We barely made it out of the marshes.
The wind howled behind us, thick with the cries of unseen things. Mud clung to our boots as we stumbled onto firr ground, the glowing fragnt clenched in Lucas’s hand. The further we moved from the Threshold, the quieter the whispers beca. But sothing still felt...very wrong.
Lucas slowed, breathing hard. "That piece it’s making hum sounds."
I turned toward him. The fragnt pulsed with a pale silver light, rhythmic and slow, like a heartbeat. It looked harmless—but the magic it carried vibrated in the air like a living thing.
Then I felt it.
A sharp pain behind my eyes. My knees buckled and I fell to the ground.
"Athena!" Lucas rushed to catch , but it was too late. The world swirled, and then darkness surged forward.
When I opened my eyes, I wasn’t on the path anymore.
The world around was strange. Warped. Silver mist floated across a blue-hued field, and above hung not one, but two moons—one cracked and bleeding light.
I stood slowly. My limbs felt too light, my heartbeat too slow. Sothing inside thrumd, wild and ancient.
Then I saw her.
A woman stood where the light bled from the sky, draped in silver robes. Her face was mine—but older, wiser, glowing like the stars.
"The fragnt has awakened your blood," she said. Her voice echoed without sound. "You are closer now. Closer to ."
I staggered back. "No. I didn’t choose this. I didn’t ask—"
"You were born marked. Denial changes nothing. But now, the balance tips. The King’s ti grows short. You must decide who you are."
"What are you even talking about? Who are you? Tell who you are and why you have my face!"
Then everything shattered.
I woke to Lucas shaking , with ful panic in his eyes.
"Athena, talk to ! What happened?"
My mouth was dry. "I... saw her again. I’ve been.." I strengthened my resolve to tell him the truth, "I’ve been having these sa type of things for a while now. There’s always sothing pretending to be telling vague sentences. This ti around it was about the fragnt—it reacted to ."
Lucas stared at the glowing stone in his hand, then looked at . "What could that possibly an? Does she say anything in particular?"
I pushed myself up slowly. "Sothing’s changing in . I can feel it. It’s like part of her is waking up."
Before he could respond, a sharp howl pierced the air.
Lucas snapped to attention. "We’re not alone."
Dark figures moved between the trees ahead. At least five. Or maybe even more. Too abnormal to be normal wolves. "They’re corrupted wolves," I growled. "They followed us."
Lucas handed my blade. "Let’s not keep them waiting."
They ca fast—snarling, twisted wolves with jagged bone jutting through fur and skin. Their eyes glowed red, their teeth blackened. The first leapt for Lucas, but he t it midair, shifting as he did.
His wolf form was sleek and silver, glowing faintly under the moonlight. I shifted beside him, feeling the familiar tear of transformation and the surge of strength.
We fought side by side, claws ripping, fangs flashing. I tore one apart at the throat, but another latched onto my back. Lucas lunged, ripping it away with a roar.
But they kept coming.
A voice bood from behind them. "Enough."
The creatures froze.
A tall figure stepped from the trees—cloaked in dark armor, his face hidden behind a horned mask. "You have sothing that belongs to us." Then he pointed to the piece that Lucas was holding.
Lucas stepped forward. "You an this? It doesn’t belong to you. And there’s no way that I’m giving it up to you. Co at as you wish to.
He held up the fragnt.
The masked man raised a hand—and the corrupted wolves charged again.
We fought harder, but there were too many. One caught Lucas by the side, dragging him down. Blood sprayed across the ground.
I scread, lunging to cover him.
Then there was harsh light.
The fragnt in Lucas’s hand exploded in a pulse of silver energy, knocking the attackers back. They howled in pain as the light burned through them.
The masked man growled and vanished into nothing.
When the light faded, the attackers were gone. The forest was silent.
Lucas coughed, clutching his side.
I knelt beside him. "You’re hurt. This is bad. We need to get you sowhere safe."
He tried to smile. "Didn’t think... I’d get beat up saving your life twice in one day."
"You didn’t save . The fragnt did."
His gaze flicked to it, then to . "Okay... it saved you. And you saved . That’s a good trade."
We found a ruined outpost an hour later—an old temple half-swallowed by vines and stone. There, I tended to Lucas’s wounds while he lay back, breathing hard.
"How did they just appear? And what are they? They’re difrent from the ones we saw in the moon temple" I asked.
"The corrupted. I’ve heard whispers of them. Forr wolves turned by dark rituals. Loyal to sothing... or soone."
"The masked man?"
Lucas shook his head. "Maybe. Or worse."
I looked at the fragnt in my hand. It glowed faintly now, calm. But I knew this wasn’t over. If anything, it had just begun. We waited just like that until he healed to an extent.
The return journey felt colder than it should have.
Lucas and I crossed the threshold of the marshlands in silence, fragnt in hand. Neither of us spoke about the truths we spilled or the mories we surrendered. We walked side by side, like shadows that had forgotten their source of light. The sky shifted above us, stars blinking awake one by one, but none of it felt real. Not after what we’d done. Not after what we’d given up.
By the ti we reached the capital gates, dawn was barely a whisper across the horizon. The guards didn’t question us as usual. They opened the gates as though they had been waiting, and maybe they had.
The palace halls swallowed us in cold stone and too-bright torches. I didn’t look at the guards or the nobles peeking from behind golden curtains. I had nothing left to say to any of them.
When the doors to the throne room opened, the king was already there, seated on his elevated throne like a carved statue. He wore no crown, but his presence filled the space like iron smoke.
"You returned faster than I expected," he said, eyes locked on . "That’s good."
Lucas stepped forward and placed the fragnt—still glowing, still pulsing with ancient light—into the shallow bowl alongside the others. The magic shimred, as if welcoming its kin.
The king didn’t look at it.
Instead, his gaze turned to .
"Did anything out of the ordinary happen?"
My voice ca even. "There’s nothing to report."
He studied for too long, as if he knew I was lying. But he didn’t push. Just nodded once and stood.
"There is one more," he said. "The final fragnt."
Lucas tensed beside . "Where is it?"
The king descended the steps slowly. "In Jesse."
I blinked. "What?"
"In his heart," the king said. "That is where the Moon Goddess sealed the last fragnt."
Lucas looked as stunned as I felt. "That doesn’t make sense. How on earth would the Moon Goddess piece be with soone like that."
The king’s mouth twitched. "Which is perhaps it’s with him him. The irony. The test. The balance. I don’t know all the reasons, only that I sensed it the mont the that forr piece was returned."
"You sensed it," I repeated, bitterness in my throat. "And you didn’t tell us earlier?"
"I would have ripped it out of him if I could," the king said. "But the moon goddess clearly wants sothing else. He must give it willingly. And you, Bella are the perfect person for the joh."
I stared at him, every part of rejecting the words. "You want to convince Jesse to die for ?"
"This is your task, Bella," he said. "The last one. If he gives the fragnt willingly, the Moon Goddess can be restored. If not..." He trailed off.
"She dies," I finished.
He nodded.
I scoffed. "You’re asking for a miracle. Jesse would never do anything for anyone but himself."
"Then show him what it ans to care," the king said quietly. "Make him see sothing greater."
I didn’t answer. My silence spoke louder than words.
"There is nothing I can give you," he said. "Nothing I can say to him, because it has to completely be out of free will. This is between you and him. You have to succeed."
"I understand," I murmured. But I didn’t still feel like I wanted to .
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