Reign of the Forsaken Moon - Chapter 37: Chapter 37

The sky above Windrest was painted in streaks of amethyst and gold. The rising sun cast long shadows across the training fields as the strike force prepared to depart. But Seraphina wasn’t thinking about the impending mission. Not the danger. Not the prison fortress Darian was walking into.
She was thinking about how his fingers had traced fire down her spine the night before.
The Last Night
They hadn’t spoken at first.
Words were too heavy—too full of uncertainty, fear, and longing.
So they kissed instead.
And in that kiss, Seraphina found the warmth she’d been craving since the day her soul clawed its way back into this life. Darian kissed like a man with nothing to lose—fierce, raw, and worshipful. His hands held her like she was both sacred and sinful.
She moaned softly as his lips found her collarbone.
“Careful,” she murmured against his jaw. “You start something, you better be ready to finish it.”
His grin was devilish. “Luna, I always finish what I start.”
She shoved him gently onto the fur-lined bed and straddled his waist, the golden moonlight bathing her bare skin. His breath caught.
“You’re too perfect to be real,” he whispered, eyes roving like a starving man.
“I’m real enough to ride you until the sun comes up,” she teased.
And she did.
Between whispered promises and the soft breaking of dawn, Seraphina rediscovered a part of herself buried beneath the weight of duty and blood. The part that wanted to feel desired—not just as a Luna, but as a woman.
And Darian gave her that without hesitation.
Morning Farewells
“I should be the one going,” she said now, eyes scanning the leather straps of his armor.
Darian reached for her, brushing her hair behind her ear.
“And leave me here without last night’s encore? Not a chance.”
She smacked his chest, but laughter danced in her eyes. “You’re incorrigible.”
“I’m irresistible.”
He dipped down, his mouth grazing her ear.
“You moaned my name three times before sunrise, Seraphina. That’s more than the Moon Goddess hears in a season.”
Heat flushed through her. “Darian.”
“Yes, love?”
She paused. Then: “Come back to me.”
He kissed her—soft and slow, a promise forged in breath and desire.
“Always.”
The Shadows of Hollowfang
Two nights later, Darian and Mira crouched in the ruins bordering Hollowfang territory. The stench of decay and dark magic lingered in the air like a warning. Frost clung to stone walls even though it was midsummer. And the wind whispered secrets they weren’t meant to hear.
The prison was built into the earth, beneath the remnants of the old citadel. Dozens of silver-threaded guards patrolled above ground, but the real danger lay beneath.
Mira studied the perimeter, brows knit.
“Do you think this is a trap?”
“Of course it’s a trap,” Darian said. “But Kael’s inside. So we walk into it. Set it on fire. And walk out.”
She smirked. “I hope Seraphina knows how reckless you are.”
“She does. She just likes it when I’m reckless in bed.”
Mira gagged. “Goddess, spare me.”
He chuckled, but his mind drifted to the Luna whose fire still burned on his skin.
Seraphina’s Spiral
Back at Windrest, Seraphina couldn’t sleep.
Every sound felt like a threat. Every shadow seemed too long.
She stood by her balcony in a thin silk robe, the wind teasing the hem. A storm brewed in the distance, lightning flashing like battle drums. But her body ached for warmth—his warmth.
Her mind replayed the way Darian had traced kisses down her spine, murmuring promises of battles won and peace made in tangled sheets.
Her fingers brushed the bond mark on her collarbone. It pulsed faintly.
Still connected.
Still alive.
But she couldn’t help the fear rising in her chest.
What if he didn’t come back this time?
What if she was Twice-Born only to be left alone again?
A knock came.
Lucien entered cautiously. “You haven’t eaten.”
“I’m not hungry.”
He studied her. “You’re thinking about him.”
“I always am.”
Lucien exhaled. “He’ll return. He’s a fool. But he’s yours.”
Her eyes met his. “And if he doesn’t?”
Lucien’s voice was soft.
“Then I’ll burn Hollowfang myself.”
Into the Den
Below Hollowfang, Darian and Mira moved like shadows.
The tunnels smelled of old blood and rotting silver. Chains clinked in the distance. A scream echoed—brief, choked, then silent.
They reached a chamber lined with prison cells.
Kael hung from a silver lattice, his chest heaving, blood crusted on his jaw.
“Kael,” Mira whispered.
His eyes fluttered open. “You took your sweet time.”
Darian grinned. “Wouldn’t miss your dramatic flair.”
But before they could free him, the chamber door slammed shut.
And from the dark, she appeared.
Lady Celestine.
Clad in black woven silk, her hair braided with bone beads. Her eyes shimmered with moonlight madness.
“So good to finally meet the mate,” she purred.
Darian stepped between her and Kael.
Celestine’s lips curled. “You kiss her like you own her. But you forget… Seraphina was mine first.”
“You touched her mind, not her soul.”
Celestine smirked. “Is that what she told you while riding your cock under moonlight?”
Darian’s fury surged.
He lunged.
Blades clashed.
Celestine’s power rippled like cold fire—but Darian met it with raw, reckless strength.
The chamber erupted in chaos.
Across the Bond
Seraphina dropped to her knees in the middle of her chamber.
Pain seared through her chest.
Darian.
She clutched the bond mark. Images flashed in her mind—chains, Celestine’s mocking voice, Mira’s scream, Kael’s bleeding form.
“No,” she gasped.
She stood abruptly.
“Mira!” she called. “Prepare the war hawks. I’m coming.”
A servant blinked at her. “My lady?”
“He’s in danger. I feel it. I don’t care if I have to tear through the Gate itself—I’m going to him.”
The bond pulsed again.
Hot.
Frantic.
Alive.
And Seraphina’s rage lit the sky like a new moon rising.