Luna Secret 2

PRESENT DAY

The stench of blood hung thickly in the air—a metallic tang that mingled with the acrid odor of burning wood and despair.

Screams pierced the silence both from within the ravaged house and from the night beyond, setting every nerve on edge.

Without a word, Ace burst out from the burning doorway, her blood-stained sword gripped tightly in her hand. She ran blindly, her heart pounding in a rhythm that matched the chaos surrounding her. But as she neared the courtyard, she froze. Before her eyes, in the flickering light of the flames, she saw her father kneeling in submission.

His eyes were downcast as he faced a man whose presence radiated cold authority. Alpha Rowan of the Blue Moon Pack, known for his ruthless precision, stood tall with his sword raised high—a blade catching firelight as it swung menacingly.

“Father, why—” Ace’s inner thoughts screamed in silent agony, but she held her tongue. Instead, she watched, every step measured, as the scene unfolded before her.

Rowan’s voice cut through the clamor, crisp and unforgiving.

“Your betrayal has left me no choice,” he declared, his tone edged with grim satisfaction. “You dared to attack my pack, to steal our provisions under the guise of mercy. Explain yourself!”

Her father’s voice trembled as he replied, each word a mix of desperation and regret.

“It was for the survival of our own,” he pleaded, his eyes darting about as if seeking forgiveness from the very air. “Our pack was starving. I thought… I thought sharing our produce would bring peace!”

A bitter laugh from Rowan shattered the brief pause. “Peace? You call this treachery peace?” he snarled. “Your excuse is as empty as the promises you made! You endangered us all!”

Inside the burning house, the chaos continued unabated.

Ace could hear her mother’s anguished cry, a sound that pierced through the clash of clashing swords and desperate words. Amid the inferno, a guard’s harsh command rose: “Move! Take her—get her out now!”

Ace’s eyes shifted briefly toward the direction of the scream. There, amidst the dancing flames, she caught a glimpse of her younger sister, Elara, her face contorted with fear, her body trembling as she was roughly ushered out by a guard.

Rowan’s gaze swept across the scene, his eyes lingering on the trembling figure of Elara. His voice, cold and deliberate, addressed her father once more.

Rowan stated, raising his sword higher. “This act of betrayal demands a sacrifice.”

The air was heavy with impending doom as her father’s eyes widened in horror. He stuttered, voice cracking under the weight of regret. “No, please… I beg you—there must be another way,” he pleaded, desperation thick in his tone.

But Rowan’s reply was swift and final. “There is no redemption for you, only the price of your actions!” he thundered. The raised sword glinted ominously, promising death with its descent.

Ace stepped forward, thinking of what to do to stop Rowan from hurting her father when her father, Alpha Cedric did the unthinkable.

Amid the rising clamor and the searing heat of the flames, he shouted with a voice that echoed across the battlefield of broken loyalties and burning dreams.

“Take my daughter!”

Ace halted.

A collective gasp rose from those witnessing the unfolding tragedy. The words hit Ace like a tidal wave. Did her father truly intend to sacrifice Elara for his own salvation? Elara was just 14 and he was willing to sacrifice her for his own life?

In that harrowing moment, the injustice of the ancient traditions crashed upon her like a relentless storm. Everyone had believed the lie for so long—that the Alpha’s firstborn, deemed the “son,” was the rightful heir.

Ace had been forced to swallow the bitter pill of deception, taught to accept a destiny that was never truly hers, while the truth about her identity was shrouded in lies and silenced by fear.

Now she felt like she knew the real reason behind her hidden identity. Aside from tradition, her father valued her more as a son than a girl

Her mother’s anguished cry filled the space between orders and accusations. “Stop this madness! Our children are not pawns to be bartered!” she wailed, her voice cracking as she reached out in vain toward the doomed girl.

Rowan’s eyes narrowed, his gaze flickering between the desperate plea of her mother and the defiant resignation etched on her father’s face.

Her father’s voice, ragged and full of remorse, struggled against the inevitability of fate.

“I never wanted this… I did it for our people!” he cried, his tone wavering as he pleaded with Rowan, with the heavens, with the shattered remnants of his honor. “We were starving! I thought if we showed mercy, if we reached out in solidarity—”

“Silence!” Rowan roared, cutting him off with a fury that brooked no argument. He turned to face Elara squarely and Ace shut her eyes, to stop herself from doing something stupid. “She’ll make a good slave.”

Ace’s heart jolted forward and her mother screamed.

“No, please. Not Elara. Please don’t take my child. She’s just a child—don’t let this be her fate!” her mother cried again, her words mingling with the roar of the flames and the clashing of steel.

Ace’s mind raced as she tried to reconcile the man she once revered with the man who now offered up his daughter as a sacrificial lamb. The old lies, the gendered traditions, the hidden truths—all of it boiled over in her mind, fueling a fire of indignation that simmered beneath her silence.

The tension mounted as Rowan’s cold, unyielding eyes fixated on the quivering form of Elara. His words, measured and final, filled the space.

“Her fate is sealed by the blood spilled in this betrayal. Sacrifice is the only path to restore honor,” he declared, his voice a death knell that resonated through the fiery gloom.

When a guard grabbed Elara’s arm, Ace could no longer remain silent. With one final, defiant act, her body moved of its own accord. In that heartbeat, as the scorching heat of betrayal and sacrifice swirled around her, she raised her hand high—breaking her vow of silence until that moment.

“Take me instead,” she declared, her voice ringing clear and resolute above the tumultuous din.

For a moment, time stood still. Every pair of eyes, every trembling soul, fixed upon her.