AURELIA
“Wake up!”
The voice echoed through my ears, sharp and unrelenting. It didn’t belong to anyone I knew — yet it felt like it had always been there, waiting.
My consciousness snapped; however, the pain that coursed through my body was one I had never felt before.
I forced my eyes open, the world around me was blurry at first, then slowly came into focus: towering trees.
“Who are you?”
The voice – low and haunting – answered with a laugh and the sound reverberated through the forest, causing a shiver down my spine. “Astra Lyra.”
The name echoed through history as the most feared and powerful Luna of the ancient world.
“You were wronged, Aurelia,” the voice continued, dripping with the bitterness of a past left unfinished. “In my time, I was betrayed. I never got the chance to avenge myself, but now…”
I shuddered. “Now what?” I barely managed to croak, my body still trembling.
“Before I died,” Astra's voice lingered like a whisper in the wind, “I made a pact with the lunar deity to be reincarnated. Little did I know that I would wait ten thousand years to be reborn in you. You are my vessel, my second chance. You will take revenge on our behalf.”
“Our?” The word came out as a strangled cry. I tried to crawl away, but the burning sensation on my skin — scars of betrayal, perhaps — forced me to stop.
“You can't escape from what you are, Aurelia. You are my reincarnation. My power will seep into you, and slowly, you will remember everything — my past, my pain, my thirst for vengeance.”
Her voice faded, but the weight of her words crushed me. Revenge — that was all I had left.
I clenched my fists so tightly, my nails digging into my palms.
My body convulsed, as if fighting itself. A deep, bone-chilling growl echoed from my throat as my body buckled under the pressure.
My skin split, fur sprouting like wildfire as my bones cracked and reformed with horrific speed.
My face lengthened, my teeth growing sharp as my jaw expanded. My hands twisted and contorted into feral claws. My nails scraped against the ground as I howled, the sound primal and raw, vibrating in the very earth beneath me.
With a snarl, I rose to my new form, my body now a dark, hulking wolf, my eyes gleaming like molten amber.
“This isn't just revenge,” Astra's voice whispered, now mingled with my own thoughts. “This is a promise I made to myself. From now on, you will carry this form, this power. It’s yours now, to wield as you see fit. But remember, this is the last time you will hear my voice. I now live within you.”
~~~~~
I stood at the edge of our pack's territory, staring at the entrance, where new faces guarded the gates — faces unfamiliar. Where were Selene and Caelum? They had always been the guardians, the first line of defense for our pack. They weren’t there.
To know more, I rushed towards the gate where I saw a crowd gathered behind. The guardians stopped me and requested for my name.
“Astra,” I replied harshly. They prevented me from entering then my eyes darted left and right before it went stagnant on them. A few seconds after, they chorused, “Yes, Astra.”
I strolled into the pack and stopped a Wolf, requesting what was happening. She stared at me strangely before she revealed that the Alpha of our pack was getting married.
How come? How long have I been gone?
My thoughts opened.
If an Alpha was getting married, he must have a Luna or most probably, he was looking for one which happened to be the tradition of our pack.
The cold, harsh wind swept through my body as my feet carried me forward, pushing hard as I willed myself to run faster to get to the Alpha’s abode.
When I arrived, I found Elara standing in the Sacred Circle, the place where the past Luna’s were chosen for the Alphas. My heart skipped a beat when I saw him — the cursed man who had been with me, the one who had betrayed me. He was seated on the Alpha's throne, his eyes cold, calculating.
This was it. This was the moment I had been waiting for.
If it's a fight to the death, I will be the one standing in the end.
I would be the chosen Luna. No matter what it took.
