Chapter 51: His Endgame

Chapter 51: His Endgame
Calla’s POV 

As victory relief started to settle I detected a mysterious change in the atmosphere. The rising sun’s warmth reduced without any clouds blocking its light. Raiden’s hand tightened around mine instinctively. I looked toward him and noticed that he wore an expression of complete bewilderment. Something was wrong. Terribly wrong. 

The Whisper inside me stirred again. But this time, she didn’t bring comfort. She brought warning. His presence was announced through her voice ringing in my mind like the final sound of a damaged bell. Her meaning required no further inquiry. Only one creature remained with the strength to stop the world from spinning.

The direction of the wind changed as it brought a scent filled with cold metallic shadows from ages past. The wolves began to stir and move restlessly all around my position. Some clutched their weapons. Others looked around in confusion. The battlefield fell silent as cheers faded away. The birds stopped singing. The trees appeared to shy away from the nearing power.

In the forest's farthest reaches where sunlight failed to penetrate the darkness grew denser. Then he stepped out. 

The Shadow King. 

He didn’t walk. It appeared his feet never made contact with the ground as he glided effortlessly. His tall form was shrouded in black and his face remained constantly changing like smoke that never settles. My wolf whimpered deeply inside me at the sight of his hooded eyes glowing red as our eyes met. Not in fear, but in instinct. He wasn’t just an enemy. This foe surpassed any adversary we had previously encountered in terms of age. Something unnatural. 

I moved ahead attempting to hide my fear. Raiden positioned himself beside me with a tense posture that suggested he could move at any moment. I declared with a firm voice that we had defeated your army. “You’ve lost.” 

The Shadow King smiled. The Shadow King’s smile came slowly with mocking precision. The Shadow King questioned with icy precision whether I believed he would deploy his real army. “Those were pawns. Distractions. Meant to tire you, to bleed you. The real game begins now.” 

I swallowed hard. “What do you want?” 

He angled his head towards me with the amusement of someone who thought I'd asked a painfully simple question. “Control. Not just over your pack. Not just over your territory. I want everything. All wolves. All bloodlines. All spirits. I desire to eliminate the Moon's illumination until only darkness persists.

Gasps rose behind me. The warriors who recently battled the Blood Fang wolves stepped back in fear of his intentions. The Whisper inside me trembled. “He seeks the Source,” she murmured. “The first magic. The heart of balance. Taking it will make him greater than a mere king. He becomes everything.” 

I clenched my fists. “You won’t succeed.” 

“I already have,” he replied. He flicked his hand and the earth beneath us split open.

The battlefield opened along a jagged line that extended between the forest and the temple ruins. The light that poured upward did not resemble the sun's golden rays. It was red. Pulsing. Alive. There was a sensation in my chest as if something powerful was attempting to escape from within me. I dropped to one knee, gasping. 

Raiden reached out to me and grabbed my shoulder while rushing over. “Calla! What’s happening?” 

“It’s the Source,” I whispered. “It’s… under the temple. That’s what he’s after. That’s what he’s been after all along.” 

The Shadow King continued his calm advance towards the ruins while disregarding the warriors who stood before him brandishing swords and spears. He didn't lift a finger but they scattered away as though they were leaves. Some screamed. Some didn’t move again. I attempted to stand but the chest pain erupted into a raging fire.

With a ferocious growl and quick movement Raiden lunged at the Shadow King. As soon as he approached the King lifted his hand which caused a shadow wall to appear between them. Raiden attacked with tremendous force which sent him flying backward while he let out a yelp. He crashed into the dirt, unmoving. 

“No!” I screamed, pushing myself up. 

The Shadow King knelt in the center of the temple ruins. As he placed his palm on the cracked stone floor the red light intensified. A staircase made of black stone emerged from the ground beneath him as the earth opened up and spiraled downward. He looked in my direction while maintaining his sinister grin.

“You’ve fought well, Luna,” he said mockingly. “But the final move is mine.” 

Then he disappeared into the darkness. 

Despite feeling pain and weakness I pushed my legs to move. I managed to drag my body toward Raiden before collapsing to my knees next to him. His chest rose with breaths while blood trickled from his head wound and his body hung motionless. I grabbed his face with both hands and spoke his name in a hushed tone.

“Raiden. Please. Wake up.” 

