The Luna Trials by Marissa Gilbert

63. True Mates 

Savannah charged at him, and this time she was too fast for Bjorn to detect. That’s when she gave him another sla.sh of the divine 

dagger over his chest, making a clean cut. 

“We are mates!” He said bitterly, covering the new wound with his fingers. 

“No. We’re not!” She replied without hesitation. “I’d rather die than be your mate!” 

The words hurt him more than the dagger did, but it wasn’t enough for her. He could see it in her eyes as she lifted her hand to try to 

kill him again. He’d had enough of this. She had to be contained! 

He caught her wrist this time and overpowered her easily, bringing her closer. 

“It’s over!” he roared, shaking her roughly, hoping that she’d return to her senses. 

However, it only made the princess sneer. 

“Bjorn, Bjorn, Bjorn,” she whispered and clicked her tongue. “I am just getting started!” 

Savannah’s bones started snapping before his eyes at unnatural angles, and in a few moments, she was able to free her hand from 

his grasp. Bjorn stepped away, panting, and watching her turn into something else completely. He’d already seen this when he and Joran 

went to observe the battle with Castiel’s men a few months ago and also when Kai did it so effortlessly many times in the past. 

It was harder for Savannah, he could see it, but she was determined to go through with this. 

“Savvy, no!” Darius‘ voice broke. He knew what it meant to her. Other royals rarely used their feral third forms because they were 

next to impossible to control. If they didn’t shift back soon enough, they risked never being able to revert back to their human form again. 

The realisation that she was ready to die or stay a beast for the rest of her life just to kill him, hurt him more deeply than the divine weapon ever could. 

But the monster with glowing golden eyes already stood in front of him. Tall, mighty and deadly. And she was out for blood.  blood. 

His 

Savannah tried to keep control just like Kai had taught her. Lycans were primal beasts who were born at the beginning of times, but her Lycan wasn’t a separate entity; It was a part of her. The part she was taught to suppress, the part she was taught to hide. 

Today she was going to embrace it. 

Bjorn looked like he was suffocating, but she decided just to end him immediately. However, when she took the first step, something invisible stopped her. 

“Enough!” The Serpent said, looking as calm as if people weren’t killing each other left and right around them. He didn’t even spare the Lycaness a glance. He didn’t take part in the fighting. He just defended Bjorn once and that was it. 

Wolves that came with Ash were dying. One of the bears almost grabbed Petra, who was still in her human form. From the corner of her eye, Savvy saw how Chloe shifted into a golden–coloured wolf, and Claude was quickly tying something around her neck. 

She wanted so badly to kill Bjorn… but… her friends were more important. If the Serpent didn’t plan to act, and it looked like he had something else in mind, then they had a chance to survive. If she would help them, of course. 

Growling angrily, Savvy flipped the table and was down next to Petra and Ash in seconds, leaving Bjorn behind. 

“Shift!” she commanded in the beast’s voice, and, luckily, they understood her instantly, following her lead. Petra’s wolf was the smallest, but even in the middle of the chaos, Savvy paused, seeing her unusual colour. The wolf was black with soft pink waves of fur all over her in a beautiful pattern. No wonder everyone wanted her! Someone like her was rare indeed! 

Chloe was next to the group already and Claude shifted in one jump, joining them as well. 

Now all they had to do was get out of that castle. 

If only it was that easy… 

1/5 

The bears were shifting too and Savvy let out a roar so loud that the ground underneath their feet shook. 

into the crowd and made a clean sweep, clearing the path for her friends. Thanks to that, they were

now they were struggling to get through the corridors of the

and everyone they met tried to attack them, slow them down… Yet, Savvy knew she only had minutes left of sanity, feeling how she was starting to enjoy the scent of blood and chaos she was leaving behind her. Each new kill was becoming easier and easier. Soon she wouldn’t care whom she was killing. By then, it

place and her – as

a major part of the decoration for the marking ceremony, and there were plenty around the castle. She watched the flames catch onto the curtains and spread over

few wolves from Ash’s team were already missing, either killed

turned into a small passage and then paused by an old wooden bear statue. One movement and the walls before them opened, revealing a dark staircase. This was something Savannah learned from the maps

vision, they went all the way down while still in their

thing left to do now – get Aspen.

that she would come back for the Gamma. He was one of Kai’s closest friends. She couldn’t simply leave him behind.

“There is

she growled and pushed the door that

thick circle of bears guarding

wouldn’t have

enemy, tearing, snapping, breaking, destroying… At some point, she felt like she had found a rhythm to all this. It became a part of her and felt so natural

do it. While there

the wall where Aspen was chained, he didn’t look good. He was barely conscious and his gaze was unfocused. There were cuts and bruises all over him, and Savvy almost threw up when the smell coming from

her fingers. Claude was surprisingly the nearest to him and offered his

better than the people beating Aspen up. He was practically unconscious, and the princess was worried that he’d fall off during their escape. She wanted to say something, but it was becoming harder and harder to form

needed a beast now.

helped Aspen to come back to reality. Even if temporarily.

probably blurry so it wasn’t surprising he took her for a white bear in this form. Just like her wolf, her Lycan was white in colour, with black fur decorating her ears.

his mate’s name. “I knew

worry about how they were going to leave this place. She had to get her friends

Savannah could already feel the desire to sn.ap all those necks. There were more of them than she could handle, but at least she would die trying. She didn’t mind. If she died, maybe the Moon Goddess would be so kind as to bring her back together with Kai. Maybe she could ask for this little reward if she was going

preparing themselves mentally for the m**** “e that was to follow, and Sawy closed her eyes just for a second,

there is at least the

one of the castle towers exploded. Pieces of the ancient stone were landing around them, hitting some of the white bears. But

was so much closer. Ash growled excitedly, knowing that

any of it, but the bears believed that she did. Moreover, they didn’t

hesitate and unleashed herself on the startled enemies, tearing their flesh off and ending as many of their lives as

of the broken castle walls. She knew that Ash would have

the bears did not follow her friends. All their eyes were on her, tracing her every move,

decided not to miss that wonderful opportunity and stood on all fours, charging into the darkness outside Bjorn’s home. She knew where her friends went; she

none of them got lost on the way. Slowly,

wanted to be killing bears. Her instincts were telling her to kill them all, and each roar she heard from them excited her. A fight. A hunt. Only they weren’t

was still circling over her head, and she was

left her soon because

lycan inside of her couldn’t wait anymore. She pounced at the closest one, tearing him to pieces on the spot and enjoying it. Then another one tried

all, feeling only pure rage running through

them even more now, to taste their blood and to see life leave their eyes, so she kept fighting, kept slaying…

like there were fewer bears around her. She roared in frustration, realising that this could be her end. She would die here today, killed by some weaklings just because they

her. This time it was a sound of a dying, desperate animal,

The ground under her feet was icy, the darkness was replaced

something. Something she couldn’t explain, some kind of strange pull that

off now. However, each bear that was getting close to her was

that none of them couldn’t detect it. Yet  there was no denying

Or something else. 

that sharp pieces of ice flew

that Savvy was going to complain. Her humanity was getting back to her against all odds, and she didn’t know

weren’t her problem anymore, and she felt a strong desire to shift back into her human

way to sanity until she was panting on the cold ground  covered

but she was back. She was

one question on her

parts of the gown were very stretchy, and now she was happy that

had some kind of coverage. Even if

knew there was nothing lethal. She