Luna POV
The council room was falling apart.
Warriors moved through the space carrying chairs and tables and weapons. Someone knocked over a stack of documents and cursed. Someone else was arguing about whether water pitchers should go left or right. It smelled like sweat and fear and too many bodies packed tight.
Luna watched from the doorway.
She should jump in and help. As Beta, organizing this was her job. But something in her chest felt off. Like the air before a storm. Her wolf was restless. Sharper. Like it was waiting for something specific.
"Luna, can you fix the chairs?" Garrett called out. He looked stressed, his face red, his hands gripping a chair like it might attack him. "Marcus wants them positioned so we can see any Dark Moon movement before they react."
Luna nodded and moved into the room. The long table ran down the center. Chairs on both sides. High stone ceilings. No windows except the ones overlooking the forest. Strategic. Defensible.
She gestured to the warriors and they started moving things around. Every second mattered in a space like this. Every detail sent a message. Strength or weakness. Confidence or fear. Readiness or desperation.
Everyone in Silverwood knew that Dark Moon was stronger. Faster. More ruthless. Everyone had heard the stories about Kade. The way he took over a pack by being more brutal than anyone else was willing to be. The way he ruled through fear instead of loyalty. The way his pack followed him because they were terrified of what would happen if they didn't.
What most of the pack didn't know was that Marcus was scared.
Luna could smell it on him. Could see it in his shoulders sitting tighter than usual. Marcus had been Alpha for twenty years. He'd survived pack wars and territory disputes and every kind of conflict imaginable.
But he was scared now.
That scared Luna more than anything else could.
Luna positioned the last chair and straightened up, surveying the room. It looked ready. Everything was in place. Everything was as prepared as it could be for whatever was about to happen.
"Come here," Marcus said. His voice cut through the noise in the room, making everyone turn to look at him.
Luna followed him into the side chamber that connected to the council room. It was quieter in here. More private. Marcus closed the door behind them and Luna felt something shift inside her. This wasn't a normal conversation. This was something bigger.
"I need you to listen," Marcus said. He wasn't looking at her. He was looking out the small window toward the forest, like he could see things coming toward them through the trees. "And I need you to trust me on this."
Luna's stomach dropped.
Marcus was the one who had taught her to control her instincts. The one who had shown her how to turn rage into strategy. The one who believed in doing things with honor instead of brutality. He was also the one who had never, in five years, asked her to be ruthless.
Until right now.
"Watch the Dark Moon delegation carefully," he said, turning to face her. His eyes were darker. "Watch for anything. Everything. Who they look at. How they position themselves. Weakness. Aggression. I need to know what Kade really wants."
"What's actually happening here?" Luna asked. She kept her voice steady but her insides were loud with questions.
"Peace talks," Marcus said. "That's what Kade is calling it anyway."
"And what are you calling it?"
Marcus took a long moment before answering. Like he was deciding how much truth she could handle. Like he was weighing the consequences of telling her versus keeping her in the dark.
"A test," he finally said. "Kade's testing us. Testing our strength. Testing if we're worth keeping as neighbors or if he should crush us while he has the chance."
Luna's hands tightened into fists at her sides.
"He's been gathering power," Marcus continued. "Other packs have been moving closer to his territory. Making alliances with Dark Moon. Wolves changing their loyalties because they see which way the wind is blowing. It's only a matter of time before Kade decides he wants more than what he has."
"So he's coming here to see if we'll break," Luna said. She understood now. This wasn't a negotiation at all. This was Kade pushing to find the cracks in Silverwood's foundation. This was him testing whether they were strong enough to stand or weak enough to fold.
"He wants to know if we're strong enough to stand or if we'll fold the second he applies pressure," Marcus said. "I need you at that table. Sharp. Reading everything. Ready to protect this pack if things go wrong."
"They won't," Luna said automatically.
"You don't know that," Marcus replied. His voice was soft but it hit hard. "None of us do. What I know is that I trust you. What I know is that if anyone can keep Silverwood safe today, it's you."
He put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed once. Hard enough to be real. Hard enough to mean something.
"Can you do this?" he asked.
Luna looked him in the eye. She thought about her restlessness. About the way something was coming and she could feel it in her bones. About the way her wolf had been strange for weeks like it knew something was about to happen.
"I can do this," she said.
"Your voice stays steady in that room," Marcus said. "Your face stays controlled. No emotion. No reaction. Let them think you're ice. Let them think Silverwood doesn't feel fear."
"I understand."
"I know you do," Marcus said. He released her shoulder. "That's why you're Beta."
They walked back into the council room. Everything was positioned perfectly. Every warrior knew their role. Every detail had been planned and executed. Luna took her seat next to where Marcus would sit. This was her place. This was what she'd trained five years to do.
A younger warrior burst through the doors. His face was flushed. His breathing was hard.
"Dark Moon pack entered our territory," he said. His voice shook slightly despite his obvious effort to control it. "South forest route. They're moving fast. Like they're not trying to hide or be polite about it."
Luna's body went rigid.
The south forest was the longest way in. It meant they were coming through the heart of Silverwood territory. It meant they weren't being subtle. It meant they were announcing their arrival without apologizing.
"How many?" Marcus asked, calm as stone.
"Five warriors. Maybe six. It's hard to count when they're moving through the trees, but they move like they own the land."
Marcus nodded like he'd expected this. Like he'd known something she wasn't understanding.
"And who leads them?" Marcus asked.
The sentry hesitated. He looked at Luna then away. Like he was afraid of what he'd seen.
"Someone new," he finally said. "We've never seen him before. But he's different. He moves like death walking. Like he doesn't know how to be anything except lethal."
Something twisted in Luna's chest.
"They'll be here in minutes," the sentry finished. "Maybe less. They're running."
Marcus nodded to the warriors. "Take your positions."
He looked at Luna. "Are you ready?"
Luna opened her mouth to say yes.
But through the council room window, dark shapes moved in the forest. Getting closer. Coming fast. And in front, leading them like some kind of lethal animal, was a warrior with black hair and broad shoulders.
Her body went completely on alert.
Not fear. Something sharper. Something that felt like recognition. Like a name she'd been hearing whispered in her sleep.
Her wolf didn't pace anymore.
Her wolf was ready to hunt.