Luna's POV
White fire exploded around us as heaven's army struck.
I screamed and threw myself against Damon as fighter angels dove from the sky like deadly birds. Their wings were made of light and their swords burned with holy fire that could kill anything magical.
"Stay behind me!" Gabriel shouted, his own wings opening wide as he fought off three angels at once.
But there were too many of them. Dozens of perfect, terrifying soldiers filled the Soul Realm, all trying to catch Gabriel and destroy the rest of us.
"Marcus!" I cried as an angel's sword barely missed his head.
Marcus rolled sideways and grabbed my hand. The moment our skin touched, healing power flowed through me like warm honey. "I've got you," he said furiously.
Damon was fighting like a wild animal, his Alpha strength letting him actually hurt the angels. But even he couldn't fight forever against enemies who didn't get tired or feel pain.
"We can't win this!" he growled, avoiding another burning sword.
That's when the strangest thing happened.
Power burst from my chest like a nuclear bomb.
Golden light burst from my skin, and every angel in the Soul Realm stopped fighting. They stared at me with shocked looks, like I'd just done something impossible.
"The Nexus," one of them whispered. "She's awakening."
"What's a Nexus?" I ordered, but I was starting to remember things that made no sense.
Flashes of other lives. Being a priestess who could talk to gods. Being a doctor who could bring people back from death. Being someone powerful and important and wonderful.
"Luna," Gabriel said desperately, "you need to remember who you really are."
More memories filled my brain. Gabriel and I dance at a wedding that happened three hundred years ago. Fighting side by side against monsters in medieval times. Dying in each other's arms during a war between angels and humans.
"I remember," I breathed, and suddenly I understood everything.
I wasn't just some kitchen omega. I was a Nexus soul - a person born to join different types of magic and make them stronger. That's why Gabriel had fallen from heaven for me. That's why Damon and Marcus were soul-bound as my guards. That's why my eighteenth birthday had changed everything.
"She's too dangerous," the head angel said coldly. "If she reaches full power, she could unite all supernatural beings against heaven's rule."
"That's exactly what she's supposed to do," Elder Moonwhisper said firmly, appearing beside us. "The message is clear. When the Nexus wakes, the age of separation ends."
"Then she dies," the angel answered, raising his burning sword.
That's when Damon did something that shocked everyone.
He stepped in front of me, spreading his arms wide. "You want her? You go through me first."
Marcus moved to stand beside his cousin. "Through both of us."
The angels laughed. "Two werewolves think they can fight heaven's army?"
"No," Gabriel said quietly, his wings glowing brighter. "But three guardians tied to a Nexus soul can do anything. "
Wait. Three guardians?
Gabriel looked at me with eyes full of love and sadness. "Luna, I lied to you. I'm not your chosen mate from past lives. I'm your third guardian. The one sent to protect you from heaven itself."
My world spun sideways. "But the memories..."
"Are real," Gabriel said sadly. "But they're not romantic love. They're soul-family love. I've been your brother, your best friend, your protector across multiple lives. Never your husband."
"Then who is my real mate?" I asked weakly.
Before anyone could answer, a new voice cut through the chaos.
"That would be me."
Everyone turned to stare at the man walking toward us through the army of angels. He was tall with dark hair and eyes like storm clouds. Power radiated from him in waves that made even the angels step back nervously.
But the most shocking thing was what he was wearing.
Angel armor. White and gold and covered in holy symbols.
"Hello, Luna," he said softly. "My name is Raphael. And I'm the Archangel who's been banned from heaven for the last thousand years because I refused to let them hurt you."
My mouth fell open. "You're an archangel?"
"I was," Raphael said sadly. "Until I broke every rule in heaven to keep you safe. Until I chose love over duty and got cast out with Gabriel for protecting what heaven wanted to destroy."
"This is impossible," Damon said softly.
Raphael smiled at him with real warmth. "Nothing about Luna is possible, Alpha. That's what makes her so dangerous to beings who like their power organized and reliable."
The lead angel growled. "Raphael, you were ordered to never contact her again."
"And you were ordered to leave her alone," Raphael replied calmly. "Yet here you are, trying to kill an innocent girl because you're afraid of what she might become."
"She's not innocent," the angel snapped. "She's a weapon that could destroy the natural order."
"She's a bridge," Raphael amended. "Between worlds that have been split too long. Between types of love that heaven fears because they're stronger than duty."
The air around us started to crackle with competing power. Angel fire, werewolf power, and something new flowing from me that felt old and unstoppable.
"Choose," the lead angel ordered, pointing his sword at my heart. "Return to heaven with us and accept your execution, or watch everyone you care about burn."
"Actually," said a voice that made everyone freeze, "there's a third option."
A little girl stepped out from behind one of the marble columns. She looked maybe three years old, with dark hair and silver eyes exactly like Damon's.
"Hello, Mommy," she said to me with a sweet smile. "I've been waiting to meet you."
My heart stopped. "Mommy?"
The child nodded happily. "I'm Aria. Your kid from the future. And I'm here to tell you that if you want to save everyone, you need to do something very brave."
"What?" I whispered.
Aria's smile got bigger, but her eyes were ancient and knowing.
"You need to die."