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88. Festival
Last Updated:
2024-04-03 16:17:38
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Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 89. Alpha
Callista.For a moment, I just stand there blinking, because his voice is the last thing I expected to hear at this hour. But soon I get over it and rush toward the door to unlock it, wondering what’s going on. Is it Elias? Had he somehow broken out? But why would he come to me if that’s the case, it’s not like I can calm him with my scent. In fact, my scent does the opposite of calming to him.“Alpha,” I greet him. “Is something wrong?”That’s when I notice what he’s wearing, and feel my cheeks heat up involuntarily.He stands at my doorway, dressed in a black tux that makes me catch my breath. His hair is styled perfectly with grooming products, and his jaw is clean-shaven. His dark eyes glitter under the dim light of my room, and the suit makes them pop out. His jacket molds onto his body, straining against his muscles. His powerful frame is accented nicely by it, all the curves and edges flexing with each movement, and I feel heat rush through my belly.Oh, by the Goddess, what is
Last Updated : 2024-04-03Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 90. Static
Callista.“You killed my only daughter.” My mother sits in the darkness, kneeling next to a blonde-haired woman sprawled on the ground. Her face was hidden by her hair, but I could recognize that blood-soaked sweater anywhere.My head hurts once again, a static ringing in my ears. Overhead I hear thunder cracking, a terrible sound that echoes in my aching mind, and a shiver of terror runs down my spine. My mind feels foggy and unfocused, and the shadows dance all over the walls of the room.“You’re a killer, Callista.” In a lilting, sing-song voice that feels like nails scraping against a stone wall, the shadows sing. Their blood-red eyes stare at me from the dark walls, following my every movement.My mother’s face is as pale as a corpse, and she wears a tattered dress that looks like the one she wore to Ruelle’s funeral. Her eyeliner runs down her cheeks mixed with her tears, and her dark blonde hair fans around her face.She looks mad with grief. I want to look away desperately.He
Last Updated : 2024-04-05Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 91. Broke
Callista.This time I see a wolf. He’s in the corner of the room, and his ebony black coat shines all imperious under electric lights. His red eyes stare at me as he shows me his teeth, snarling. I never knew a wolf could look so angry, and vengeful; I don’t know why it’s directed at me.But if there is one thing I do know, is that the wolf is familiar. I know that I know him from somewhere. But I can’t remember his name.“Hello, Callista,” Suddenly the wolf talks, his voice distorted and resonating, and it’s bizarre to hear words come out of his snout. “We meet again.”“That isn’t possible, I don’t know you,” I tell the wolf, stepping back. “I’ve never seen you before.”“Oh, you have,” The wolf grins and it’s a scary thing to behold. Pristine fangs glitter like they are blades. “You just don’t remember me.”“I’m sorry for that,” I try to sound sincere, because I really, really hope that I can remember him.“I doubt you are.” The wolf snarls. “You might tell people that you’re sorry,
Last Updated : 2024-04-06Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 92. Home
Theon.One moment we were talking, and the next, all hell had broken loose.Dr. Haeger, Haden, Kellin, and I chase Callista down the hall, trying to catch up with her. But in her delirious state, she's so much faster and stronger than us, which is shocking because she hadn’t gained those qualities from her wolf. How is she doing that? What had the bears done to her? We had no idea, which means that we had no idea how to deal with her like this except to somehow restrain her.Our footsteps ring through the castle corridors, our voices calling out her name, imploring her to stop, but she doesn’t care about it. Before we can get to her, Callista manages to open the auxiliary entrance doors that lead to the ballroom, where almost all the pack danced in.Oh, no...The moment I saw Callista shudder as I leaned into her before, I knew something was wrong. Then I realized that I paid a witch earlier to alter the bubble protecting the pack borders to be rain repellent, so the festival could b
Last Updated : 2024-04-06Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 93. Mother
Callista.The dark-haired man sputters, shock evident on his face. He looks back at my mother and me several times before taking a deep breath. When his eyes find mine again, there is an unprecedented sorrow in his expression.I don’t know why I never expected to see that, but it surprises me, nonetheless."Your mother isn't real, Callista." The dark-eyed man says with a gentle voice. "You're dreaming. It's raining and you're in an illusion. You know this deep down, don’t you? Wake up, please, before you do something bad."I feel hurt. “Why would you say that? It’s not very nice.”The dark-haired man groans. “I know, I’m screwing this up yet again, but that’s the truth and it’s not nice. But she is not real. I’m sorry, but you have to trust me on this.”"But it feels so real..." I muse, staring at the beautiful woman beckoning me to join her. I wonder what it would have been like to grow up with her. I don’t think she would’ve called me ungrateful every single day of my life like my a
Last Updated : 2024-04-07Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 94. Guild
