Chapter 41: The Vow of Stones
Chapter 41: The Vow of Stones
Sasha POV
The forest was too quiet. Every step crunched loudly in my ears, like the trees were listening. Ronan walked on my right, Kade on my left. Neither spoke. Behind us trailed only a few wolves who had chosen to believe me when no one else would. Enough for a circle. Enough, I hoped, for the prophecy to hear. The cave opened ahead, black mouth framed by the standing stones. Even in the dark, they glowed faintly, carved lines humming like something alive. My mark flared warm against my skin, and I shivered.
“This is it,” Ronan said quietly. Kade didn’t answer. His jaw was tight, his eyes fixed on the stones like they were a rival he couldn’t beat. I stepped into the circle. The moment my boots crossed the mossy edge, the ground seemed to shift under me. The stones pulsed once, faint light racing along their carvings. My mark burned hotter. I looked at the faces gathered. Ronan. Kade. Two others, Marcus and Katherine, wolves I trusted. My circle.
Thelma’s words echoed in my head. The stones. A vow. A circle that believes you.
“I was told an old prophecy,” I began. My voice carried too well in the stillness. “When bloodlines are broken and the moon is dark, a wolf of lost lineage will bear the crescent mark. The True Luna shall rise when the fates are undone, to unite what was shattered, or bring darkness to one,” the stones glowed brighter as I spoke, confirming the words like they had been waiting centuries to hear them again. “I bear the mark,” I said, pressing a hand to my hip. “I carry the lost bloodline. And I vow this: I will not be silent. I will not be used. I vow to heal what has been broken if it can be healed, and if it cannot, I vow to fight until we are free of this curse,” the light from the stones flared, blinding for a breath, then steadied. The air thickened, heavy with expectation. Now came the second part. The circle. Ronan stepped forward without hesitation. He touched the nearest stone and spoke.
“I believe her. I believe she is the True Luna. I am bound to her vow,” he said, and his eyes locked on mine. Steady and fierce. Kade was next. For a heartbeat, I thought he might refuse. His shoulders were stiff, his hands balled into fists. But then he moved, slowly, and placed his palm on the same stone Ronan had touched.
“I don’t understand all of it,” he admitted. “But I believe she is what the prophecy spoke of. I believe she is ours,” he paused, and then he added, his voice rough. “I will stand with her,” Marcus was next.
“I agree, I don’t understand all of this, but I trust in Sasha. I always have and I always will,” short, sweet, and straight to the point. Katherine hesitated, and her gaze met mine. She was scared, I could tell.
“Don’t be afraid,” I told her. She nodded, but she didn’t move. “You don’t have to do this,” I reassured her. Katherine took a deep breath and stepped up, placing her hand on the stone.
“I’ll admit, I’m scared…I don’t know what all of this means, and that part scares me the most…but I have known Sasha my whole life, and she has always been honest and kind to me. I stand by her, no matter what,” I nodded, and she stepped back. The stones responded. They blazed with sudden firelight, runes spilling like molten silver down their faces. The ground trembled. My mark seared hot, and I gasped as the wind burst through the cave, circling me, lifting my hair. It spoke. Not in words we make, but in the same voice that had whispered to me since this began.
When bloodlines are broken and the moon is dark…
The prophecy repeated itself, line for line, carried by the wind until the cave seemed to breathe it. When the final line came:
To unite what was shattered or bring darkness to one.
The stones dimmed, leaving the words behind like an oath carved into our bones. The wind dropped. My knees buckled. Ronan caught me before I fell. My body shook, my skin clammy. The mark on my hip pulsed once, then dulled.
“What does it mean?” I whispered.
“That you are the True Luna,” Ronan said firmly.
“That you are the danger,” Kade muttered, but softer, like he hated himself for saying it. I sat up straighter in Ronan’s hold.
“No. It means I have a choice. And so do all of you,” I whispered, and the cave was silent. Even the night beyond the cave held its breath. I pushed away from Ronan and stood on my own. “We will not wait for the elders to dictate this. We will not wait for Delia, or Jones, or Rowan. We will take the prophecy into our own hands. We will decide what it means,” Ronan nodded.
“Then we stand with you,” he stated firmly. Kade’s eyes flicked to mine. There was pain there. Jealousy. But also something like acceptance.
“For now,” he said. I wanted to press him, but I didn’t. The prophecy had given us this much: proof. It would have to be enough. The stones flickered once more, and I held my breath.
You know nothing whole; the rest of the truth bleeds in kin. Chase your blood, or be hunted by it.
The silence that followed felt final. I frowned as I looked at Ronan and Kade.
“What the hell does that mean?” I asked, but there was no time for anyone to answer. The sound of hurried footsteps reached our ears. We stood dead still as we heard them coming closer and closer.
“She dares to profane the cave!” I knew that voice, it was Rowan.
“Seize them! Bring the abomination into the square!” and that was Jones. Thelma’s voice was last, soft but clear.
“Do not let her leave the circle!” sudden light of the torches spilled across the stones, catching us in their glare. And I knew exile had just become something far worse. But the anger inside of me roared to the surface. Thelma had betrayed me. She had betrayed us. And that meant she could no longer be trusted. I should have known, but I had blindly trusted. That was my first and last mistake.