The Alpha's Fated Outcast: Rise Of The Moonsinger. Chapter 423: Blood moon rising

Lyla

I was viewing the world now through a haze.

It was as if I were moving through water or thick fog. Every part of my body felt disconnected from , and it took extra willpower to keep my eyes open.

Whatever they had given was working. My tongue was growing numb, and I just felt weird, but still I fought against the haze with every fibre of my being.

I couldn't afford to lose consciousness now. Not when my life and my children's hung in the balance. I was desperate to ask them if they had released Ramsey and the others, but my tongue felt too heavy.

I need to survive.

Whoever was dragging was dragging like a sack of potatoes. I kept bumping into things, and they didn't care. Still, I didn't fight them; I allowed myself to be pulled along. I needed to conserve my strength.

The underground passage we moved through looked familiar, yet different from my mories.

Six years ago, when Xander had brought to this sa cursed place, the tunnels had been crude and hastily constructed, more like a cave system than anything designed by human hands. Now, the walls were smooth and lined with so tallic material.

Lighting had been installed at regular intervals, and I could see ventilation systems and what looked like electrical conduits running along the ceiling. This wasn't just a hideout anymore – it was a sophisticated underground facility that had been rebuilt and modernised.

As we ca into the main chamber, my breath caught in my throat. The central space was exactly as I rembered – the sa vaulted ceiling disappearing into darkness above.

Last ti, I had seen a large crowd of humans who had bowed to Xander as soon as he entered, but now, unlike before, they seed double the crowd, and they were all dressed in identical robes with hoods.

Last ti had been noisy too, but now, the aura around the room was chilling even for soone like . I felt like I'd just walked into a secret cult organisation.

That was when I noticed that the figure floating in front of was Delia.

As I was dragged through the crowd, I noticed that all the people now had their heads bowed for Delia, who looked on with a satisfied smile playing on her lips. Whatever Xander had been, Delia was it twice.

And these people weren't just followers, they were worshippers now.

Delia paused and raised her hand. "I co bearing gifts," she started, "It's been a few months since my father, your master, died, but we must ensure that we fulfil his last desire, and today is that day. Everyone, et the last Moonsinger, Lyla."

I raised my head up and up into the gazes of a million eyes. Because of how unclear my vision was, I didn't know if it was admiration I saw in their eyes or sothing else, but whatever the case may be, I was apparently their object of devotion."

"Today, under the Gemini moon, we will finally take over the world. No more would we need to hide who we are. No more would we be treated like half-casts because of our differences in breeding. The world would finally accept us for who we are or die rejecting us."

There was a loud cheer, and Delia raised her hand to quiet them before turning to .

"Welco ho, Moonsinger. Tonight, you'll beco one with us."

Ho? I scoffed inwardly. This place of nightmares and dark rituals was many things, but it would never be ho to .

Ho was Ramsey's arms around in the morning. Ho was the gentle kicks of my unborn children, reminding of the future we were building together. Ho was anywhere but this cursed ground where I'd once faced death and had managed to escape.

But as we approached the stone circle, the trauma of that night six years ago began to flit into my mind.

I could almost see Xander standing there again, his eyes glowing with lust and power as he prepared to bind to him forever. I could feel the pain of the knife cutting my palm, sll the tallic scent of blood mixing with his.

For a mont, I froze as the scene played vividly in my mind's eyes. I wanted to fall to my knees and beg for rcy, to promise them anything if they would just let go ho to my family.

But then I thought of Ramsey chained in that cell, of Kyren and Miriam and all the others who were counting on to be strong. I thought of my unborn children, innocent lives that deserved a chance to see the world beyond this place of darkness.

I forced my spine to straighten and my chin to lift. Whatever these monsters had planned for , I wouldn't give them the satisfaction of seeing break.

I was a Moonsinger, heir to a power that had existed to fight against the likes of Xander and his children, and I would face whatever ca with dignity and win in the end.

They continued to drag until the end of the hall. From where we stood, I saw a small door leading to the ritual ground just like in Xander's ti. They pushed through the small door, and instantly, I felt the shift in the atmosphere.

Even the twins must have felt it too, because they started moving frantically within , adding to my mounting distress.

Without warning, Delia produced a dagger from beneath her robes. The blade was similar to the one Xander had used.

Before I could react, she grabbed my hand and sliced across my palm with one swift motion. Pain flared through my arm as blood welled up from the cut, but I bit back any cry of pain. I wouldn't give her that satisfaction.

Delia then drew the sa blade across her own palm, her face showing no reaction to what must have been considerable pain. Our blood mixed as she pressed our cut hands together, the sensation making my stomach turn with revulsion.

"Sisters in blood," she said, her voice taking on a strong cadence. "Sisters in purpose. Sisters in power."

She pulled our joined hands toward the nearest standing stone and let our mixed blood drip onto its surface. The mont the blood touched the stone, everything changed.

The stone began to glow with light that started dim but quickly grew brighter. The illumination spread from our blood outward in veins of white and gold that traced patterns across the stone's surface.

This was precisely what had happened with Xander.

One by one, the other stones in the circle began to respond. Light raced from stone to stone like an electrical current until the entire circle was blazing with energy. The air began to vibrate with power, making my teeth ache and my vision blur.

The crowd around us responded to the awakening of the stones by beginning a low, rhythmic humming. Their voices blended into sothing that wasn't music and wasn't chanting, but carried a quality that seed to seep into my bones.

I looked up involuntarily and saw what I'd been dreading – the moon hung full and bright directly overhead.

Tonight was the night of the Gemini moon.

The sa lunar phase under which Xander had initially tried to perform the blood oath ritual. The sa celestial event that gave the ritual its power to bind two beings together by blood permanently.

"Now," Delia said, her eyes reflecting the stone circle's unnatural light. "Sing for us, Moonsinger. Call upon the power that flows through you."

Earlier, I'd told myself that I would refuse and would stay silent no matter how much I am pressured, but now, I was feeling a compulsion pressing against my chest. It was as if my mouth now had a mind of its own and was trying to force to open it.

So I opened my mouth and sang.

As I sang, the atmosphere changed. The air seed to beco thicker, charged with electrical energy that made my hair stand on end. The forest above us responded to the song, and I could hear trees swaying and creaking even though there had been no wind when we entered the facility.

The power flowing through was intoxicating and terrifying in equal asure. I could feel it building with each note, growing stronger and more focused. The twins inside responded to the energy by moving in patterns that seed almost like dancing, as if they, too, were part of the ritual taking place.

I've never felt this way before.

The weakness I'd felt earlier seed to have vanished.

Delia stepped closer to , her eyes were glowing. "Yes," she breathed. "Perfect. Absolutely perfect."

She reached out and took my hands in hers, careful not to disrupt the flow of blood from our still-open wounds. The mont our skin touched, I felt a shift within .

Together, we stood in the centre of the stone circle as I continued to sing. Blue waves of energy began to emanate from where we touched, spreading outward in ripples that made the air shimr.

The crowd's humming grew louder, and I realised they were trying to guide my song toward so specific purpose. They wanted to reach a particular crescendo, to unleash the full power of the music at precisely the right mont.

But for what? What were they trying to accomplish with this ritual?

As if reading my thoughts, Delia leaned closer and whispered in my ear. "You're going to bring him back, Lyla. Your song, combined with our blood and the power of the Gemini moon, will open a doorway between the world of the living and the realm where our father waits."