Rachel's POV
"I need answers," I said, my voice more forceful than I felt. Having travelled this far, there was no turning back now. The weight of everything, the prophecy, the cult, Luka and Mika, was just too much. I had to know what role I played in this perverse fate. Seraphina's dark eyes watched me, and for a brief moment, I thought she could see directly through me. Not for a long time did she talk; she allowed the quiet between us extend until I believed I may suffocate in it. "You already know part of the truth," she whispered at last, her voice low and controlled, like a whispering breeze before a storm. "The components are all over the place. You're not just anybody, Rachel. You are the lunar one. The one who will bring the Alpha Kings together and guide them against the cult. The words struck me like a punch. I rocked, my mind spinning. Luna? I said again, my voice weak. What does that even imply? How can I guide kids when I'm hardly holding it together? Rising from her chair, Seraphina approached me with ease, her movements flowing like the shadows that appeared to cling to her. "The Luna is not a title given lightly," she said. It is the one selected to bear the fate of the Packs. The key is your relationship with the Alpha Kings. Your strength will either save or kill them. Her remarks left me shaking my head in an effort to understand. The cult? I said, my throat parched. "Where do they fit in all of this?" She hesitated, her eyes darkening with something old that awakened a great dread in my chest. The cult will do all in its power to control you. Your existence is now linked to the destiny of the Packs. You have to decide shortly which route to take. I could feel it now, the power alive and humming under my skin like electricity running through my veins. It came in bursts, times when I felt a rush of heat, when my emotions spiked and something inside me broke open. The first time it occurred, I believed I was going crazy. But now? I now was aware. Walking down the corridor, a rush of energy from deep inside me struck once more. A brilliant burst of light ignited in my eyes, causing me to stumble and my head to spin. A sharp chill rushed down my back, but I couldn't concentrate on it. My heartbeat rising, my hands trembling. Mika's voice interrupted my musings, "You're not just any woman, Rachel." Though I hadn't seen him there, his presence was unavoidably felt. He looked at me with what seemed like amazement, but there was also something more I couldn't exactly identify. I turned to look at him and noticed it, the change in him. The spark of awareness. Deep within, he understood what was occurring and what was awakening. "You're more than I ever imagined," he whispered quietly but with an intensity I couldn't ignore. "We are connected." I was unaware of its meaning. Did not know how to deal with the consequences. But I felt it, the inescapable tug between us. The link that was strengthening with every passing moment. "Bound together," I said, savouring the words on my tongue like something sweet and hazardous. The tension between us left me unsure of how much longer I could endure it. Between me and Luka, me and Mika, and all the other stuff I was beginning to grasp regarding my fate. It was overwhelming. It was excessive. Luka, though, was not going to let me back out now. His gaze and speech suggested to me that he knew more than he was giving on. He moved closer every time I attempted to withdraw. He trapped me in the library, his eyes dark with something unfathomable but not rage. It was anything else. "You have to accept it, Rachel," he replied, his voice low and forceful. You cannot keep escaping from your identity. Your fate is this. You are the lunar. I stepped back, shaking my head. I didn't request this. I don't want it. Luka refused to give in. He came closer, his presence overpowering. Reaching for me, his fingers brushed across mine and for a little minute I was consumed by the intensity of his touch. "You have no option," he replied, his voice tense with something I couldn't quite identify. You will determine the future of all the Packs. I was breathless. I was unable to think. The words, the strain, it was all too much to handle. But I was aware of one thing for sure: I wasn't only being drawn in by the cult or by fate. Luka and Mika were drawing me in as well. The worst part was not knowing whether I still wanted to battle it. Luka's hold on my hand grew tighter; his warmth was seeping throughout me. "Trust us, Rachel," he said. And for the first time, I questioned whether I could. Luka stood to my left, his presence always with me, but his attention was on the other Alphas, not on me. Mika, who stood opposite him, was quieter than normal and his eyes darted between me and the others with unusual intensity. The room felt tense as if we were all waiting for something but none of us knew exactly what. Luka started, his voice commanding everyone to hush, "We have come here for one reason." The cult is gaining more influence. They will spare no effort to dominate us. Rachel is at the core of their strategy, hence we have to band together to oppose them. I stood still, not knowing what to say or do. The reality of my involvement in this had begun to sink in, but hearing them discuss me as though I were a weapon, something to be used, made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Luka's eyes met mine; his fierce stare stayed fixed on me. Mika's voice turned frigid as he remarked, "You're the key, Rachel." You have the strength they desire. We have to be the ones who control it, hence we must ensure that. I was unable to breathe. The realisation struck me like a wave: They see me as a tool. A weapon to be directed. I just then noticed the shadow shifting. In the corner of the room, a figure shrouded in shadow stood calmly watching us with a sharp look. My heart leapt. The figure's voice was low, a whisper almost undetectable to the rest of the room. "The Luna must not be allowed to control them," it said quietly, its voice dripping with hatred. Every day I sensed something inside of me coming alive. A force I could neither control nor stop was growing to be part of me, twisting with every passing second. Though it was frightening, the excitement running through my veins was exhilarating. I didn't know how long I could last before it really engulfed me. Sitting on the edge of my bed, breathing heavily and hands shaking, I looked at the wall in front of me. In my ears, my heartbeat thumped. I was losing command. Power within me throbbed in the air, rippling through the actual ground under me. It felt as though an electric current was rushing through my body, rising and intensifying, and I had no means to stop it. I said to myself, "Concentrate." I have to pay attention. But no matter how much I concentrated, my ideas kept drifting away and the wave of energy threatened to burst free. It had been occurring more and more lately, when I was angry, when I was terrified, when I was too near Luka or Mika; I felt it expanding, pushing against my will. Trying to calm myself, I held onto the side of the bed; the air crackled with energy and then it happened like an explosion. The walls creaked with force as everything in my room moved. The floor under me shook like though I were perched on the edge of a cliff. Though I tried to focus, I couldn't open my eyes. A flash of flames, my parents' demise, suddenly burst into my head. The blood, the screams, the terror; I suddenly saw it so plainly. Then it was me. Surrounded by fire, I stood there in my mother's place. I stopped in my chest. I'm turning my mother. A cold dread oozing into my bones took over the fear. Though the vision remained, my chest clenched and I struggled for air. Terrified of what was happening to me, I fell backward and the earth under me shook even more violently. "I'm not her," I said softly, my voice shaking. I am not her...