Chapter 67 The Vision

Chapter 67 The Vision
Aurelia

You’ve desecrated the sacred gift of the Moon Goddess!” the diviner spat, shaking her head from side to side aggressively. “I heard of the salt statues, and my ears tingled. You let that power fester inside her unchecked, parading her around like some divine trophy when she is nothing but a disgrace to the Goddess’s name!”

I flinched, my skin prickling as though she'd struck me with her fist.
Zhayad was already on his feet, the heat of his anger rolling off him in waves even I could feel.

His glowing tattoos flared dangerously, and boy, that wasn't good at all. I grabbed his wrist quickly, holding him back.

“You said she can’t see,” I whispered urgently. “If you have something to say to her, say it from here.”

Zhayad’s jaw clenched so hard I heard it pop. For a moment, I thought he might ignore me and rip the old woman’s head off anyway. 

But then his eyes softened when they landed on me. He exhaled harshly and sat back down beside me, though his body remained coiled like a spring.

He stared at the diviner with cold, unyielding authority. “You served the Alpha before me,” he began, his voice strangely calm even though he didn't look it. “And because I respected your wisdom and spiritual strength, I reinstated you as the pack’s diviner. That decision ends today.”

The diviner’s face twisted in shock. The age lines around her lips and on her forehead tightened to show her displeasure.

Zhayad continued, every word weighted with finality. “No matter the position anyone holds in this pack, they are not allowed to disrespect my Luna. They are not allowed to mock the mark of the Moon Goddess on her. You have forgotten your place.”

The old woman opened her mouth to protest, but Zhayad cleared his throat, silencing her instantly.

“You will leave this compound by nightfall. Take whatever belongings you have. Your services are no longer required.”

A heavy, stunned silence filled the room. The diviner’s hands trembled with rage as she pointed a bony finger at me. 

“Mark my words, Alpha. That thing inside her is not a blessing. It is a curse. And when it consumes her, and it will consume her, you will remember this moment and regret casting me aside.”

Zhayad’s eyes flashed with deadly promise. “The only thing I regret,” he said softly, dangerously, “is not doing this sooner. I respect you enough to not have you banished.”

As the diviner rose to leave, her loose dress trembling with every step she took, I gawked at Zhayad.

“What?” he asked, sensing my stare.

I shook my head, still stunned. “Just in case you forgot along the way… she’s the pack diviner! You were going to ask her about my powers and… I don’t know. I don’t think this is right. She said really bad things about the moon goddess, I know, but you could have at least given her a chance to give a proper analysis.”

Zhayad didn’t even look at me. His side view alone looked like he was trying not to reach for me and shake some sense into me.

He pushed to his feet with that commanding grace, his expression hard as stone. “I don’t regret my decision,” he said flatly. “And I will not hesitate to do it again if anyone makes the same mistake. In case you missed that part, she didn't just make blasphemous comments about the moon goddess, she abused you, too. She deserved more than just demotion for that.”

First it was Ravina. Now it was the pack diviner, and I had only just met the woman today.

I opened my mouth to speak but no words came out. I tried to stand, but my body wouldn't respond. My heart suddenly kicked into a frantic rhythm, pounding so hard I could feel it in my throat even though I was still seated. 

The room around me started to flicker, my vision blinking in and out of focus like I was caught between two realities at once.

Then the vision slammed into me. I saw shifters from our pack pouring into the compound, flooding through the gates as if they’d all been waiting outside. 

Dozens of them. Then hundreds. They moved with eerie synchronization before chaos erupted. 

Bones cracked, and flesh rippled. Everything was happening all at once. Heat exploded across the courtyard as wolf after wolf began transforming, not into wolves, but into massive, scaled basilisks.

Nero stood at the center of it all, wearing a satisfied, venomous smirk that made me shudder from head to toe.

The vision shattered and a falling sensation gripped my body.

“Zhayad!” I gasped, jerking upright as I snapped back to reality. But the room was empty.

He was…. gone. What the hell just happened? What did I see?And where the fuck was Zhayad?

Thank goodness my body actually listened when I tried to stand. A sudden, violent sense of urgency was boiling in my veins. Whatever I had seen in that vision, it was coming, and soon.

