THE MOON’S VERDICT
THE MOON’S VERDICT
Freya
Dawn stains the horizon in pale crimson. The smoke from Nyssa’s witchfire last night still lingers above the clearing, contaminating the morning air.
Silence settles over the arena as I step forward. The Blood Moon is fading slowly, but its power flows through me now, still strong and intense, burning my body and cooling it at the same time. The silver veins on my arms glimmer faintly as I move toward the center.
We spent the remainder of the night laying the dead to rest—including Izel—murmuring prayers as the Goddess’s sacred fire bore them to her halls.
Now is the final act.
What remains of the High Conclave reassembles.
The members stand on the dais, shaken, subdued after what they witnessed.
Thane is gone—dragged away before dawn, I don’t know where.
Maelin stands in his place, ancient, pale-eyed, and full of wisdom.
In place of Esme and the other dead member stands Brin, and an elder from Frostfang.
The High Council does not spend time mourning. It moves—as it must.
Rowan watches from Nightfell’s row, shoulders tense but his face bearing a calm look. Kade sits behind him, bandaged because the burns wouldn’t heal, but he’s alive. His head is bowed like he can’t bear to see what I’m about to do.
Amara, the elder from Ravencourt, raises her hand. “The Conclave resumes. High Luna Freya Vale-Thorne of Silvercrest, you may speak.”
My voice carries across the amphitheatre. “I invoke the right of Silver Severance.”
Gasps ripple through the rows. These words carry power. They always have.
“This rite,” Amara begins cautiously, “You understand what it truly means—”
“That my wolf may perish if I fail, and so might I,” I say. “I know. But I have no other choice, Elder. I don’t seek to abandon my pack. I seek only to sever the bond that chains me.”
Kade’s head jerks up, but what words he has die on his lips.
I keep my eyes forward. “I present my three proofs.”
Amara nods stiffly. “Then the High Council will bear witness.”
I reach into the chest that Tamsin carries and lift the diadem—the sapphire crown that once marked me as Luna of Silvercrest. The light strikes it, scattering blue fire across the marble floor.
“First,” I say, “the Diadem. Symbol of rule. I return it not in surrender, but in truth. I am Luna no longer by marriage, but by right.”
I set it upon the stone table before me.
The murmurs grow louder.
I gesture to the semicircle forming behind me.
Jax steps forward first, flanked by other betas. Then, Tamsin, with five other gammas and three dozen pack members from Silvercrest.
My witness circle only needed nine members. But I have fifty.
“Second,” I say, “my witnesses. The pack, the warriors, the elders. All who have seen the truth with their own eyes. They know the betrayal I tasted. And the humiliation I faced in my own house. They stand here of their own will.”
Jax bows his head slightly. Tamsin rests a hand over her heart. The others mirror the gesture.
“And third…” I let my breath steady. The world narrows to the pulse beneath my skin. “Third, my wolf.”
Nyx rises within me before I even close my eyes. The air buzzes. My bones shift, not in pain this time but in harmony. Light breaks through skin.
Gasps fill the circle as I stand half-shifted—eyes glowing silver in the marble reflection beneath me, the faint shimmer of fur tracing down my arms like moonlight incarnate.
“This,” I say, voice both mine and hers, “is proof enough.”
The arena becomes silent as one by one everyone falls to their knees. Then whispers echo: High Luna. Goddess’s blessing. The divine.
Then I see Kade enter and walk toward me in awe before he, too, falls to his knees.
Amara clears her throat, glancing up at me from where she stays kneeling, her voice trembling slightly. “The High Council recognizes the proof. The Severance may proceed as you please, High Luna.”
Finally.
I feel so overwhelmed, I almost cry.
Shaking my head slightly, I kneel. My hands rest upon the marble, the cold biting into my palms. Nyx hums beneath my skin, ready and confident.
“By the light of the Moon, I release this bond.” My voice shakes once as the Goddess’s power flows before it steadies. “I sever the thread that bound me to Kade Thorne—Alpha of Silvercrest. I free my spirit and my wolf from his call.”
A silver light rises from the ground, circling me in soft ribbons of mist. It touches my chest—right where the mate mark used to burn—and pulls.
Kade gasps, clutching his side. “Freya—”
I bow my head. The connection between us snaps like a string drawn too tight. The sound isn’t heard but felt, rippling through every pack wolf in the circle.
Then silence.
The mist fades. I breathe again, but now I’m lighter and whole.
Amara lowers her gaze. “The Severance is complete.”
“She did it,” someone whispers. “She survived.”
I rise. “I am Freya Vale. No longer bound to any man. My bond is to the Moon alone.”
Kade’s voice breaks. “What happens to me?”
I meet his eyes one last time. “You live. I let you keep Emris.”
He bows his head. “You’ve taken everything.”
“No,” I say softly. “I left you with your life. You will serve Silvercrest as an ordinary soldier until your final breath.”
Amara raises her staff, signalling the end of the rite. “Let it be known—the Moon has judged. The Severance stands. The High Council cannot overrule a High Luna’s claim.”
Tamsin and Jax appear in front of me as the circle dissolves, bowing. “High Luna.” Brin joins them, grinning wholeheartedly.
“Without all of you, none of this would be possible,” I say, my voice finally breaking with emotion.
“We serve you,” Brin says. “You lead Silvercrest now.”
“Would it be possible without me?” Rowan’s playful voice comes from behind.
I turn quickly, facing him, failing to keep the smile from my face as my children rush from him to me. “Mama, you’re glowing,” Finn says.
Ivy laughs. “Like the stars.”
Rowan steps forward. “You did it,” he whispers.
I nod at him slowly, feeling my heart swell with satisfaction and happiness.
The moon is fading into the pale sky, her last light brushing my skin. A faint warmth burns into my arm as the patterned mark starts to appear—tiny crescents along sapphire ribbons over my silver veins.
Gasps rise again as wolves kneel instinctively, recognizing the sign.
“The Moon Goddess has branded her,” Elder Maelin murmurs. “High Luna.”
I breathe, my voice carrying softly across the stillness. “The Moon’s verdict is final. She has brought justice.”
And with that, I turn away from Kade and the ashes of a broken marriage, powerful and whole on my own, the dawn rising behind me.