The Lunar Crest Academy: Marked by The Lycans
Chapter 121: The Coming Storm

Chapter 121: Chapter 121: The Coming Storm

Lorraine’s POV

I didn’t even realize I was following Kieran until I was already out the door.

He walked with a storm in his steps, his jaw locked tight, eyes cold with purpose. My feet moved faster to catch up with him, and I reached out, grabbing his arm just as he descended the steps from the hospital building.

"Wait, Kieran, wait," I called breathlessly. "What did you mean back there? How do you plan to wake Elise up? How do you even know what her condition is?"

He stopped, back still to me. His shoulders rose as he took a long breath, and then slowly, he turned to face me.

"I’ve seen it before," he said quietly. His voice was heavy, weighted like stone dragging in water. "The convulsions. The pale skin. The bluish tint. The wolfsbane poisoning so deep in the bloodstream it corrupts the very essence of a wolf."

I frowned, the hairs on the back of my neck rising. "Where? On who?"

He looked at me, and for the first time in a long while, there was a kind of grief in his eyes I hadn’t seen before.

"My mother," he said simply. "The Alpha Queen."

I froze. "What?"

"She’s still alive," he continued, nodding slowly. "Barely. But yes. She’s.... still breathing."

Everything inside me stilled.

I had always assumed she was dead. Everyone did. No one ever talked about her, not even in whispers. Even the Academy always echoed with the name of the Alpha King, never hers.

"Why hasn’t anyone said anything?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. "Why does everyone think she’s gone?"

"Because it’s easier that way," Kieran replied, jaw tightening. "Because it keeps questions away. My father made sure of that."

I stared at him. "So you’ve been fighting to keep her alive?"

"It.... Its complicated, But currently, she’s somewhere between living and not. She also has an isane amount of wolfsbane in her system" Kieran stated

My chest constricted.

"All this time, and you never told anyone?"

"What would it have changed?" Kieran said, his voice low but sharp. "This academy, this kingdom, none of them care for the weak. Especially not when it’s someone they’ve already buried in their minds."

I swallowed hard. "What exactly happened to your mum Kieran? She is the Alpha Queen, why does she have an insane amount of Wolfsbane in her system?"

Kieran hesitated before answering, "We’ll talk about that later" He said " But for now, I remember the herbs the royal lycan physician used to wake her up despite the wolfsbane in her system, they are blood purifiers from the vaults of the High Temple. They made a concoction that slowly neutralizwd the wolfsbane in my mother... it might be enough to bring Elise back. If we act now."

I opened my mouth, but he was already turning away.

"Kieran....."

He paused. "Stay with Elise," he said. "She needs you. And right now.... she iss our only chance of finding out who the hell is behind all this."

He started walking again, fast

I stood there, the wind tugging at my hair, my breath caught in the tight space between fear and hope.

Elise.... please hold on.

Kieran’s POV

I walked out of the hospital with a storm in my chest and my thoughts knotted tight.

Elise.

Her pale face wouldn’t leave my mind. The same sickly hue. The same tremors. The way her body looked like it was being slowly burned from the inside out.

Just like my mother.

I hadn’t seen that kind of slow death since I came to the Academy. But I remembered every detail of it. Every sound she made when the poison clawed through her veins. Every time I sat by her side helpless, watching her suffer while my father stood stone-faced.

But there was something the royal Lycan physician used, something that was always able to bring her back to us, something that brought her back from the slipping completely into that pit. A mixture of herbs so rare, most physicians didn’t even believe they existed anymore. But my mother survived this long because of them.

And if I could get those herbs.... maybe Elise could survive too.

The problem?

I had no idea where the hell to even start looking.

I walked fast at first. Then paced. Then wandered.

I scanned every path, every patch of dirt, every corner of the Academy gardens like an idiot expecting magical plants to grow beneath my boots.

It was a lost cause. I knew it.

Then something clicked.

Varya.

Her father was the royal physician. She practically grew up breathing the scent of those herbs.

Without another second wasted, I supersped out of the courtyard and straight to the Lycan dorm. I spotted her instantly, flaming red hair like a flame in the wind. She was surrounded by a group of Lycans, laughing about something probably unimportant.

I didn’t care.

I appeared in a flash. They all turned, stiffening. I didn’t even spare them a glance.

"Come with me" I said sharply, grabbing her arm.

Varya blinked, startled. "My prince...."

I dragged her out of the dorm, down the stone steps, my grip tight but not cruel. She stumbled slightly but kept pace.

"What’s going on?" she asked, breathless.

"Your father," I snapped. "He’s the royal Lycan physician, right?"

"Yes, of course, but...."

