The night air grew colder.
As the group rested by a crackling fire near the Wellspring of Memory, a heavy silence hung over them, broken only by the occasional snap of wood.
Elaina sat close to Lucien, drawing quiet strength from his presence. His arm was around her shoulders, shielding her from the chill—and perhaps, from the darker things that stirred just beyond the firelight.
"I hate this quiet," Kade muttered, poking the fire with a stick. "It feels like the calm before the storm."
"It is," Draven said grimly, scanning the darkness with narrowed crimson eyes. "He's coming."
"He?" Daisy asked, her voice trembling a little.
Lucien's grip around Elaina tightened. "The one who's been watching us. The one who wants Elaina."
The fire crackled louder, as if in response.
And then—out of the woods—came a soft, chilling whisper.
"Mine."
The voice was velvet-smooth and dangerous, sending shivers racing down Elaina's spine.
Lucien was on his feet instantly, shielding her behind him, his wolf rising so fiercely that his aura rippled like heat off his body.
From the mist stepped a man. Tall. Broad-shouldered. His hair was silver, shining under the moonlight, and his eyes—those terrible eyes—were the color of molten gold. Beautiful and terrifying.
He smiled, and it was a smile that promised ruin.
"Elaina," he said, almost tenderly. "You found me at last."
Kade cursed under his breath. "Someone remind me never to sign up for any more forest adventures."
Daisy grabbed his arm. "Shut up and stay still!"
Elaina's heart pounded wildly in her chest. She had seen this man before—in fleeting visions, in nightmares she couldn't explain.
He wasn't just obsessed.
He believed she belonged to him.
Lucien stepped forward, his voice low and lethal. "Touch her, and you'll lose more than your mind tonight."
The man—Caius, Elaina remembered suddenly, his name is Caius—laughed. A soft, almost musical sound. "Still pretending you're her protector? How cute. But you've already failed her once, haven't you?"
Lucien snarled, the sound so fierce that the earth beneath them seemed to tremble.
Elaina, surprising herself, stepped out from behind Lucien.
No more hiding.
"Why are you following me?" she demanded, lifting her chin. Her voice was steady despite the storm raging inside her.
Caius's golden eyes softened, almost tender. "Because you're mine, Elaina. You always were. Before you were ripped away from me. Before he stole you."
He glared at Lucien then, with a hate so pure it burned.
"You're insane," Elaina said, trembling. "I don't belong to anyone."
For a flicker of a second, pain crossed Caius's face—real, raw pain.
Then it twisted into a smile full of madness.
"Not yet," he whispered. "But you will."
He stepped forward—and suddenly, dozens of figures melted out of the woods behind him.
Rogues.
Werewolves, bearing Caius's mark.
They surrounded the clearing, eyes gleaming, snarls ripping through the night air.
Kade looked around and muttered, "Well. Crap. Definitely should have stayed home."
Daisy glared at him. "If we live through this, I'm punching you."
Lucien growled low in his throat, pulling Elaina close. "Stay behind me. No matter what."
Elaina nodded, her heart hammering, her powers buzzing at her fingertips.
This wasn't just about running anymore.
This was a battle they couldn't avoid.
And as the first rogue lunged toward them, Lucien shifted into his wolf form with a roar that shook the heavens.
The war for Elaina's fate had begun.
The clearing erupted into chaos.
The rogues charged, snarling and snapping, their eyes glowing with bloodlust.
Lucien, in his massive wolf form, met them head-on, his fangs flashing like white fire. Each movement was lethal, calculated—he was pure death, fighting for the woman he refused to lose again.
"Stay close!" Kade yelled to Daisy, shifting into his own wolf—a sleek, silvery creature—before leaping into the fray.
Daisy, surprisingly, stood her ground. She raised a glowing dagger, her human side buzzing with borrowed magic. "Come on, fleabags!" she shouted, the firelight catching the wild grin on her face.
