Behind The Luna's Mask

The surgery.

LIORA

The nurse stood frozen under Alpha Drayton’s glare, her trembling hands hovering in midair as though she feared they might betray her next move.

“I... I didn’t mean to...” she stammered, her eyes darting from his face to mine. “I just… she looks... she is...”

“Speak clearly,” Drayton barked in a low, sharp tone.

The nurse swallowed hard. “She looks exactly like...”

“Enough,” Drayton’s voice thundered, the sound echoing off the sterile walls. His eyes flashed dangerously, daring her to continue.

The woman’s lips clamped shut instantly, her breathing shallow as fear painted her face pale. Dr. Cole shifted uncomfortably, glancing between them.

“Alpha Drayton,” he began carefully, “if there’s an issue with one of my staff, I can—”

“There’s no issue,” Drayton cut him off without sparing him a glance. “Get her out of here.”

The nurse’s eyes widened as two guards appeared at the door like shadows summoned by his words. She tried to speak again, but Drayton’s gaze silenced her.

“Wait!” she cried out, almost screeching. “Please, you can’t let this happen! She doesn’t remember me, but—”

“Take her,” Drayton ordered coldly.

The guards grabbed her by the arms, and she struggled weakly as they dragged her toward the door. Her gaze locked on mine, wild and desperate. For the next few seconds, I tried racking my brain, trying to figure out where I knew her, or if I knew her at all.

“Liora,” she gasped. “You don't need to—”

The heavy door slammed shut before she could finish.

Thick, suffocating silence fell again in the room, humming with tension. I stood there, my pulse racing, the nurse’s words echoing in my head. I don’t need to do what? Who was she exactly?

Drayton turned slowly toward me, looking almost unbothered by the situation. “Ignore her. She’s unstable. You’ll find plenty like her in this world. All you have to be worried about is what you want to attain. Your revenge should be your next priority.”

I wanted to ask questions, but the look in his eyes warned me not to.

Dr. Cole cleared his throat nervously, breaking the silence. “Shall we proceed, Alpha?”

Drayton didn’t answer immediately. He studied me briefly as his gaze lingered on my face as if memorizing every line and every expression of it. Then, finally, he nodded.

“Proceed.”

My throat went dry as the nurse’s words constantly replayed in my mind. I was briefed shortly about the proceedings and protocols of the supposed surgery, and I couldn't help but realize I would be losing the real me in the next few hours.

After the surgery, my face would be gone together with my identity.

Dr. Cole turned to his assistants. “Prepare the anaesthesia and begin sterilization.”

The nurses did just as told, moving quickly in a professional manner. A faint hiss filled the room as sterile gloves were pulled on, and the metallic scent of disinfectant grew stronger. The harsh white lights above me buzzed faintly, flooding every corner of the room in unforgiving brightness.

One nurse dabbed my skin with a cold antiseptic sponge, the chill biting through the haze of my nerves. Another adjusted the steady beeping monitor beside my bed, which echoed consistently.

Dr. Cole checked the instruments one by one before turning to me again, his voice gentler now. “You’ll start to feel a little drowsy. Try not to fight it.”

My hands clenched against the sheet in a rush of fear. I couldn't believe I was doing this. I tried taking deep breaths to calm my frayed nerves, but it seemed not to do much.

The doctor hesitated for half a second, long enough for dread to bloom in my chest.

“You don't need to panic, miss,” he replied. “It’s just for a few hours.”

Like that, the nurse injected a clear liquid into the IV and a heavy warmth began to spread through my veins while the ceiling lights blurred.

“Breathing normal,” one nurse murmured.

“Vitals steady,” another confirmed.

The doctor moved closer, pulling a syringe from a tray. “Just relax,” he said softly. “When you wake up, everything will be different.”

The faint hum of machinery grew distant as the sedative took hold. My eyelids fluttered, my consciousness slipping like sand through my fingers.

My last sight was of Drayton, standing behind the glass partition with arms folded and gaze fixed on me like a man watching his creation take form, and my last conscious thought before darkness claimed me was of the nurse’s terrified eyes and the way she said my name like she was a lot close to me.

*

*

Uncomfortable silence pressed down on my ears like thick fog. The room was dim, lit only by the faint glow of a monitor that beeped in steady rhythm somewhere to my left.

My eyes fluttered open, lashes sticky, my vision swimming in and out of focus. For a moment, everything around me blurred.

I felt a dull, throbbing ache pulse at the base of my skull, spreading slowly like molten lead. I looked around, but there was no one in sight

Where was everyone?

I tried moving my fingers first but my muscles screamed in protest. When I finally pushed myself upright after a little battle, the world tilted violently. A wave of dizziness hit me so hard that I almost retched. My head spun, and for a terrifying second, I thought I’d pass out again.

“Come on,” I whispered to myself. “Just... sit.”

It took a full minute before I managed to steady myself.

“Don’t speak to me that way, Nathan.” I heard a faint, masculine voice from somewhere outside the room. “Don’t test me.”

“I’m not going to sit here and watch you have someone else in the Luna's place.” another male voice, whom I supposed was Nathan's voiced aloud. “You dissapoint me, Drayton. I can't believe you'll keep something this big from me.”

“And since when do I need to inform you about every move I make?”

I tried standing from the bed, but I lost my footing, alerting Drayton who was just outside.

The door flung open the very next second, and the doctor, together with Drayton and Nathan rushed in.

“Are you okay?” Dr. Cole asked, helping me up.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” I sounded hoarse and weird.

Across from the bed stood a tall and slightly fogged mirror, which reflected what had become of me.

At first, I didn’t recognize the woman staring back. Her face was almost fragile, bandaged in neat white lines across her jaw and temple. Dr. Cole removed the bandage, and I gasped in shock and a bit of horror.

The swelling around my cheeks made me look ghostly, and bruised shadows bloomed faintly beneath my eyes. My lips were a bit thinner, and my nose straighter. I looked unfamiliar to even myself.

“This is your new face, Miss Liora.” Dr. Cole announced, ascertaining my doubts.

“It’s Stacy now!” Alpha Drayton countered, almost in a growl. “Stacy Steele.”