"This place reeks of old magic."
Ariana flinched at Kaelen's voice, low and edged with unease. She adjusted the camera strap around her neck, eyes sweeping the towering stone archway before them. Beyond it lay Moonlit Sanctuary—a sacred ground lost to time, hidden deep within the heart of the werewolf territories.
A cold wind howled through the trees, rustling the silver-leafed branches overhead. The moon cast eerie shadows on the pathway ahead, illuminating runes carved into the stone pillars. Everything about this place felt... ancient. The air was thick with a sense of foreboding, as if the very stones whispered secrets of the past.
"So, what now?" she asked, voice steadier than she felt. "Are we just supposed to walk in and hope they don't rip us apart?"
Kaelen didn't answer immediately. His golden eyes flickered with something unreadable as he stepped forward, muscles tense. Ariana had never seen him like this—uncertain. He was always the one with unwavering confidence, but here, in this place of old magic, he was just as lost as she was.
"We're not welcome here." His voice was almost a growl. "But we don't have a choice."
Ariana frowned. "Not welcome? I thought this was supposed to help you break the curse."
Before he could respond, a figure stepped from the shadows.
"You shouldn't have come here, Kaelen Draven."
Ariana sucked in a breath as a woman emerged from the archway. Her presence was striking—long obsidian hair, piercing violet eyes, and an aura that screamed authority. She wore dark robes embroidered with silver symbols, her stance as unyielding as the stone surrounding them.
Kaelen stiffened. "Elena."
Elena's gaze flickered to Ariana, eyes narrowing slightly before settling back on Kaelen. The tension in the air was palpable, a thick layer of unspoken history between the two.
"The Elders will not be pleased."
Kaelen exhaled sharply. "I don't care. I need answers."
Elena's lips curled into something that wasn't quite a smile. "Answers? Or redemption?"
A muscle in Kaelen's jaw twitched. Ariana could feel the tension between them, thick and suffocating. She had seen Kaelen face threats without blinking, but here, with this woman, something was different.
"You know why I'm here," Kaelen said, his voice gruff. "The curse—"
"—is not just yours to bear." Elena stepped closer, voice turning sharp. "You carry the sins of your bloodline, Kaelen. Did you really think the Moonlit Sanctuary would offer salvation so easily?"
Ariana's pulse quickened. "Wait, what do you mean the sins of his bloodline?"
Elena turned to her, violet eyes gleaming. "You travel with him, yet you know so little."
"Then enlighten me," Ariana shot back, folding her arms, unwilling to back down.
Elena studied her for a long moment before exhaling. "The Draven bloodline was once revered, but power breeds arrogance. The last Alpha before Kaelen—his father—betrayed the old ways. He defied the Elders, broke sacred oaths, and sought to rule by force rather than honor. For that, the Moon cursed his lineage. The next Alpha would be stripped of his wolf, forced to exist between forms, neither man nor beast."
Ariana turned to Kaelen, her heart sinking. "You never told me any of this."
Kaelen's gaze darkened. "Because it doesn't matter."
Elena let out a humorless laugh. "Oh, but it does. You think you can just waltz in here, demand an end to your suffering, and be granted mercy?" She shook her head. "The Sanctuary does not grant favors, Kaelen. It grants judgment."
Ariana's stomach twisted. "What kind of judgment?"
Elena's expression hardened. "A trial."
Kaelen's fingers curled into fists. "Then I'll face it."
"You say that now." Elena stepped aside, gesturing toward the archway. "But the Sanctuary will not test your strength alone. It will test your heart. Your soul. And if you fail, Kaelen..." She held his gaze. "You won't leave this place alive."
Ariana grabbed Kaelen's arm. "This is insane. You don't even know what you're walking into—"
"I don't have a choice."
His voice was quiet but firm, and for the first time since she'd met him, Ariana saw something raw in his eyes—fear, buried beneath the weight of duty.
Elena watched them in silence before turning on her heel. "Come, then. Let's see if the Alpha of the Draven bloodline is worthy of redemption."