His eyes fluttered. “Calla… don’t… don’t let him win.” 

Tears stung my eyes. “I won’t.” 

I turned to the warriors still standing. Rowan was helping the wounded. Elara was limping but on her feet. Their eyes met mine. They were scared, but ready. I made it clear that we needed to pursue him. “We can’t let him reach the Source.” 

Elara shook her head. “That magic is not for us. It was buried for a reason.” 

The hiding of the object served to protect it from harm, I explained. “And now we must protect it again.” 

No one argued. Time constraints prevented us from creating an ideal plan. The Shadow King had already descended and reaching the Source meant ultimate failure. The threat extends beyond Silver Moon as every pack faces danger. Every wolf. Every child yet to be born. 

My lips brushed Raiden’s forehead before I stepped away. “Stay with him,” I told Rowan. Tell him I’ll return when he wakes.

I made my way to the ruins where I had shed blood beneath the moon's light. This was where I discovered my power. I had to deploy this power to halt the complete destruction of everything.

The staircase descended into the earth's depths and I experienced a drop in temperature with each step I took. As the light disappeared I observed moving shadows that persisted regardless of my motion. The Whisper guided me. Her voice was clearer here, sharper. “You were born to face him. You are the balance. The shadow holds no power over the Source without the light's permission.

“What does that mean?” I asked aloud. 

But there was no answer. 

The air became heavy with magic. Old, powerful, and wild. The chants of the Shadow King echoed toward me from the distance in an unfamiliar language. Standing at the tunnel's end I entered an enormous underground chamber which took my breath away.

At the chamber's center hovered a radiant orb. It was small, about heart-sized but emitted an incredible power I had never experienced before. The roots descending from the surface above wrapped protectively around it. The stone walls shimmered with runes. The Source. 

His hands lifted into the air as the Shadow King faced the sphere. Shadow tendrils extended from his fingers and moved toward the sphere. The chamber began to shake when the sphere reacted to the magical touch and the light started to flicker. The walls developed fractures while a gentle buzz permeated the atmosphere.

As soon as my foot made contact with the stone inside the chamber, the Whisper started screaming in my head. “Stop him! Now!” 

I didn’t wait. I shifted into my wolf and lunged. 

He managed to raise his barrier at the last moment but I had anticipated his move. The Whisper surged through my body and ignited my form with a golden flame. I burst through the darkness and collided with him which resulted in us both falling to the ground. We rolled, teeth snapping, claws slashing. His body remained cold while his power stayed alive.

His burst of magic knocked me off balance and I slammed into the wall. I shifted back and gasped for air. He stood up slowly while blood fell from the shoulder wound I had inflicted on him.

“You’re stronger than I thought,” he said. “But not enough.” 

He lifted his hand once more and I sensed the Source reacting to his movement. The light bent toward his palm. I let out a scream and extended my soul toward him instead of my hand. Light became my voice when the Whisper flowed through me. The energy from the Source enveloped itself and was reeled back.

The King growled fiercely while dark shadows emanated from his body as though they were smoke. We entered a silent struggle where light battled darkness and one soul faced another. I felt my strength draining. My body shaking. My vision fading. 

But I also felt something else. A flicker of warmth. A presence. Raiden. 

Even unconscious, our bond was feeding me. His love. His strength. His wolf. 

And with it, I pushed harder. 

Blinding gold filled the chamber as the Source erupted with radiant light. The Shadow King screamed, staggering back. The magic's light scorched his shadows which burned away their clinging tentacles. When he turned to look at me fear appeared in his eyes for the first time.

“This is not the end,” he hissed. “This is only the beginning. Your victory is just an illusion because you have yet to discover the true nature of things. The Source isn’t yours either, Luna. It doesn’t belong to anyone.” 

He disappeared into smoke before I managed to halt his escape.

The chamber fell silent. 

My bloodied body trembled while I breathed heavily as the Source floated in front of me without a hint of disturbance. I didn’t touch it. I knelt down and placed my hand on the ground below the Source.

“We will protect you,” I whispered. “No matter what comes next.” 

Echoes of footsteps descended through the stone stairs behind me.

My body moved abruptly as I anticipated finding a warrior or Elara behind me.

But it wasn’t. 

It was a woman. 

With golden eyes like mine. 

And the Whisper said only one word. 

“Mother.”