Evelyn shielded her face.

When the dust settled—

A figure stood in the doorway.

Orion.

His silver eyes glowed brighter than ever.

Behind him stood Lucien.

Damon.

Kael.

Cassian.

And Aiden.

All injured.

All exhausted.

All alive.

Evelyn immediately ran toward her father.

"Dad!"

Aiden caught her before she could stumble.

Relief flooded his face.

For a brief moment, everything felt normal.

Then Orion stepped forward.

The atmosphere changed immediately.

His eyes locked onto the Moon Goddess.

Neither spoke.

Thousands of years of history stood between them.

Thousands of years of pain.

Finally, Orion broke the silence.

"You look exactly the same."

The Moon Goddess smiled sadly.

"And you don't."

Orion laughed softly.

But there was no humor in it.

Only bitterness.

Only regret.

The temple became silent again.

Then Orion's gaze fell upon the journal.

His expression changed instantly.

He recognized it.

"Lyriana."

The name escaped his lips like a memory.

Evelyn noticed something strange.

The hatred in his eyes weakened.

Just for a second.

The Moon Goddess stepped forward.

"She found the answer."

Orion's eyes narrowed.

"There is no answer."

"There is."

The journal floated into the air.

Pages turning on their own.

The original ritual appeared above them.

The ritual of unity.

The ritual that required six hearts.

Including his.

Orion stared at it.

For the first time in centuries...

The immortal Alpha looked shocked.

Then he whispered a sentence no one expected.

"I remember this."

The Moon Goddess froze.

Hope appeared in her eyes.

Real hope.

The kind that hadn't existed for thousands of years.

Because if Orion remembered...

Then perhaps the man he once was wasn't completely gone.

And somewhere beyond the temple walls...

The Void King let out a furious roar.

Because the one thing he feared most was beginning to happen.

The people he had spent millennia dividing...

Were finally coming together.