The Nightveil border was guarded by elite warriors.
At least… it used to be.
Now, they were sprawled across the forest floor—unconscious, bleeding, groaning in confusion. Not dead. Not yet.
Because Nyra Vale wasn't here to kill them.
Not unless they got in her way.
She stood over the last guard, watching his chest rise and fall with ragged breaths. Her hood was still up, but the glow from her eyes flickered through the shadows like wildfire trapped in ice.
"Tell Kael," she whispered, crouching beside him, "his past is walking."
Then she vanished into the trees.
⸻
Nightveil Village – Council Hall
Alpha Kael Duskbane stood with arms folded, gazing out the arched window of the High Tower. His jaw clenched as his Beta, Jaren, entered behind him, panting.
"They found the guards," Jaren said. "Unconscious. No scent trail. No witnesses."
Kael didn't move.
"She left a message."
Now Kael turned.
Jaren swallowed. "She said… 'his past is walking.'"
The temperature in the room dropped.
"She's alive," Kael murmured. "After all this time…"
"Do you want her caught?"
Kael closed his eyes. He remembered the fire in hers that night—no tears, no begging. Just rage. She hadn't begged for him to stay.
She warned him he'd regret it.
Now he did.
But regret didn't stop wars.
"Find her," he ordered. "Quietly. If the Council learns she survived the exchange with Bloodfang—"
"She'll destroy everything we've built," Jaren finished.
Kael didn't respond.
Because he knew.
Nyra wasn't coming back for closure.
She was coming back for vengeance.
⸻
Forest Path – Just Before Midnight
Nyra moved like mist. Her cloak danced with every step, woven from shadow and stitched with bone charms—Bloodfang relics she'd taken after she escaped their dungeon. Each one a reminder of who she used to be… and who she had become.
Her magic whispered beneath her skin, itching to be unleashed.
And yet, she paused.
Ahead, glowing softly in the dark, was the old Lunar Well. The one she and Kael used to meet at before he became Alpha.
Before he became a liar.
She moved closer. The scent of wild jasmine lingered in the air. Her memory triggered—
A kiss.
A promise.
A lie.
"You'll always be mine," he once whispered against her throat.
"Then claim me," she had replied.
He never did.
And now? He would never get the chance.
She reached into her cloak and pulled out a thin, cracked vial. Inside: ashes.
She poured them into the well.
The magic sizzled. The runes around the well lit up, humming.
Suddenly, she wasn't alone.
"You shouldn't have come back," a familiar voice growled behind her.
Nyra turned slowly.
Kael's younger brother—Lorien.
Golden-eyed. Smarter than Kael. Deadlier. And, unlike his brother, Lorien had always seen her for what she was: a threat.
"You're on sacred ground," he said, drawing a blade etched with Alpha runes.
"And you're still playing lapdog to a coward," she replied, stepping into the moonlight.
His grip on the blade tightened. "You don't belong here."
"Neither does your brother on that throne."
He lunged. She ducked.
The fight was fast, brutal. Blade against claw. Spell against strength. Trees cracked. Dirt flew. Moonlight shattered across magic.
Finally, she pinned him—her dagger at his throat.
"I'm not here for him," she hissed. "Not yet."
"Then what—?"
Nyra leaned in close. Her lips brushed his ear.
"I came to wake the grave."
She knocked him out cold.
⸻
Elsewhere – Council Chamber
Meanwhile, Kael stood before the Council of Elders, unaware of the chaos blooming on his doorstep.
"We've had reports," Elder Marek said. "Whispers of Nyra Vale."
"She's dead," Kael lied smoothly. "Executed by Bloodfang."
Another Elder narrowed her eyes. "Then why are the border wards failing? Why did the blood moon flicker last night?"
Kael didn't answer.
Instead, his gaze shifted to the shadows near the door.
For just a second… he thought he saw her standing there.
Watching.
Waiting.
Gone.
⸻
Forest – Cave of Echoes
Nyra entered the cavern, her cloak soaked in dew and blood. She knelt at the altar, lighting the ancient sigils.
The ground rumbled.
A whisper echoed: "You seek the truth."
Nyra didn't flinch. "I seek retribution."
A figure formed in the mist—horned, feminine, glowing like fire and frost.
The Moonshade Spirit.
"Very well, daughter of fury," the spirit said. "But the truth comes with a price."
"I've paid it."
"Not yet."
Lightning cracked outside.
"You were betrayed," the spirit said, "but betrayal runs deeper than Kael."
Nyra's eyes narrowed. "Speak."
The spirit extended a hand.
And as Nyra touched it—visions consumed her.
Flashes. Screams. Blood. A voice she hadn't heard in a year.
"He never planned to claim you."
Her body convulsed. Her claws extended.
Kael wasn't the only one behind her betrayal.
The Council knew.
And worse… her own blood might have played a part.