All Chapters of THE LUNA HE THREW AWAY: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

170 Chapters

Chapter 21: Fen’s Past

We walked for hours. The land between Ashveil and the Old Growth was all bramble, half-burned fields, and a silence that made you wonder if something was watching. The air smelled of old smoke and damp earth, with a hint of metal, like fires that never really died. Crows called from somewhere unseen, their cries breaking the quiet. Cold wind pulled at our coats, steady and sharp, promising rain. I settled into the pattern of Fen in front, Cass at my side, Kael behind. It felt like a strange, battered parade. No one fully trusted, but no one let anyone fall behind.We camped in a shallow hollow, hidden enough that a fire wouldn’t be seen from the ridge. Cass took the first watch, Kael cleaned his knife with a rag that was once white, and I sat on a fallen log, tracing the scars on my knuckles. Fen crouched nearby, rolling a cigarette, his tattooed arms always moving.“Why’d you really come to Ashveil, Fen?” I asked. The question came out before I could swallow it.He didn’t look up rig

The Ashveil Meeting

We reached the border at noon, all nerves and sweat and the sort of silence that says don’t screw this up. The Ashveil woods weren’t like the Old Growth. They were thinner, meaner, the trees standing too far apart, the ground pocked with the stumps of things that had been cut down for firewood and never grew back. I could see the marks of old disputes in the earth itself. Rowan was already there, flanked by a trio of Ashveil wolves; none of them looked happy to see us.He stood with his back to the border marker, coat buttoned up tight, hands in his pockets. Kael walked ahead of me, not quite shielding, not quite challenging, but making sure everyone saw who he was. Cass hung back with Fen, who scanned the tree line like he expected a trap.“Rowan,” Kael called. His voice was careful, the way you speak to a man you’ve bled with but never really trusted.Rowan gave him the kind of nod you give an old rival, nothing more. “Kael. You look like hell.”Kael smiled, flat and humorless. “Bee

The Second Witness

The next morning, the air stayed heavy with the promise of rain. Cass made coffee over the fire, the smell sharp and grounding. Kael barely touched his cup.“We go to Ironveil next,” he said, voice emotionless. “Dara isn’t Aldric, but she’s not our friend. She’s survived this long by never picking a side.”Fen spat into the fire. “She’ll want something.”“She’ll want proof,” Cass said. “Proof that it’s worth risking what’s left of her pack. Proof that you’re not just another Sovereign with a death wish.”I laughed, short and mean. “Guess I’ll have to be convincing.”We walked all day, the land growing more civilized, more dangerous. Ironveil territory was richer than Ashveil, the houses bigger, the roads better kept, but there was no warmth to it. Every window was shuttered, every gate locked. Fear hung over everything.We reached the Ironveil estate at sunset. The walls were high, topped with broken glass. Kael led the way, his shoulders squared, his eyes harder than I’d ever seen. H

The Third Witness

The next morning, I woke to rain tapping on the canvas and Fen muttering under his breath as he tried to light a fire with wet twigs. Cass had managed to find coffee, real and bitter, so strong it could have stripped paint. Kael sat with his back to a tree, watching the gray woods as if he expected an ambush.We were supposed to be safe, or as close to safe as anyone gets in the borderlands. Three witnesses. That was the goal. Ashveil was in. Ashveil, fierce and proud, stood for the northern settlements, their banners showing the red wolf and mountain lilies, defenders of old forests and ancient promises. Their stone keeps still bear the scars from the Border War, and their people wear their pride like armor. They remember every slight, and every time the southern lords tried to claim the high ground for their own. Ironveil was complicated. Their people had long ago traded protection for power, bartering oaths with outsiders and keeping secrets even from each other. Silver mines bank

The Night Before

None of us got much sleep that night. The wind kept moving around the camp, carrying the smell of smoke, wet leaves, and sometimes something sharper- ash, like a memory of old fires. The Hollow never settles before a Rite, not when everyone knows what’s coming. The Rite is an old test, part judgment and part ordeal, where fate can change and lives might be turned upside down or saved. Some call it a trial, others a reckoning, but nobody comes out the same. Even the woods seem to know what’s at stake. Everything felt tense and waiting, like holding your breath before a hit.Cass took the first watch, but none of us really trusted the system. I watched her pacing at the edge of the firelight, hands deep in her coat pockets, shoulders hunched against the cold she’d never admit bothered her. She kept looking back at camp, checking on us, especially me. She’d kept us alive more than once by staying awake when she should have slept.Kael sat by the fire, slowly sharpening his knife. The bla