Theon.I'd told her. Finally, I accepted the fact.I don't get to ponder more on it, because the rain still falls, and Callista's episode continues. But this time she doesn't do anything as dangerous as nearly following a phantom towards her death. I hate the fact that her own mind is trying to kill her. How could it happen? What dark magic did the Chamber use to wreck Callista's mind so much within a few hours?I don't think she would be able to handle this happening again. Goddess knows I won't be.Callista's my mate. I'd acknowledged it before, but I had been reluctant to act on it. How could I when I'd betrayed her so much from the moment I met her? I'd paraded another woman in front of her, I'd imprisoned her to be mated to my brother, and I'd falsely accused her of murder. I was the antagonist in her life so how can I suddenly turn a page and be her mate?I still don't know what I'm supposed to do. I'm sure that Callista won’t remember what I said before. She always forgets her
Last Updated : 2024-04-08Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 95. Car
Callista.The Witches’ Guild is situated on the other side of the country, deep inside the mountains. Since the beginning, it had been hidden from humans with stronger wards than the ones used in the Were packs, spelled into place hundreds of years ago.The Witches’ Guild consists of the Training Academy for young witches, the Magical Crime Investigation Unit, the Witches’ Council as well as the Hospital for Magical Maladies, abbreviated as 'HMM'. Never let it be said that people of magic did not have a sense of humor.I am to be admitted to this hospital, and for that, we’re going to have to travel about 200 Km across the country.In a car."Can't we use a plane or even a train?" I'd asked Theon the morning after the festival, after the storm had subsided and restored my mind.I couldn’t believe I had another episode. That meant this problem with me was not a one-off."Oh, if it were an option, we could definitely take them, but what’s going to happen when you have an episode midair,
Last Updated : 2024-04-10Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 96. Trip
Callista.Once upon a time, I'd dreamed of going on a road trip.There was something so classic about them that appealed to my childish mind, something that we could have in common with humans, like school, but much more enjoyable than school and certainly more adventurous. Being confined to the pack was suffocating at times, regardless of the freedom if afforded, so escaping even for a little while was a dream.At first, I'd wanted to do it with my adoptive family, but the moment I'd asked them if we could, the answer had been a stout no. Followed by incredulous laughter. Later, I'd hoped that maybe I could make a trip after I graduate, along with Farris. I'm embarrassed to say that I planned the whole thing using a pink glitter pen in a little red scrapbook. I'd spent weeks on it, really.I was ready to bring it up to him after the coming-of-age ceremony. I was certain that he would jump on board, and it wouldn’t be hard to leave too because he was the Alpha after all. We didn’t hav
Last Updated : 2024-04-10
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Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 322. Epilogue
CallistaTen years later.I stand in front of Lily Lane Pup Daycare after ending my workday at Rexellen University, holding a stack of books in my arms trying to shove them into the backpack I’ve taken with me.It’s three in the evening, and the kids should be out in a few minutes.It’s summer again, the weather is pleasantly warm, and everything brims with life. There are bees flying everywhere, suckling nectar out of the numerous fully blossomed Leanderrs.The Rexellen pack town is as busy as ever, with people bustling around after clocking off from work, going on their errands, and their outings.Everyone seems happy, and they’re open and very friendly.Upon noticing me, everyone who passes greets me with a simple.“Good evening, Luna!”“Good evening to you too!” I always greet back.Some parents stop by near the daycare to collect their children, and we start pleasantly conversing with each other.I’ve been the Luna Queen of the Rexellen pack for ten years now, and honestly, those
Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 321. Ceremony
CallistaFour weeks later.I walk down the shoveled path with a single lily flower in my hand, a smile on my lips, and my heart overflowing with joy.I’m dressed in an ankle-length, heavy-set gown that accentuates my form as if it had been sewn with me in my mind.It’s a silverish white in color in accordance with tradition, and a million tiny rhinestones create spiraling patterns all over the skirt. The long sleeves and the woolen cloak that accompany them give me warmth on the cold winter night.On my neck, there is a white gold necklace with a diamond as the pendant, the only piece of jewelry I wear, which is a gift from the witches who'd arrived a day before to celebrate the ceremony.The mating ceremony for Theon and me.In the background, a string quartet, comprised of two maids of the Rexellen pack castle and two guards, plays a tune that I can't quite name but can’t help but think is so apt for the situation.On either side of me, my closest friends whom I consider my family s
Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 320. Gift, not Curse
CallistaA week later.Valencia Everhart was sentenced to life in prison by the Supernatural Council for assisting the devil in his criminal endeavors such as kidnapping and harboring a werewolf, orchestrating a pack takeover on the orders of the devil, attempted killing of two pack members of the Rexellen pack and the biggest crime of them all, assisting the devil in massacring the entire Galdine pack.I thought the last one was a bit harsh because Valencia never really did know about that charge, but as Valencia had confessed in the court, she’d given the devil the location and information regarding her pack.She had been under the impression the devil was going to protect the Galdine pack from Theon’s retaliation against the pack takeover, but she’d been lied to.We attended the court on the same day as Valencia did, and I’m sure that the cries that ravaged her as she learned the horrible fate that befell her pack would never stop haunting my nightmares.I felt sorry for her, and a
Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 319. Afterlife
