MOONBOUND HEARTS
Chapter Six — The Crimson Hunt
Night fell heavy over the valley, and the moon rose larger than Mara had ever seen it—red as blood and edged with silver fire. The air itself seemed to vibrate.
They had climbed for hours through the narrow pass that cut across the ridge. Below them, the forest stretched like a black sea, unbroken except for faint trails of smoke curling from the ruins far ahead.
"That's where he'll be," Luca said. "The Alpha waits at the heart of the old temple."
Mara pulled her jacket tighter. "How can you be sure?"
"I can feel him," he said simply. "Every wolf can. The closer we get, the stronger the pull."
She glanced sideways at him. Even in the faint light, she could see the strain on his face—the shadow of something pressing against his control. "You're changing," she said quietly.
Luca didn't deny it. "The moon doesn't ask permission. I can hold it back for a while, but not forever."
They reached a narrow clearing, the ground covered in ash and broken stone. The remains of pillars jutted upward like ribs from the earth.
"This used to be a sanctuary," Luca said. "Before the Alpha turned it into a hunting ground."
Mara knelt beside one of the stones. Strange markings were carved into its surface—circles within circles, each line precise and old. When she brushed away the dirt, faint light shimmered across them.
"It's the same symbol from the caves," she said.
Luca crouched beside her, scanning the carvings. "They're ward marks—boundaries between packs. The Alpha's power extends beyond them now."
A sharp sound cut through the silence—a howl, closer this time, carried by the wind. Then another.
"They've started the hunt," Luca said grimly. "He's calling the others to test the marked one. To see if you survive."
"Test?"
"You're not prey," he said. "You're proof."
The howls grew louder, echoing from every direction. Shadows moved through the trees—fast, fluid, inhuman. Mara's heartbeat quickened.
"What do we do?" she whispered.
Luca drew a curved blade from his belt, its metal etched with runes that glowed faintly. "We run for the temple. Once we reach the circle, they can't touch you until the Alpha decides."
"And if we don't make it?"
He looked at her then, eyes already shifting to gold. "Then we fight."
The first wolf burst from the trees, eyes blazing, claws raking the dirt.
Luca stepped forward, his voice low and steady. "Stay behind me."
The creature lunged, a blur of teeth and fur. Luca met it mid-air; the clash cracked through the forest like thunder. His blade caught the moonlight as he swung, sparks flying where metal met claw. The wolf shrieked and vanished back into the trees.
"Move!" he barked.
Mara ran. Branches whipped her arms as she pushed through the undergrowth. Behind her came the crash of pursuit—the pack moving in rhythm, howls layering one over another. The red glow of the moon lit everything in strange shades, turning the forest into a maze of fire and shadow.
"Left!" Luca's voice echoed. She veered toward a ridge where the ground dropped steeply. Below, she glimpsed the ruins of the temple: a ring of broken pillars surrounding a black stone altar. The air shimmered above it like heat over sand.
Another wolf broke through the brush ahead of her. Its eyes were pale, almost blind, yet it moved with frightening precision. Mara stumbled backward. Luca appeared between them, shifting so fast she barely saw it—his body a blur of muscle and motion. He struck once, twice; the wolf fell and did not rise.
"They're driving us toward the clearing," he said, panting. "He wants us inside the circle."
The ground trembled as more shapes closed in. The sound of their growls merged with the wind, an endless chorus that seemed to fill the night.
"Why not fight them all here?" Mara shouted.
"Because this isn't a battle," Luca said grimly. "It's a summons."
They reached the ridge's edge. The drop was steep, but the slope below led straight into the temple's center. Luca glanced once at the horizon—the Blood Moon now hung directly above, bleeding its color into the clouds.
"No turning back," he said.
Together they slid down the slope. Dust rose around them, glowing red in the moonlight. When they reached the bottom, the air grew cold—unnaturally cold. The forest noise stopped completely.
The altar pulsed faintly, as though a heart beat inside it.
Mara's mark began to burn again, bright silver against her skin. She winced. "Luca, it's reacting—"
He turned to her, eyes wide. "He's here."
The shadows beyond the temple stirred. Out of the darkness stepped a figure taller than any of the wolves they'd faced. His hair was white as bone, his eyes burning with crimson light. He wore no expression, only the calm certainty of a predator that had already won.
"Child of the Moon," the Alpha said, his voice deep enough to shake the stones, "you've come to claim what's yours."
Mara couldn't move. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears.
Luca shifted his stance, blade ready. "She came to end it."
The Alpha smiled faintly. "Then let the hunt decide who the forest truly serves."
The wind roared through the ruins. Every torch along the circle ignited at once, bathing the clearing in firelight.
And as the Blood Moon reached its zenith, the world around them burst into motion—howls, light, and fury blending into one.
To be continued...