Reign of the Forsaken Moon - Chapter 74: Chapter 74
You are reading Reign of the Forsaken Moon, Chapter 74: Chapter 74. Read more chapters of Reign of the Forsaken Moon.
The valley waited like an open grave.
It stretched far beneath Windrest’s southern border—bare, desolate, and haunted by the screams of ages past. No trees grew there. No stars shone above it. And no magic survived its soil.
The Valley of Howls was where the first blood of the Luna Line was spilled. And now, it would become the battlefield of Seraphina’s final trial.
The Stealth Vanguard
Seraphina stood at the head of a narrow ridge, the wind snapping her cloak behind her like a war banner. Her armor was black silver, reinforced with dragonbone, her twin blades sheathed at her back.
Beside her stood Darian, Kael, and a handpicked vanguard of fifty warriors—each bonded to her through loyalty or blood.
“This is a direct path,” Kael said, consulting the starlit map. “We intercept the Seer’s army here, before she reaches the Soul Gate.”
“Good,” Seraphina said. “If we fail to hold that gate, Windrest falls.”
“But there’s more, isn’t there?” Darian asked her quietly.
She nodded. “The Seer left a mark on me. I feel her thoughts sometimes. Her memories. And last night…”
She looked down at her gloved hand, trembling.
“She called me by a name I’ve never known.”
The Name of the Forgotten
They made camp on the valley’s edge.
Night came early.
Seraphina sat by the fire, wrapped in silence. She no longer heard Ashen’s soft comfort, or Sira’s angry protests, or even Serai’s wisdom. Since the merge, they were one. But now, something else stirred behind her thoughts.
A whisper with a shape.
With a name.
“Selveryn.”
The name echoed through her bones.
Not Seraphina.
Not Flamewalker.
Not Luna.
Selveryn.
She didn’t know who that was—but the name cracked something inside her. Like an old memory unearthed. A buried self clawing to the surface.
The Nightwatch
Darian kept first watch.
As Seraphina dozed in a trance-like half-sleep, he stood beside her tent, ears sharp, sword in hand.
He heard her whisper the name again.
“Selveryn…”
It chilled him.
When she stirred, he knelt beside her.
“You were dreaming again.”
Her eyes opened—unfocused. Glowing faintly.
“I saw her. The Seer. Not as she is now… but as she was when I first lived. She knew me. Trained me.”
“You think… you were once part of her?”
“I think I was hers.”
Darian stiffened.
“If she made you… then what are you now?”
Seraphina didn’t answer.
Because in that moment, even she didn’t know.
The Valley's Curse
By morning, they descended into the Valley of Howls.
The very air felt wrong—too still, too thick.
Their magic fizzled out within minutes. Seraphina’s flames guttered. Kael’s vision-clouding enchantments vanished. Even Darian’s senses dulled.
The valley devoured power.
But not intent.
Not will.
They marched on foot, silent and alert, every step like a heartbeat in a tomb.
At midday, they reached the center—where shattered stones and half-buried bones marked an ancient battlefield.
Seraphina knelt at one.
“I’ve bled here before,” she said softly.
Kael frowned. “You weren’t even alive in the Great Frost War.”
“Not in this life,” she whispered.
The First Echo
As they set up a second camp, one of the scouts returned breathless.
“Movement. Half a mile west. Too fast to be mortal.”
Darian drew his blade.
Seraphina rose slowly.
And from the mists came a figure—cloaked in white, floating just above the ground.
The Seer.
Or rather… an echo of her.
The image stopped before them, staring directly at Seraphina.
“You returned, Selveryn. I wondered if you’d remember.”
Seraphina narrowed her eyes. “What do you want?”
The Seer’s echo smiled.
“To offer you your throne back.”
Gasps among the warriors.
“You were my greatest weapon. You were the Flame that Burned the Stars. Come back. Rule beside me.”
Seraphina laughed, low and bitter.
“I’m not your weapon anymore.”
“Then die with the rest of them,” the echo whispered—and vanished.
The Cracks
That night, Seraphina’s dreams turned into nightmares.
She stood in the Hall of the Seer’s old palace—one she recognized. Her hands were covered in blood. Hundreds lay dead before her.
She had killed them all.
Not as Seraphina.
As Selveryn.
She awoke screaming.
Darian held her tightly.
“You’re not her,” he whispered.
“But I was,” she rasped. “I was that monster.”
“You’re not anymore.”
She looked into his eyes. “What if the merge didn’t just make me stronger… what if it unlocked who I was supposed to be all along?”
