Moon Bound

The air grew unnaturally still. Even the forest seemed to hold its breath, and the faint crackling of the fire sounded distant, as though it came from a far-off world. A thick, suffocating presence descended on the clearing, and Selene's heart began to race. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, as if the very earth beneath her feet was warning her of something terrible.

Damon was already stepping in front of Iris, his body tense, protective, every muscle coiled in readiness for a fight. His eyes, hard as stone, never left the woman in front of them.

She stood tall and commanding, a figure cloaked in shadow, her presence casting an unsettling chill. Her smile was something out of a nightmare—sharp, knowing, and full of malice.

"Who are you?" Damon's voice was low, restrained, but laced with barely contained aggression. He wasn't stupid; this woman was dangerous. And she was after Iris.

The woman's lips curled into a sinister smile, the edges of her teeth gleaming in the moonlight. "Names are inconsequential, Alpha," she purred, her voice smooth as silk but carrying an unmistakable weight. "But you may call me Virella."

Selene's pulse quickened. A warning bell echoed in her mind, and she instinctively stepped closer to Iris.

"What do you want with us?" Selene demanded, her voice a mixture of fear and defiance. "What do you want with Iris?"

Virella's eyes glinted darkly as they shifted to Iris, the small child trembling in Damon's arms. "I want her," Virella said softly, her voice like honey but dripping with venom. "She is the key to everything. And I am taking her now."

Selene's stomach churned. "No," she whispered, shaking her head in disbelief. "You're not taking her. She's my sister. She's just a little girl."

Virella's smile deepened, a knowing glint flashing in her eyes. "You don't understand yet, little wolf. But you will. Soon enough."

Before Selene could react, the air around them thickened, charged with a dark energy that made the hairs on her skin stand on end. There was a strange, almost unbearable pressure, like the very atmosphere had been suffused with dark magic. The world around them seemed to slow as Virella raised a hand, her fingers slender and impossibly graceful, as though she were commanding the very elements themselves.

Damon stepped forward, his body brimming with authority. "No," he growled, his voice low and dangerous. "You're not taking her. Not now, not ever."

Virella's eyes flicked to him, the corners of her mouth twitching upward. "You think you can stop me?" she asked, her voice deceptively sweet. "You think your power, your position, can change what is already set into motion? You cannot stand against the forces I command."

Without warning, Virella's fingers curled into a fist, and the air turned to ice. The ground trembled beneath them, sending ripples through the clearing. Selene gasped as the pressure intensified, and her wolf growled deep inside her, desperate to break free.

"Let her go!" Selene cried out, stepping forward, but her voice was drowned out by the overwhelming force of Virella's magic.

With a final, cruel smile, Virella snapped her fingers.

In the blink of an eye, black tendrils of smoke erupted from the ground, swirling like living shadows around Iris. The dark magic rose rapidly, twisting in the air, and within moments, it engulfed the little girl. Iris gasped, her wide eyes full of terror as she reached out for Damon, but it was too late.

"NO!" Selene screamed, rushing forward, but Damon's arm shot out, stopping her.

"I won't let you do this!" Damon roared, but his words were lost in the whirlwind of black energy.

Iris's terrified screams filled the air as the tendrils wrapped tighter around her, lifting her off the ground. Selene's heart shattered as she reached out helplessly, but the magic was too strong. In the blink of an eye, Virella stepped forward, her hand outstretched. The dark smoke wrapped around Iris like a suffocating cocoon, and with a final, gut-wrenching scream, Iris disappeared from sight, swallowed whole by the black void.

"IRIS!" Selene cried, falling to her knees. She reached into the empty air, her hand grasping at nothing. Panic and desperation coursed through her veins.

Damon's face was a mask of fury, his eyes burning with an anger unlike anything Selene had ever seen. "You can't do this!" he bellowed, but Virella merely watched him, her expression unreadable.

"I've already done it," Virella said softly, her voice almost a whisper. "She is mine now."

The dark tendrils of smoke slowly receded back into the ground, and the clearing fell eerily silent. There was nothing left—no sign of Iris, no trace of the dark magic that had taken her.

"I'll kill you for this," Damon growled, his voice dripping with venom. His fists clenched, but he didn't move. He was trapped in the oppressive, unseen forces surrounding them.

Virella smiled, her eyes glinting with cruel amusement. "You can try, Alpha. But you cannot fight what you do not understand." Her voice hardened as she stepped closer, her presence commanding, overwhelming. "I am beyond your reach. You will never take her back. She is mine now."

The air seemed to tighten around them, and the shadows in the trees deepened as though they were alive, watching, waiting. Damon stood frozen, his face a mixture of rage and disbelief, but he did not step forward. There was a weight to the moment, a grim finality in Virella's words.

"I will be the one to determine her future," Virella continued, her voice like the echo of death itself. "Not you. Not anyone."

Before Selene could speak again, before she could gather the strength to fight back, Virella raised her hand, and with a single motion, the shadows around them surged like a tidal wave. The last thing Selene saw before the world blurred into darkness was Virella's final, malicious smile.

And then, everything vanished.

The clearing, the trees, the fire—all of it disappeared into blackness. It was as though the very fabric of the world had been torn away.

Selene's chest heaved as she stood alone in the suffocating darkness, her heart in pieces. "Iris," she whispered, her voice breaking. "Iris..."

But there was no answer. No sound. No trace of the little girl she loved.

Damon stood beside her, his eyes burning with fury, but there was nothing to do. No one to fight. They were alone, lost in the blackness.

And somewhere, in the distance, they both felt it. The shadow of a prophecy unfolding. The weight of the storm that was coming.

But for now, all they could do was stand there, helpless and broken, in the aftermath of Iris's disappearance.

~~ Author's Note **