The silver liquid cradled Kael like a second womb.
Elara knelt at the edge of the Moon Pool, her hand hovering above the surface, watching the light play across his features. His wounds had closed—she could see that much. The gashes on his chest knitting together, the bruises fading, the pallor of death retreating from his skin.
But he hadn't opened his eyes.
Not since she'd pulled him through the throne's magic. Not since they'd lowered him into the healing waters.
"How long?" she asked without looking away from him.
Morwenna stood behind her, ancient and patient. "As long as he needs. The Moon Pool doesn't rush. It completes."
"And if he needs longer than we have?" Dace's voice came from the shadows near the door. "The Blood Moon is in two days. The master is hunting. We don't have time for completion."
"We have exactly as much time as the Moon gives us." Morwenna's voice held no room for argument. "Rushing healing kills as often as wounds do."
Elara's jaw tightened. She understood. She even agreed.
But watching Kael float in that silver light, so still, so quiet—it was agony.
Through the bond, she could feel him. Faint pulses of warmth, of presence, of life. But no words. No thoughts. Just... existence.
Come back to me, she thought toward him. Please. I need you.
The warmth pulsed. Did it grow stronger? She couldn't tell.
She stayed by the pool.
---
Hours passed.
Dace eventually left to explore the palace, his curiosity overcoming his caution. Morwenna brought food—simple bread and water, but it tasted like ambrosia to Elara's exhausted body. She ate without tasting, her eyes never leaving Kael.
"He's your mate." Morwenna's voice was soft as she settled beside Elara. "Not just the wolf you've chosen—your fated one. The one the Moon marked for you before either of you drew breath."
Elara nodded slowly. "I've known. For a while now. The seal wouldn't let me say it, but I've known."
"The seal tests worthiness. It doesn't prevent knowing." Morwenna's ancient eyes studied her. "What do you know of your mate's heart?"
Everything. Nothing.
"He rejected me." The words still hurt, even now. "Publicly. Cruelly. He said the Moon Goddess made a mistake."
"And now?"
Elara watched Kael's face, peaceful in the silver light. "Now he's fought for me. Killed for me. Nearly died for me. He's chosen me, again and again, even without understanding why."
"Then he's passed the first test." Morwenna nodded slowly. "Instinct is easy. Wolves are born knowing they must protect their mates. But choice—choosing someone despite rejection, despite uncertainty, despite the risk of looking weak—that's harder. That's worthy."
"The first test? There are more?"
"Three tests." Morwenna held up three fingers. "Instinct—which he's passed. Sacrifice—which he's passing now, lying in that pool because he stayed behind to save you. And—" She paused. "And surrender."
Surrender.
Elara thought of the dreams she'd had. Kael on his knees before her. Offering everything.
"He has to kneel," she whispered. "The journal said—he has to kneel."
"The ultimate test for an Alpha." Morwenna's voice was gentle. "To surrender his pride. His position. His very identity as the one in power. To kneel before his mate not as a wolf submitting to higher rank, but as a man offering his heart." She looked at Kael. "That's the test the seal waits for. That's what makes a mate worthy."
He'll do it, Elara thought fiercely. I know he will.
But doubt whispered in the back of her mind.
Will he? When the moment comes? When he has to choose between his pride and me?
She didn't know.
She could only wait.
---
The pool began to glow brighter as night fell.
Morwenna noticed first. Her ancient eyes widened, fixed on the silver liquid. "Something's happening. The pool is responding to something."
Elara leaned forward. "Is it Kael? Is he—"
Kael's eyes opened.
Silver. Blazing. Alive.
He sat up in the pool, water streaming from his skin, his gaze finding Elara immediately. For one breathless moment, he simply stared at her.
Then he climbed out of the pool and pulled her into his arms.
"I felt you." His voice was rough, desperate against her hair. "Through the bond. Pulling me back. Holding me here. I felt you."
Elara clung to him, tears streaming. "You were gone so long. I thought—I thought—"
"I know." He pulled back just enough to look at her. "I could feel you thinking it. Could feel your fear. Your hope. Your—" He stopped. Swallowed. "Your love."
The word hung between them.
Elara's heart stopped.
"I felt it," Kael continued, his voice wondering. "In the darkness, when I couldn't move, couldn't speak, couldn't do anything except exist—I felt you loving me. And it pulled me back." He touched her face. "Your love pulled me back."
He felt it. Through the bond. He knows.
Elara's marks blazed.
"Kael." Her voice shook. "There's so much I need to tell you. Things I couldn't say before. The seal—"
"I know." His silver eyes held hers. "I know you're not human. I know the marks mean something. I know you're connected to this place, to this palace, to—" He looked around at the ancient stone, the glowing pool, the watching Morwenna. "To all of this."
"You know?"
