BOUND TO THREE ALPHAS
Chapter 42: CROWN OF MOONLIGHT

Chapter 42: CROWN OF MOONLIGHT

Chapter 42: Crown of Moonlight

The cave led them into blazing sunlight. Liana blinked, her eyes adjusting as she and Talia stumbled onto a rocky ledge overlooking a huge forest. The crown felt heavy on her head with each passing second. "Where are we?" Talia gasped, catching her breath. Before Liana could answer, pain shot through her brain. The crown burned against her skin like hot silver. She screamed and fell to her knees. "Liana!" Talia ran to her side. Images burst in Liana’s mind. She saw a woman with silver eyes like hers, standing proud in the same throne room they’d just escaped. The woman spoke in a voice that echoed across ages. "I am Luna Aria, first Queen of Moonshadow. Hear my words, daughter of my blood."

Another image flashed. A different woman, younger but fierce, leading wolves into war against creatures made of shadow. "I am Luna Sera. The darkness comes for all packs. You must join them." More voices joined in. Dozens of queens, each showing Liana parts of their lives. Their information poured into her mind like water through a broken dam. How to order wolves with just a thought. How to heal deadly wounds with moonlight. How to see through lies and illusions. How to bend silver to her will. "Stop!" Liana cried, holding her head. "It’s too much!" But the memories kept coming. Battle tactics. Ancient magic. Secrets that had been hidden for generations. Each queen’s voice grew stronger until they all spoke as one. "The blood remembers, child. Let us guide you." Liana’s body convulsed. Silver light poured from her skin, so bright that Talia had to hide her eyes. When the light faded, Liana lay motionless on the ground. "Liana? Liana, please wake up!" Talia shook her friend’s shoulders. Slowly, Liana’s eyes opened. But they weren’t the same. They glowed with ancient power, and when she looked at Talia, there was something different in her eyes. "You’re not Liana," Talia whispered, backing away. Liana sat up smoothly, moving like a predator. "I am Selene, her wolf. And I am every queen who came before." Her voice carried a strange echo. "The girl is... resting." "Give her back!" Talia demanded.

Selene laughed, a sound like silver bells. "She asked for power. Power needs sacrifice." "Liana, I know you’re in there. Fight her!" For a moment, Selene’s face flickered. Liana’s normal voice broke through. "Talia... I can hear you. But she’s so strong. The queens... they want to protect everyone, but they don’t understand. They lived in a different time." Selene regained control. "Enough. We have work to do." She stood and raised her hand toward the trees below. Silver light shot from her fingers, forming a beacon that stretched high into the sky. "What are you doing?" Talia asked. "Calling our people home." The ground began to shake. From the trees came the sound of running paws. Dozens of them. Hundreds. Wolves came from the trees, all different sizes and colors, but each one moved with purpose. They surrounded the ledge where Liana and Talia stood, making perfect circles that expanded outward like ripples on water. The wolves changed into human form. Men, women, and children, all with the same silver flecks in their eyes that marked them as Moonshadow blood. An elderly guy stepped forward from the crowd. His hair was white as snow, and scars covered his arms like a roadmap of old fights. "My Queen," he said, dropping to one knee. The others followed his lead, making a sea of bowed heads. "We have waited so long for your return." Selene smiled coldly. "Rise, Magnus. Tell me how many remain." Magnus stood, his eyes filled with tears. "Three hundred and forty-seven, Your Majesty. We’ve hidden in these woods for twenty years, keeping the old ways alive.

Training our children. Waiting for the silver-eyed son to come home." "And the other packs?" "They grow weaker. Too focused on their precious ranks to remember what real strength looks like." Talia grabbed Liana’s arm. "This isn’t you. Liana, please. Come back to us." For a short second, Liana’s true self pushed through again. "Talia... I’m trying. But they’re right about so many things. The pack method is broken. Wolves are hurting." "That doesn’t mean you have to become someone else!" Selene’s personality came back, pushing Liana down. "The girl is naive. She thinks she can save everyone with kindness. But wars require fighters." Magnus approached carefully. "My Queen, what are your orders?" "We march on Shadowfang territory.

It’s time to reclaim what was stolen from us." "No!" Talia stepped between them. "That’s where Kael, Jace, and Rowan are. You can’t attack them!" Selene’s eyes narrowed. "The triplets chose their side when they allied with the corrupt system. If they stand in our way, they will fall like all the rest." "Liana would never hurt them. She loves them!" "Love is weakness," Selene snarled. "It killed every queen before me." But even as she spoke, doubt flickered in her silver eyes. Deep inside, Liana fought against the ancient voices in her head. "She’s right," Liana thought desperately. "I do love them. And love isn’t weakness. It’s what makes us fight harder." The cap pulsed with heat. Selene staggered, pressing her hand to her head. Magnus frowned. "My Queen? Are you well?" "The girl fights back," Selene admitted through gritted teeth. "But she will learn. We all learn, in time." She turned to address the gathering Moonshadow wolves. "Tonight, we take back our proper place. No more hiding. No more bowing to lesser genes." The crowd roared their praise, raising fists to the sky. Talia looked around frantically. These weren’t evil dogs, she realized. They were just tired of being chased and forgotten. But if Selene led them into war, innocent people would die. "Please," she whispered to Liana. "If you can hear me, remember who you really are.

Remember why we started this journey." Inside her own thought, Liana heard her friend’s plea. The ancient queens’ voices got quieter for just a moment. "I have to find a way back," she thought. "Before Selene destroys everything I care about." But the crown’s power was intoxicating. With each passing minute, it became harder to tell where the ancient queens stopped and she began. Magnus approached Selene again. "My Queen, there’s something else. Our scouts report strange behavior near the old sacred grounds. Shadow things gathering in large numbers." Selene’s attention snapped to him. "Show me." He pointed toward a faraway mountain peak where dark clouds swirled despite the clear sky everywhere else. "Astor," Selene breathed. "He begins the ritual early." The eclipse was still hours away, but clearly the rogue Alpha wasn’t waiting. "Then we move now," she decided. "Ready the pack for war."

As the Moonshadow wolves started preparing for battle, Selene turned to Talia with an expression that was both pitying and cruel. "Your little friendship is over, child. When this day ends, either I will rule over a united wolf country, or we will all be dead. There is no middle ground." Talia’s heart pounded as she watched her best friend disappear deeper behind ancient eyes. Somewhere in the distance, thunder rumbled despite the cloudless sky. The final battle was coming. And Liana might not survive it as herself.

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