Chapter 32 – Tales of the Moonlit Battle
The poolside was quiet, the morning air cool and touched with the fragrance of freshly bloomed lilies swaying in the garden.
Damien sat stiffly in his chair, his jaw locked, his eyes shadowed by thoughts still burning from earlier. His fingers drummed against the wooden armrest, sharp and impatient.
Kian, relaxed as always, leaned back in his seat with an easy calm, though his sharp eyes didn’t miss the tension simmering beside him.
Trays of breakfast had been neatly arranged–warm bread rolls, golden slices of fruit, roasted meat, and fresh juice poured into crystal glasses. Callista, nervous but diligent, moved carefully around the table, setting everything in order as instructed.
“Here you are, Sir Damien,” Callista said softly, placing a steaming plate of food in front of him. “And yours, Sir Kian.”
Kian smiled kindly at her. “Thank you, Callista.”
But Damien’s eyes narrowed. He looked at the food, then at her, and scoffed. “Is this what you call breakfast?” His tone was laced with venom. “The bread is dry, the fruit unevenly cut. Useless. Lousy. Can you not do one simple thing right?”
Callista froze, the color draining from her face. “I... I’m sorry, Sir,” she stammered, her head bowing in shame.
Kian immediately leaned forward, his voice firm. “Damien, enough. There’s nothing wrong with the food.”
Damien turned sharply to him. “You don’t see it? She’s incompetent.”
“She’s not,” Kian countered evenly, his calmness standing like a wall against Damien’s anger. “She’s only doing her duty. You’re angry, Damien–not at her, but at Edward. Don’t take it out on her.” She hasn't done any wrong.
Damien’s lips curled into a bitter smile. “And what do you know of my anger?”
Kian met his gaze, unflinching. “I know you wanted Elara here. Edward denied you that. That’s why you’re sitting here insulting Callista, who’s done nothing to deserve it.”
Damien’s fist tightened against the table, his knuckles whitening. For a moment, silence hung thick between them, broken only by the soft rustle of leaves in the breeze.
Callista kept her eyes down, her hands clasped tightly together, wishing she could vanish.
Finally, Kian exhaled softly and said, “Enough. We eat, then we move on. There’s no honor in treating your own pack this way.”
Damien said nothing, but his eyes remained stormy, his appetite gone. He pushed the plate aside after only a few bites, his frustration too heavy to swallow.
Kian finished his meal quietly, offering Callista a reassuring nod as she collected the plates. Damien, meanwhile, stood abruptly and left without a word.
Kian sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “He’ll burn himself alive if he keeps feeding that fire,” he muttered under his breath, before rising to head to his office.
The rest of the day unfolded with its usual rhythm in the mansion, though unease still lingered from the morning. Edward remained in his room, Elara moved about completing her duties.
By early afternoon, the sound of a car pulling into the driveway broke the stillness. Elara, carrying a stack of folded linens, glanced through the window and smiled when she saw it was Seraphina.
Seraphina stepped out, her long hair loose around her shoulders and her expression calm.
Elara rushed to the door and opened it before Seraphina could knock. “You’re here,” she whispered, relief flooding her.
Seraphina smiled. “Of course I am. I said I would come.”
Elara pulled her inside quickly, her voice low. “Let’s head to my room.”
The two women slipped through the halls unnoticed, moving quickly until the door of Elara’s room closed behind them. Only then did Elara let out the breath she’d been holding.
“I’ve been waiting,” Elara said. “Please, tell me everything. What happened last night?
Seraphina sat on the edge of the bed, her fingers knotting together in her lap. For a moment, she was silent, her eyes far away, as though she was back there beneath the full moon.
Finally, she spoke. “It started quietly. We had gathered at the sacred ground as we always do on the full moon. The energy was strong, the air heavy with the Moon Goddess’s presence. Then, out of nowhere, they came.”
“Rogues?” Elara whispered.
Seraphina nodded. “Not just a few. Dozens. Their eyes were wild, their fangs bared. They attacked without hesitation. But it wasn’t just chaos... they were after something.
They wanted to capture the Alpha. Probably to cut the Moon Stone from his chest.” Her voice trembled slightly. “And they wanted the giftef Betas too. For their supernatural powers.
Elara’s heart pounded. “And then? What happened?”
Seraphina’s eyes darkened, her tone soft but fierce. “The pack fought back. Everyone did their part. But Edward…” She paused, a shiver running through her. “Elara, I’ve never seen anything like it. He fought like the Moon Goddess herself had filled him with fire. He was… unstoppable.”
Her words painted the memory vividly.
“I saw him tear through rogues as if they were nothing. His movements were sharp, brutal, and precise. His claws flashed, his teeth ripped, his fury unmatched.
One wolf lunged at him from the side, but Edward was faster... he broke its neck with a single twist. Another tried to pin him down, but he slammed it into the ground so hard the earth shook. He was… terrifying, but magnificent.”
Elara’s breath caught, her chest tightening.
Seraphina leaned closer, her voice lowering, almost dreamlike. “And Damien, he was fire too. He fought with speed and raw strength, cutting down rogues left and right.
I saw him catch two wolves at once, dragging them to the ground and ripping through them before either could even howl. His eyes burned like embers, and there was a wildness in him that made him dangerous and beautiful at once.”
Elara swallowed, her mind struggling to picture it.
“And Kian,” Seraphina continued softly, a faint smile tugging at her lips, “he fought with such grace. Every move calculated and intentional. He wasn’t wild like Damien, or brutal like Edward.
He was… art in motion. I saw him weave between three rogues, his claws slashing with precision, leaving them crumpled before they even understood what happened.”
Her voice grew hushed, almost reverent. “The three of them together–Edward, Damien, and Kian–it was like watching legends brought to life. They were more than warriors. They were gods of war beneath the moonlight.”
Elara felt her skin prickle. Her hands tightened in her lap. She didn’t know what to say. Part of her felt admiration, another part unease. Hearing Seraphina speak with such… admiration, almost romantic in its depth, stirred something restless inside her.