The Hall of Echoes was colder than the grave.
Selena walked through the towering obsidian doors and felt dozens of eyes lock onto her. The vampire council — the most ancient, powerful, and merciless rulers of her kind — sat in a crescent of stone thrones. Their faces were carved from centuries of calculation and cruelty.
Torches burned blue along the walls. Shadows clung to every corner as if listening. At the center, on her throne of blackened bone, sat Queen Aradia, her expression unreadable.
"Selena Night thorn," she announced, her voice ringing through the chamber, "step forward." Selena obeyed, keeping her spine straight even as her pulse hammered. The bond mark beneath her collarbone throbbed with heat, warning her that Luca was uneasy. He must have sensed her fear. Not now, she begged the bond silently. Don't flare. Not here.
"Rumors reach my ears," the Queen said, eyes narrowing. "Rogues crossing our borders. A Blood Moon rising earlier than foreseen. Wolves moving strangely in the north."
Selena kept her gaze low. "Yes, my Queen." Aradia leaned forward."And you — alone — happened to be in the exact place where the Moon shifted and the earth trembled."
Councilor Maelis hissed. "Suspicious." Councilor Drakon bared sharp white teeth. "Or convenient." Selena forced her voice steady. "I was carrying out my patrol duties. Nothing more."
Dragon's eyes gleamed. "Then explain what we found." A guard stepped forward carrying a torn scrap of dark fabric. The scent hit Selena instantly — wolf.Luca's cloak. Cold panic tightened her throat. "That was found near the ruins," Drakon said. "Near vampire land."
Maelis hissed, "Proof the wolves are trespassing. "The council erupted — voices overlapping, accusations flying. "They plan an attack—" "The Blood Moon is their doing—""The Silver fang heir has broken the treaty—"
Queen Aradia raised one hand. Silence snapped into place like a blade. Her crimson gaze bored into Selena."You know the scent that clings to this cloth, do you not?" Selena hesitated. Every lie she'd ever told felt simple compared to the one she needed now. "No, my Queen."
Aradia's smile was thin. "Unfortunate. I was hoping for truth."
Selena swallowed hard. "I am telling the truth."
"Are you?" the Queen whispered. "Because the scent of that heir… still clings to you."
The bond pulsed—once, sharply—like Luca reacting in distress from miles away.
Selena clenched her fists, forcing the bond down.
Drakon rose from his throne. "I say we detain her and break her mind open for answers."
Maelis nodded eagerly. "She knows something. I can hear it in her heartbeat."
Selena stiffened.If they took her — if they probed her mind —they would see everything.Luca.The bond.The Blood Moon visions.
War would start tonight.
But before the guards could move, Aradia held up her hand again.
"No."She studied Selena with slow, predatory interest."Breaking her now would be wasteful." Selena exhaled shakily. Aradia rose from her throne and descended the steps.
"The Blood Moon gave us a warning," she said, circling Selena. "A prophecy once thought dead is stirring again." A whisper moved through the chamber like a breeze through a crypt. The prophecy. The one sealed centuries ago.The one spoken by a dying seer during the first war:
"When blood and moon entwine, the forbidden bond shall rise.Wolf and vampire will become one fate…and the world will burn or be reborn."
Queen Aradia spoke the final line aloud, her voice echoing like a curse:
"One will die to save the two."
Selena's blood ran cold.
Drakon hissed. "If such a bond exists again, we must destroy it before it takes root."
Maelis added, "Before it brings ruin."
Selena forced herself not to flinch.
Queen Aradia turned to her."You are loyal, are you not, Selena?"
"Yes, my Queen."
"And you would never hide a threat to your clan?"
"Never," she lied, heart cracking.
Aradia's cold smile returned."Good. Then you will investigate the Silver fang heir. You will discover why the Blood Moon marked him. You will learn what power he stirs. And you will bring me every detail."
Selena froze.
Investigate… Luca?This was the Queen's test — a trap wrapped in duty.
If she refused, she'd look guilty.If she agreed…
She'd be hunting the very person she was bound to.
"I trust you will not fail me," Aradia added softly.
Selena bowed her head, hiding her turmoil."I accept."
The Queen leaned in, whispering against her ear:
"And Selena… if the prophecy dares to rise again, I will find the bonded pair…"
Her breath brushed Selena's skin like frost.
"…and tear them apart myself."
Meanwhile — In Silver fang Keep
Luca stood in front of his father, Alpha Magnus Varyn, whose towering presence filled the war room.
"You crossed the border," Magnus growled. "You vanished without your guards. And when we found you—rogues lay dead at your feet."
Luca kept his expression neutral. "I handled it."
"That is not the point." Magnus slammed his fist onto the table. "The Blood Moon rose tonight. Do you understand what that means for our people?"
Luca felt the bond stir again, echoing Selena's fear miles away.
Magnus continued."It means danger. Secrets. And someone has awakened the old prophecy."
Luca's heart thudded. "There is no prophecy."
"Don't lie to me," Magnus snapped."A wolf can only share blood once in a thousand years.And only with—"
He stopped.Studied Luca.Eyes widening.
"Tell me," Magnus whispered darkly, "did you meet a vampire tonight?"
Luca looked away — and that alone was an answer.
Magnus grabbed his son's arm with crushing force.
"Who is she?"
A growl built in Luca's throat, animal and warning.His eyes flashed silver.
"She is no threat to us."
"A vampire," Magnus roared, "is always a threat!"
Luca's voice dropped, low and fierce."Not to me."
Magnus stared at him — horrified, furious, and suddenly afraid.
"Luca… what have you done?"
Luca didn't answer.
But the bond pulsed again, strong and defiant.
And Magnus felt it.
"Oh Moon…" the Alpha whispered. "It's true."
Luca stepped back, chest rising with heavy breaths."I didn't choose this."
"No one chooses a Blood Oath Bond!" Magnus roared. "It curses you. It destroys you. It destroys everything."
Luca's jaw clenched. "I will not let anything happen to her."
"Then the prophecy is already in motion," Magnus said, voice grave. "And war is coming."
Selena walked out of the council chamber with a weight on her shoulders that threatened to crush her.
Luca stood in the war room staring at his father with fire in his eyes.
Both felt the bond thrum between them —a warning, a promise, a beginning.
The moon above them bled deeper.
And fate tightened its grip.