His Rejected Luna

The Hunters of the Lost Bloodline: Shadows That Shouldn't Exist

A sound unlike anything I've ever heard rips through the forest.

Not a wolf's howl.

Not the growl of a rogue.

Something worse.

Something unnatural.

The air grows heavy, thick with a pressure that has nothing to do with the night. It coils around me like unseen chains, suffocating, clawing at my skin with invisible hands. A sharp, instinctive terror lances through me, tightening around my ribs like a vice.

I take a step back, my pulse hammering. "What is that?"

Kieran doesn't answer.

He doesn't have to.

Because a second later, figures emerge from the trees—silent, predatory, moving in eerie synchronization.

My breath catches.

They're not wolves.

They're not human either.

Their eyes glow an unnatural silver-blue, their movements too fluid, too precise. Clad in dark, fitted armor, they move like shadows made flesh, their presence warping the space around them.

The air itself hums with their energy—cold, ancient, lethal.

Caelum clicks his tongue. "Well, this just got interesting."

I don't feel the same.

Because deep in my gut, something primal knows exactly what they are.

Hunters.

Not of wolves. Not of rogues.

Of me.

---

The Hunt Begins

The lead figure steps forward, their silver-blue eyes fixing on me with an intensity that sends a shiver through my entire body.

For a moment, I can't breathe.

It's not fear. Not entirely.

It's recognition.

Something buried deep inside me stirs at the sight of them, something ancient and restless. My skin tingles, my blood humming in response to their presence.

One of them tilts their head, studying me like I'm some rare specimen, their voice a soft, rasping whisper.

"She's waking."

A second figure steps closer, their gloved fingers twitching at their side. "Then we're already too late."

Kieran shifts in front of me in an instant, his body rigid, protective. His golden eyes burn with a fierce, territorial fire.

"Stay away from her."

The leader ignores him. Their gaze never leaves mine. "You don't even know what you are, do you?"

I swallow hard, forcing my voice to stay steady. "Why don't you enlighten me?"

A slow, cruel smile curves their lips. "You are the last of a cursed bloodline. An anomaly that was meant to be erased centuries ago." Their head tilts, their tone almost… curious. "Yet here you stand. A mistake still breathing."

Something inside me snaps.

I don't know if it's the way they speak of me like I'm nothing. Or the fact that I don't understand what's happening to my own body.

Or maybe it's the way Kieran stands in front of me, defending me.

As if I need protection.

Heat burns beneath my skin, an undeniable force rising inside me like a tidal wave. My fingers tremble, but not with fear. With power.

I don't fully understand what I am.

But I know one thing.

I am not weak.

And I am not a mistake.

---

The First Strike

The air shifts—then they move.

Fast.

Too fast.

Before I can even register their attack, Kieran lunges forward, meeting them head-on. The first clash is brutal—a blur of movement, claws against metal, snarls against eerie silence.

Caelum steps forward lazily, as if he's merely spectating a sport. But when one of the Hunters veers toward him, he dodges effortlessly, a smirk tugging at his lips.

"Now, now," he muses. "I don't like being included in games I didn't sign up for."

I don't have time to register his amusement, because one of them is coming straight for me.

My heartbeat slams against my ribs as the Hunter closes the distance in the blink of an eye, their blade slicing toward my throat—

I move.

Not with thought. Not with strategy.

With instinct.

My body twists out of the way faster than I knew I was capable of. My feet barely touch the ground before I'm spinning, my claws slashing toward my attacker's exposed side—

They dodge.

But barely.

They weren't expecting me to fight back.

Good.

Because neither was I.

A thrill rushes through my veins, something dark and exhilarating. My wolf should be rising in response to the danger, but this isn't just my wolf.

This is something else.

The Hunter regains their footing, eyes narrowing. "You are waking."

A flicker of unease passes through me, but I don't have time to dwell on it. Another attack. Another blade slicing through the air. I duck, sidestepping the strike, my muscles reacting with a precision I shouldn't have.

My strength, my speed—it's all different.

I don't know what I am.

But neither do they.

And that might be my only advantage.

---

Kieran's Fury

A feral snarl rips through the clearing.

Kieran's wolf is barely restrained beneath his skin, his golden eyes burning like wildfire as he tears through another attacker, his claws sinking into armor like it's nothing.

He fights like a storm.

Brutal. Unrelenting.

A Hunter charges toward me, but before they can reach me, Kieran intercepts, slamming them into a tree with a force that cracks the bark.

He whirls on me, his chest heaving, his voice fierce.

"Run."

I shake my head, heart still racing. "I'm not leaving—"

"Aria." His voice is a command, raw and filled with something I don't understand. "Go!"

Something in his tone sends a shiver down my spine.

Because it's not just anger.

It's fear.

Not for himself.

For me.

For what I might do.

I don't move.

I can't.

Because suddenly—

The air changes.

The energy inside me erupts, surging outward in a wave of scorching heat.

Kieran stumbles back. The Hunters freeze.

The trees around us tremble. The earth beneath my feet cracks.

And then—

The fire ignites.

Not real flames. Not something physical.

Something more.

A silver-gold aura explodes from my body, rippling through the clearing like a shockwave. The Hunters stagger, their glowing eyes widening in something dangerously close to fear.

They were hunting me.

But they weren't ready for me.

One of them snarls, eyes narrowing. "She's too unstable."

The leader of the Hunters steps back, their voice colder than death itself.

"Fall back."

Kieran's head snaps toward them. "Cowards."

The leader ignores him, their gaze lingering on me.

"This is far from over," they murmur. Then, with eerie silence, they disappear into the shadows.

I barely register their retreat.

Because the fire inside me isn't stopping.

My body burns. My vision darkens.

I hear Kieran's voice.

"Aria!"

Then—

Everything shatters.

Aria's power is growing, but she's losing control. Can she survive what's coming next?