Darian hesitated.
And for the first time, she saw doubt in his eyes.
It stretched far beneath Windrest’s southern border—bare, desolate, and haunted by the screams of ages past. No trees grew there. No stars shone above it. And no magic survived its soil.
The Valley of Howls was where the first blood of the Luna Line was spilled. And now, it would become the battlefield of Seraphina’s final trial.
The Stealth Vanguard
Seraphina stood at the head of a narrow ridge, the wind snapping her cloak behind her like a war banner. Her armor was black silver, reinforced with dragonbone, her twin blades sheathed at her back.
Beside her stood Darian, Kael, and a handpicked vanguard of fifty warriors—each bonded to her through loyalty or blood.
“This is a direct path,” Kael said, consulting the starlit map. “We intercept the Seer’s army here, before she reaches the Soul Gate.”
“Good,” Seraphina said. “If we fail to hold that gate, Windrest falls.”
“But there’s more, isn’t there?” Darian asked her quietly.
She nodded. “The Seer left a mark on me. I feel her thoughts sometimes. Her memories. And last night…”
She looked down at her gloved hand, trembling.
“She called me by a name I’ve never known.”
The Name of the Forgotten
They made camp on the valley’s edge.
Night came early.
Seraphina sat by the fire, wrapped in silence. She no longer heard Ashen’s soft comfort, or Sira’s angry protests, or even Serai’s wisdom. Since the merge, they were one. But now, something else stirred behind her thoughts.
A whisper with a shape.
With a name.
“Selveryn.”
The name echoed through her bones.
Not Seraphina.
Not Flamewalker.
Not Luna.
Selveryn.
She didn’t know who that was—but the name cracked something inside her. Like an old memory unearthed. A buried self clawing to the surface.
The Nightwatch
Darian kept first watch.
As Seraphina dozed in a trance-like half-sleep, he stood beside her tent, ears sharp, sword in hand.
He heard her whisper the name again.
“Selveryn…”
It chilled him.
When she stirred, he knelt beside her.
“You were dreaming again.”
Her eyes opened—unfocused. Glowing faintly.
“I saw her. The Seer. Not as she is now… but as she was when I first lived. She knew me. Trained me.”
“You think… you were once part of her?”
“I think I was hers.”
Darian stiffened.
“If she made you… then what are you now?”
Seraphina didn’t answer.
Because in that moment, even she didn’t know.
The Valley's Curse
By morning, they descended into the Valley of Howls.
The very air felt wrong—too still, too thick.
Their magic fizzled out within minutes. Seraphina’s flames guttered. Kael’s vision-clouding enchantments vanished. Even Darian’s senses dulled.
The valley devoured power.
But not intent.
Not will.
They marched on foot, silent and alert, every step like a heartbeat in a tomb.
At midday, they reached the center—where shattered stones and half-buried bones marked an ancient battlefield.
Seraphina knelt at one.
“I’ve bled here before,” she said softly.
Kael frowned. “You weren’t even alive in the Great Frost War.”
“Not in this life,” she whispered.
The First Echo
As they set up a second camp, one of the scouts returned breathless.
“Movement. Half a mile west. Too fast to be mortal.”
Darian drew his blade.
Seraphina rose slowly.
And from the mists came a figure—cloaked in white, floating just above the ground.
The Seer.
Or rather… an echo of her.
The image stopped before them, staring directly at Seraphina.
“You returned, Selveryn. I wondered if you’d remember.”
Seraphina narrowed her eyes. “What do you want?”
The Seer’s echo smiled.
“To offer you your throne back.”
Gasps among the warriors.
“You were my greatest weapon. You were the Flame that Burned the Stars. Come back. Rule beside me.”
Seraphina laughed, low and bitter.
“I’m not your weapon anymore.”
“Then die with the rest of them,” the echo whispered—and vanished.
The Cracks
That night, Seraphina’s dreams turned into nightmares.
She stood in the Hall of the Seer’s old palace—one she recognized. Her hands were covered in blood. Hundreds lay dead before her.
She had killed them all.
Not as Seraphina.
As Selveryn.
She awoke screaming.
Darian held her tightly.
“You’re not her,” he whispered.
“But I was,” she rasped. “I was that monster.”
“You’re not anymore.”
She looked into his eyes. “What if the merge didn’t just make me stronger… what if it unlocked who I was supposed to be all along?”
Darian hesitated.
And for the first time, she saw doubt in his eyes.
End of Reign of the Forsaken Moon Chapter 74. View all chapters or return to Reign of the Forsaken Moon book page.