The sanctuary plunged into shadow.
The glowing runes dimmed.
The crystals flickered.
The air thickened with cold so sharp it felt like knives slicing skin.
Yet Aria stood.
For the first time since the awakening began, she stood without collapsing—chest rising and falling in steady breaths, silver veins glowing beneath her skin like threads of moonlight stitched into her bones.
Ronan stepped beside her, their hands locked.
The bond pulsed between them—warmth flooding into her from him, steadiness grounding her power.
She whispered, "I… I feel you."
His thumb brushed the back of her hand. "Good. Don't let go."
A soft tremor ran through her.
Not fear.
Not pain.
Power.
Her transformation had not completed, not yet—but something fundamental inside her had shifted. She could feel it—like an ancient door cracking open inside her soul.
The stranger kept his distance, his face lit by the flicker of the failing runes. "Brace yourselves. It draws closer."
A guttural, inhuman hiss drifted down from the collapsing ceiling.
Ronan's claws extended instantly, half-shifted, protective instincts blazing. "Aria, stay behind me."
"No."
Her voice surprised even her.
He turned, brows furrowing.
Aria stepped forward, the light under her skin intensifying.
"I'm not hiding behind you."
He swallowed, pride and fear flashing in his eyes. "I didn't mean—"
"I know."
Her hand softened on his arm.
"But I'm not helpless anymore."
The stranger nodded approvingly. "She's right. The bond stabilized her core. She can wield her power without burning herself."
Aria whispered, "I can feel it, Ronan. Like it's waiting to be shaped."
Ronan stepped close, forehead brushing hers briefly. "Then shape it with me."
She nodded.
The shadows erupted.
⸻
The Devourer's Manifestation
A monstrous form poured from the cracks above—
a towering mass of darkness
shifting
pulsing
shrieking with a thousand broken voices
and eyes that glowed like frozen stars.
The temperature dropped to nothing.
Aria's breath crystallized in the air.
Ronan growled deeply. "Get behind me."
She didn't.
She stepped beside him, their shoulders touching.
The Devourer's voice echoed, vibrating the ground.
Moonbreaker.
Bonded.
Yet broken.
Give me your heart.
Aria felt the cold fingers of its voice slide into her skull.
But the bond snapped like a flame between her and Ronan.
Ronan squeezed her hand. "Stay with me."
She closed her eyes, breathing him in—
his warmth
his strength
his heartbeat syncing with hers.
The Devourer hissed.
The wolf shields you.
Temporary.
Futile.
Aria lifted her chin.
Fear trembled in her bones, yes—
but strength trembled too.
"I'm not afraid of you."
The Devourer roared so violently the sanctuary cracked.
Ronan growled back, stepping forward. "You want her? Come through me."
Dark tendrils shot toward them like spears.
Ronan lunged, claws slashing. "ARIA!"
Aria lifted her glowing hand—
Silver light burst outward.
The tendril evaporated before touching them.
Aria gasped. "I—I did it. I controlled it."
Ronan's smile was fierce. "I knew you could."
The Devourer shrieked, furious.
⸻
The First Battle as One
Tendrils shot again—dozens this time.
Ronan fought them head-on, moving like a silver storm—his claws flashing, his teeth bared. He tore through dark limbs, each impact shaking the sanctuary floor.
But for each tendril he destroyed, two more formed.
"Ronan! Behind you!"
Aria thrust her hand out.
Silver light flared—
This time shaped like a wave, not an explosion.
The wave slammed into the shadows, ripping several tendrils apart in a shower of dark mist.
Ronan stared, stunned. "Aria—"
Another crack.
Another tendril.
Ronan grabbed her waist, pulling her close as it lunged over their heads. She pressed a palm to the ground instinctively—
Silver light pulsed from beneath her hand, spreading like ripples across the floor.
The shadow tendril froze.
Then shattered.
Aria blinked. "I didn't know I could do that—"
"You can," Ronan said. "Do it again."
She swallowed, lifted her hand again.
Silver light pulsed outward.
This time even stronger.
The Devourer recoiled, shrieking.
Enough.
The Moonbreaker stands too tall.
Break her wolf.
Aria froze. "Ronan—"
Dark tendrils shot toward him specifically—
fast
sharp
targeting his throat and heart.
Ronan pushed Aria behind him and took the hit, claws tearing desperately at the shadows wrapping around him.
"RONAN!" Aria screamed.
The Devourer coiled around him, dragging him to his knees.
The wolf falls.
The Moonbreaker follows.
"NO!"
Aria's veins glowed like molten silver.
Her sigil burned on her chest—
but not painfully.
With purpose.
She lifted her hand instinctively.
Light burst outward—raw, powerful, instinctive.
Ronan gasped as the tendrils holding him vaporized.
He fell into her arms, panting, blood on his lips.
Aria cupped his face. "Are you okay?!"
He nodded shakily. "As long as you're here."
She pressed her forehead to his. "I'm not going anywhere."
The Devourer's shape twisted with fury.
You grow stronger.
Dangerous.
Unacceptable.
The ground trembled beneath their feet.
Aria tightened her grip on Ronan's hand.
"Let it come."
⸻
A New Power Awakens
The sanctuary ceiling cracked, crystal shards raining down.
Ronan shielded her with his body, even though she already glowed brighter than the falling shards.
The stranger shouted from across the room, "Aria! Call your power! Don't let the Devourer dictate the pace—YOU command it!"
Aria pressed a hand to her chest.
She could feel the power there—
warm
steady
calling to her
asking her to shape it.
She whispered, "Ronan… I think I know what to do."
He nodded. "I trust you."
She closed her eyes.
The bond pulsed.
Their breaths aligned.
Their hearts synced.
Silver light rose around her like petals of moonlight unfolding.
She lifted both hands.
The light obeyed.
The Devourer reeled backward, shadows crackling violently.
Impossible.
She commands the Moon.
Aria opened her eyes.
They were brighter than they had ever been.
Not silver anymore.
White.
Luminous.
Moonlit.
Ancient.
Ronan stared in awe.
"Aria… your eyes…"
She didn't hear him.
Her focus was on the Devourer.
On the shadow trying to consume her life.
Her future.
Her soul.
"No more," she whispered.
The Devourer lunged.
Aria thrust her hands forward.
A column of light shot from her palms, cutting through the sanctuary like divine fire.
The Devourer screamed.
The entire mountain shook.
Ronan wrapped his arms around her waist, anchoring her as the power rushed through her.
Together, they pushed.
The Devourer shrieked—
Moonbreaker—
The world will burn—
Your power—
Your fate—
Aria screamed back, pouring everything she had into the light.
And for a moment—
a brilliant, impossible moment—
the Devourer shattered.
The sanctuary fell silent.
The shadows vanished.
Aria collapsed weakly against Ronan.
He caught her instantly, holding her trembling body to his chest.
"I've got you," he whispered. "It's over."
But the stranger shook his head slowly.
"No."
Aria forced her eyes open.
"W-what?"
The stranger pointed toward the darkened entrance.
The shadows were already reforming.
"Aria didn't destroy it," he said gravely. "She only drove back its projection."
Aria's stomach dropped. "Then… where is it?"
The stranger's eyes filled with dread.
"Coming."
Ronan tightened his arms around Aria.
Her glowing veins pulsed faster.
Her sigil brightened.
Her next shift—the final shift—loomed.
Aria swallowed, terrified.
"Ronan… I'm not ready."
He lifted her chin.
"You don't have to be."
He kissed her forehead gently.
"We'll face it together."
And outside—
the Devourer's true form roared.