The Forgotten Vale erupted in chaos.
The ancient beast, long buried beneath the earth, clawed its way free, a monstrous creature of scales and shadow, its body towering above the tallest pines. Its roar split the heavens, shaking mountains and turning rivers to violent torrents. Time itself seemed to bend around it, the air shimmering unnaturally as if the creature's very existence warped reality.
Selene's grip tightened on her reins, her mark blazing brighter than ever. Every thrum of its glow synced with the monstrous heartbeat that echoed from the beast. Darius's wolf snarled within him, fighting to take full control, his instincts screaming to protect his mate at all costs.
"Darius," Selene whispered, eyes locked on the beast, "this is the creature we've died fighting. Every lifetime… this is what killed us."
Darius's gaze never wavered, silver fire blazing in his eyes. "Then this is where it ends," he growled.
The Council's soldiers scattered in terror as the beast swept its tail across the battlefield, sending entire platoons flying. Vorell stayed mounted, watching with cold calculation.
Magnus barked commands, rallying the Stormbane warriors into formation. Their loyalty never faltered. Not even in the face of death itself.
Selene dismounted, boots sinking into the blackened earth as her hand gripped her blade. Flames of violet and silver danced across the steel, singing with power she had only begun to understand. Darius leapt from his horse, shifting midair into his massive wolf form, landing with a thundering growl that echoed through the Vale.
The beast lunged.
Darius met it head-on, his wolf body slamming into a clawed limb, his jaws snapping around a tendon. The creature bellowed in pain, staggering but not falling. Selene's magic erupted like a storm, a dome of violet energy shielding the Stormbane warriors as molten fire rained from the beast's breath.
Time stuttered. For a heartbeat, everything slowed—Selene saw flashes of memories, countless lifetimes where this exact moment had played out: Darius bleeding out beneath the beast, her own body lying cold beside him, the world burning.
"No," she hissed, shoving the vision away. "Not this time."
She raised her blade high, runes glowing along her skin as she chanted in the ancient tongue. The ground beneath the beast cracked, glowing chains of light bursting forth to bind its legs.
Darius leapt onto its back, claws ripping into scale and sinew. With a savage roar, he drove his fangs deep into its neck. The beast shrieked, twisting violently, throwing fire and darkness in every direction.
Selene sprinted forward, her blade a comet of violet fire. She slashed at the chains, forcing them tighter, her magic burning hotter, brighter than ever before.
But the beast wasn't their only enemy.
From the mist, Nightborn assassins swarmed toward Selene, their blades dripping with cursed silver meant to sever bonds permanently. Magnus and the Stormbane warriors clashed with them, steel ringing against steel, blood spilling onto black soil.
One assassin broke through the line, lunging for Selene's back. Before she could turn, a blur of silver intercepted, a clawed hand ripping the attacker apart. Darius landed beside her, chest heaving, his wolf eyes blazing with feral devotion.
"Stay with me!" he growled, voice distorted but clear even in his shifted form.
Selene's breath hitched, her heart slamming in her chest. "Always."
They moved as one, every strike, every dodge in perfect sync as though guided by lifetimes of fighting side by side. Their bond pulsed violently, and suddenly, Selene felt herself inside his mind—saw through his wolf's eyes, felt his rage and his undying love for her, as raw and powerful as the moon itself.
We're stronger together, she heard his voice echo through their link.
Then let's finish this, she replied silently, power thrumming through every vein.
---
With a deafening howl, Darius slammed into the beast's chest, knocking it back into the fissure it had crawled from. Selene drove her blade into the ground, unleashing a wave of moonfire that engulfed the monster. The chains tightened like living serpents, glowing brighter, fueled by their combined bond.
Vorell screamed from the sidelines, his skeletal face twisted in fury. "You fools! You can't kill it—you are the seal! Without your deaths, the beast will never stay buried!"
Selene's head snapped toward him, realization crashing down like thunder.
Darius shifted back into human form, his chest bleeding from deep claw marks. He looked at her, breathless, knowing exactly what she had just understood.
"If we die here," she whispered, horror in her voice, "we trap it again… just like before. And the cycle starts all over."
Darius stepped closer, his blood mixing with ash, his silver eyes locked on hers. "Then we change the ending. We don't die. We bind it another way."
Selene's mark blazed like a star. The prophecy's words echoed in her skull: The flame and the shield are one. Only their union can bind time anew…
Union.
Not death. Not sacrifice. But union.
Selene's lips trembled. "Darius… if we fully complete the mate bond—soul to soul—we could channel enough power to seal it permanently."
He cupped her face, voice rough. "But if it fails, we both burn."
She pressed her forehead to his, tears mixing with dirt and blood. "I'd rather burn with you than live another lifetime without you."
Without another word, Darius crashed his lips to hers in a kiss so fierce, so consuming, the very earth trembled. Their bond flared, a blinding light that swallowed the battlefield. Their souls intertwined fully for the first time, every wall between them shattered.
Silver and violet magic exploded outward, wrapping around the beast like chains forged from the stars themselves. The monster roared, thrashing, but the bond held strong, pulling it down into the fissure.
Selene and Darius fell to their knees, holding each other as the magic consumed them. Pain ripped through their bodies, searing every nerve, but their love anchored them, refusing to let go.
With a final, earth-shaking roar, the beast was dragged beneath the earth. The fissure sealed shut with a thunderous crack, the ground glowing briefly before falling silent.
When the light faded, Selene collapsed against Darius's chest, both of them trembling, barely conscious but alive. The Stormbane warriors stood in stunned silence, staring at the sealed ground.
Magnus approached cautiously, awe in his voice. "You… you've done what no one has done in millennia. The beast is gone."
Darius held Selene close, his voice a hoarse whisper as he kissed her temple. "No," he said, silver eyes softening as they met hers. "We're gone from the prophecy. Forever."
Selene's tear-streaked face broke into a weak but radiant smile. "Then it's finally over," she whispered.
But deep beneath the sealed ground, in the faintest echoes of the beast's dying roar, something ancient stirred… not of shadow, but of moonlight. A new power, unfamiliar yet bound to Selene and Darius's union, whispered of a destiny far greater than even the prophecy had dared to dream.