In Leah's dreams, the fire was different.
It was no longer raging in disorder. It had a rhythmic pulse.
a beating heart.
A caution.
A key.
With her eyes closed and the aroma of the moon blossoms filling the air, she sat in the Moon Chamber. She was drenched in silvery light from the skylight. The old vellum scrolls that Gisele had left behind, which contained half-burned incantations and pieces of prophecy written in the Moon Mother's tongue, were beneath her fingers.
Although she could sense the tension building in his chest, Jacob stood watch by the doorway, his presence steady and grounding.
They were pressed for time. The Hollow Alpha became bolder every day, poisoning packs with whispers of despair and turning rogue wolves into mindless thralls.
A vision flashed behind Leah's closed lids, causing her breath to catch.
A tree on fire.
An empty-eyed wolf.
A ring of flames and a symbol in the middle that she had never seen before.
She opened her eyes. Until she discovered it—the same sigil from her vision, etched in crimson wax at the corner of an unopened parchment—her fingers darted across the scrolls, flipping through ripped edges and faded ink.
A crescent moon had a spiral flame coiling inside it.
Jacob took a step forward, his voice low. "What is it?"
With her heart thumping in her ears, Leah gazed at it. "The Sigil of Flame." More ancient than any ritual we have ever employed, it is lunar magic. It was once, in passing, mentioned by Gisele. claimed it was too risky. Too strong.
"Is it able to stop him?"
"It has the ability to seal him," Leah muttered. Or... obliterate him entirely. However, there is a price for it.
Jacob did not recoil. "Yours?"
"No." Her voice broke. "A sacrifice of genuine ancestry." One who was born under the moon and blood
Jacob tensed. "One of our kids?"
"I'm not sure yet. The scroll lacks clarity. It uses riddles to communicate. She channeled her energy by reaching for the pendant of the Moon Mother that was hanging around her neck. The scroll's sigil glowed a low, ember-red as the light flickered.
The room suddenly grew dark. Magic pulsed through the walls. A ghostly voice whispered from the scroll:
"The bearer must awaken the blood within in order to forge the flame."
One heart to control. There is only one bond to burn.
The chosen soul's flame will seal the hollow.
The walls trembled with Jacob's growl. "Our children should not be touched by anyone."
Leah extended her hand to take his. "We might not have an option. However, I will never permit them to suffer harm. I'll find another way if there is one.
The chamber doors opened behind them.
Clad in shadow and silver, Serafina entered with a fierce presence. "I sensed the change. The Sigil of Flame is alive.
With a sudden realization, Leah turned to face her stepdaughter. "You also felt it?"
Serafina gave a nod. I was on patrol when it called to me. There's a fire inside. Luna, it's no longer just your vision. It is spreading.
Alpha, Luna, and Heir stood together for a moment, on the precipice of an ancient awakening.
The war of the Hollow Alpha had started. However, the flame had also been reckoned with.