Chapter 6 — The Forgotten Luna Secret Protector
1701 Words
The guards’ laughter was the only sound that remained alive inside the prison.
It was cruel, careless, and loud enough to make the cold stone walls seem to shake.
The older guard leaned against the bars, looking down at Avana with a satisfied grin. He laughed so hard that he had to hold his stomach, while his companion stood beside him, enjoying every moment of her humiliation.
“Look at her,” the older guard said between laughs. “I have seen wolves drink from muddy puddles with more dignity than this.”
The younger guard wiped the tears from his eyes as he laughed.
“You should have seen your face.”
He imitated her expression, making a mockery of the pain and shock she had shown.
“You swallowed it like a starving puppy.”
Their laughter cut deeper than the bitterness still burning in Avana’s throat.
She remained on the cold floor of the cell, her weakened body barely able to support itself. Every breath felt heavy. Every movement reminded her of the injuries she carried.
But the pain was not what hurt the most.
It was the way they looked at her.
As though she was nothing.
As though her suffering was entertainment.
The guards eventually grew tired of laughing, but their cruel voices continued to echo inside her mind long after they stopped speaking.
Avana lowered her head and spat onto the stone floor.
The taste refused to leave.
She spat again.
Her lips trembled.
Not because she was afraid. Not because she was broken.
Because anger was burning through every part of her.
Slowly, she lifted her head and looked through the iron bars.
Her eyes met theirs.
“I will remember your faces.”
The words were quiet, but there was something in her voice that made the younger guard stop smiling for a brief moment.
Then he scoffed.
“Listen to the servant.”
The older guard crossed his arms, amused.
“And what exactly will you do with that memory?”
Avana’s fingers tightened against the cold floor.
Her body was weak. Her voice was weak.
But the fire inside her was not.
“One day…”
She paused, gathering every piece of strength she had left.
“I will become a Luna.”
For a moment, silence filled the corridor.
Then the guards burst into laughter again.
Not ordinary laughter.
The kind filled with disbelief.
The kind meant to destroy hope.
“You?”
The younger guard stared at her as if she had told the most ridiculous joke in the world.
“A Luna?”
The older guard shook his head while wiping tears from his eyes.
“That is the funniest thing I have heard all year.”
The younger guard stepped closer to the bars.
“The Moon Goddess herself abandoned you.”
His expression turned cold.
“You do not even have a wolf.”
He looked around the prison cell.
“Look at where you are.”
His voice lowered.
“You are nothing but a forgotten servant locked away in darkness.”
He smiled.
“You will die in this place before the next full moon.”
The older guard sighed dramatically and turned away.
“Come on. I am hungry.”
He glanced back at Avana.
“Let the cursed girl keep making promises to ghosts.”
The two guards walked away, their laughter following them as they climbed the stairs toward the dining hall.
Avana watched until they disappeared.
Neither of them noticed the heavy ring of keys slipping from the older guard’s belt.
It fell onto the stone floor with a quiet metallic sound.
A sound that disappeared almost immediately into the vast emptiness of the dungeon.
They continued walking. They never looked back.
Soon, real silence returned.
The kind that made the prison feel even colder.
Avana stared at the keys lying beyond the bars.
For the first time since they left, something close to hope appeared inside her chest.
The distance was almost cruelly small.
She could see them.
She could almost feel them.
She pushed herself forward.
Pain immediately tore through her body.
Her arms shook as she dragged herself across the floor. Her vision blurred, and every injured part of her screamed for her to stop.
But she refused.
She reached through the bars.
Her fingers stretched as far as they could.
But, it was still not enough.
The keys remained just beyond her reach.
Her strength slowly disappeared.
She lowered herself back onto the floor.
The small spark of hope that had appeared inside her began to fade.
“So close…”
The whisper escaped her lips.
A tear gathered in the corner of her eye.
She refused to let it fall.
She had cried enough.
She had suffered enough.
Then a voice came from the darkness.
“You will.”
Avana froze.
Her eyes opened.
The voice was not inside her head.
Someone was there.
Slowly, she lifted her gaze toward the corridor.
A tall figure stood beneath the flickering torchlight.
He was completely covered by a long black cloak that hid his identity. A dark mask concealed his face, leaving only his eyes visible.
