The storm had settled over Westpoint like a bruise.
Thunder rolled through the skyline, echoing down the broken streets and hollow tunnels of the Metro Core.
Kael sat alone in the dark, the silver in his veins pulsing like quiet lightning. His breath came in ragged bursts, the beast within clawing against the thin wall of his control.
He could feel it whispering again — that deep, guttural voice that wasn't his.
Let go, Kael.
You can't save them if you stay weak.
Embrace what you are.
He slammed his fist into the floor, cracking the concrete. "Shut up."
The voice laughed — his laugh, only darker.
Selene entered the room quietly, her hair damp from the rain, her expression shadowed by exhaustion. She carried a small vial — the stabilizer they'd risked everything to steal from the Core. Its liquid shimmered faintly blue under the emergency lights.
"You're getting worse," she said softly.
Kael didn't look up. "I'm fine."
"You're not."
He finally turned toward her, eyes glowing faintly gold. "If this thing inside me wins, I want you to end it."
She froze. "Don't you dare say that."
"I mean it, Selene. If I lose myself—"
"Then I'll bring you back," she cut in sharply. "Even if I have to drag you out of hell itself."
For a moment, their eyes locked — the Alpha and the half-blood, both scarred by the same darkness. The storm outside cracked, lightning flashing through the shattered window.
Selene moved closer, holding out the vial. "This stabilizer might buy you time, but it's not a cure. It has to sync with your heartbeat. If it doesn't…"
Kael finished for her. "I die."
She nodded once. "You trust me?"
He gave a faint, tired smile. "Always."
Selene knelt in front of him, hands steady as she injected the serum into his arm. The blue liquid pulsed through his veins instantly, meeting the silver with a violent spark.
Kael gasped, body arching as the mixture burned through him like fire. The glow beneath his skin flared — gold fighting blue, blue fighting silver — until the light stabilized into a soft, pale glow.
Then he collapsed forward, panting.
Selene caught him, cradling his head against her shoulder. "Kael, talk to me."
He exhaled, his voice barely a whisper. "I can still hear it… the voice. But it's fading."
Selene smiled faintly, relief softening her features. "Then it worked."
"Maybe." His hand found hers. "Or maybe it's just quiet before the next war."
---
Hours later, Eryn burst into the chamber, his face pale. "We've got a problem."
Kael pushed himself up, still unsteady. "What is it?"
Eryn tossed a holo-device onto the table — the projection flared to life, showing a live feed of the city's eastern sector.
Lucien's fortress wasn't just glowing anymore. It was moving.
The ground around it cracked open as mechanical roots dug deep into the earth. A pulsating core of red energy glowed at its heart — a reactor unlike anything they'd seen before.
Selene's eyes widened. "He's activating the Lunar Engine."
Kael frowned. "What the hell is that?"
"It's his failsafe," Selene said grimly. "It uses the moon's radiation to amplify the serum — to trigger transformations across every infected bloodline in the city. If he powers it fully, every hybrid — every wolf — will lose control."
Eryn swore under his breath. "He's gonna turn the entire city into monsters."
Kael's jaw tightened. "Then we stop him before that moon rises."
Selene shook her head. "It's not that simple. The Lunar Engine's protected by bio-code locks. Only someone carrying Lucien's genetic imprint can shut it down."
Kael's eyes narrowed. "You mean you."
Selene hesitated. "Yes. But once I interface with it, the system will drain my energy — my bloodline won't survive it."
Kael stepped forward instantly. "No. I'm not losing you."
Her voice was calm, steady. "You might not have a choice."
He grabbed her wrist. "Selene—"
She met his gaze with quiet fire. "If we don't do this, everyone you've ever fought for dies. The pack. The city. The world we're trying to save."
Eryn looked between them, uncomfortable. "I'll prep the team. We move in an hour."
As he left, silence returned. The rain had stopped outside, replaced by the eerie hum of the city's dying power grid.
Selene turned to leave, but Kael caught her hand.
"Selene," he said softly.
She turned, eyes shining faintly in the dim light.
"You save the city," he said. "I'll save you."
A faint smile touched her lips. "You always say that like it's possible."
He leaned closer, voice low. "That's because I always mean it."
For a heartbeat, the war outside didn't exist — just the two of them, suspended in the quiet before everything burned.
Then the alarms blared.
Lucien's voice echoed through the comm system, calm and cruel as ever.
"You can't stop evolution, Kael. You can only delay it. The moon rises in three hours — and when it does, the world will remember the name Moonbound."
---
The sky turned crimson as the moon began to rise.
Kael and his remaining wolves gathered on the outskirts of the city, the glowing fortress looming like a living thing in the distance.
Selene stood beside him, her aura pulsing faintly — part human, part something far more ancient.
Kael looked out at the skyline, his voice steady. "This ends tonight."
Selene nodded. "One way or another."
He looked at her, something fierce and unspoken in his eyes. "If I lose control again—"
"You won't," she said, cutting him off. "Because I'll be there."
Kael gave a faint smirk. "You always are."
The wind howled through the ruins, carrying the scent of rain and steel.
Then Kael raised his claws, and his pack moved with him.
Through shadow and blood, they charged toward the fortress — the final hunt begun beneath a rising moon that promised both salvation and ruin
.