Blood Oath of the Hunter

A thunderous silence hung over the northern woods.

Lucian sat on the snow-dusted log, his gaze locked on the frozen stream ahead, though his mind wandered elsewhere. His body still pulsed with the strange heat that had exploded out of him the night before — the hybrid power now awake in his veins. His heartbeat was steady, stronger. His skin no longer felt fully human… nor vampire… nor wolf.

He was something else.

Behind him, Jacob paced restlessly, a protective rhythm in his steps. His keen senses had picked up something just hours ago — a scent unfamiliar and sharp, like burnt copper mixed with ash.

Bella stood nearby, pale and tense. Her hand kept drifting to her belly, where Lucian's younger sibling now stirred with unpredictable, volatile energy.

"I feel like someone's watching us," Jacob muttered for the tenth time.

"They are," Lucian said without turning.

Jacob paused mid-step. "You sure?"

Lucian finally stood. "He's close. And he wants to test me."

Before Jacob could respond, a blur shot from the treetops—fast, almost invisible to even a werewolf's eye. Jacob shifted instantly, clothes tearing away as his fur exploded outward. He lunged forward with a snarl, intercepting the figure mid-air.

The collision sent snow and bark flying. Jacob growled and twisted, slamming the attacker into the ground. But the figure kicked him off with surprising strength and flipped backward to land on his feet.

Lucian stepped forward.

The stranger was tall, pale-skinned, with long raven-black hair tied behind his head and blood-red irises glowing with focused hatred. He wore dark leather, and his chest bore the ancient seal of the Volturi Executioners.

"Name's Caelum," the vampire said with a grin. "The last of the Obsidian Hunters."

Bella gasped. "They were wiped out a century ago."

Caelum smiled wider. "Almost. Aro kept one. Just in case something like you," he nodded to Lucian, "ever got born."

Jacob snarled. "Then you're already too late."

But Caelum ignored him. His eyes were locked on Lucian.

"You're not just a hybrid," he said slowly, circling. "You're a key. You don't know it yet, but you'll open a door that should've stayed sealed. That's why I'm here."

Lucian said nothing. But his pulse began to shift — the dual rhythm of wolf and vampire thundering in harmony.

Caelum lunged.

This time Lucian met him halfway.

There was no clash of bodies — not at first. Lucian vanished, a blur of silver energy trailing behind him, and Caelum barely blocked the punch that came from behind.

"You move like a spirit," Caelum growled.

Lucian spun and slammed his heel into Caelum's side, sending the vampire crashing into a pine tree that exploded in a rain of shattered bark. The executioner rolled once, then reappeared behind Lucian in a blink.

But Lucian had already seen it coming.

He twisted mid-air, caught Caelum's fist, and unleashed a wave of heat and force that blew the snow into steam and carved a groove through the earth beneath them.

Bella covered her face, shielding herself from the shockwave.

Jacob, still in wolf form, howled in awe.

Caelum stood, panting. Blood trickled down his lip — a rare sight for an elite Volturi enforcer.

"You're not ready yet," Caelum admitted, slowly backing away. "But you will be."

He pulled a black blade from his hip — obsidian and edged with runes. "Next time we meet, it'll be your death or mine. No warnings. No tests."

Then he was gone, swallowed by mist and trees.

Lucian stood silently. The energy inside him was fading again, settling… but it wasn't gone. It now hummed beneath his skin, like a sleeping god.

Bella stepped toward him. "Are you okay?"

Lucian nodded. But his eyes were distant.

That man… Caelum… had said something strange.

"You're a key."

Key to what?

And why… why had Lucian heard a woman's voice in his head the moment Caelum mentioned it?

It was not Bella's voice.

It was soft, ancient, and full of warmth and fury both. And it had whispered a name he'd never heard before:

"Elira."

His fated mate?

The one he had dreamt of in Chapter 5?

His heart beat faster, not in fear — but longing.