Page 100 of The Onyx Covenant

Kieran spins toward her, still mid-dance. “Too late! You snooze, you lose, sweetheart!”

“Back off, Selene,” Theron growls, not bothering to hide his triumph as he keeps one arm firmly around my waist. “The alliance was sanctioned by the competition rules.”

“Rules,” Erebus scoffs. “As if Umbra ever cared about rules.”

“Rich coming from you,” Kieran retorts, bouncing on his toes with excess energy. “Wasn’t it your sister who got disqualified at the last Harvest Ritual for poisoning her opponent’s water?”

Erebus lunges forward, but Theron intercepts him, one hand on the larger man’s chest, holding him back with seemingly minimal effort.

“Enough,” Theron barks, his quiet authority filling the chamber. “We’ve won. Accept it, or we’ll make you bleed.”

Before Erebus can respond, a deep rumbling fills the chamber, the stone floor vibrating beneath our feet. The pedestal begins to sink into the ground, disappearing inch by inch into the floor.

“What the hell?” Selene gasps, fear replacing anger as she backs toward the entrance.

I clutch the moonstone tighter, its energy pulsating intensely now. “What’s happening?” I breathe, watching as cracks appear in the floor around us.

“The walls!” Kieran shouts, pointing wildly. “Look!”

They begin to sink, descending slowly into the ground with a grinding noise that sets my teeth on edge. Beyond them, the maze walls do the same—the entire labyrinth folding itself back into the earth.

Within moments, where there were once high walls surrounding us, there is now open space. The vast expanse of the competition grounds stretches out in all directions, revealing its true scale for the first time.

In the distance, I spot other competitors frozen in mid-motion, staring as their sections of the maze melt away around them.

“LOOK UPON US AND WEEP, LOSERS!” Kieran bellows at the top of his lungs.

His ridiculous showboating breaks the tension, and a scattered cheer rises from various parts of the field—not everyone is disappointed in our victory.

“Aria!” Kieran suddenly shouts, his theatrics forgotten as he spots a lithe figure in the distance.

My heart dances to see she’s unharmed.

Kieran is suddenly running to my best friend across the exposed field, her light chestnut hair flying behind her as she does the same.

Erebus steps back, jaw tight with disappointment. He and Selene begin to withdraw.

“No need to stick around,” Theron calls after them, his dismissal carrying a victorious edge. “We know how to celebrate properly.”

As they slink away, Theron turns to me with a ferocity that takes my breath away. His eyes, which have haunted my dreams since we parted, are blazing with more than just the thrill of victory.

“Lyra,” he murmurs my name like a prayer on his lips as he cups my face. The public mask is completely gone now, replaced by the man I fell for. “My beautiful, brilliant little moon.”

Then he’s kissing me. His lips are fierce and familiar against mine, his hands sliding into my hair with the confidence of someone who knows exactly how to make me melt.

I respond instantly, the moonstone clutched between us as I press against him. This is raw and real.

When we break apart, I’m breathless, my head spinning with more than just the power of the stone I hold.

Theron doesn’t release me. Instead, he lifts me into his arms in one fluid motion, spinning me around as if I weigh nothing.

“This is the beginning,” he says, his voice rough with emotion. “Something new, something terrifying… but it will be beautiful, Lyra.” He presses his forehead to mine. “You by my side, in the Onyx Covenant, where you’ve always belonged.”

“You’re so sure?” I challenge, though my smile betrays me.

“No,” he admits, setting me gently on my feet but keeping me close. “But I’m sure I’ll spend every day making it worth your while as we make all the wrongs right.”

I glance down at the moonstone in my hand and notice something concerning. The pulsating light within it is dimming, the swirling energy inside growing sluggish rather than intensifying as I expected.

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