"I've had time to think. Lying in that pool, healing, feeling you through the bond—I've had time to piece things together." He cupped her face in his hands. "You're the Silver heir, aren't you? The last of the royal line. The one the prophecies talk about."
Tears spilled down Elara's cheeks. "Yes."
"And I'm your mate." His voice was steady. "Fated. Chosen. Bound."
"Yes."
"The Moon Goddess didn't make a mistake when she matched us at the ceremony." His jaw tightened. "I made a mistake. By being too weak to sense you. Too proud to see you. Too blind to recognize what was right in front of me."
"Kael—"
"I rejected my mate." The words seemed to cost him everything. "I called you nothing. I wished you dead. And you—" His voice broke. "You loved me anyway. You waited for me to become worthy. You pulled me back from death."
Elara reached up, touched his face. "Because you're mine. You've always been mine. Even when you didn't know it. Even when I couldn't say it."
Kael stared at her for a long moment.
Then, slowly, he lowered himself to his knees.
---
Elara's breath caught.
Kael knelt before her on the ancient stone, his silver eyes raised to hers, vulnerability etched into every line of his face.
"I don't know if I'm worthy." His voice was rough. "I don't know if the seal will accept me. I don't know if I've passed whatever tests the Moon has set for me. But I know this—" He took her hands. "I choose you. Not because the bond demands it. Not because my wolf screams for it. Because I do. Because you're brave and strong and beautiful and you've survived things that would have broken anyone else. Because you loved me when I gave you every reason not to. Because—" He stopped. Swallowed. "Because you're my home. You've been my home since the moment I met you, even when I was too stupid to realize it."
Elara couldn't breathe. Couldn't speak. Could only stare at this Alpha—this proud, powerful, fierce man—kneeling before her like she was the most precious thing in the world.
"The seal," she managed. "It's waiting for this. For you to choose me freely. For you to—"
"I know." He squeezed her hands. "I felt it. In the pool. The seal was there, watching, testing. Every moment of healing, it asked me questions. Would I fight for you? Would I die for you? Would I kneel for you?" His eyes never left hers. "And the answer was always yes. Always yes."
Elara's marks exploded with light.
---
The silver lines that covered her body blazed like miniature suns. Power surged through her—hot, wild, alive—and she gasped, clutching Kael's hands as the world tilted around her.
Morwenna's voice came from somewhere distant. "The seal is recognizing his worthiness. It's beginning to release. But the Blood Moon is still two days away—if it breaks too soon—"
"Then we hold it." Kael's voice was fierce. He rose from his knees, pulling Elara against him, wrapping himself around her like a shield. "Elara, focus on me. Focus on the bond. We'll hold it together."
She clung to him. The power surged, demanding release, demanding freedom—but Kael was there, his presence a anchor, his love a chain that kept her tethered to the world.
Stay with me, she thought toward him. Don't let go.
Never. His response was immediate, fierce. I'm yours. You're mine. We hold.
The power surged again.
And then, slowly, it began to settle.
---
When Elara finally opened her eyes, the marks on her arms had changed.
They were still silver—brighter than before, more intricate—but now they seemed finished. Complete. Like a puzzle whose final piece had clicked into place.
Morwenna approached carefully, wonder in her ancient eyes. "The seal hasn't broken. But it's recognized him. Accepted him." She looked at Kael with new respect. "You're worthy, Alpha. The seal has declared it."
Kael's arms tightened around Elara. "Then the Blood Moon—"
"Will still break the seal fully. But now, with your bond anchoring her, she'll survive it." Morwenna smiled through her tears. "The heir will live. The line continues."
Elara looked at Kael. At his silver eyes, so like her own. At the love shining there, fierce and certain.
"The Blood Moon is in two days," she said quietly. "And the master is hunting. He'll find us before then. He has my blood."
Kael's jaw tightened. "Then we'll be ready. We'll fight."
"We'll need help." Dace's voice came from the doorway. He'd returned at some point, witnessed Kael's kneeling, seen the marks blaze. His face was pale but determined. "The master won't come alone. He'll bring an army. We need to rally the packs—make them remember their loyalty to the Silver Crown."
"The packs abandoned the Crown," Morwenna said bitterly. "They stood by during the massacre. They won't fight for her now."
"Some won't." Dace's eyes met Elara's. "But some will. The ones who remember. The ones who've been waiting for this moment as long as we have."
Elara thought of Thorne, back at Blackthorn. Of Marta, the omega who'd lost her daughter. Of Lyra and Cassian, who'd fought beside Kael. Of all the wolves who'd shown her kindness when they could have turned away.
Maybe, she thought. Maybe not all hope is lost.
Kael spoke quietly. "Two days. We have two days to prepare. To rally whoever will come. To fortify this palace and make it a fortress." He looked at Elara. "And to make sure you're ready for what comes next."
"What comes next?"
He touched her face. "You become queen."
---
End of Chapter 16🐺