"I need to leave, your friends are coming. If maybe we meet again you can ask me the right questions." Nyra pointed out, while brushing a strand of hair behind her back as she turned away.
"You didn't ask me my name?" Ronan said curiously, in a low tone.
"When we meet again, stranger." She chuckled as she left. Then she vanished into a mist.
A few seconds later, Jaxon and Kai ran through the clearings to Ronan.
"Are you alright?" Kai asked him inquisitively.
Jaxon glanced at him and scanned the surroundings.
"I'm fine." Ronan took a deep breath, as he straightened himself "l was just making sure that the area is clear." He responded calmly.
"We thought we heard you talking to someone." Jaxon said, glancing at Ronan curiously.
"Yh." Kai seconded.
"You guys must be hearing voices, I'm literally the only one here." Ronan shrugged, feigning confusion.
"Alright, let's go back, we need to continue our training." Jaxon replied while leaving.
---
The wind howled as Emery stood at the edge of the training grounds, a place she once loved coming to, just to see Jaxon train and cheer the warriors.
Emery kept her chin high, while walking with confidence.
Her cloak fluttered around her ankles, dust kicking up as she walked past the sparring rings. Some eyes followed her while others narrowed with resentment. To them she was the rejected Luna, who had dared to return.
Jaxon Storm stood at the center of it all.
He turned slowly as she approached, sweat glistening on his bare shoulders from training. His chest rose and fell steadily, but the moment his eyes locked with hers, everything in him stilled. He could inhale her scent from afar, lavender mixed with wild pine.
Emery stopped a few feet away with her arms crossed, her face not giving away any emotions.
"You shouldn't be here," he said calmly, resisting the urge to hug her as his inner self was losing control.
Emery tilted her head slightly. "Neither should the rogues but yet…"
His jaw tightened. "What do you want, Emery?"
"The same thing you do," she replied. "I want answers, protection for the pack and peace."
"Why ?" He questioned
"That's not the question you should be asking?" She questioned him instantly.
A bitter laugh escaped him. "You left us. Left me." he emphasized.
"You made sure I had no reason to stay," she snapped back not giving him any space to think.
Jaxon looked away, his jaw clenched and his fist tightened.
The warriors nearby paused their sparring, sensing the tension in the air.
"I didn't come back because of you," she added, her voice low. "I don't care about what you think, or what the pack whispers, I came back because something is wrong. I feel it in my bones."
His brows drew together. "So you've felt it too."
Emery nodded. "I have been having visions, dark visions to be precise.
For a moment, silence stretched between them. Then Jaxon stepped closer.
His voice softened, "You… haven't changed."
"Maybe," she said, eyes narrowing. "But you have. And I don't know if that's a good thing."
Jaxon studied her, eyes tracing her face like he was trying to memorize what three years had stolen. The curve of her lips. The sharpness in her gaze. The pain she tried to hide.
"I'm really sorry," he muttered.
Emery's breath hitched, she looked away quickly. "Don't..."
He took another step, his voice dropping. "Don't what?"
"Don't pretend this is about us," she whispered. "It's not. Not anymore."
She turned to walk away, but his voice stopped her. "I never stopped feeling the bond," he admitted.
Emery froze, her heart beating rapidly.
"I still wake up at night with your name in my chest," he said. "But I rejected you. And that truth won't change."
She faced him again, slowly. "No, it won't and I'm glad you know that."
Their eyes locked for a moment.
Then Emery stepped back. "I don't intend on staying for long, once this war is over I will leave." She completed her statement before walking away.
---
Far beyond the trees, Nyra stood on a rocky cliff, her cloak billowing in the wind. A blood rune glowed beneath her palm.
Kaelith's voice echoed from the crystal in her hand. "Did he see you?"
"Yes," Nyra said. "And he's beginning to ask the right questions."
"Good," Kaelith replied. "Lead him deeper. Let the threads tangle."
Nyra's eyes flickered. "And the girl?"
"She carries the mark. But she doesn't yet carry the power."
Nyra looked down at the valley below. "How long do we have?"
"Not long," Kaelith hissed. "Till the next moon bleeds red, and when it does… she either awakens, or dies."
–
Sasha lingered at the edge of the training grounds, her arms folded neatly, lips curved into a cold smile as her gaze tracked Emery walking away from Jaxon. The way attention shifted toward Emery, the lingering stares, the hush in conversation, it made her stomach twist with jealousy.
Sasha walked towards Emery. "Well, well. The rejected daughter returns," she called out, her voice laced with sarcasm.
Emery paused, her shoulders stiffening.
"I must say," Sasha continued, striding closer, "I admire your courage, not everyone would come back to a place where they were so thoroughly humiliated."
Emery turned slowly, her eyes meeting Sasha. "Then again, not everyone craves the spotlight like you do."
Sasha laughed lightly. "Let's not pretend you didn't love being the center of attention. But that was years ago, Emery."
Emery's expression didn't falter. "I'm not here for attention. And Jaxon? He may have rejected me, but what we had wasn't something you can replace with charm and proximity."
Sasha's smirk twitched. "You think the Goddess cares about old bonds? Time changes everything. The moment you chose to run away, you lost it all."
"No," Emery said, stepping forward. "I was forced out. And you were the first to cheer when it happened."
"You abandoned your duty," Sasha snapped.
"I survived," Emery replied, her voice sharp. "And I came back to defend the very people you pretend to care about."
Sasha narrowed her eyes. "You're not the Luna anymore."
"I never needed a title to protect this pack," Emery whispered.
Sasha could literally feel herself boiling with anger. "Fine, we will see how it ends." Sasha scoffed, as she stomped away angrily.
From above, on the balcony of the council hall, Liora watched the scene unfold, her calculating eyes glinting with interest.