The days passed swiftly.
With every sunrise...
The Moon seemed to grow larger.
Brighter.
Watching.
The Royal Capital had transformed completely.
Banners bearing silver crescents fluttered from every tower.
Markets overflowed with travelers.
Young warriors from every corner of the Third Order continued arriving at the capital to accompany the kingdom's official representatives to the Lunar Sanctuary.
The Lunar Trials were no longer a distant event.
They were almost here.
Inside the Royal Palace...
The Nine-House Council gathered once again.
Queen Nyxara stood before them.
"The day has come."
Her voice echoed throughout the chamber.
"Tomorrow..."
"...we depart for the Lunar Sanctuary."
Silence followed.
Every noble understood the significance of those words.
For nearly three centuries...
No complete Lunar Trial had been held.
Many believed they had become little more than legend.
Now...
History was about to begin anew.
Nyxara looked toward Seraphine.
"Have our scouts confirmed the route?"
Seraphine nodded.
"They have."
"The roads remain safe."
She hesitated.
"...However..."
"The disappearances continue."
The atmosphere immediately darkened.
"Two more settlements vanished last night."
"No signs of battle."
"No survivors."
Eryx frowned.
"They're becoming bolder."
Vadok slowly folded his hands.
"Whatever is responsible..."
"...it's moving toward the Sanctuary."
Those words caused every noble to fall silent.
Meanwhile...
Riven wandered through the palace gardens.
The meeting had ended.
He needed fresh air.
His thoughts drifted toward the coming Trials.
"So..."
"This is really happening."
A familiar voice interrupted him.
"Nervous?"
He turned.
Nyss stood beneath a flowering tree.
A gentle breeze played with her silver hair.
She smiled softly.
"A little."
Riven admitted.
"I've fought wars."
"I've fought Alpha and Lords."
"But somehow..."
"This feels different."
Nyss walked beside him.
"It should."
"Everyone entering the Sanctuary carries their own dreams."
"They'll all be fighting for something."
Riven looked toward the Moon.
"What about you?"
She became unusually quiet.
"...I don't know."
"I feel..."
"...like something is waiting for me."
Those words lingered between them.
Neither knew how to explain them.
Elsewhere...
Within House Nocturne...
Zoldick stood across from Eryx inside the training arena.
"You called for me?"
Eryx nodded.
"You'll be protecting Riven during the Trials."
Zoldick blinked.
"I thought he'd be protecting me."
A faint smile crossed Eryx's face.
"You'll protect each other."
Zoldick's expression became serious.
"...Understood."
That evening...
The entire capital gathered before the Royal Palace.
Thousands filled the enormous plaza.
Warriors.
Citizens.
Children.
Veterans.
Everyone had come.
At the center of the plaza stood an enormous silver altar.
Upon it rested an ancient stone bowl.
Its surface was covered with glowing lunar runes.
High Priestess Kyra stepped forward.
"The Blood Oath."
She announced.
"A tradition older than the Four Orders themselves."
Every conversation ceased.
Kyra continued.
"Before setting foot within the Lunar Sanctuary..."
"Every participant must swear themselves before Lythara."
For the first time...
The ancient name of the Moon Goddess echoed across the capital.
Many bowed instinctively.
Even Eryx lowered his head.
Kyra raised the stone bowl.
"This oath cannot be broken."
"If your intentions are false..."
"The Sanctuary itself will reject you."
One by one...
The chosen representatives approached.
Zoldick stepped forward first.
He pricked his thumb.
A single drop of blood fell into the bowl.
The runes glowed briefly.
He stepped aside.
Next came warriors from House Nocturne.
Then Duskryn.
Then Umbraxis.
Then Veilbourne.
Each offered a single drop.
Finally...
Riven approached.
The plaza became unusually quiet.
Many still viewed him with awe.
Others with curiosity.
He accepted the ceremonial blade.
Without hesitation...
He cut his thumb.
One crimson drop fell.
The instant it touched the bowl
WHOOM!
The silver runes erupted with brilliant light.
A powerful wave of Moon Aura spread across the plaza.
The crowd gasped.
"What was that?"
"The bowl reacted!"
"It never shines that brightly!"
Even Kyra stared in disbelief.
But just as suddenly...
The light vanished.
The bowl returned to normal.
Kyra slowly looked toward Riven.
Then lowered her gaze.
"...Curious."
Riven scratched his head.
"Did I do something wrong?"
Kyra smiled politely.
"...No."
"Not at all."
Yet inwardly...
Questions flooded her mind.
First Nyss.
Now Riven.
The Moon had responded to both.
But...
In entirely different ways.
Later that night...
The ceremony ended.
The city gradually fell asleep.
Only the High Priestess remained awake.
She quietly collected the stone bowl before entering a secluded chamber beneath the palace.
No guards followed.
Only silence accompanied her.
She placed the bowl upon a small altar dedicated to Lythara.
Then poured sacred lunar water over the collected blood.
Closing her eyes...
She began chanting an ancient prayer in the Old Wolf Tongue.
"Lythara..."
"Guide your children."
The blood within the bowl began glowing.
Silver light surrounded every participant's offering.
One.
By one.
Until...
One drop refused to become silver.
Instead...
It turned black.
Not corrupted.
Not evil.
Ancient.
Wild.
Primal.
Kyra's eyes snapped open.
"...Impossible..."
The black droplet suddenly formed the faint outline of an enormous wolf.
Majestic.
Crowned.
Its eyes held the weight of forgotten ages.
Before Kyra could react...
The image disappeared.
The blood returned to normal.
Silence filled the chamber.
Kyra slowly fell to one knee.
Her entire body trembled.
"...Varokh..."
She whispered.
"...Rexar..."
Far away...
Beneath the Lunar Sanctuary...
An elderly monk seated before an endless sea of ancient candles suddenly opened his eyes.
His face was deeply lined with age.
His hair was white as snow.
He had remained in meditation for centuries.
He was among the last living witnesses of the First Cataclysm.
He had seen the birth of legends.
Dedicated his life to serving Lythara.
And guarded the Sanctuary ever since.
For thousands of years...
Nothing had disturbed his meditation.
Until now.
His weathered eyes slowly lifted toward the Moon.
A single tear rolled down his cheek.
His lips moved only once.
"...Varokh Rexar..."
The ancient candles surrounding him ignited all at once.
And for the first time in countless centuries...
The Guardian of the Sanctuary smiled.