Reclaiming My Broken Luna 2

Astrid's POV

The private chamber was dimly lit, the flicker of candlelight casting shifting shadows on the stone walls. The air was thick with anticipation as Killian and I stepped into the room.

Alpha Damien and Luna Valerie stood by the hearth, their faces somber. Damien's normally relaxed posture was stiff, and Valerie's fingers were laced tightly together, betraying her tension.

"Damien, Valerie," Killian began, his voice firm. "We were told you've uncovered something about the rogue king. What is it?"

Damien exchanged a glance with Valerie before stepping forward, his gaze steady.

"Valerie and I had been conducting an investigation-secretly," he admitted. "Ever since the first rogue attacks began to increase, we've been suspicious."

Valerie nodded, her tone soft but urgent. "The rogue king's moves weren't random. They were calculated, methodical. He wasn't just targeting packs for power or resources; he was targeting the foundation of our system-the hierarchy, the unity that binds us."

Damien's jaw tightened. "So Valerie and I thought we could take a look on past rogue incidents and dig into the rogue's origins.

In order to understand what they were doing, we decided to look into patterns of their attacks, thinking it could give us a clue about their plans."

I furrowed my brow, exchanging a glance with Killian. "What did you find?" I asked, my voice low.

Damien hesitated for a moment, as if steeling himself. Then he said, "The rogue king didn't used to be rogue. He used to be a Pack member and his name is Ardan. We have found out about his past."

Killian's golden eyes narrowed. "You know who he is?" he pressed, his voice sharp with urgency.

"Yes," Valerie said quietly. "And once you hear his story, you'll understand why he's doing this."

I leaned forward, the air between us charged with tension. "Tell us."

Damien exhaled deeply, his gaze distant. "Ardan wasn't always the rogue king. He was an adopted member of the Forestwood Pack, after he was found near death when he was a baby.

No one knew where he came from, and who his parents were. He was an abandoned child."

I blinked. Who would have known that the poor baby they saved that day would then become someone who would destroy all of us?

"Then what happened?" I asked impatiently. "If he was saved by a Pack, then why did he grew up wanting to destroy Packs?"

Valerie's voice broke slightly as she answered me, "The Forestwood Pack never treated him well. Because of who he was, he was bullied and treated worse than a slave. The Forestwood saved his life, but they made him live in hell."

"We gathered some accounts of how he was treated. It explains why he hated hierarchies and why he wanted to dissolve Packs,” Damien supported. “The Alphas, the betas... everyone who had power abused him, treating him like nothing."

I swallowed. I know what that feels like to be treated like nothing, but I'm sure that what I experienced as the Luna of the Silvermoon Pack many years ago is nothing compared to the life that he grew up with.

Valerie nodded her head. "But he didn't stay invisible forever. Ardan was smart, determined. He started to push back, to fight for a place at the table. And that's when he met Cedric."

"Cedric?" I repeated, my heart skipping a beat. "He knew Cedric?"

"Yes," Damien confirmed. "They

grew up together in the same pack. Cedric wasn't an Alpha backnoveldrama

then-he was just like Ardan,

struggling to survive in a syste

that didn't care about them. The two of them became close, almost like brothers. They supported each other, fought for each other."

Killian's expression tightened, his disbelief evident. "Cedric was his friend?"

Valerie continued from where Damien left off."Ardan left. He disappeared for years, and when he returned... he wasn't the same.

He'd built an army, rogues who shared his pain, his anger. He wasn't just fighting for revenge he was fighting to tear down everything he believed had destroyed him."

I swallowed hard, the weight of their words settling in my chest. "And Cedric?" I asked, my voice quieter now. "Where does he stand in all of this?"

Damien hesitated, his gaze flickering with uncertainty. "That's what we're still trying to determine. From what we've uncovered, Cedric and Ardan had a falling out years ago. But whether Cedric is helping him now... that's unclear."

Killian's voice was sharp. "And you suspect he is."

Valerie's lips pressed into a thin line. "It would explain so much. His behavior at the council, his attempts to undermine you. If he's working with Ardan, he could be feeding him information, sowing division to weaken the packs from within."

A chill ran down my spine as I pieced it all together. Cedric, the outspoken Alpha, the one who had tried to turn the council against us... could he truly be working with the rogue king?

Damien's voice dropped, his tone grave. "There's one more thing you need to know. Something that confirms just how dangerous Ardan truly is."

I straightened, my pulse quickening. "What is it?"

Damien locked eyes with me, his expression somber. "Ardan isn't just any rogue. He's an Almega."

The room seemed to tilt, the air leaving my lungs in a rush. Killian stiffened beside me, his golden eyes wide with disbelief.

"An Almega?" I whispered, the word tasting foreign on my tongue.

Damien nodded. "Like you, Astrid. And that's why he's so dangerous. He doesn't just have power-he the strength and determination wield it against all of us. And if Cedrias truly working with him... He trailed off, the weight of

his

unfinished sentence heavier than

anything he could have said.

Killian's jaw clenched, his voice cold and steady. "Then we'll stop them. Both of them."

The room fell silent, the enormity of what lay ahead pressing down on all of us. Cedric's betrayal, Ardan's past, the revelation of his power-it all pointed to a storm brewing on the horizon. A storm that Killian and I would have to face head-on.