"Then you must know the herbs," I cut her off, eyes locked on hers. "The ones used to neutralize wolfsbane. Do you know them?"

Varya blinked, stunned. Then slowly nodded. "Yes. I’ve seen them. Wolfsbane is hard to neutralize, but.... my father used a combination of flamebloom root, bloodnettles, ironblossom, and something called lunar soot. They don’t cure, but they dilute the poison and stop it from spreading."

I clenched my jaw. "Do you know where to find them?"

She hesitated. "Some of them... yes. They grow wild but are rare. I’ve seen flamebloom root and bloodnettles in the Academy’s greenhouse once. The others... we might need to search the forest beyond the training grounds. But I think I can help you find them."

Good. That was all I needed to hear.

"Get ready," I told her. "We leave now. And Varya...." I turned to face her fully. "If you’re lying to me, or if you get in the way, I won’t be merciful."

She straightened, placing her hand over her heart. "I’m not lying. You are my prince and I will always want to help you "

I didn’t wait for more.

We were running out of time, and Elise didn’t have much of it left.

******

Deep beneath the academy, where sunlight had long forgotten the way, the interrogation chamber loomed like a relic of war. The air was thick,, clogged with dust, old blood, and the acrid scent of burning skin. Runes flickered faintly on the stone walls, enchanted to mute sound from escaping. Here, secrets were carved out of flesh and screams vanished into shadow.

Alistair Ashthorne sat bound to a chair forged of silver and obsidian, the cruel restraints biting into his wrists and ankles. His breathing was ragged. His once, perfect face, always elegant, always smug, was swollen, red, slick with sweat, and streaked with blood. He had long since stopped looking proud. Now he looked broken, barely clinging to consciousness. The silver etched into the chair pulsed faintly, designed to weaken the werewolf body over time, draining strength, suppressing healing.

Magnus Thorn stood before him, massive and grim, his jacket discarded, his sleeves rolled up to the elbows. In one gloved hand, he held a slender pressurized canister filled with liquified wolfbane, the toxin that clung to the skin and burrowed beneath it like acid.

Astrid Voss stood a few feet away, leaning against the far wall, watching. Still. Silent. Detached. A queen presiding over her court of pain.

Magnus crouched in front of Alistair, voice cold and steady. "Where did you get the knife, Alistair?"

Alistair didn’t answer, instead his head lolled to the side, his eyes glassy and half-lidded.

Magnus’s jaw tightened. Without another word, he activated the canister with a sharp hiss.

A jet of wolfbane mist sprayed across Alistair’s chest.

The reaction was instant.

"AAAGHHH!!!!"

Alistair screamed, his body arching violently. The mist turned his skin red and raw in seconds, smoke curling from the surface as the toxin seeped in. The silver restraints dug deeper as he convulsed, the sizzling scent of melting flesh making the air nearly unbearable.

Astrid didn’t blink. She had seen worse. Done worse.

"Where," Magnus repeated, rising to his full height, "did you get. The. Knife?"

Alistair’s breathing came in shallow gasps. He didn’t answer.

So Magnus sprayed him again. This time across the ribs, a wide arc that sent Alistair into another fit of spasms. His voice cracked as he screamed, his feet dragging across the floor, trying to escape the pain.

"Are you part of the Crimson Hunt?" Magnus asked, louder now, his voice carrying a warning that the worst hadn’t even begun yet.

Alistair coughed, blood spurting from his lips. His teeth were clenched so tightly they looked like they might break.

Still no answer.

Magnus stepped closer again, leaned down. His voice was calm. "How many more students are in it with you?"

Alistair shuddered violently. "I... I can’t..."

Another spray. Directly at the base of his neck.

He howled in pain.

Astrid turned her head slightly, watching the skin blister and peel. Her gaze was unreadable, but her silence gave permission for the torment to continue.

"Name them!!" Magnus shouted, his voice shaking the walls.

Alistair thrashed. Tears streamed down his face. His body sagged. Then, with a hoarse, broken scream, he let the name fly from his mouth like a curse.

"ADRIAN VALE!"

The name echoed.

The silence afterward was thunderous.

Astrid finally pushed off the wall. She walked forward slowly, her boots tapping a rhythm of judgment. She stopped in front of Alistair, now slumped and half-conscious, his skin steaming.

She stared down at him. "If you’re lying," she said, voice as frigid as ever, "I’ll have Magnus peel every inch of skin from your body and feed it to you."

Alistair didn’t respond. He might not have even heard her.

Magnus turned slightly toward Astrid. "Well. Looks like we have a new lead."

Astrid’s eyes narrowed. "Adrian Vale. He is close to Lorraine, he is her noble friend"