The world had shifted.
With the fall of the Crimson Citadel and Alpha Kieran's death, the balance of power trembled like a deer before the pounce.
The message was clear:
> The Forsaken lives. The Moonborn rise again.
But where hope blooms, so too does vengeance.
And far beyond the ruined citadel, deep in the Thirteenth Howl—a secret sanctuary of the Crimson Council—new shadows were awakening.
---
Crimson Council Chamber – The Thirteenth Howl
Twelve ancient thrones. Eleven filled. One empty.
That empty throne had once belonged to Kieran Crimsonfang, the self-proclaimed Alpha of Alphas.
Now it stood draped in blood-soaked black.
At its base knelt General Rhaziel, Kieran's right hand, stripped of armor and bleeding from a self-inflicted cut across his chest.
"The boy is more than prophecy," Rhaziel growled. "He unlocked the Moon Ascendant form. He carries Varok's flame."
The Eleven looked on.
Silent.
Judging.
Then one voice rang out—deep, oily, and cold.
"Sheathe your grief, Rhaziel," spoke Elder Veyra, the oldest among them. "Let us speak of balance. The wolf has become a storm."
Another—this one hooded, with no scent—sighed. "Then we must awaken our weapon."
All heads turned to the final throne—stone, obsidian, carved with crimson eyes.
From behind it stepped a girl.
Young. Barefoot. Cloaked in mist. Her eyes were pitch black, her aura colder than the grave.
> "Let the boy come," she whispered. "I'll eat his name from the bones of the world."
She smiled.
> "After all… I am his cousin."
---
Elsewhere – Moonborn Encampment (Shadowhold Forest)
Kael stared at the warriors standing before him—twelve werewolves, each scarred, quiet, and dangerous. Exiles. Survivors. Broken bloodlines that had scattered after the Crimson massacres.
Now they'd come to him.
Summoned by the old Moonborn mark that burned across their skin the moment Kael rose in the Underspine Canyons.
He had become their beacon.
Sylah stood at his right. Lina at his left, recovering strength by the hour. Together, they had built a crude camp of stone, silver runes, and flickering fires in a glade shielded by ancient wards.
Kael stepped forward.
"I won't lie to you," he said, his voice carrying over the trees. "We're outnumbered. Outmatched. Most of you have lost everything—packs, families, honor."
"But so have I."
He raised the Fang of Varok.
"This blade belonged to the first Moon-King. It has tasted Crimson blood again. And it will do so a thousand more times."
He looked each warrior in the eye.
> "I'm not asking for loyalty. I'm demanding vengeance."
One by one, they knelt.
And whispered: "Moonborn."
---
Training the Lost
For days, Kael trained them.
Rane, a mute berserker with obsidian claws, learned to control his rage by battling Kael blindfolded.
Tahlia, a lithe rogue with cursed blood, was taught to channel the poison in her veins into shadow-step strikes.
Vorn and Elric, twin warlocks with wolf ancestry, reforged ancient Moonborn enchantments into armor and blade.
Lina sparred with Sylah daily, mastering precision strikes and defensive tactics.
Kael pushed himself harder than them all.
He didn't just train to win.
He trained to annihilate.
Because he knew… the Crimson Council would not wait forever.
---
Meanwhile – The Enemy Moves
In the ruins of Ravenspire, General Rhaziel stood over the desecrated Blood Registry. Smoke curled from his fists.
"Kieran was weak," he muttered. "He believed the prophecy could be stopped with murder."
Behind him stood the girl—the Cousin—no name spoken.
"I saw the mark," she whispered. "Kael Varos has the flame. But flames can be snuffed out."
Rhaziel turned. "You'll kill him?"
She smiled.
"No. I'll break him. I'll make him kill his own."
---
That Night – A Vision of War
Kael awoke in a cold sweat.
He stood on a battlefield made of bones and ash. The sky above him was blood-red, and across from him stood his cousin—her body drenched in shadows, her eyes devouring stars.
"You think you're a king," she whispered.
"You think fire is strength."
She raised her hand.
A thousand Moonborn stood behind her—dead, their throats torn, their eyes empty.
Kael screamed.
She laughed.
"You'll end them all, Kael. That's the truth of your blood."
---
Dawn – The First War Council
Kael called a meeting.
"The Crimson Council knows we're alive. And they've unleashed something worse than Alphas."
He told them everything—the cousin in the shadows, the dark bloodline that had not been recorded in the Registry.
"A weapon bred to kill us," Kael said. "She's coming."
Tahlia stood. "Then we meet her with fangs."
Sylah crossed her arms. "We meet her with strategy. Rage doesn't win wars."
Lina spoke last. "We meet her with truth."
Kael nodded.
"We gather more. There are others out there—Moonborn who don't know their legacy yet."
He looked out at the forest, wind slicing through the trees like blades.
"We'll find them. Train them. Unite them."
And he whispered:
> "When the storm comes, we'll be ready."