Warmth.
Soft, steady warmth.
Aria floated in it for what felt like hours, drifting through layers of sleep and fog. No storm. No pain. No howling wolves. Only a gentle glow pulsing around her like a heartbeat not her own.
Then—
A sharp throb shot through her wrist.
Her eyes flew open.
She gasped and sat upright, breath trembling. The world around her shimmered with pale blue light—
a cavern carved from crystal
its walls glowing with swirling runes
and a pool of silver water at its center.
Moonborn sanctuary.
The air hummed with gentle magic, calm and ancient.
Aria pressed a hand to her heart. "Where… am I?"
A voice answered from the shadows:
"Safe."
The stranger stepped out from behind a large crystal column, exhaustion lining his face but his golden eyes still sharp.
Aria flinched.
"You—" She recoiled instinctively.
"I didn't bring you here to harm you," he said quietly.
Her hand curled into a fist. "Where's Ronan?"
The stranger hesitated before answering. "Fighting."
Aria felt her stomach collapse. "What?! Fighting who?"
"The corrupted ones," he said. "The Devourer seeped into their minds. They're barely wolves now."
Aria swung her legs over the crystal bed she rested on. "I need to go—"
"You can't."
The stranger stepped toward her. "You're in Stage Two. If you step outside this refuge while your power is this unstable, the storm will tear you apart—or the Devourer will."
Aria shoved herself to her feet anyway; her legs nearly gave out. "Ronan needs me."
The stranger caught her arm. "He told me to get you to safety. He'll come."
Her vision blurred with panic. "You don't understand. I saw him before I blacked out. He was surrounded."
"He's the Alpha King," the stranger said. "Frostfall's strongest wolf. He'll survive."
"You sound very sure," Aria said bitterly.
He didn't respond.
Not right away.
Instead, he turned his gaze toward the glowing runes. "Sit. You need to see what is happening to you."
Reluctantly, Aria let him guide her back to the crystal-like bench.
But the moment she raised her wrist to her face, she gasped.
Silver veins now covered her entire forearm—branching like moonlit rivers beneath her skin.
"No—no—this wasn't like this before—" Aria's breath quickened. "What's happening to me?"
"This," the stranger said gently, "is the second stage."
Aria shook her head. "I can't… I don't want this. I don't want to become something dangerous."
"You already are," he said softly. "But danger doesn't make you evil."
Aria's vision swam again.
Her voice cracked. "Ronan told me he'd stay with me. He's out there fighting wolves infected because of me. If he gets hurt—"
"He knew the risk," the stranger said.
Aria clenched her teeth. "Stop talking like you understand how I feel. You don't."
He exhaled slowly. "You're right. I don't. But I understand what you are."
Aria glared. "Then tell me. No more secrets. No more half-truths. WHAT am I?"
The stranger stepped closer, kneeling so he was at eye level.
"You," he said quietly, "are the first Moonbreaker born in a thousand years. A child of two worlds—human and Moonborn. A bridge the Devourer cannot cross."
Aria shook her head. "I'm not a weapon."
"You're not," he agreed. "You're a choice."
She blinked. "A… choice?"
"Yes." His eyes softened. "The Moonbreaker doesn't destroy the world. She decides which world survives."
Aria's blood ran cold.
"What does that mean?"
He hesitated.
Before he could answer, the sanctuary shook—
dust falling from the ceiling
the crystal walls trembling.
Aria's breath caught. "Ronan."
"No," the stranger said, listening intently. "This wasn't him."
The ground rumbled again.
A low, deep growl echoed from the tunnel entrance.
Aria's heart dropped. "What was that?"
"A corrupted wolf," the stranger said. "They've tracked us."
Aria shot to her feet. "Then we need to help Ronan. NOW."
"You can't leave this cavern—not yet."
"I don't care!" Aria shouted. "He's out there alone!"
Her mark flared violently—light bursting from her wrist with a crack of energy.
The stranger grabbed her shoulders. "Aria—listen to me—"
"No!" she cried. "Let go!"
Her power surged again, silver light rippling across the sanctuary—
crystals glowing
runes igniting
air vibrating with force.
The stranger stepped back, shielding his eyes. "Stop! You'll destabilize the sanctum—"
"Then tell me how to control it!" Aria cried.
Her voice broke.
"I'm scared…"
Her knees hit the crystal floor as tears blurred her vision.
"I'm trying so hard. But everything hurts. I can't breathe. And Ronan—Ronan needs me—"
Her fingers dug into the glowing veins of her wrist.
"I don't want to lose him."
Silence fell.
Then the stranger knelt beside her.
"Aria," he said gently, "the fact that you're still fighting the awakening means you haven't been lost to it. That is strength."
Aria swallowed a sob. "Then why does it feel like I'm dying?"
"Because the Moonbreaker isn't supposed to survive Stage Two without help."
Her breath stopped.
"What kind of help?"
The stranger hesitated again.
"Tell me."
He exhaled. "A bondmate. A true one."
Aria's heart pounded.
"Ronan," she whispered.
The stranger nodded. "His presence stabilizes your power. That's why the Devourer wants to separate you."
Aria pushed herself shakily to her feet. "Then I need to get to him."
"No," the stranger said. "If you leave too soon—"
She shoved him aside with surprising strength. "I don't care. Let me GO—"
A shadow loomed at the cavern entrance.
Aria froze.
A massive corrupted wolf stood in the archway—fur blackened as if burned, eyes glowing sickly white, foam dripping from its snarling jaws.
The stranger swore. "They found us."
Aria staggered back. "No—no—how—"
The wolf lunged.
The stranger grabbed Aria and yanked her behind him just in time, blocking the attack. Claws scraped against the crystal floor with a screech.
Aria covered her ears, heart racing.
The stranger shouted, "Stay behind me—"
The wolf lunged again, jaws snapping.
Aria screamed.
The cavern trembled.
Her wrist blazed.
A crack of silver lightning shot from her hand—
BOOM.
The corrupted wolf flew backward, slamming into the crystal wall and collapsing in a twisted heap, unmoving.
Aria stared at her hand in horror.
"I… I didn't mean to—"
The stranger grabbed her arms urgently. "Aria! Stop panicking. You protected yourself. That's all."
"But I killed—"
"You saved us."
Aria shook violently. "I don't want to hurt anyone. Not even corrupted wolves."
"And that," the stranger said softly, "is why you deserve this power."
Her chest tightened painfully.
Another growl echoed down the tunnel.
More wolves.
Footsteps.
Voices.
Ronan's voice.
"ARIA!"
Her heart exploded with relief.
"Ronan!" she cried.
But he didn't appear yet—his voice was muffled, distant, struggling against something heavy.
The stranger looked at her sharply. "Don't move."
Aria ignored him completely.
"RONAN!" she shouted again, voice cracking.
The tunnel echoed with snapping jaws, snarls, the sounds of fighting.
The stranger grabbed her arm. "Aria, wait—"
But nothing could stop her now.
Aria sprinted toward the tunnel entrance—
her wrist blazing
her fear drowning everything
her heart screaming his name.
"RONAN!"
She reached the archway—
And froze.
Ronan lay on the stone floor, half-shifted, bleeding from his side, surrounded by corrupted wolves.
His chest rose and fell shallowly.
His eyes flickered open the moment he sensed her.
"Aria…" he whispered.
Her knees buckled.
Her mark pulsed violently.
And the last thing she heard was the stranger shouting:
"She's entering the final phase—GET HER BACK!"
Before the world shattered into white.