Chapter 2: A Second Breath

"Open your eyes, Aria."

The voice was soft, almost a whisper, but it cut through the haze in her mind like a sharp blade. Aria gasped, her chest heaving as air flooded into her lungs. Her hands shot up to her throat, expecting to feel the cold steel of the knife that had pierced her. But there was nothing. No blood. No pain.

Her eyes snapped open, wide and frantic, and she found herself lying on soft grass, the smell of earth and pine filling her senses. The sky above her was dark, speckled with stars, a full moon hanging low and heavy.

The moon…

Slowly, she sat up, her hands trembling as they dug into the cool earth beneath her. This wasn't possible. She was dead. Logan had killed her. She had felt the knife, the burn of betrayal, the suffocating darkness swallowing her whole.

But here she was.

"Impossible…" she whispered, her voice shaky, her breath uneven. Her hands moved to her chest, feeling the steady thrum of her heartbeat beneath her skin. It was real. She was alive.

No.

Reborn.

Her eyes darted around, trying to make sense of the scene before her. The forest was eerily quiet, the air thick with the scent of pine and something else—something ancient. She scrambled to her feet, her heart racing as she turned in every direction, half-expecting to see Logan emerge from the trees, his cold smile mocking her once more.

But instead, there was only silence.

Her breath caught in her throat as the realization hit her—this was the forest of Fate.

The place where werewolves came to meet their fated mates, to be chosen by the Moon Goddess. She had been here before, years ago, when Logan had first claimed her as his mate. That memory burned in her mind, the image of his hand reaching for hers, his empty promises whispered beneath the moonlight.

But this time… this time it was different.

The air around her hummed with energy, and deep within her chest, something stirred. A power, ancient and unfamiliar, pulsed through her veins, making her skin prickle.

She wasn't the same.

Aria lifted her hands, her fingers trembling as she stared at them, her mind racing. She remembered everything—the betrayal, the torment, the suffocating pain of Logan's final blow. And yet here she stood, alive and breathing, the world around her unchanged.

Or had everything changed?

Her mind spun, the memories of her death merging with the reality of her rebirth. The Moon Goddess—had she answered her plea? Had she been given another chance?

"Why…?" Aria whispered into the stillness, her voice filled with confusion, anger, and something else she couldn't name. "Why am I here?"

There was no answer, but the forest seemed to shift around her, the trees swaying as if moved by an invisible force. The wind whispered through the branches, carrying with it the faint echo of voices long forgotten. Her gaze lifted to the sky once more, to the moon that hung like a silent guardian.

And then it struck her—the Moon Goddess hadn't just given her a second chance. She had given her something far more dangerous.

The chance to change everything.

Aria's fingers curled into fists at her sides, her nails digging into her palms as the weight of her new reality settled over her. She was no longer the weak, broken Luna that Logan had discarded. She was something more now. Stronger. Wiser.

And this time, she wouldn't be a victim.

Her jaw tightened as the memory of Logan's betrayal flashed through her mind—his hands on Selene, the way his eyes had gleamed with cruel satisfaction as he ended her life. That same anger, that same hurt, now boiled in her veins like a fire waiting to be unleashed.

She would make him pay. Not just him, but Selene too. She would tear down everything they had built, everything they had taken from her, piece by piece. But it wouldn't be enough to simply destroy them. They needed to suffer.

They needed to feel the same agony she had felt.

A branch snapped behind her, and Aria's body tensed. Her senses flared to life, sharper, more attuned to the world around her than ever before. She spun around, her heart pounding, and there, standing at the edge of the trees, was a shadow. Tall. Broad-shouldered.

Her breath caught in her throat.

The figure stepped into the light, and as the moon illuminated his features, her heart stuttered. Dante Blackwood. The most feared Alpha in the region. His eyes, dark and piercing, locked onto hers, and something in their depths shifted. Recognition. Curiosity. And something far more dangerous.

Aria's pulse quickened, her body reacting to his presence in ways she didn't understand. But there was no denying the power that radiated from him. He was dangerous. Lethal. And yet, in this moment, he wasn't her enemy.

Not yet.

"What are you doing here?" Dante's voice was deep, commanding, sending a shiver down her spine. He didn't need to shout; his presence alone was enough to demand attention.

Aria's lips parted, but no words came. She should have been afraid. Any wolf in their right mind would have been. Dante was a force of nature, a man who ruled his pack with an iron fist, his enemies falling to their knees in fear at the mere mention of his name.

But Aria wasn't afraid.

Not anymore.

"I could ask you the same," she replied, her voice steady, though her heart raced. Her eyes didn't leave his, the tension between them crackling in the air like a storm waiting to break.

Dante's gaze flickered, his head tilting slightly as he studied her. "You don't belong here," he said, his voice laced with authority, but there was something else in his tone. Curiosity, perhaps? Suspicion?

Aria's lips curled into a bitter smile. No, I don't belong here, she thought, but neither did I belong in the life that was stolen from me.

"I'm exactly where I need to be," she whispered, more to herself than to him.

Dante took a step closer, the moonlight catching the sharp angles of his face, highlighting the intensity in his eyes. His presence was overwhelming, suffocating, but Aria held her ground.

His gaze darkened as he reached out, his hand brushing a strand of hair away from her face. The simple touch sent a jolt through her, but she didn't flinch. She met his eyes head-on, daring him to look deeper, to see what lay beneath the surface.

"You're different," Dante murmured, his voice low, almost to himself. His fingers lingered for a moment longer before he pulled away, his eyes narrowing. "Who are you?"

Aria straightened, her resolve hardening. She wouldn't be the broken Luna anymore. She was reborn. And this time, she would decide her own fate.

"I'm no one you need to worry about," she said, her voice cold, masking the storm of emotions raging inside her.

But as Dante's eyes lingered on hers, something told her that he would worry—whether he realized it yet or not.