The silver flames flickered, throwing weird, jumpy shadows over the vault's stone steps as Serena glided down like something straight out of a ghost story. Honestly, she looked like a queen who'd murdered her own crown. Her blade—black as midnight—dripped moonlight. And maybe something a little nastier.
Liora planted her feet, twin daggers out, the glow making her look more statue than human. She wasn't scared, not exactly. Her heart thumped, yeah, but steady. Like she was counting down seconds before the world flipped upside down.
Serena's boots finally hit the floor. "Didn't think you had the guts," she smirked. "Stealing from the Elders? Bleeding for him?"
Liora just stared her down. "He's worth it."
Serena's eyes narrowed to razors. "Think love'll save him?"
"Nope. But truth might."
Serena barked a laugh, sharp enough to cut glass. "You still don't get it. The Council's allergic to truth. All they want is control. And you just gave 'em front-row seats to your own funeral."
Liora shrugged. "Already tried to kill me. Still here, aren't I?"
"Not for long," Serena snarled—and lunged.
Blades crashed, sparks jumping. The whole vault rang with the noise, like some ancient war bell. Liora moved like Serena'd trained her to—only now, every dodge was for Kael, not just herself. For him, for the truth, for a shot at tomorrow.
"You fight like a rebel," Serena spat, blocking a blow. "Wild. Sloppy."
"I fight like someone who actually gives a damn."
Steel flashed, and Serena's arm bled. That did it—her face twisted, full-on rage mode.
"Let's see what you lose, then."
---
Up above, rain hammered the forest. Lightning made Blackridge's ruins look even creepier. Kael and Dante stumbled out of the tunnel, soaked in seconds.
"We gotta move," Dante hissed, yanking on Kael's sleeve.
But Kael stopped dead. "I'm going back."
Dante's eyes bugged. "She told you to run."
"She's alone with Serena. I can't just bail."
"You'll get us both killed! These scrolls—this is how you start a war. With the truth, not a sword."
Kael clenched his jaw, staring into the trees. He could feel Liora—some weird sixth sense—tugging at him, stretched thin but still burning.
Finally, he nodded, voice rough. "Then let's make them listen."
The two of them melted into the storm.
---
Meanwhile, down below, the fight was turning savage.
Liora's shoulder screamed from a fresh cut. Her legs wanted to quit. She kept pushing Serena back, deeper and deeper, away from the stairs, into the vault's dark heart.
Serena's magic ramped up—ice crawling along the stones, turning the floor into a death trap. Slip once and it's over.
"I taught you better than this!" Serena snapped, hurling a spike of ice.
Liora dodged, rolled, popped up behind her, and smashed an elbow into Serena's ribs.
"You taught me to survive."
"Then why the hell are you fighting me?"
"Because you forgot what survival's for."
Serena's face went demonic. "I survived for power. For payback."
Liora's eyes burned. "I survive for freedom."
Serena screamed and charged. They crashed together—daggers slicing, magic cracking stone, blood flying everywhere.
Then—Liora's foot hit ice. She slipped.
One heartbeat.
Serena's blade tore across her side. Liora hit the floor, gasping.
Serena stood over her, sword high. "Goodbye, little wolf."
And then—something howled.
Not Kael. Not even close. This was ancient. Bigger than the vault, bigger than the whole damn mountain.
The stones shook.
Serena froze.
"What—?"
Suddenly, a monstrous wolf, all moonlight and smoke, materialized behind her. Its eyes burned like twin stars.
Serena stumbled back. "No. No, this isn't real."
The guardian was awake.
Liora could barely breathe. "The vault... it protects the truth."
Serena tried to bolt, but the guardian lunged. Didn't even touch her—just passed through. Serena's body twisted, convulsed, something inside her getting yanked out.
She screamed.
And then the dark swallowed her, like she'd never been.
---
Liora lay there, sucking in ragged breaths. The guardian loomed over her, massive and silent.
After a second, she dragged herself up, blood still dripping.
The guardian dipped its head. Not to attack. Like it was bowing.
And then—gone. Melted into the stone.
The silence was deafening.
---
Two days later, everybody was there. The Nine Packs, the Council suits, the whole circus, gathered under the ancient moonstones.
Kael stood in the center, voice steady as hell. "They lied to you. Lied to all of us. The Elders slaughtered innocents, condemned an Alpha without a trial, twisted your trust."
The scrolls—now cracked open, checked by every Seer with a pulse—sat right next to him, shining in the moonlight like they knew they were about to cause trouble.
Dante at his right, Liora at his left. She still wore her bandages like a war medal. Her eyes? Hard as flint.
"You can keep kneeling," Kael said, looking them dead in the eyes. "Or you can get up. Stand with me. Stand with the truth."
The crowd shifted, uncertain. A wave of whispers, like the wind before a storm.
One Alpha swaggered up. Then another.
Come night, seven whole packs—yeah, seven—threw their lot in with Kael. The Council? Coming apart at the seams. Not dead yet, though. Not by a long shot.
Later that night, Liora hung out with Kael on this ragged cliff, stars just sprawled above them.
"Serena?" he said, voice all low.
"Gone. Vault guardian took her." Liora didn't look away from the sky.
"Is she…do you think she's dead?"
She breathed out, shaky. "Nah. She's just…paying up what she owes."
Silence. The kind that hangs heavy.
He finally mumbled, "Wish you hadn't had to deal with her alone."
She shook her head, hand over his heart. "I wasn't alone. You were here." Fingers pressed, warm and real.
He leaned in, their foreheads touching. Close enough to share breath.
"We just kicked off a war, didn't we?"
She grinned, all teeth and fire. "Nah. We started a revolution."
Then—yeah, you can guess—he kissed her. Not rushed. Not desperate. Just…hungry. Like they'd been waiting lifetimes.
And up above, the stars? Might as well have exploded.