<b>Chapter </b><b>160 </b>


    The first thing I felt was cold.


    21%)


    +23)


    Not the crisp air of dawn or the soothing chill of mountain wind, but a damp, suffocating cold that seeped into my bones and made my skin crawl.


    My body was heavy, pinned by something I couldn’t see, and every breath I took tasted of stone<i>, </i>water, and old blood.


    I forced my eyes open.


    Darkness pressed in on all sides, broken only by faint, sickly white mes dancing atop iron braziers. The light didn’t warm the room; it seemed to swallow it instead, bending shadows into strange shapes along the carved walls.


    Symbols–circles, runes, markings I didn’t recognize–covered every surface. They pulsed faintly, as though alive, whispering in anguage too ancient and wrong for me toprehend.


    The weight across my wrists and ankles made me jolt. Chains. Silver–ted, biting into my skin.


    I tried to move, tried to summon strength, but every bruise screamed, every muscle trembled, and I realized my body had been stripped down to weakness.


    The pain from Henri’s blow still lingered at the side of my skull, leaving the world fuzzy at the edges.


    And then I saw her.


    A figure stood in the center of the chamber, wrapped in a strange, shifting light.


    At first nce, she seemed angelic–long hair like a sheet of silver, a flowing white gown, eyes full of tenderness. Her presence radiated purity, warmth, the kind of image that could deceive even the most cautious heart.


    But I knew.


    I knew instantly, instinctively.


    That wasn’t Cristina.


    That wasn’t a Luna.


    The glow wasn’t holy. It was hollow, stretched thin like skin over rot. Her smile was too sharp, too patient, too hungry. And when her gaze met mine, a shiver raced through me so violently I nearly gagged.


    The devil behind the mask.


    The Subus.


    Her voice slithered into the air, soft, coaxing, but it scraped against my mind like ws.


    “So… you are the one. The soul bright enough, strong enough. The King’s chosen. Finally, you are here.”


    My heart pounded. My throat tightened, but before I could force words out-


    Images crashed into my head.


    Not my memories. Not dreams.


    His.


    I saw Alpha Henri as a younger man–proud, tall, with eyes filled not with madness but with love.


    His arms wrapped around a woman, beautiful and kind–eyed, herugh like the chime of bells. Cristina. His Luna. His fated


    mate.


    She was radiant, her hand resting protectively over the swell of her stomach. She was carrying his child. Their future. Their


    joy.


    The vision shifted.


    Cristina stood at the edge of theke, smiling stubbornly as pack members warned her not <i>to </i>go.


    “Just a short swim,” she said,ughter bubbling on her lips. Henri, ever indulgent, gave in, though worry lingered in his


    eyes.


    She slipped into the water. The sunlight sparkled against the surface, her silver hair trailing like a ribbon. She looked ethereal. Untouchable.


    Then-


    A sudden scream.


    Her body jerked, legs thrashing. Her hand reached up, desperate.


    Cramp. Her calf had seized, locking her body in agony.


    “Cristina!”


    The water swallowed her cry.


    Pack members dove in. Henri himself plunged, arms tearing through theke with frantic strength. But when they dragged her up, it was toote. Her body was limp, her skin pale, her lips blue.


    And inside her belly-


    The unborn child stilled forever.


    Henri’s wail shook the forest. A howl that wasn’t just grief, but something that shattered deep within his soul.


    The vision changed.


    Days blurred into nights. Henri wandered alone, eyes hollow, unshaven, ignoring the pack, ignoring everything but the crushing weight of his loss. Food untouched. Duty abandoned. His Alpha’s pride crumbled into dust.


    Then came the books.


    16:29 Sat, 30 Aug 6


    Forbidden tomes hidden in ruins, stolen from dark libraries, texts no sane Alpha should ever touch. Pages inked with blood and shadow. Spells whispered of bargains, of bending death itself.


    He read them all.


    Devoured them.


    Until one night, unable to endure the silence of the world without her, Henri walked back into theke.


    He let himself sink.


    The water closed over his head, and as his lungs screamed, he saw her.


    Cristina.


    Or… something wearing her face.


    +23)


    “Henri…” The voice was soft, broken. “Help me… I’m trapped. I cane back to <i>you</i>. <i>To </i>us. But I need strength. I need…


    souls.”


    She touched his cheek, her fingers cold as ice. His heart<b>, </b>shattered and desperate, didn’t care. He clung to the illusion.


    “Yes,” he whispered. “Anything. Whatever it takes.”


    And so the pact was made.


    The Subus drank his grief, fed on it, and in return, she gave him hope. A promise that if he fed her enough power, she


    could rebuild what was lost. She could return Cristina to him.


    The visions came faster now.


    Missing vigers.


    Bodies drained, never found.


    Ambushes against rogues and outsiders. Every death was fuel for her. Every soul ripped from flesh was another step


    toward her full form.


    But none were enough.


    She grew stronger, yes, but not whole. Never whole.


    Until… me.


    The moment I stepped into Henri’s territory, the Subus stirred. Her whispers wed into his mind.


    “She. The girl. The King’s chosen. Her soul shines like fire. She is what I need.”


    And Henri believed,


    Because he had to. Because without that hope, all he had left was the abyss.


    <b>3/4 </b>


    16:30 Sat, 30 Aug


    The visions ended.


    I was back in the chamber, gasping, sweat dripping down my temples. My heart hammered so loud it hurt.


    I stared at the glowing figure before me, bile rising in my throat.


    She wasn’t Cristina.


    She was death, hunger, deception. And Henri–Henri had be her puppet.


    He stood beside her now, eyes wild, face pale with obsession. His hands trembled as he looked at me, not with hatred, but with something worse–conviction.


    “Do you see now?” he whispered, almost tender. “Do you understand why this must be done? I loved her. I still love her. And if I must tear the soul from your body to bring her back, then so be it.”


    I shook my head, chains rattling, tears stinging my eyes.


    “No… Alpha Henri, that’s not her. That’s not your mate. She’s gone. And you’re sacrificing your people, your pack, for a lie.”


    His face twisted, anguish and fury colliding.


    “Liar!” he screamed, and the walls shook with his rage.


    The Subus only smiled, her white glow flickering like fire over oil, and in that moment, I knew-


    If I didn’t find a way out, if I didn’t hold on long enough-


    I would be the final piece she needed.


    The soul she had been waiting for..


    田


    AD


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