Dr. Mira Chen's POV
I'm walking into a trap and everyone knows it.
Zephyr moves beside me like a shadow, his amber eyes scanning constantly. Draven flies overhead in full dragon form, massive wings blocking out the moon. A dozen wolf warriors follow at a distance.
But Kael isn't here.
My chest aches where his mark burns on my wrist. I can almost feel his absence like a missing limb.
"He'll come," Zephyr says quietly, reading my expression. "When it matters, he'll come."
"How do you know?"
"Because he's bonded to you. He couldn't stay away if he tried." His lips twist in a humorless smile. "None of us can."
We reach the clearing where Marcus waits. He stands in the center with five deer-tribe members kneeling before him, their hands bound. His bear warriors surround them, guns raised. Two bodies already lie motionless on the ground.
My stomach turns.
"Mira!" Marcus calls out cheerfully, like we're meeting for coffee instead of a hostage situation. "Right on time. I knew you'd come."
"Let them go," I say, stepping forward. Zephyr tenses beside me but doesn't stop me. "You wanted me. Here I am."
"Not quite that simple." Marcus pulls out a strange collar—metal with glowing stones embedded in it. "This little beauty is made from materials native to this world. Nullifies magic. Once it's on you, no more golden light. No more healing. No more power."
My blood runs cold. "Where did you get that?"
"I have friends in interesting places." He smirks. "Put it on, and I'll release the hostages. Refuse, and I start shooting."
"Don't do it," Zephyr hisses. "Without your power, you're defenseless."
"If I don't, he'll kill them."
"He'll kill you!"
"Maybe." I meet Marcus's eyes across the clearing. "But at least these people will live."
I start walking forward. Zephyr grabs my arm, and I feel his desperation through our soul bond—a new sensation, like emotional wifi I didn't know existed.
"Please," he whispers. "Don't sacrifice yourself for strangers."
"They're not strangers anymore." I gently pull free. "They're my people now."
I cross the clearing alone. Marcus's smile widens with each step.
"That's my girl. Always so noble. So predictable." He holds up the collar. "Though I have to admit, I'm impressed you survived this long. Most humans who get transported here die within days."
"Most humans don't have my power."
"Had your power." He snaps the collar around my neck.
The effect is immediate. The warmth in my chest—the golden light that's been constant since I arrived—vanishes. It's like someone turned off a light inside me. I feel cold. Empty. Human again.
And terrified.
"There we go," Marcus says, satisfied. "Now, let the hostages go."
His bear warriors cut the bonds. The deer-tribe members scramble away, crying and thanking me. I watch them flee into the forest, relieved they're safe.
Then Marcus's hand closes around my arm like a vice.
"Now we can talk," he says. "About the future. About what you're going to do for me."
"I'm not doing anything for you."
"Oh, I think you will." He leans close, his breath hot on my face. "See, I've learned something interesting about Blessed Ones. Your power isn't just in your touch—it's in your blood. Your bone marrow. Your very DNA. And with the right equipment, I can extract it. Use it. Become immortal in this world while you... well, you won't survive the process, but that's the price of progress."
Horror floods through me. He's going to drain me dry. Turn me into a science experiment.
"The tribes will come for me," I say, trying to sound brave.
"Let them try." He starts dragging me toward the tree line. "I've got enough firepower to hold off an army. By the time they break through my defenses, I'll have everything I need from you."
A roar splits the night.
Kael explodes from the shadows, his wolf form massive and terrifying. He crashes into Marcus, sending him flying. The collar around my neck sparks and cracks as Kael's claws tear at it, breaking the mechanism.
Power floods back into me like a tidal wave.
"You came," I gasp.
Kael shifts back to human, his golden eyes fierce. "Did you think I wouldn't?" His voice is rough with emotion. "We're bonded, Mira. I feel what you feel. When you walked into danger, it nearly killed me to stay away."
"Then why did you?"
"Because you were right." He cups my face gently, even as Marcus's bear warriors charge toward us. "I was controlling you out of fear. Treating you like Sera's ghost instead of your own person. I'm sorry."
