The Second Chance Of The Rejected Moon (Celine and Bastian) novel Chapter 181

Chapter 181

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Darien has been asking me for some time to release Stephan from his duty. He says enough is enough, that the man has served his sentence, and that keeping him away from his son is only causing more harm. I have already made my position clear, but I cannot help feeling that if I release him, I will be betraying my father and his memory.

Because of Stephan, my father is dead. Even though he was not the one who pulled the trigger that night, it was his weapon that ended up in the hands of my biological mother. In the middle of her madness, she used that weapon to murder my father and my little sister before taking her own life. Since then, the hunter has done nothing but hurt us. He attacked packs, vampire nests, and covens, provoking conflict time and time again with a single objective: to force me out of hiding and capture me. Because I look almost identical to my mother, the woman he loved.

Later, at the Sanctuary, the leaders of each faction take their places around the table, just like in the old days. I rub my cheeks wearily while Koorush, the general of my army, and the other commanders give us the exact number of warriors ready for battle. There are too many to count at a glance, and even so, I have the unpleasant feeling that they may not be enough.

“The first creatures have arrived in small hordes of hundreds. The cities are safe for now. All those things have concentrated in the pack territories.”

Nyxara, a dark fae queen, runs her fingers across a tablet, and seconds later, several images appear projected in front of us. The creatures move among the trees and mud, deformed and silent, while the images shift from one group to another.

“They’re nothing special. In fact, they’re very small,” Sebastian, Vladimir’s father, jokes.

That unpleasant man has refused to leave after we rejected his help. I do not even know what the hell he is doing in this private meeting, but no one seems to have enough patience left to throw him out once and for

all.

Logan, my father-in-law, gets to his feet after glaring at him and walks toward the projection. With a movement of his hands, he enlarges one of the images until the creature takes up almost the entire space in front of us.

“We cannot underestimate them because of their size. That would be our first major mistake. There is no such thing as a small enemy.”

“If you say so…” The warlock shrugs. “I won’t argue with you.”

Logan slowly turns his head toward him.

“I don’t care whether you argue with me, Sebastian. You have no say or vote here. I also have no idea why the hell you are in this meeting when no one invited you.”

“I have every right to be here. It’s not as though I’m not a supernatural leader just like all of you.”

Logan rolls his eyes, and several of those present exchange barely concealed looks. No one seems to have much sympathy for the warlock.

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The Second Chance Of The Rejected Moon

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“I have not seen you in a single battle fighting for your people. Not the first one, when Darion attacked us, nor the second, twenty years later, nor the third, when the strigoi invaded and destroyed both the human world and ours. Your ex-wife was there every time, and in every battle, she did an excellent job fighting for her people. I never saw you. You hid wherever the hell you were, and now you show up here pretending to be a leader. You are nobody, Sebastian.”

Karin, my mother-in-law, has just exposed and humiliated the dark warlock in front of everyone. He merely raises an eyebrow, completely indifferent to the attack.

“I don’t involve myself in matters that do not benefit me or my coven.”

“So you expect this to benefit you? Of course. How did I not see that coming?” Larissa points toward the door. “Get out. You have no business being here.”

“Of course I do. My son is in a world unknown to all of us. He is now the mate of a queen. I am certain he will return to fight alongside us. I did not raise a coward.”

The argument quickly escalates, and we all look at one another. Finally, several of the leaders move toward the platform where Logan and Preston are closely examining the images of the creatures the Order has managed to create using Celine’s blood.

“Look at those claws, the shape of their jaws. Their arms are short, but they appear to be strong, and their skin is completely scaly,” Logan points out.

“All I can see is that they’re hideous,” Preston jokes, although his expression changes when they enlarge another image. “But I have to admit, the Order has created this species much better than Darfion did years ago. These are strong.”

“They have Dire Wolf blood, the purest they have managed to obtain so far. Demon blood and vampire blood,” explains Remiel, the emissary of the High Demon. “The King of Hell has ordered us to intervene this time. Everyone has been given permission to eliminate these creatures, as long as we do not harm the humans.”

The news makes me frown.

“Billions of demons per infernal circle… Do they want to help us or finish exterminating us?”

Remiel looks at me with an almost amused expression.

“They will be able to transform, use demonic magic, and, of course, they will want to sink their fangs into us if they get the chance. We need to design specific teams to fight them.”

“That has already been done, Valeria. Don’t worry,” Larissa assures me.

“Good, because I don’t want to go out there and fight…”

“You are not going. You will stay here in Avalon, taking care of the children and yourself. You have only recently become a mother,” Arman, my father-in-law and Ciro’s father, interrupts me. “My son made me promise that I would not let you return to the human world.”

Everyone nods in agreement with Arman.

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16:06 Tue, Aug 18

The Second Chance Of The Rejected Moon

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