Elaina's heart slammed against her ribs as she watched her friends fight—and bleed—for her.
And she knew, with bone-deep certainty, that if she didn't fight too... they would die.
No more running. No more hiding.
A low, vibrating hum began in her chest. Her hands tingled, and when she looked down, she saw faint blue flames dancing across her fingers—wild, untamed, and furious.
Caius watched from the edge of the clearing, his golden eyes locked onto her. He smiled again—soft, sad. "You'll understand soon, Elaina," he said quietly, almost lovingly. "Your power was meant to burn the world down beside mine."
The words barely registered.
All Elaina knew was the sudden, breathtaking surge of energy tearing through her veins.
As a rogue wolf lunged toward her, she instinctively raised her hand—and a blast of blue fire exploded from her palm, hurling the creature back with a shriek.
The entire battlefield froze for a split second.
Even Lucien, covered in blood and dirt, turned his glowing red eyes to her in shock—and pride.
"You..." Kade gasped mid-battle, dodging another rogue, "you have superpowers? And you didn't tell us?!"
"Not the time!" Daisy shrieked, ducking a rogue swipe.
Elaina ignored them, focusing instead on the fire pulsing under her skin. It wasn't just power—it was memory. It was hers, ancient and aching to be set free.
Caius took a single step toward her. "Let it out, love. Let it all out."
Lucien roared, shifting back to his human form for a second, his voice rough and desperate. "Don't listen to him, Elaina! That power—it's yours, not his!"
Tears blurred Elaina's vision.
She didn't know who she had been before.
She didn't know if the power within her was born of darkness or light.
But as she looked at Lucien, bruised and bloodied yet still fighting for her...
As she saw Daisy and Kade refusing to leave her side...
She knew one thing:
She would choose them.
Her power wasn't about destruction.
It was about protecting.
Elaina raised both her hands. The flames grew brighter, a dazzling storm of light, and then—
BOOM.
A massive shockwave exploded outward, throwing the rogues back into the trees. The ground split and shuddered under the force.
Even Caius stumbled, his smile slipping into something colder... hungrier.
Lucien rushed to her side, grabbing her before she collapsed.
"You did it, sunshine," he whispered, voice shaking with emotion. "You chose yourself."
Elaina managed a shaky smile. "Took me long enough."
Kade limped over, covered in scratches, and said dryly, "Next time, can you have your superhero awakening before we almost die?"
Daisy, bruised but grinning, added, "Yeah, seriously. I'm too pretty for battle scars."
Despite everything—the terror, the exhaustion—Elaina laughed. It was small and broken and perfect.
For the first time in days, maybe in her entire life, she felt strong.
Not because of the power burning inside her—
But because she had something worth fighting for.
And as Caius disappeared into the shadows, murmuring promises of their "next meeting," Elaina knew:
This was only the beginning.
Meanwhile,
From the thick veil of trees, cloaked by darkness and silence, a pair of cold, burning eyes tracked Elaina's every move.
Valen stood there, hidden in the shadows, his jaw clenched so tightly it ached.
He watched as Lucien cradled Elaina, his hands trembling with relief, his touch far too familiar — far too intimate — for Valen's liking.
She should have been mine, Valen thought bitterly, his nails digging into the bark of a tree until it splintered under his grip.
When Elaina had unleashed her healing light, Valen had felt it — her magic, pure and untamed, like a song only he could truly hear. It called to him, a melody of fate and obsession, threading through his soul with invisible chains.
A growl rumbled low in his throat as Lucien brushed a lock of hair from Elaina's face, tender and adoring.
He doesn't deserve you, Valen thought savagely. No one does. Only me.
He knew he could have saved her first. He should have.
And next time...
He would.
Turning away, Valen melted deeper into the woods, a ghost among shadows, his heart heavy with twisted longing.
His time would come.
And when it did, not even Lucien's Alpha strength would be enough to keep her from him.
Not anymore.