Her perfume hung in the air: a thin, unpleasant smel in the dark woods. My blood ran cold. She was here.
I didn't think so. I ran.
My feet, once weak and tired, were silent now on the forest floor. The Lumina Mark on my wrist pulsed, a quiet sound leading me from the inside. I did not go to my cabin. I went to Fenris's.
I burst through his door without knocking, and in an instant, he was on his feet, a knife in his hand, his eyes sharp.
"Elara?"
"She's here," I gasped, my hand on my chest. "Lyra. I smelled her. In the woods."
Fenris did not question me. He moved to the door, sniffing the air. His face grew dark. "You are right." He turned to me, his gaze intense. "Did she see you?"
"I don't know. I saw a glint, like metal. Then I smelled her and ran."
He put a hand on my shoulder. The touch was steadying. "You did well. Alert, not reckless." He stepped outside and let out a low, short howl. It wasn't loud, but it carried. Within moments, three of his warriors appeared from the shadows.
"We have a viper in our garden," Fenris said, his voice low and growling. "Moonstone scent. Find her. Bring her to me. Alive."
The warriors nodded and melted back into the trees.
"Will they find her?" I asked, my voice small.
"This is our territory. She is clumsy. They will find her." He looked at me. "This changes things. Justin is getting desperate. Sending his puppet here is a bold, stupid move."
"What does he want?"
"Confirmation. He heard rumors. He needs to know if Queen Luna is real. And if it's you."
The thought of Justin's eyes on me again sent a shiver down my spine. "What do we do?
"We wait," Fenris said. "And we prepare."
It wasn't a long wait. An hour later, two warriors returned with a struggling Lyra between them. They threw her to the ground in the centre of the clearing near Fenris's cabin.
She raised her face, perfect hair disheveled, costly clothes torn by thorns. There was a flicker of fear in her eyes quickly replaced by her usual arrogance at the sight of me.
"You," she spat. "I should have known. Hiding in the dirt with these... rogues."
Fenris stepped forward, his presence silencing her. "Why are you in my territory, Moonstone wolf?"
Lyra lifted her chin. "I was separated from my patrol. I got lost."
"You are a liar," Fenris said, his voice flat. "You were watching her." He gestured to me.
"I don't know what you're talking about. That thing is nothing: Justin rejected her. She is nobody."
A warmth spread through my chest. Her words didn't hurt anymore, just sounded pathetic.
"She is your Queen," Fenris said, and his voice dropped dangerously. "And you will show respect."
Lyra actually laughed. "Queen? Of what? This pile of leaves? Justin was right. You're all insane."
I finally spoke, my voice calm and clear. It surprised even me. "Why did you come here, Lyra?"
She glared at me. "To see if the rumors were true. That you somehow survived. Justin didn't believe it. But I knew. I always knew you were a rat. It's hard to kill.
"So, you came to finish the job?" I asked.
"I came to see for myself." Her eyes fell to my wrist, where the Lumina Mark was barely visible. Her smirk vanished. "What is that?"
"That," Fenris said, "is your death sentence if you ever come near her again." He nodded to his warriors. "Search for her. Then take her to the border. Let her run back to her Alpha with a message."
One warrior held her while the other roughly searched her pockets. He pulled out a small, sleek phone.
"No!" Lyra cried, struggling.
Fenris took the phone. He showed me the screen. It was open to the camera. There were pictures. Blurry but clear enough. A picture of me. A picture of Fenris. A picture of us training in the clearing.
"Proof," I whispered, cold dread filling me.
Fenris crushed the phone in his hand. "The message is this," he said to Lyra, his face inches from hers. "Tell Justin Blackwood that his time is ending. Queen Luna has risen. And she is coming for him."
The warriors dragged off the screaming, struggling Lyra into the dark.
Her cries subsided, but the silence she left in the wake was heavy. The proof was gone, but the threat remained. Justin knew it.
Fenris turned to me: "We have no time now. He will come. Soon."
My heart was a hammer in my chest. "What do we do?
"We fight," he said simply. He strode over to a large chest against the wall and threw it open. Inside were weapons. Knives, bows, strange blades. "But not like before. You are the key. Your light is the weapon."
He produced two short, sleek daggers. They shone with a soft inner light. Like my Mark.
"Lumina-forged steel," he said, handing them to me. They were light in my hands. They felt right. "They will bite deeper than any other blade against his wolves."
Then he was giving orders, his voice sharp and clear. Wolves materialized out of the darkness. He sent them off running: to alert the scouts, to guard the borders, to prepare the traps.
The quiet woods now teemed with activities. I could feel the energy shift. It was no longer a place to hide; it was now a fortress.
"Your training is over," Fenris said, his eyes on mine. "This is the real thing. Are you ready?"
I looked at the blades in my hands. I felt the Mark pulse on my wrist. The cold fear was gone. Replaced by a steady, real heat. Lyra's words meant nothing. I was not a fool.
I was not just anybody. I was the storm about to break.
I met his gaze, my own voice steady. "I am ready." I looked at Fenris. "He knows now." Fenris met my gaze, his green eyes burning with determination. "Good. Let him fear what comes in the night."
