The Dead Luna

Phoenix

"Hey, girl! We are missing you on the field," a warrior whose name was Jack, slapped a hand on my shoulder.

I was in the training ground, chatting with other warriors. Most of them respected me for who I was and considered me their equal.

"I miss you too, Jacky!" I pushed him back playfully, making other warriors around us chuckle.

We were messing around, tossing jokes, when I heard someone calling my name.

"Phoenix!" Kiara’s tone was a little snappy, "Why aren’t you at the borders? You skipped your duty last night."

I didn’t even turn and just smiled with a shrug, "Seems like I’m the only one who is responsible for borders."

That again earned a few chuckles, but Kiara wasn’t backing down, "Oh, right," She walked around until she was standing in front of me, "Why would you think that, sweetheart?" she smirked, "You don’t even have a wolf!"

The laughter died instantly as everyone went silent. It was a personal remark, and that was what I was aiming for.

I took a deep breath, "Kiara," I struggled to keep myself calm, "Just walk away. Don’t say something you’ll regret."

I made it sound like I had had enough. Every warrior standing here knew how she had been treating me.

Before I could blink, she pulled something sharp, maybe her hidden dagger, and slashed a thin line across my arm.

Oh, Kiara, sweetie. You are doing exactly what I thought you would. How cooperative!

A few gasps echoed as blood appeared on my arm.

"See?" she pointed towards it, showing everyone the thin cut, "She is not like us. Her wound won’t close."

The silence grew heavier.

I looked at my bleeding arm, then at her smug, wicked face.

I smirked, "Yup. She heals faster," I tilted my chin to gesture towards her, "Means she’s got a wolf."

Without warning, I pulled my fist back and drove it straight to her nose. Though I didn’t have a wolf, I still heard the crack of her nose.

A werewolf could easily heal its human, but always took time to heal broken bones.

She flew back like a ragdoll, landing a good five feet away, flat on her back.

After that, all I could hear were gasps from my fellow warriors. No one uttered a word.

Ah! That was so satisfying.

Something I was dying to do ever since I joined the warrior training force. We were taught to show patience for our fellow warriors, but it seemed I was the only one who used to take it seriously.

Well!

Not anymore.

The silly head warrior was getting up, holding her bleeding nose, thinking that my aim was just to break her bones.

The stupid ape didn’t know my aim was too high, and now nobody was going to stop me.

***

"I heard you hit Kiara?" I was in the locker room when I found Jai entering the locker room in his na*ked form.

"Hmm. I did," I said, closing the locker door and throwing shorts at him, "Are you here to take her side? Because if that’s the case, there is the door," I pointed towards the exit door.

"And why would I do that?" he threw the question at me, "I’m here to keep a check on you."

Today, for the first time, I felt like he was making it up. He had been like a friend to me. Almost like a brother.

But today?

Today, it didn’t feel sincere or genuine. It almost felt like he was keeping an eye on me. Trying to dig for secrets, I never revealed to him or shared.

"Phoenix. Where is your phone?" Jack barged inside with a look of urgency on his face.

"I might have forgotten it in my room. Why?"

"Luna Raya wants you in her office. Now!" I nodded at him and then turned to Jai.

"See you later, Jai," I patted his arm before leaving, but he didn’t react.

Ever since I had returned, I felt like he was hiding something from me. I wasn’t the only one with secrets. Yet he wanted me to share those when he wasn’t ready to do the same.

I knocked on Luna Raya’s door, still thinking about Jai. After a short hmm, I went inside and halted in my steps.

Kiara was sitting there with a bandage on her nose. Her eyes were blood red due to continuous crying.

"So, you’re here!" I went ahead and pulled out a chair and dropped into it.

She seemed surprised when, unlike always, I didn’t ask for permission before taking a seat.

"You are in Luna’s office. At least pay her some respect and ask for her permission," she pressed her hand on her nose and then winced.

"No. It’s okay. I’m sure our Luna won’t mind. She is very accommodating," I then turned my gaze to Luna Raya, "Right, Luna?"

Luna Raya nodded, her expression unreadable, "It’s OK. You all are equal to me."

Kiara’s brows shot up as her eyes widened. The poor warrior was genuinely shocked.

"L... Luna Raya... sh... she ..." She pointed towards me, but Raya swiped her tongue over her lower lip, "Kiara. I think you need to go out. Let me handle this," Ah. Another shock for the baby girl.

I felt sorry for her.

"W...what do you mean..." She couldn’t believe Luna Raya would send her away.

I calmly took off my mask and placed it on Luna Raya’s desk, "You heard her. She is our boss, and you need to respect that."

She flinched, turning her head away. It wasn’t an easy task to watch my face, "I’ll come later, Luna."

She left the seat and made a quick exit. I suppressed my smile and looked at Raya, who was already watching me.

Odd thing was, this time, she didn’t flinch, nor was there any look of disgust on her face.

"Your worms... I can’t see them," she said, her eyes didn’t move.

I nodded with a smile, "Yeah. Ever since I returned, they are gone," I snapped my fingers, "Like this. Thanks to that woman... she treated it with some salve..."

Luna Raya cleared her throat, "Woman?"

"Yeah. Woman," I didn’t give any other information about Kiki, and sat there stubbornly.

Luna Raya gave me a tight-lipped smile, "I understand... the woman who treated your face. She doesn’t look like an ordinary woman."

I edged forward, "Excuse me?"

"The woman who saved you... she might be a witch. Only a witch has that much power to break the curse."

My heart skipped a beat, and I got up from the chair. Kiki....

She was a witch?

Why didn’t she tell me? Why didn’t she offer me any treatment?

Does that mean I can get my face back?