THE FORSAKEN LUNA'S JOURNEY

nd I ventured deeper into the sprawling wilderness. Evergreen boughs whispered their farewells overhead, the scents of

landscape, forever etched into my psyche from a lifetime of roaming these ancient hunting grounds, retreated with each heavy mile placed between my former hom

betrayal and bitter injustice. Victor's words carved from whetted steel still rang m

extend my nails into razored crescents, to give physical form to the rancour roiling in my veins. Some primal part of me thirsted

before it could fully take root. His face was unreadable in profile, but I could sense the si

a blink of an eye lost to the momentum of motion, he spo

racteristically br

ity of our typical banter, the comforting rapport forged over a kinship deeper than mere friendship. Befor

procate, the words emer

faith and allegiance in," I began, the ache of Victor's betrayal lending my tone an edg

coloring my words. The steady cadence of his strides beside me remained unwavering

you've suffered," he replied at length. "Every instinct ingrained in me by birth

ge that hinted at a profoundly solemn unders

y oaths as sacred as the celestial bodies watching over us." He dropped his gaze to mine then, hazel eyes luminous and

is convictions. But gradually, the talons of rage loosened the

iage of justice I had endured at Victor's hand. Nor would lashing out thoughtlessly uphold the s

engeance until I could gaze upon the path stretched out before us with fresh ey

cs, Ethan's adherence to the oldest tenets of our heritage was unwavering. It was a quality I had always admired, even mocked on occasion as pups romping t

ther or not at all. I would harbor no more illusions about my unfortunate plight - the slate had been wiped clean, my destiny t

e would be forged by my own inner convictions rather than the

et stone accompanying our footfalls. Ethan was correct - the path ahead would

to reveal a new, uncharted skin greedily soaking in the unfamiliar sensations and scents of the verdant vistas lying

ide. I was Selene, once-healer Nightshade, reborn

stride over the pliant mulch of the forest loam. It

of exile. It was the birth

ding rays slanting in buttery shafts through the canopy overhead

me from life, but rather, freed

nally unshackled to embrace it. And embrace it I would with every

wood roused me back to full wakefulness. For several paces now, the prickling sen

ambiance of our serene surroundings. Ethan, with his own innate predator's instincts heighte

ears - too measured and deliberate to be attributed to the fores

r, obscuring my form for a split second before Ethan moved to flank

line coalesced into the barrel of a slee

feral it stung at my senses. The shape of a man was all but lost amidst the towering bulk of woven