Tears blur my vision. "I'm sorry too. I should have—"
"Later," he says, pushing me behind him as the warriors attack. "Right now, I have a promise to keep."
"What promise?"
His smile is all teeth. "That anyone who hurts you doesn't live to regret it."
The battle is chaos. Kael's wolves pour from the forest. Draven rains fire from above. Zephyr moves through enemies like death itself. And I stand in the center, my power blazing to life, healing the wounded as fast as they fall.
But Marcus escapes in the confusion, disappearing into the night with Lydia and a handful of loyal warriors.
"Let him go," Kael says when I start to follow. "We'll find him. But first..." He turns to me, and his expression softens. "We need to talk. Really talk."
Back in his den, Kael and I sit facing each other. The fire crackles between us.
"Tell me about Sera," I say quietly.
He flinches but doesn't look away. "She was... everything. Bright and fierce and so full of life. When the curse took her, it was slow. Agonizing. She fought it for eight months, and every day I watched her fade a little more."
His voice breaks, and I see tears in his eyes.
"Toward the end, she didn't know who I was. She attacked me, screaming. The healers said it was mercy to... to end it. So I did." He wipes his face roughly. "I held her while she died and I swore I'd never bond with anyone again. Couldn't survive that pain twice."
"But then I fell from the sky," I whisper.
"And my soul recognized yours before my brain could stop it." He reaches for my hand. "I'm terrified every second, Mira. Terrified you'll get sick, get hurt, get taken. But that doesn't give me the right to cage you."
"I need freedom," I say. "But I also need to know you're there. That you won't run away when things get hard."
"I'm here." He brings my hand to his chest, where his heart pounds. "Even when I'm angry or scared or stupid, I'm yours. The bond won't let me be anything else."
"Then teach me," I say. "Teach me how to use the bond. How to call for you when I need you."
His eyes light up. "Close your eyes."
I do. He guides my hand to his chest, and I feel our marks warming together.
"Feel that?" he murmurs. "That's our connection. Focus on it. Push your thoughts toward me."
I concentrate. At first nothing happens. Then—
Can you hear me?
His sharp intake of breath tells me it worked.
Loud and clear, his voice echoes in my mind. This is how we'll always find each other. No matter where you are.
I open my eyes, grinning. "That's amazing!"
"It gets better." He touches my face. "With practice, you'll feel my emotions. I'll feel yours. We'll never truly be apart."
For the first time since arriving in this world, I feel safe. Not trapped—safe. There's a difference.
"Tomorrow," I say, "I want to start healing the tribes. But on my terms. With protection and rest breaks and—"
"Whatever you need," he promises. "We'll figure it out together."
We sit in comfortable silence, the bond between us warm and solid.
Then Finn bursts through the entrance, his fox face pale with terror.
"They're here," he gasps. "All of them. Every major tribe in the Beastworld just arrived at our borders. Bears, panthers, eagles, snakes—hundreds of warriors. And they're demanding the Blessed One be given to the Council for judgment."
"Judgment?" I stand quickly. "For what?"
"For existing." Finn's voice shakes. "There's an ancient law. When a Blessed One appears, they must be tested by the Council to prove they're real and not a false prophet. If they fail..." He swallows hard. "If they fail, they're executed. To prevent false hope."
My world tilts. "You're saying they might kill me?"
"The trials are designed to be impossible," Kael says grimly. "No one's passed them in recorded history."
"But you have to try," Finn adds desperately. "If you refuse, every tribe here will go to war. Thousands will die."
I look between them, my heart pounding. "When?"
"Dawn. They're giving us until dawn to present you, or they attack."
Kael pulls me close, his arms tight around me. "We'll run. Take you far from here—"
"And let thousands die fighting over me?" I shake my head. "No. I'll face their trials."
"Mira—"
"I'm the Blessed One, right? Time to prove it."
But inside, I'm terrified. Because if I fail these impossible trials, I die.
And if I die, the Feral curse continues forever.