The Moon Queen’s First Battle
1315 Words
The night sky burned crimson.
The Blood Moon hung above the kingdom like a giant eye, watching everything below.
A cold wind swept across the battlefield, carrying the scent of ash, blood, and fear.
No one moved.
Not the Lycan warriors.
Not the Crimson Pack.
Not even Darius.
Every pair of eyes remained fixed on the towering beast standing beyond the mountains.
The Devourer.
It was unlike anything the werewolf world had ever seen.
Its body was as large as a fortress. Black scales covered parts of its wolf like form, while thick crimson veins pulsed beneath its skin like rivers of molten lava. Two enormous horns curved backward from its head, and its glowing red eyes seemed capable of swallowing light itself.
When it breathed, the earth trembled.
When it growled, the clouds above scattered.
Selene’s fingers tightened around the silver sword Lucien had given her.
The blade shimmered softly beneath the Blood Moon.
It almost felt…
Alive.
“Kael…”
Her voice trembled.
“What is that thing?”
Kael stepped protectively in front of her.
His silver eyes never left the monster.
“It existed before the first Lycan King.”
Selene frowned.
“I thought wolves came from the Moon Goddess.”
“They did.”
“The Devourer didn’t.”
Lucien slowly walked toward them, his face unusually pale.
“Long before the Moon Goddess blessed wolves with her light, darkness created a beast that fed on fear, hatred, and war.”
“The Moon Goddess couldn’t destroy it.”
“So she sealed it away.”
The Shadow Alpha continued,
“But every seal has a weakness.”
Selene looked down at the glowing pendant resting against her chest.
“My blood…”
Lucien nodded sadly.
“The Blood Moon awakening weakened the ancient prison.”
Tears gathered in Selene’s eyes.
“So this is my fault.”
“No.”
Kael answered immediately.
His voice was firm.
“This is not your fault.”
She looked at him.
“If I hadn’t awakened”
“It would have awakened eventually.”
Kael turned to face her fully.
“You didn’t create this war.”
“You inherited it.”
The words settled deep inside her heart.
For the first time since discovering the truth about her bloodline, someone wasn’t blaming her.
Instead…
They were standing beside her.
Far across the battlefield, Darius watched the Devourer with narrowed eyes.
His generals gathered around him.
“My King…”
“This wasn’t part of the plan.”
Darius didn’t answer.
He slowly removed one leather glove.
Hidden beneath it was a black mark burned into his wrist.
The exact same shape as the symbol carved onto the Devourer’s prison centuries ago.
One of the generals gasped.
“My King…”
“The curse…”
Darius quickly covered the mark again.
“No one speaks of this.”
The general immediately bowed.
“Forgive me.”
Darius looked toward Selene.
His expression softened.
“So…”
“The Moon Queen truly lives.”
A deafening roar echoed across the valley.
The Devourer took another step.
Mountains cracked beneath its weight.
Thousands of birds fled into the sky.
Then…
It spoke.
“Children of the Moon…”
Its voice rolled like thunder.
“You still kneel before a goddess who abandoned you.”
Every wolf instinctively covered their ears.
Blood trickled from several soldiers’ noses.
The Devourer laughed.
“So weak.”
Kael drew his sword.
Silver flames ignited along the blade.
“Prepare for battle!”
His command echoed through the kingdom.
The Lycan army roared in response.
“FOR THE KING!”
Across the valley, Darius raised his crimson sword.
The Crimson Pack answered.
“FOR THE CRIMSON THRONE!”
Within seconds…
The battlefield erupted.
Thousands of wolves charged.
The ground shook beneath pounding feet.
Steel clashed against steel.
Magic exploded across the valley.
The first great battle had begun.
Selene remained frozen.
She had never fought before.
Around her, warriors transformed into enormous wolves.
The sounds were overwhelming.
Growls.
Screams.
Howls.
The clash of swords.
Smoke swallowed the battlefield.
Suddenly
A wounded soldier stumbled toward her.
“Run!”
Before she could react, a massive creature burst through the smoke.
Its claws slashed toward her.
Too fast.
Selene closed her eyes.
A loud clang rang through the air.
She opened them again.
Kael stood between her and the creature.
His sword blocked the attack.
The force pushed him backward several feet.
The creature snarled.
Kael’s silver eyes flashed.
“You don’t touch her.”
With one powerful swing, he cut the beast down.
It dissolved into black smoke.
Selene stared at him.
“You came back…”
Kael looked over his shoulder.
“I told you.”
“You are under my protection.”
Before she could thank him
Three more shadow beasts appeared.
Kael cursed under his breath.
“There are too many.”
Lucien suddenly landed beside them.
“I’ll hold the left!”
The Shadow Alpha appeared on the opposite side.
“I’ll take the right.”
For the first time…
Enemies stood side by side.
Protecting the same woman.
High above the battlefield…
The Devourer smiled.
“Interesting.”
Its crimson eyes glowed brighter.
“So many heroes.”
“I wonder…”
“…which one dies first.”
It lifted one enormous claw.
Dark energy gathered around it.
The sky turned black.
Lightning flashed crimson.
“No!”
The oldest Moon Priestess screamed.
“Everyone move!”
The Devourer slammed its claw into the earth.
BOOM!
A wave of darkness exploded outward.
Hundreds of soldiers were thrown through the air.
Castle walls cracked.
Trees were ripped from the ground.
Selene was knocked backward.
Her sword flew from her hand.
The glowing blade landed several meters away.
“No!”
She crawled toward it.
A shadow beast leaped in front of her.
It growled hungrily.
Its glowing eyes fixed on her throat.
She had nowhere to run.
The beast attacked.
Time slowed.
Selene instinctively raised her hand.
A brilliant silver light burst from her palm.
The entire battlefield froze.
The light formed a glowing shield around her.
The shadow beast struck it
and exploded instantly into thousands of shimmering particles.
Silence.
Every warrior stopped fighting.
Even the Devourer narrowed its enormous eyes.
“The Moon Shield…”
It whispered the words with disbelief.
“No one has used that magic for centuries.”
Selene looked at her own hands.
“I…”
“I didn’t do that.”
The Moon Priestess fell to her knees.
“The Queen’s power has awakened.”
More silver light surrounded Selene.
Her long black hair began to flow as though moved by an invisible wind.
The pendant around her neck rose into the air.
The moon symbol on her wrist glowed brighter than ever.
Kael stared in amazement.
His wolf howled joyfully inside him.
Our Queen…
This time…
Kael didn’t argue.
Instead, he slowly walked toward Selene.
He stopped only inches away.
The battlefield faded into silence around them.
Without caring who watched…
He gently took her trembling hand.
“You are stronger than you believe.”
Selene looked into his silver eyes.
“I’m afraid.”
“I know.”
“What if I fail?”
Kael smiled a real smile, small but sincere.
“Then you won’t face it alone.”
Her heart skipped.
Before either of them could say another word
The Devourer threw back its head and laughed.
“You’ve finally awakened…”
Its eyes locked onto Selene.
“Which means…”
“It is finally time for me to devour the Moon Queen.”
The monster opened its jaws.
A sphere of black fire began to form inside its mouth.
The Moon Priestess screamed.
“Your Majesty!”
“Move!”
Kael shoved Selene aside.
The black fire shot toward him.
To Be Continued…
- Writer
