Colliding Dreams

Chapter Twenty-Two: The Darkness Within

[Luna's POV]

The silence in the room was deafening, broken only by the faint drip of water in the distance. Every breath I took felt labored, each inhale filling my lungs with the bitter taste of damp, iron-laced air. My body felt like it was on fire, yet I was so cold I could barely feel my fingertips. The pain, though – the pain was constant, gnawing at my very core. My wrists were raw from the chains, my skin bruised and bleeding from where they'd shackled me for what felt like days, maybe weeks. Time had become a blur.

I blinked, trying to focus on the faint light seeping through the cracks in the stone walls. But all I could see was the twisted smile on Ulferix's face, etched into my memory like a brand.

He enjoyed this – watching me break, slowly, piece by piece. And I hated him for it. Hated him more than I thought it was possible to hate anyone. The worst part was his voice, that cold, calculated tone he used as if he were savoring each word he spoke, knowing exactly how they tore through me.

"Still holding out, little wolf?" Ulferix's voice slithered through the darkness, sending a shiver down my spine. He stepped into the dim light, his eyes gleaming with that sickening pride I had come to loathe. "I must say, you're far more resilient than I anticipated."

I didn't respond. My throat was too dry, and my energy was too low. Every time I opened my mouth, it felt like a sharp blade was slicing through the back of my throat. Instead, I focused on steadying my breath, on keeping the tremors in my body at bay.

"Defiant, still. Good," he said, crouching down in front of me, his breath hot against my face. "It makes the moment you break all the more satisfying."

I didn't flinch, though every fiber of my being wanted to. I couldn't give him that satisfaction. Not again.

"You'll see, Luna," he murmured, his fingers brushing against my cheek in a mockery of affection. "You'll see soon enough that resisting me is futile. You're my daughter, after all. And you were born to lead by my side."

I wanted to scream at him, to tell him he was lying, that I wasn't his daughter. But my voice was nothing but a broken rasp now. I had cried all my tears, shouted all my rage. I had nothing left, except my will to fight.

I wasn't his. I wasn't born of darkness. I was stronger than that.

But Ulferix didn't need words. He knew how to hurt me without them.

With a casual motion, he reached into his pocket, pulling out the needle I had come to fear. The syringe glinted in the dim light, its contents swirling with that sickly green hue I knew all too well. Wolfsbane. He'd been injecting me with it for days – maybe longer. I had lost count of how many times he had filled my veins with the poison, each time laughing as I writhed in agony, my wolf unable to surface, my powers locked away.

"You could end this," he whispered, his voice dripping with false sweetness. "Just say the words. Submit to me, and I'll stop."

I glared at him, my eyes burning with defiance. I would never submit to him. Never. Even if it killed me.

He smiled, the same sinister, knowing smile that made my stomach turn. "Very well."

The needle plunged into my arm, and I gasped as the liquid fire coursed through my veins, searing every nerve, burning through me like molten lava. My body convulsed, the pain so intense that I bit down hard on my lip, tasting the coppery tang of my own blood. My wolf howled inside me, desperate to break free, but the wolfsbane held her captive, binding her to me like chains.

I could feel the poison working, weakening me with every second, but I refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing me break. I gritted my teeth, clenching my fists so hard that my nails dug into my palms, drawing blood.