“Luna!”

I whipped around so fast I nearly gave myself whiplash.

A young shifter maid was rushing down the stairs, nearly tripping over her own feet in her haste. She clutched her apron like a lifeline.

Her face was so white I expected her to say she'd seen a ghost.

“There's a huge problem, Luna.” she panted. “One of the warriors is foaming at the mouth!”

“Foaming at the mouth?” I repeated, already moving. “Did he eat something? Never mind, take me to him. Why is he upstairs anyway? The warriors’ quarters are on the other side of the compound.”

The maid’s cheeks flushed deep red. She turned her face away and hurried up the stairs without answering. Her shifter speed made her practically fly up the steps while I struggled to keep up.

She led me to the floor above Zhayad’s private wing, an area I knew was reserved for very specific, very private purposes.

The maid knocked once, then kicked the door open. Ravina stood in the middle of the lavish room wearing a sleek satin dress that clung to her body tightly. I'd never seen her look like this before.

Her face was carefully made up, her lips painted a deep red that gave her a youthful look. Her hair was loose, and wild too. If I didn’t know better, I would’ve thought she was expecting a lover.

On the floor beside the massive king-sized bed, a male shifter warrior lay convulsing. Foam bubbled from his mouth, his body jerking violently as seizures tore through him.

I rushed forward without thinking. This was all very strange. Whether this was another trance or not, I needed to help him if I could.

“Don’t!” Ravina barked sharply.

I ignored her completely and dropped to my knees beside the trembling man, grabbing his hand. The moment our skin touched, my power surged forward on its own. 

The goddess mark on my chest blazed to life, sending threads of glowing light pouring into him, wrapping around his face and chest until I could barely see his features.

Ravina stormed toward me. “Get off him! This is not your concern. I didn’t even ask for you to be brought here. Leave!”

I didn’t move. Energy continued pouring out of me, soothing the crazed nerves in his body. Within moments, the seizures began to ease. 

He coughed violently, expelling a thick, unnatural substance onto the floor.

I knew exactly what it was, and I wrinkled my nose as I lifted my head to shoot Ravina a look of disgust.

Mixed sexual enhancers, the kind that were deadly when combined with a werewolf’s heightened metabolism. 

In the past, male shifters could be targeted with it and poisoned in the name of innocent ignorance. 

If the maid hadn’t called for me, he would have died from heart failure within minutes.

Ravina was such a pig, seriously. I understood everything then.

I slowly rose to my feet, staring at Ravina with cold fury.

“You were just going to watch him die?” My voice was void of its usual filter. I was displeased with her and I didn't care what she would say or do after. 

“Your daughter is being held captive by my father, and for the Goddess' sake, what is wrong with you? You’re up here rolling around in the sheets with younger males? You gave him this shit, didn’t you?”

The warrior was still coughing weakly on the floor, each sound wetter and more exhausted than the last.

He was going to feel like shit for a few days, but he would be fine. He was totally healed.

Ravina’s face went pale with remorse , but then her usual scowl came on.

Her hands clenched into fists at her sides. “You know nothing, Aurelia. Stop acting like you're the fountain of knowledge and wisdom, you're just a lucky mistake.” she hissed. “Get out.”

But the truth was written all over her guilty face.

If I was being honest, I knew Ravina was capable of condescending to lower levels ever known, but this? This was utterly disgusting. Zhayad might have stripped her of her rank but I expected her to at least remember how to uphold her honour.

“I will, but only because you reek of shame.” I said .

To the maid, I turned and said softly, “Please go fetch some of the shifter warriors to come carry their fallen colleague. Don't say anything to anybody, I'll know.”

She nodded stiffly before turning to leave.

“Accept it, Ravina. I'm too much for you to handle, and you're too cold to admit it.”

She let out a maniac laugh, clapping her hands. She opened her mouth to speak, but a loud commotion outside drowned out her words. 

Instead of the maid returning with the males I asked her to bring along, she came alone. Her eyes were so wide I thought she might be having a seizure herself.

“Shifters are pouring into the compound. I don't know how they got into the pack's stronghold, but there are a lot of them!” She exclaimed in a panicked tone.

A full body shiver descended on me. The vision was happening in real life.