They followed her past the archway, the air thickening with unseen energy. Ariana shivered as the pathway opened into a vast stone courtyard, lit only by the pale glow of the moon. At its center stood a massive stone monolith, covered in intricate carvings that pulsed with faint silver light.
Kaelen stepped forward. "What do I have to do?"
Elena circled the monolith, fingers trailing along the runes. "The trial has three parts. Strength, courage, and the heart." She turned back to him. "If you fail even one, the Sanctuary will claim you."
Ariana's breath caught. "Wait, claim him? As in—"
"Death."
The word hung in the air like a blade poised to strike.
Ariana grabbed Kaelen's wrist, forcing him to face her. "You can't do this."
Kaelen met her gaze, and something in his eyes softened. "I have to."
Her grip tightened. "Then I'm staying."
Elena raised a brow. "This is not your trial, human."
Ariana's jaw clenched. "I don't care. If he has to face this, then I'll be right here."
For the first time, Elena seemed almost... amused. "Very well. But don't say I didn't warn you."
She lifted a hand, pressing her palm against the monolith. The runes flared to life, casting the courtyard in a ghostly silver glow.
The ground beneath them trembled.
Kaelen inhaled sharply as the air thickened, magic pressing down like an invisible force. The monolith's light twisted, forming symbols in the air before them.
Then, a voice echoed through the courtyard—deep, resonant, and inhuman.
"Kaelen Draven. Your trial begins now."
The courtyard shifted. Stone gave way to an open field bathed in moonlight. The scent of blood filled the air.
A figure emerged from the darkness—a monstrous wolf, eyes glowing crimson, fangs bared. It was larger than any werewolf Ariana had ever imagined, its fur matted with something dark and glistening.
Kaelen's breath came in sharp, controlled exhales. "I know this beast."
Ariana swallowed, her heart racing. "Who is it?"
Kaelen's voice was hollow. "My father."
Ariana's heart slammed against her ribs. "Your father?"
Elena's voice was distant, almost disembodied. "The first trial—strength. Face the sins of your past."
The beast lunged.
Kaelen barely dodged in time, rolling to the side as massive claws tore through the ground where he had stood.
Ariana stumbled back, pulse hammering. "Kaelen!"
He didn't answer. He was already moving, instincts taking over. But the beast was relentless, attacking with brutal, unyielding force.
Kaelen gritted his teeth, dodging a swipe that would have torn him in half. He struck back, fists colliding with the beast's skull, but it barely flinched.
"You are weak."
The voice wasn't Kaelen's. It wasn't the beast's either. It came from everywhere and nowhere, echoing through the Sanctuary.
Ariana clenched her fists. "Kaelen, you can't fight him like this!"
Kaelen's breath was ragged. The beast circled him, eyes glowing like embers.
"What are you so afraid of, Kaelen Draven?"
Kaelen's hands trembled. His father's voice. The same voice that had once commanded a pack, that had once ruled without mercy.
The beast lunged again, knocking Kaelen off his feet.
Ariana screamed. "Kaelen!"
The beast loomed over him, fangs bared, ready to strike. In that moment, everything seemed to freeze. The world faded away, leaving only the primal instinct to survive.
Kaelen gritted his teeth, struggling to rise.
Then, the voice whispered—soft, insidious.
"Do you truly believe you can be saved?"
Kaelen's breath caught. The weight of his lineage pressed down on him, an unbearable reminder of the sins and failures of those who came before.
And the beast struck.
The impact was jarring. Kaelen's body slammed against the ground, the wind knocked from his lungs. Pain radiated through his body, but it wasn't just physical; it was the crushing realization of his heritage, the legacy he was fighting against.
Ariana rushed forward, desperation fueling her actions. "Get up, Kaelen! You have to fight back!"
But Kaelen was struggling to breathe, his mind clouded with memories of his father—the man who had once been a powerful Alpha, now reduced to a monstrous figure in this trial.