Snow settled over the ruined clearing like a shroud.
The Devourer's shadow had retreated, but its presence lingered in the air—cold, metallic, and heavy, as if the forest itself feared breathing again. Trees were reduced to ash. Ice had melted into steaming pits. Wolves lay scattered across the ground, groaning as they regained consciousness.
Aria stood in the center of it all, trembling, supported by Ronan's arms.
Her mark had dimmed to a soft glow, but her body felt hollow—like the power had drained everything inside her.
Ronan held her upright, his arm steady around her waist, his other hand gripping her wrist to shield the mark from the cold.
"Easy," he whispered. "I've got you."
But everyone else stared at her like she wasn't a girl at all—
but a weapon.
Lyra approached slowly, eyes wide, fear and disbelief twisting together.
"She drove it back," she murmured. "A human girl pushed back the Devourer."
Aria swallowed. "I didn't mean to—"
"Didn't mean to?" Lyra echoed. "Aria, you blasted half the clearing apart."
Ronan stepped between them instantly. "You will not speak to her like she's a monster."
Lyra flinched at the anger in his voice. "Ronan, I'm stating the truth. The entire pack heard that explosion."
"And they'll hear what I tell them," Ronan growled.
Lyra opened her mouth to argue—
But a long, low howl echoed through the forest.
Council wolves.
Coming fast.
Ronan stiffened. "They're already here."
Aria's stomach twisted.
"They think I caused all this."
"They don't know what happened," Ronan said. "And they won't decide anything until I speak."
Lyra stepped back as a battalion of armored wolves appeared between the trees—some in human form, others in massive wolf forms, silver fur bristling with tension.
At their front walked Elda Merin, leaning heavily on her glowing staff.
Behind her—six more elders.
Every pair of eyes landed on Aria.
And every expression filled her with dread.
Elda Merin spoke softly, but her voice carried. "Ronan. Aria. Step forward."
Ronan didn't move. Instead, he tightened his hold around Aria.
"We're not answering to you out here," he said. "Not after what just happened."
Elda Merin's gaze softened as she studied Aria. "Child… you're hurt."
Aria shook her head. "I'm fine."
But she wasn't. Her limbs trembled. Her heart raced. And a sharp ache pulsed beneath her ribs.
"It touched you," the elder whispered. "I can feel the shadow lingering on your aura."
Aria shivered. "How do you know?"
"Because the Devourer is older than any of us," Elda Merin said. "Its mark is unmistakable."
Ronan stepped forward, bracing Aria against his chest. "She didn't let it in. She fought it."
Lyra scoffed. "Did she? Or did she only provoke it further?"
Ronan spun on her, teeth clenched. "Lyra—"
"Your devotion blinds you," she snapped.
Aria flinched.
Ronan snarled so fiercely several wolves stepped back. "Say that again."
Lyra's voice trembled. "You're risking Frostfall for someone you barely know!"
"I know enough," Ronan growled, "to know she's innocent."
"Innocent?" Lyra hissed. "She used magic that hasn't existed in centuries! She could've killed every wolf here."
"And she saved them instead," Ronan shot back.
Silence fell.
The wind howled softly.
Elda Merin stepped forward, raising a hand. "Enough. We are not here to argue. We are here to understand."
Her eyes met Aria's gently.
"What happened, child?"
Aria swallowed thickly. "It… touched my mind."
Ronan stiffened beside her.
Lyra's breath caught. "It spoke to you?"
Aria nodded.
Elda Merin whispered, "What did it say?"
Aria trembled. "It called me Moonbreaker."
Gasps rippled through the wolves.
Some stepped back.
Some pointed whispering nervously.
And a few stared at Aria with open horror.
Lyra's face went pale.
"The Moonbreaker?" she whispered. "Ronan… you knew."
Ronan didn't deny it.
Lyra stared at him, betrayed. "You lied to us."
"I protected her," Ronan said simply.
Elda Merin raised her staff. "The Devourer does not speak names lightly. If it called you Moonbreaker… then prophecy has begun."
