(~1400+ words • Liyana alone in the final trial • Shadow King's truth revealed • Aiden fighting outside • huge twist about her lineage • emotional + intense)
Darkness swallows me whole.
Not simple darkness—
but a living, breathing void that moves under my feet like liquid shadow.
I fall
and fall
and fall
until suddenly—
I stop.
Not by landing.
But as if the darkness itself gently places me on solid ground.
A cold whisper brushes my ear.
"Do not fear the dark, child.
It is where you were born."
I open my eyes.
A throne room stretches around me—
vast
silent
glowing faintly with cold white fire.
Two thrones sit at the far end:
One made of pure moonlight—
silver, elegant, glowing softly.
The other—
a throne made of living shadow, tendrils swirling like smoke.
Between them stands the Shadow King.
Tall.
Still.
Watching me.
My heart pounds painfully.
"Aiden…?" I whisper.
No answer.
My bond feels thin—
like a thread stretched too far.
I clutch my chest.
Let him be okay.
Let him still be alive.
Let him still be trying to reach me.
The Shadow King tilts his head.
"Your wolf cannot enter this place.
He will tear himself apart against the walls before I let him touch what is mine."
Anger flares in me like a spark to dry leaves.
"I'm not yours."
"No?"
His eyes glow brighter.
"Then why does your magic bow to mine?"
"It doesn't. It's MINE."
A faint, cold smile.
"All Shadow comes from me."
He steps closer.
"The same blood that runs through your veins."
I swallow.
"My mother—"
"Died protecting you," he finishes.
"From me."
My breath catches.
"She didn't want you to have me."
His gaze sharpens.
"She hid you.
Raised you among the Moon's people.
Tried to erase your lineage."
I feel my heart twisting painfully.
"She wasn't hiding me from danger…"
I whisper.
"…she was hiding me from you."
The Shadow King doesn't deny it.
He steps slowly toward the twin thrones.
"Your mother was powerful.
But she was foolish.
She thought denying your heritage would make you safe."
"Safe from what?"
He turns slightly, eyes gleaming.
"From becoming what you are."
I step back.
"No."
"Yes."
His voice drops to a whisper.
"You felt it in the first trial."
My reflection.
The power.
The darkness.
"You felt it again when you embraced your magic."
Shadow threads coil around his hand.
"Power you cannot control."
I clench my fists.
"I CAN control it."
"Really?"
He extends a hand.
A mirror of darkness forms—
And inside it, I see myself in the vision:
eyes white
wings of shadow
standing over Aiden's dying body.
I choke.
"That wasn't me."
"It WAS you. A version of you."
His voice is soft.
Terrifyingly gentle.
"The version that accepts your throne."
I stare at the two thrones.
"You want me to sit on the shadow throne."
"I want you to sit where you belong."
"And the moon throne?"
His eyes flick toward it.
"The Moon Goddess has been waiting to see if you are worthy."
Worthy?
The word hits me like a blade.
The mother who raised me.
The pack who feared me.
The world that didn't understand me.
All because I wasn't solely one thing.
"You are BOTH,"
the Shadow King murmurs.
"Shadow's heir…
and Moonfire's chosen."
A pulse runs through the room.
The moon throne glows brighter.
The shadow throne darkens.
A choice…
A destiny…
Two worlds pulling me apart.
My chest tightens painfully.
"Why me?"
My voice is barely a whisper.
The Shadow King's expression softens in a way I almost don't believe.
"Because you are the strongest thing I have ever created."
My heart stutters.
Created?
"Your mother carried the Moonfire,
I carried the Shadow."
His voice drops to a whisper.
"Together, we made you."
I stagger back.
"No. No—
she would have told me—
she never would—"
His expression hardens.
"She loved me once."
My breath stops.
"And she feared you would become me."
I shake my head.
"I'm not yours. I'm not!"
His voice grows firm.
Cold.
"You are blood of my blood.
Magic of my magic.
Shadow of my shadow."
He takes one step closer.
"You CANNOT escape me."
A tear slips down my cheek.
A whisper echoes in my mind—
"Liyana…"
Aiden.
Weak.
Far.
Barely there.
But alive.
"Aiden!" I cry out.
The Shadow King's eyes narrow.
He waves a hand—
and the faint thread connecting me to Aiden nearly snaps.
"No—NO!"
I clutch my chest.
"STOP!"
"He makes you weak."
"He makes me HUMAN!"
"He makes you MORTAL."
I stand tall.
"He makes me choose who I want to be."
The Shadow King stares at me a long moment.
Then he gestures to the thrones.
"Choose then."
My breath catches painfully.
"Choose the Moon…
or Shadow."
"And if I don't choose either?" I ask quietly.
He smiles.
Not kindly.
"Then the bond breaks."
My blood runs cold.
"And the wolf dies first."
His voice is soft.
Deadly.
"Because he will feel it before you do."
A sob escapes me.
"Aiden…"
The Shadow King's voice grows softer.
"Come to the shadow throne, child.
Sit.
And I will spare him."
I freeze.
"What?"
"I will not kill him if you join my side."
My breath stutters.
He steps closer.
Low.
Almost tender.
"Choose me…
and I will let your wolf live."
My heart slams painfully.
He's not lying.
He has no reason to.
"And if I choose the moon throne?" I whisper.
His eyes turn dead.
"Then the wolf dies at dawn."
The room spins.
Breathing hurts.
My chest cracks open with fear.
Aiden.
My Aiden.
The one who held me.
Kissed me.
Protected me.
Chose me.
He will die because of my choice.
I stumble backward, clutching my chest.
"No… no… NO—"
The Shadow King extends his hand.
"Choose shadow.
Save your mate."
My knees buckle.
I fall to the floor, sobbing.
The thrones loom above me.
Moonlight.
Shadow.
Destiny.
Death.
Aiden's voice echoes faintly in my head—
"Come back to me."
I scream.
Torn.
Bleeding inside.
The Shadow King kneels in front of me.
Cold fingers lift my chin.
"Choose."
I close my eyes.
I stand.
I turn toward the thrones.
And with shaking hands—
I step toward one.
The light shifts.
The room trembles.
The world holds its breath.
And the chapter ends on:
The throne begins to glow under my feet.