Moonlit Vows Of Vengeance-Chapter 52: Confused

A half-dozen guards, armored in silver scale that shimmered with each movement, formed a protective half-circle around his carriage. One of them dismounted, a tall woman with braided white hair and narrowed eyes.

"She’s barefoot, bloodied. No markings. She could be a shadowborn," she said coolly.

"I’m not a shadow born or whatever." I croaked. "I’m a full werewolves that was deceived by the king. I came through the portal. He killed the Moon Goddess. I tried to stop him but—he tricked me. The fragments... I thought I was saving her. I wasn’t. I need to go back home somehow and fix all the damage I did in my ignorance. Please I’m begging you to please help me."

There was complete silence.

The prince’s expression didn’t change. But I saw his fingers tighten slightly on the edge of the window.

"You’re a werewolf?" he repeated, voice flat. "You claim to be half human and half wolf?"

"Yes," I whispered. "Yes... I am. Please you have to believe me. My world is in total chaos because of my actions. I gathered her pieces. But in the end I didn’t save her—I ended her."

Murmurs rippled through the guards. The woman who had spoken first took a half-step back, hand on her sword hilt.

"You’re mad," someone muttered.

"I’m not," I snapped. "There was a man. Jesse. He died because of me. And Lucas, he betrayed me. He was in on it with the king all along then out of fury. I lunged at the king, and—"

I paused. My breath hitched. "And then I fell into the portal."

The prince studied me. His carriage door creaked as he stepped out with fluid grace.

He wore a long coat of black velvet with silver embroidery, stitched in runes I couldn’t read. Underneath, his tunic was high-collared and rich midnight blue, belted in white leather. Rings glinted on his fingers—one bore the sigil of a silver wolf wrapped around a crescent moon.

He stopped a few paces away, not touching me, just staring. I met his eyes and saw something flicker there... recognition? Disgust?

No. Calculation.

"You speak of forbidden things," he said at last. "Names that don’t exist.... Dead gods. Broken realms and worst of all, a portal?"

"I don’t care what’s forbidden," I growled. "I need to get back. There has to be a way out of this place."

"This place?" he echoed, and now his mouth curved into a faint smile. "You do not even know where you are."

I clenched my fists. "No."

"You are in the Valley of Echoes," he said. "A place between of magic and cultivation. Those who enter through forceful methods do not return. Unless they have achieved immortality."

My heart plummeted.

He looked at the guard captain. "She wears no crest. No banner. Her blood could be dangerous. I think she’s a shadow born!"

The woman nodded. "We should take her in. Let the queen decide if she lies."

I took a step back. "Wait. I haven’t done anything wrong."

"You’ve done plenty wrong," the prince said, now cold. "You claimed the destruction of a deity. That alone makes you a threat to this realm."

"I didn’t destroy her intentionally! She—she—"

"Seize her."

The guards moved in before I could run. I lashed out, still weak, still shaking, and managed to scratch one across the cheek but the others pinned me to the ground with practiced ease. My arms were twisted behind my back, wrists bound with bands of glowing thread that burned like ice.

"I’m telling the truth!" I screamed. "You don’t understand what’s happening . The king, he’s very very dangerous. He must have achieved complete immortality now. Or something even worse."

The prince watched without emotion. "So are you. You also seem dangerous to me."

I struggled until they forced me into a cage that had been hauled from one of the rear wagons. It wasn’t steel or wood—it looked like bone. Polished and seamless. It closed around me with a hiss, and I felt something drain from my skin the moment it locked shut.

Magic.

I collapsed onto the hard floor of the cage, panting.

The carriage procession resumed. Now, I was part of it.

---

Time passed in fragments. I couldn’t sleep. The cage hummed softly, like it had a heartbeat. I tried to shift into my wolf form, into it again, I tried again and again, but nothing worked. Whatever this bone prison was made of, it stifled everything inside me.

Outside, the prince rode ahead, cloaked in quiet mystery. Sometimes I saw him speak with his guards, but I couldn’t hear the words. Once, he turned and glanced back at me. Our eyes met.

He looked away.

---

The journey led through strange terrain. The crystal gave way to misty bridges that hung in nothing, then forests of glass trees that sang when the wind passed through. I saw creatures with too many eyes watching from the shadows. Nothing here made sense.

And still, I was their prisoner.

At night, the guards lit pale blue fires that gave no heat. They fed me once, something bitter and white that turned sweet in my mouth. I drank from a silver cup that refilled itself. I hated how grateful I felt for it.

The prince never spoke to me again during those nights. But I could feel his presence, heavy as gravity. He seemed like a very old man, wearing a young man’s face.

I began to wonder what exactly he was and what these people were.

---

On the third day, the caravan reached a spire. It wasn’t exactly a castle, it was just a tall tower made of obsidian and moonlight, rising straight from the land like a blade stabbed into the earth.

The gates opened as we approached, folding in on themselves like petals. Inside was a courtyard paved in mirrored stone. I saw my reflection again—human, tired, hollow-eyed.

The guards hauled me from the cage.

"Where are you taking me now?" I demanded.