Aria's knees weakened. Ronan steadied her.
"What does that mean?" Aria whispered.
Elda Merin hesitated, then spoke softly.
"It means your awakening has accelerated beyond our understanding. And it means the Devourer fears what you will become."
Lyra's eyes hardened. "Or it wants her to become it."
Ronan snapped, "Lyra—enough."
But Lyra didn't stop.
"You all saw what happened!" she shouted. "She unleashed a blast powerful enough to flatten an army! What if the Devourer is manipulating her? What if it's using her awakening to gain strength?"
Aria's throat tightened. "I'm not working with it—"
Lyra cut her off. "How do we know?"
Ronan stepped in front of Aria, voice deadly calm. "If you accuse her again, you answer to me."
Lyra scoffed. "You're choosing her over your pack."
"No," Ronan said. "I'm choosing the truth."
"And what is that truth?" Lyra demanded.
Aria stepped out from behind Ronan before he could stop her.
Everyone fell silent as she forced herself forward on shaking legs.
"The truth," Aria said softly, "is that I saw the First Luna."
Ronan froze.
Lyra blinked. "What?"
Elda Merin steadied herself on her staff. "Child… repeat that."
Aria swallowed. "When the Devourer hit me, I fell into some kind of… light. A vision. A place between worlds."
Elda Merin's voice quivered. "And the First Luna appeared to you?"
"Yes," Aria whispered. "She touched my mark. She… awakened it."
A ripple of disbelief swept through the wolves.
"That's impossible—"
"No one has seen the First Luna in millennia—"
"She can't be telling the truth—"
Ronan silenced them all. "Let her finish."
Aria continued, "She told me the Devourer wants me because I'm the only one who can stop it. And that only the Moonbreaker can end it forever."
Elda Merin bowed her head. "Then prophecy has returned."
Lyra's eyes burned with fear. "You expect us to trust her after hearing that? She's too powerful! Too unpredictable!"
Ronan stepped forward, voice shaking with fury. "She's the only reason any of you are alive. That creature would've consumed the clearing if she hadn't pushed it back."
Elda Merin nodded. "This is true."
Lyra looked around wildly. "Then we must take her into custody before her awakening destroys Frostfall."
Aria froze.
Ronan's voice dropped to a whisper of rage. "You're not touching her."
"She just admitted she's the Moonbreaker!" Lyra shouted. "That's more than enough reason!"
Aria shook, feeling hopeless. "I didn't choose this. I didn't want this."
Lyra pointed at her. "But destiny chose you. And that makes you dangerous."
Ronan growled, voice cracking like thunder. "She is. Not. Dangerous."
Lyra turned on him. "Your judgment is compromised."
"And yours is corrupted by fear," Ronan shot back.
Elda Merin tapped her staff sharply. "Enough!"
Everyone fell silent.
The elder looked at Aria—really looked at her, not as a weapon, not as a prophecy, but as a trembling girl caught in something far beyond her control.
Finally, she spoke.
"Aria Hale must come with us," Elda Merin said softly. "Not as a prisoner… but as a Moonborn under supervision."
Ronan stepped forward. "No."
Lyra snarled. "If she does not come willingly, she will be taken."
Ronan pulled Aria behind him. "Try."
A dozen wolves shifted into their wolf forms instantly—massive, silver-furred beasts with glowing eyes.
Aria's pulse spiked.
Ronan growled, fur rippling along his arms as he half-shifted. "Stand. Down."
But none of them did.
Elda Merin's voice trembled. "Ronan… please. Don't make this war."
Ronan answered without hesitation.
"You made it war the moment you threatened her."
Aria grabbed his arm desperately. "No—Ronan—stop—"
The forest wind rose, swirling violently around them.
The Devourer's whisper echoed faintly in the distance.
The wolves tensed.
And Ronan lifted his head, eyes glowing bright blue, voice ice and fire all at once.
"She. Stays. With. Me."