CHAPTER 76: THE SILVER QUEEN

Chapter 76: The Silver Queen

Despite three cancelled packs, twenty Alphas still met in the Great Hall as sunset painted the sky crimson. The ancient chamber had been turned into a circle of power, with each Alpha’s chair marked by their pack symbol carved in moonstone.

Liana stood beside Kael at the middle, wearing a simple white dress that made her look more like a hopeful girl than a legendary Luna. Her hands trembled slightly as she scanned the sea of skeptical faces. "Remember," Kael whispered, "we’re not asking them to follow. We’re asking them to choose." Alpha Magnus of the Northern Territories spoke first, his voice carrying the weight of ages. "We’ve heard tales of change, young Alpha. But custom has kept our packs strong for a thousand years. Why should we abandon what works?" "Because the world is changing whether we adapt or not," Liana answered, finding her voice. "Humans spread into our territories. Rogues grow stronger. And our children begin to question why their worth depends on their birth rank." Murmurs spread through the circle. Some accepting, others doubtful. Alpha Vera from the Desert Clans leaned forward. "Pretty words, girl. But unity needs trust. How do we know you won’t simply replace old systems with new ones?" Before Liana could answer, the great doors swung open with a sound like thunder.

Every head turned as a figure entered—a woman so beautiful that several Alphas actually gasped. She moved with liquid ease, her silver hair flowing like moonlight over a dress that seemed woven from starlight itself. Her face held the kind of beauty that made mortals write poems and go to war. But it was her eyes that truly commanded notice. The same storm-gray as Kael’s, the same forest-green as Jace’s, the same ocean-blue as Rowan’s—all three colors spinning together in impossible harmony. "Mother," Kael breathed, the word torn from his throat like a prayer and a curse. Lyra smiled, and the warmth in the room seemed to rise. "My lovely boys. How you’ve grown." The triplets stood frozen, twenty years of sadness and anger warring with the desperate love they’d buried. Jace’s hand moved toward his weapon, but Rowan caught his wrist. "Let her speak," the psychic whispered, though his voice shook.

"We need to understand." Lyra walked into the circle like she owned it, her presence filling the vast space. Every Alpha watched her with a combination of awe and wariness. "Forgive my dramatic entrance," she said, her voice carrying to every corner without effort. "But I couldn’t miss such a historic gathering." "You’re supposed to be dead," Alpha Thorne stated, his own voice hoarse with shock. "Death is such a limiting concept, don’t you think?" Lyra laughed, the sound like silver bells in winter wind. "I prefer to think of it as... transformation." She turned to address the gathered Alphas directly. "I am Lyra Nightfall, former Luna of the Shadowfang Pack, mother to these three extraordinary young men, and architect of the prophecy that brought you all here tonight." "Architect?" Elder Mira stepped forward, her face pale. "The prophecy came from the Moon Goddess—" "The Moon Goddess plants seeds," Lyra interrupted smoothly. "But mortal hands must tend the garden." Her eyes found Liana across the circle. "Some gardens require... pruning." The threat in her words was silk-wrapped steel. Liana felt both Selene and Mara stir within her, preparing for fight. "You abandoned your sons," Liana said, her voice steady despite her racing heart. "You have no right to claim their destiny now." "Abandoned?" Lyra’s beautiful eyebrows rose. "My dear child, everything I did was for them.

Do you think it was easy, letting them believe me dead? Watching from shadows as they grieved?" She moved closer to the triplets, and despite themselves, they didn’t flee. "I spent twenty years collecting power, learning secrets, preparing for this moment. The moment when my sons would be strong enough to claim their true heritage." "What inheritance?" Kael demanded, his words rough with emotion. Lyra’s smile could have melted mountains. "The right to rule not just one pack, but all packs. To bring order to chaos, power to weakness, glory to mediocrity." She turned back to the Alphas, spreading her arms wide. "Look around you, leaders of the great packs. You’ve kept your territories, your traditions, your pride. But what has it cost you? Your young dogs leave for human cities. Your borders shrink yearly. Your very life becomes myth and legend." Uncomfortable moving around the circle showed her words were hitting their mark. "This girl," Lyra pointed dismissively at Liana, "offers you unity through equality. She would make Alphas and Omegas the same, reduce your royal bloodlines to common stock." "That’s not—" Liana started to protest. "But I offer something better," Lyra continued, her voice rising with fire. "Unity through success. A council of royal bloodlines to guide major choices, with the strongest leading and the weakest following their natural place." Alpha Blackwood of the Eastern Ranges nodded slowly. "That... has sense. We keep our authority while getting collective strength." "Exactly!" Lyra beamed at him like a teacher praising a smart student. "Hierarchy exists in nature for a reason. The eagle does not seek unity with the sparrow." More murmurs, these ones growing favorable. Liana felt her support slipping away like sand through her fingers.

"Your mother speaks wisdom, young Alpha," Magnus said to Kael. "Perhaps we were too hasty in embracing radical change." Kael looked torn, his loyalty to Liana fighting with twenty years of missing his mother. Jace’s face was a mask of confusion and hurt. Only Rowan seemed immune to Lyra’s magnetic pull, his empath skills letting him sense something deeper than her beautiful words. "She’s not telling us everything," he whispered to his brothers. "Her feelings... they’re layered. Hidden." But his warning was lost as Lyra moved to the center of the circle, her presence demanding every eye. "My boys," she said, her voice heavy with maternal love, "I know you’re confused. Hurt. But everything I did was to prepare you for this fate. You were born to lead, not to serve. Born to lead, not to compromise." Tears actually glittered in her beautiful eyes. "I’ve missed so much. Your first hunts, your ceremonies, your wins. But I suffered that pain so you could claim your birthright without the weakness that once held me back."

Liana watched in horror as even Kael’s resolve started to waver. Lyra’s words were like a drug, beautiful and addictive and eventually poisonous. "You speak of birthright," Liana said, stepping forward. "But what about choice? What about the right of every wolf to decide their own fate?" Lyra’s expression changed, becoming almost pitying. "Oh, sweet child. You still don’t understand, do you? Some choices are too important to leave to the weak-willed." The temperature dropped ten degrees in an instant. When Lyra smiled now, it was the look of a predator who had been playing gentle far too long. "You want to offer these Alphas a choice between your idea and mine? Very well." She raised her hand, and power crackled through the air like lightning before a storm. "Let’s settle this the old way." Ancient words in the Old Tongue rolled from her lips: "I dare you, false Luna, to single combat.

Magic against magic, will against will, truth against truth." The challenge hung in the air like a real thing. Every Alpha in the circle straightened, knowing the formal cadence of the oldest laws. "The winner," Lyra continued, her voice carrying the weight of total authority, "decides the future of every pack represented here. Do you accept, little omega?" Liana felt Selene and Mara both surge within her, their united power making her skin glow with silver light. Around the circle, the Alphas waited with bated breath. If she refused, she would look weak. If she accepted, she would face a witch who had twenty years to perfect her power. But looking at the triplets—her mates, her heart, her reason for being—she knew there was only one answer. "I accept your challenge." Lyra’s smile was brilliant and terrible. "Excellent. Tomorrow at dawn, when the moon sets and the sun rises, we fight. The old magic meets the new." She turned to leave, then paused at the entrance. "Oh, and boys? Don’t even think about meddling. This is between your mother and your mate. May the best Luna win."

The great doors slammed shut behind her, leaving the hall in stunned silence. Liana had twelve hours to prepare for a fight that would decide the fate of every werewolf alive. And she had no idea if she was strong enough to win.