Aldric’s Move 1

We had barely left camp when the runner found us. He crashed out of the bramble, looking like he was being chased, cheeks red and hair stuck to his forehead with moisture and rain. He was young, hardly more than a kid, thin as a sapling and all elbows, the kind you’d never expect to last a day outside the kitchens. He ran straight for Cass, not even slowing when Fen stepped in front of him with his hand on his blade.“They let Jax out,” the boy gasped, doubled over, hands on his knees. “Council says he was an unwilling accomplice. He’s free. They want you to know.”Cass looked at the boy, suspicion in every line of her face. “That’s not mercy. That’s a move.”He nodded, pressing a second note into my hand, his fingers shaking. “He said to tell you- ‘Don’t believe the first door you see. Sometimes a cage looks like freedom.’ Then he ran. Didn’t stop.”I read the message, my heart beating fast. Jax was free. But the note set my teeth on edge. Fen moved closer, eyes sharp as glass.“They

Aldric’s Move 2

I looked at my friends, my chosen family, and realized I didn’t want to run or hide. What I truly wanted was to stand and face Aldric’s challenge- the Rite, not just for myself, but to prove that I could choose my own fate rather than accept the one imposed on me. Even if it cost me everything, I would confront the life-changing consequences rather than remain powerless.The fire burned low, shadows devouring my scars. I stood up, every wound and promise stitched together, my voice trembling on its first note before turning steady and cold. I’d see Aldric,” I said. “On my terms. Not his.”No one argued. No one tried to stop me. They just nodded, the way people do when the decision is already made, when all that’s left is to bear witness.Cass pressed a small knife into my palm. “Don’t trust him,” she said. “Don’t let him see you flinch.”Fen met my eyes, silver and unreadable. “If you don’t come back, I’ll burn the world down to find you.”Kael spoke nothing, just clasped my shoulder,

Chapter 28: The Return

At dawn, I stood at the edge of the Hollow. Mud clung to my boots, my hair was damp and tangled, and my heart pounded so hard I wondered if the trees could hear it. The weight of last night still pressed on me. My fight with Aldric was fresh, his threat to break me or drive me away echoing in my mind. I kept replaying his words, the risk I took facing him alone, and the grim deal we made that could end in blood. The memory of Jax being captured still hurt, and the fear that one mistake could cost more than just my life kept me awake. I spent the night staring into the dark, counting my regrets. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Aldric’s face- old, sharp, defiant. I saw Jax, grinning in the moonlight, and my mother’s hands shaking as she touched my hair. I saw Kael: sometimes the boy I loved, sometimes the man who hurt me, sometimes both.When I got back to camp, Cass was awake. She crouched by the fire, poking at ashes, her profile outlined against the gray light. Her eyes were red,

Chapter 29: The Rite Begins

At dusk, the Hollow felt different. The trees seemed to close in, old and stubborn, their roots twisted like the history beneath us. The air was thick, every sound sharper than usual. I could taste iron and sense rain coming. The pool in the center was still and black, reflecting the rising moon and the faces gathered around it.Witnesses arrived quietly, one by one, and the world’s old lines shifted with every new footstep. Rowan Ashveil, wrapped in his gray coat, led six of his wolves into the circle. They moved like a single shadow, eyes wary, their presence both a shield and a dare. Dara Ironveil came with two guards, her mouth set in a line that promised nothing but consequences. Behind her, the Ironveil banner hung limp, a silent warning. The Exiles drifted from the shadows- silver-eyed, marked by ash and silence, some with scars that told more story than any words. Cass stepped forward to greet them, her posture straight, hands open, the old tongue flickering on her lips.Kael

Chapter 30: The Confirmation

The Hollow was still when the moonlight faded. Everything waited, every root and stone silent. I stayed inside the circle. The Circle was more than a boundary; it was ancient, shaped by hands and songs older than memory. It marked the heart of our rites, a line in the earth where old magic gathered, where oaths mattered and spirits watched. Here, Sovereigns had been named and cast down, a ring burned into the ground by promise and sacrifice. The Rite was our passage, a trial that tied soul to land and leader to people, watched by the night and the unseen. Stepping out before the Rite ended would break its protection, or worse, undo what so many before me had given in fear and hope. I wanted to move, but leaving felt like breaking a spell or waking a beast that hadn’t decided if it was hungry.Rowan stood up first. He didn’t look at me, but nodded slowly, as if he saw something old and dangerous in the air. Dara got to her feet with a sniff, brushed her hands on her skirt, and glanced

1 2 3 4 5 6

...

SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP