The Moon's Abandoned Heir

The air inside the sanctuary was heavier than usual.

Lyra stood by the eastern cliffs, overlooking the valley her ancestors once ruled—and the one she now protected. The Ritual of Flames had settled into her bones, awakening parts of her she didn't yet understand. The wolves bowed when she passed. They whispered her name like a promise. Like a warning.

But none of it mattered if she couldn't trust the people closest to her.

She replayed the vision again and again.

> "The third betrayal will not be a stranger.

It will come with love. And wear a familiar face."

Cassian's face haunted the words.

So did Kael's.

Both men had stood by her.

Both had blood on their hands.

Both knew her better than anyone else.

And either one of them could break her.

---

Cassian stood in the war tent, poring over maps and supply logs when Seris entered.

He looked up briefly. "Any sign of movement from the Council's side?"

Seris shook her head. "Too quiet. I don't like it."

Cassian grunted. "They're buying time. They know Lyra's rising. They're regrouping."

He marked a point on the southern ridge with a silver stone. "We need eyes near the Whispering Woods. That's where they'll strike."

Seris frowned. "We should send Lyra away. Just for now. Until we're sure who's loyal."

Cassian didn't look up. "She won't run."

"I'm not asking her to," Seris said. "But I've been watching you, Cassian. You've changed."

He stilled.

She stepped closer. "You've always been loyal. But lately, you hesitate when she says Kael's name."

Cassian's grip on the silver stone tightened. "I don't trust him."

"Or you're afraid she still loves him."

He finally looked at her. "Wouldn't you be?"

Seris held his gaze. "Don't let your heart make you foolish. Or you might become what she fears most."

---

Elsewhere, Lyra walked the ancient path behind the sanctuary temple.

Kael followed at a distance.

She didn't stop him. Not yet.

"Why didn't you tell me you were alive?" she asked without turning.

Kael's voice was low. "Because I didn't know who I was. Not anymore."

"You could've come back."

"I wanted to," he admitted. "But I was ashamed. They made me believe my bloodline was poison. That if I returned, I'd bring you nothing but pain."

Lyra turned, her eyes sharp. "And now?"

He held her gaze. "Now I know you're stronger than any prophecy. And I want to fight with you, not against you."

Silence stretched between them.

Then Lyra said, "I want to trust you."

Kael took a step closer. "Then let me prove I never stopped loving you."

Her breath caught.

But she didn't move.

Didn't run. Didn't reach for him.

Not yet.

---

That night, the valley was alive with whispers.

Kael was back. Lyra had accepted him into the sanctuary. And Cassian… Cassian hadn't said a word about it.

He stood on the balcony of the watchtower, staring at the horizon.

When Lyra found him, he didn't move.

"You're avoiding me," she said softly.

"I'm watching the border," he replied.

"You're avoiding me, Cassian."

He exhaled, jaw tight. "You let him in."

"I had to."

"You didn't have to," he said sharply. "You wanted to."

Lyra flinched. "This isn't about Kael."

"Yes, it is," he said. "You think I don't see it? The way you look at him? Like part of you is still tethered to him."

She stepped forward. "That bond was broken."

He turned to her. "Then why does it still hurt you?"

Her voice broke. "Because he was my family. My best friend. My mate. And even if I don't want him back, a part of me will always ache when I see what we lost."

Cassian's eyes softened, but only for a moment.

Then he said the words she hadn't expected.

"Do you love him more than you love me?"

Lyra's heart slammed in her chest.

Cassian had never said it before.

Not out loud.

Not like that.

"I—" she started, but the words tangled.

He stepped closer. "Tell me the truth, Lyra. Right now. Before this war tears us apart."

She looked at him.

Really looked.

And then she whispered, "I don't know."

---

Cassian didn't sleep that night.

He couldn't.

The council's words haunted him.

"You're just a soldier. She will never choose you."

Was that true?

Had he fought beside her, bled for her, only to be cast aside for a ghost?

By sunrise, he was in the war tent again—reviewing reports alone.

Until he felt it.

The pull.

A tingling on the back of his neck.

He turned—and there, by the northern path, stood a lone woman.

Dark cloak. Hood drawn. Eyes glowing faintly with runes.

She lifted a scroll and tossed it toward him.

Cassian caught it instinctively.

Then she vanished.

Just like that.

He opened the scroll.

Inside was a map.

Not of the Council's land.

But of Lyra's sanctuary.

And marked in red?

The weak point in the eastern wards.

A message was scrawled at the bottom:

> "One truth and one choice.

Save her… or own her."

Cassian stared at it.

Frozen.

---

Lyra stood before the council of rogues later that day, preparing to announce the next phase of their campaign. Kael stood beside her, quiet but steady.

Cassian entered mid-speech, eyes unreadable.

She met his gaze—felt something cold in it.

Something distant.

He smiled.

But it didn't reach his eyes.

---

That night, as Lyra slept, a shadow slipped through the sanctuary's eastern ward.

The runes flickered.

Failed.

Just for a moment.

And then reset.

No one noticed.

No one but the figure watching from the trees—

Cassian.

Scroll still hidden inside his cloak.