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. 

the path for her friends. Thanks to that,

they were struggling to

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 would be best if her

this place and her – as possible.

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

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

all of them, she knew exactly what she was doing when she turned into a small passage and then paused by

in their wolf forms, and this got them several minutes to

was just one thing left to do now – get Aspen.

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

shifted behind her back. “There is something I need to

growled and pushed the door that led

there was a thick circle of bears

have to

everything she had, Savannah threw herself at the 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

she couldn’t stop. She had to do it. While there

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 him hit her nostrils. What

were soaked in something that burned her fingers. Claude

of the golden wolf. She couldn’t do anything gently in this form. But it was 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,

a beast now. They needed a monster.

surprisingly, that helped Aspen to come

opened from the swelling and damage. His vision was probably blurry so it wasn’t surprising he took her

repeated his mate’s name. “I knew you’d come.”

more bears in the square, and Savvy was starting to worry about how they were going to leave this place. She had to get her

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 to sacrifice herself for the Moon Goddess‘ children.

follow, and Sawy closed her eyes just for a

you for anything,” she prayed silently, “but if there is at least the tiniest

the castle towers exploded. Pieces of the ancient stone were landing around them, hitting some of the white bears. But most importantly, it made them

piercing their ears this time because it was so much closer. Ash growled excitedly, knowing that

that she did. Moreover, they didn’t know what to expect from

hesitate and unleashed herself on the startled enemies, tearing their flesh off and ending as many of their lives as she could. She pounced, and she dodged. She ignored the pain when they managed

of the broken castle walls. She knew that Ash would have help somewhere nearby. She just needed to give them a chance

bears did not follow her friends. All their eyes were on her, tracing her every move, and this was when

the darkness outside Bjorn’s home. She knew where her friends went; she could feel it.

followed her and that none of them got lost on the way. Slowly, her priorities were changing. She couldn’t

black hawk flew over her head, screeching, but she ignored it. Birds did not interest her anymore. She wanted to be killing bears. Her instincts were telling her to kill them all, and each roar she heard from them excited her. A

a clearing and waited. The annoying bird was still circling over her head, and she was

thoughts left her soon because the

the primal lycan inside of her couldn’t wait anymore. She pounced at the closest one, tearing

after another, she was killing them all, feeling only

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

in frustration, realising that this could be her end. She would die here today, killed by some weaklings just because they had bigger numbers.

This time it was a sound of a dying, desperate animal, and

of the howl, her breathing turned into snowy mist, and for the first time, she felt cold. The ground under her feet was icy, the darkness was replaced by clouds of snow.

she couldn’t explain, some kind of strange pull that made her think that she did want to survive after

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

in front of her eyes. Something moved in between all the warriors so fast that none of them couldn’t detect it. Yet

Or something else. 

of ice flew

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

she clawed her way to sanity until she was panting on the cold ground

but she was back. She was alive and she didn’t turn into a lycan beast forever.

on her mind

parts

kind of coverage. Even if

hiss from the pain, but she already knew there was nothing