I realised I had taken a risky decision as my boots touched the ground between Sebastian and his charging fighters.
Silver fang was disorganised, the air heavy with blood and treachery. Once an untouchable Alpha, Sebastian was now pursued.
I couldn't, however, let them murder him.
Not in this manner.
Not when I had loved him once.
Not when this moment may turn everything around.
My voice slicing across the battlefield, I lifted my hands. "Enough."
The fighters stopped, uncertainty flashing across their eyes.
Battered and wounded, Sebastian looked at me as if I had lost my mind.
Though I didn't turn, I could feel Kai's eye blazing into my behind. I had decided which to do.
And I would not allow Silver fang to once again be a pack governed by fear.
Though that was nothing compared to the humiliation scorching through my spirit, pain tore over my body.
I had forgotten.
Not just the struggle but also more. Not just my pack but also others.
I had Zaia lost.
Choosing to defend me when I had never defended her, she stood in front of me barring the warriors who had previously pledged allegiance to me.
She ought to have let them bring me down.
I was deserving of it.
But Zaia had always stood out.
She did not share my taste.
She did not share Kai's taste.
And maybe that's why I experienced something I had never felt before as I sat on my knees seeing her stand between me and my former soldiers.
Release.
Since she was supposed to take my place.
Dorian moved closer, challenge flickering in his eyes. "What are you Zaia working on? He's vanished. Right now, he is nothing.
I looked back at him unflinching. "That doesn't mean you get to split him like rabid wolves."
Dorian opened his mouth to bite. And who are you to define what we do?
I breathed gently, allowing the weight of my next words to sink over the gathering.
"I am **Zaia of Shadow Moon**. But Luna of Silver fang used to be me. This pack is known by me. I am aware of its potency. And I understand the outcome of turning against your own boss.
Rippling among the fighters were whispers. Hesitancy.
Dorian narrowed his gaze. Then what do you suggest?
I started to square my shoulders. Sebastian is no Alpha now. But Silver fang has to choose one worthy of ruling if they desire a king.
The fighters looked at one other.
Dorian sneered. "And you think that's you?"
I didn't blink. "If I have to prove it, I will."
A hush fell over the battlefield.
I felt Kai's presence behind me, his energy pulsing like a storm waiting to be unleashed.
But he didn't speak.
He was letting me make this decision on my own.
And I realized something in that moment.
I wasn't just fighting for survival anymore.
I was fighting for my destiny.
I had always known Zaia was different.
From the moment I first saw her, I knew she wasn't just another broken Luna.
She was meant for more.
And now, as I watched her stand between an Alpha she had once loved and a pack that no longer belonged to her, I saw it.
The shift.
The moment where she stopped being just a warrior.
And became something greater.
The moment she became a queen.
Dorian took a step forward, his dominance pressing against her like a threat.
I felt my wolf bristle, but I didn't move.
Zaia didn't need me to fight her battles.
Not anymore.
She wasn't a pawn in this war.
She was the war.
Dorian's eyes gleamed with challenge. "If you want Silver fang's loyalty, then you have to earn it."
I exhaled. "Then let's settle this the old way."
A flicker of surprise crossed his face, but it was quickly replaced with satisfaction. "A challenge, then?"
I nodded. "A challenge for leadership."
The warriors roared in approval.
Dorian grinned. "You're either brave or foolish, little Luna."
I met his gaze, unshaken. "I am neither."
The moment we stepped into the circle, I felt the weight of the pack's eyes on me.
Dorian was stronger. Bigger. More experienced.
But he wasn't fighting for survival.
I was.
He attacked first, fast and brutal.
I dodged, but not fast enough—his claws grazed my ribs, drawing blood.
Pain burned through me, but I didn't stop.
I couldn't.
I struck back, my movements faster, sharper.
Dorian snarled as my claws connected, slicing through his shoulder.
Blood spilled.
The warriors cheered.
But the fight wasn't over.
Dorian came at me again, his attacks relentless.
I blocked. Countered. Endured.
Until I saw my opening.
He lunged—and I twisted, using his own momentum against him.
In a blink, I had him on his back, my claws at his throat.
His breath hitched.
The pack fell silent.
I had won.
But I didn't kill him.
Because I wasn't Sebastian.
I leaned down, my voice steady and strong. "Silver fang doesn't need an Alpha who rules with fear. It needs a leader who understands strength."
Dorian stared up at me, his chest heaving.
And then—
He yielded.
A breath I hadn't realized I was holding escaped me.
The pack bowed.
And just like that—
I wasn't just a warrior. A survivor.
I was their leader.
I was crowned by destiny.
The moment Dorian bowed, I knew it was over.
Zaia had done what neither I nor Sebastian had been able to do.
She had won the loyalty of Silver fang.
Not through fear.
Not through brute strength.
But through will.
Through choice.
And that was power.
She turned toward me, her silver eyes glowing with something new.
Something undeniable.
And for the first time in my life—
I knew I wasn't standing in front of just a Luna.
I was standing in front of a Queen.