Those eyes watched her carefully.
But they were different from every pair of eyes she had seen since her downfall.
There was no disgust.
There was no hatred.
No satisfaction from seeing her suffer.
Only quiet concern.
In one hand, he carried a wooden tray.
The smell reached her before she could see everything clearly.
Fresh bread.
Warm soup.
Roasted meat seasoned with herbs.
Buttered vegetables.
Sweet fruit.
And a crystal flask filled with clean water.
Avana’s empty stomach tightened painfully.
For a moment, she wondered if exhaustion had finally caused her mind to create an illusion.
The stranger looked down the corridor before moving.
He made certain they were alone.
Then he walked toward the fallen keys and picked them up.
One by one, he tested them against the lock.
The first key failed.
The second refused to turn.
The third slid into place.
A sharp click echoed through the dungeon.
The cell door opened.
Avana stared at him, unable to understand what was happening.
The masked stranger stepped inside and placed the tray beside her.
Then he knelt.
He did not look at her with pity.
He did not treat her like a helpless creature.
He treated her like someone who still mattered.
Without saying anything, he opened the flask and carefully supported the back of her head.
“Slowly,” he said.
“Your body has gone too long without water.”
Avana hesitated.
She had learned not to trust kindness.
Kindness has always come with a price.
But something about his voice felt different.
She drank.
The first sip was cool and clean.
The water washed away the bitterness that had remained in her mouth.
The second sip felt like life returning to a body that had almost forgotten what comfort felt like.
By the third sip, tears blurred her vision.
Not because of the water.
Because someone had finally shown her mercy.
Someone had finally looked at her and seen a person instead of a servant.
The stranger waited until she finished.
Then he handed her the bowl of soup.
“Eat.”
Avana looked at the food.
Suspicion crossed her tired face.
He noticed immediately.
“It is not poisoned.”
A faint, exhausted smile touched her lips.
“If it was…”
She looked down at the meal.
“I think I would still eat it.”
For a brief moment, something softened in his eyes.
Almost like a hidden smile.
Avana picked up the spoon.
The first taste warmed her entire body.
The soup was rich with herbs and flavor. The bread was soft. The roasted meat was tender. The fruit tasted like something from another life.
At first, she ate carefully.
She ate slowly.
Almost as if she expected someone to take it away.
But hunger eventually overcame fear.
She continued eating until the bowl was empty.
The stranger never rushed her.
He simply remained there.
Watching not with pity.
But with absolute respect.
As though every bite proved that she was still fighting.
When she finished, exhaustion returned.
The stranger reached beneath his cloak and removed a carefully folded letter.
He placed it in her trembling hands.
“Read it.”
Avana unfolded the paper.
The handwriting was elegant and steady.
Only a few sentences were written.
No matter what happens…
You may not know who I am. But I will always remain your shadow. And I will never hurt you.
She stared at the words.
Then she read them again.
Something inside her chest loosened.
For the first time since entering the dungeon, a small smile appeared on her face.
It was fragile. It was tiring.
But it was a real smile.
She looked up at the stranger.
“Thank you…”
Her voice broke slightly.
“Please…”
She swallowed.
“Take me out of—”
The stranger gently placed a finger against her lips.
Not to silence her.
To warn her.
His eyes shifted toward the staircase.
Footsteps.
Someone was coming.
The stranger stood immediately.
The calmness in his eyes disappeared, replaced by alertness.
His hand moved toward the sword hidden beneath his cloak.
“Not yet,” he whispered.
Then he looked back at her.
“But I promise you this…”
His voice remained steady.
“You will not face this darkness alone.”
The footsteps grew louder, each measured step echoing through the underground passage until the sound seemed to seep into the stone itself.
The stranger's gaze snapped toward the staircase.
Someone was descending into the dungeon.
Whoever it was...
Was never supposed to find that unlocked.
The footsteps stopped just outside the iron bars.
The stranger's hand tightened around the hilt of the sword hidden beneath his cloak, while Avana held her breath, her pulse hammering painfully against her ribs.
Then a cold voice shattered the silence.
"...Who unlocked that cell?"
Neither of them moved. Neither of them spoke.
Because the first person to answer...
...might also be the first to die.
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