CallistaQaetanya and Xaveraq reached the afterlife together.One was willing, the other was not. One sacrificed herself, while the other, well, I had to kill the other.Xaveraq’s soulless body lays in the circular chamber, and I don’t look at it again as we exit the room, both of us still in wolf forms.I feel numb as we stumble out of the temple as soon as possible after I release the devil’s and the deviless’s souls into the gateway.None of us speak, although I could feel everyone except Theon patiently waiting for the right moment. They look stunned as we walk through the doorway. For a moment I’d been afraid the doorway wouldn’t be present because of it being only shown with the blessing of a devil and all, but fortunately, it stands.As soon as we all exit the temple doorway, it starts to shudder. And then the most bizarre thing happens.Numerous high-pitched screams ring through the air, and greyish white mist starts to shoot from all directions towards the doorway, getting su
Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 318. Defeat
TheonI can’t process half the things that are happening as I stand outside the little circular room, trying and failing to get in.One moment, Callista is being choked by the devil, and the next moment, in the place of Callista, stands a majestic white wolf! The wolf shimmers as if she were the Moon Goddess herself in wolf form, stepping down from the moon to aid us in our time of need.But when the wolf looks at me for the briefest moment and howls in ecstasy, I realize that this wolf is no Goddess.That’s my mate!After months, no, years, of agonizing, Callista has finally found her wolf.But then she turns towards Xaveraq and leaps towards him with no hesitation.My scream deafens my own ears, wondering what the hell she was doing. I witness the whole scene as if it’s unfolding in slow motion.As Callista nears the devil, whose shadows are closing in on her to consume her, a flash of blinding white light erupts from her, filling the room with a glow akin to the sun.I shield my e
Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 317. Amazed
QaetanyaHer wolf is beautiful, reminiscent of the first wolfwoman I met in the forests of Gaul all those years ago.She is larger than most wolves, were-creature or otherwise, and when she stands, she cuts a majestic figure, even in the confines of the squat, circular room. Her coat is a silverish white, and it glistens as if it was created by moonlight, as if the Goddess molded the wolf herself.Her emerald eyes shine as she stares at Xaveraq in confusion, and amazement, stunned to her very core.She can’t still process that after years of hope and dream, she’d finally transformed into her secondary form.I had watched her wolf grow from a pup to an adult within her as I was trapped in her mind ever since she was born. Throughout the three thousand years I’ve been with Callista’s bloodline, I’ve witnessed hundreds of pups being born within the babies, but never have I seen a wolf as beautiful as this one.Even I was in awe when she first appeared, sleeping soundly, growing along wit
Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 316. Shift
CallistaThe very first time I witnessed a werewolf’s first shift I was just five years old.It was at a birthday party, and of course, it was for Ruelle.Naturally, almost everyone from my adoptive parents’ families was invited. I liked my relatives because they didn’t favor Ruelle over me to the extent my parents did. At this time, all I had were Ruelle’s hand-me-downs. Her clothes, her toys, her books…The only thing I had for myself was a pair of shoes because Ruelle’s feet had always been smaller than mine, and there was no way my feet could fit in her shoes.I loved those shoes so much.That didn’t mean I never got gifts. My parents’ relatives would always give me presents of my own when they came to visit. It didn’t matter if it was Ruelle’s birthday or mine.It didn’t matter if it was a special day, a holiday, or even a plain, random visit to see how we were doing: clothes, shoes, toys, and new books; everything a little girl could want.Granted these things would be taken awa
Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 315. Goodbye
Callista“My, my, Qaetanya, you’re actually stronger than I thought. Here I thought that you wasted it all by giving that werewolf a special scent,” the devil taunts the deviless as he circles us, his eyes set on us as if he’s a predator.“I was blessed by the Goddess,” arrogantly, Qaetanya declares, flexing her digits so the electric sparks flicker around them. “Such a power cannot be hindered by anything, least of all you!”“All except the summer solstice,” Xaveraq grins before hurtling another wave of shadows towards her.Qaetanya ducks them swiftly, and the shadows hit the wall behind us, getting absorbed into the stone. Using her momentum, Qaetanya attacks Xaveraq with a light wave of her own, which Xaveraq detracts by a shield of shadows.“I told you that information because I trusted you,” Qaetanya replies to the jab. “Because I believed the man I loved wouldn’t even think of hurting me with that information. But you did exactly that. You might preach about me manipulating you
Once A Luna, Now A Stealer? 314. Monsters
TheonA pillar monster falls right in front of me, nearly crushing me, but I jump away just in time. The sheer force of the fall breaks its stone arm in two, and the eerie silverish glow in its eyes subsides. The pillar monster stops moving.“I think he died,” I tell Haden, who is panting on the other side of the fallen monster.This is the only one that we managed to fall, and by the looks of it, kill.“Holy shit, did that actually work?” Kiran screeches.He was the propellent of bringing the monster down. Now, he jumps back to the ground from the shield he’s been standing on and jogs closer to the pillar monster.Tentatively, he reaches out and touches its cracked shoulder, where some of the previously seen symbols are visible. I remember them running all around the pillars before the monsters came into being, glowing.I look at him and nod, trying to confer my thoughts via body movements.Yes, I think it actually worked.“Guys, we managed to bring a monster down!” Kiran yells back
