The Blood Moon hung low over Shadowfang territory, a pale silver light spilling across the forest. The air was still… too still.
Nyra sensed it before anyone else. A chill crawling across her skin. A whisper in her mind.
"They are coming."
Her pulse quickened. She ran to the cliff overlooking the forest. Kael was already there, leaning on a stone pillar, bandages still wrapped around his chest, his golden eyes scanning the horizon.
Lucien's forces had arrived. Not quietly. Not subtly.
Dozens of hunters, clad in black and silver, emerged from the mist, moving with terrifying precision. Their weapons glimmered faintly under the Blood Moon, and their eyes… cold, calculating, and unnervingly aware.
Kael growled low, the vibration running through Nyra's chest. "They're testing you."
"What?!" Nyra exclaimed, fear tightening her throat.
"They want to see how far your bloodline power reaches," Kael said grimly. "They're not attacking to kill… not yet. They're attacking to provoke, to measure."
Nyra's hands trembled. The silver glow beneath her skin flickered, pulsing in response to her fear.
"I can't—" she started.
"Yes, you can," Kael interrupted, placing a firm hand on her shoulder. "Focus. Breathe. Anchor yourself. Remember your power isn't just destruction—it's protection. You've already done this once. You can do it again."
Her pulse slowed slightly as she closed her eyes. The visions of her parents, the wolves of her bloodline, and the ancestral energy within her stirred. She felt a connection to every living wolf in the pack — their fear, their courage, their trust — flowing through her.
Nyra opened her eyes, silver light streaming from her fingertips. The ground beneath the first line of hunters rippled as ancestral energy radiated outward.
Kael leapt forward, partially shifting mid-air into his massive black wolf form, landing with a thunderous impact that sent the hunters staggering.
The clash began.
Hunters charged. Nyra's silver energy flared, forming ghostly images of wolves and guardians around her. The hunters struck, but the projections intercepted them, staggering them without causing fatal harm.
She gasped, breath coming in short, uneven bursts. This was no longer a vision exercise—this was real. Lives were at stake. Every strike she made, every wave of energy she sent, had to protect, not destroy.
A hunter broke through her energy barrier, lunging at Kael. Nyra's pulse quickened. She thrust her hands forward instinctively, and a blast of silver energy hurled the attacker back, disarming him but leaving him unharmed.
Kael snarled, shaking off blood and debris, his golden eyes meeting hers mid-battle. "You're doing it, Nyra! Focus on the pack!"
The battle intensified. Hunters pressed harder, testing her limits. Nyra's hands glowed brighter, but her vision blurred, dizziness threatening to topple her. Ghostly figures of her ancestors appeared around the battlefield, guiding her strikes and absorbing attacks.
Her heart pounded. I can do this. I have to.
Then, one hunter, faster than the others, slipped past her defenses. Nyra reacted instinctively, flinging a wave of silver energy… but it was too strong. It struck Kael instead, sending him sprawling against a boulder.
"No!" Nyra screamed, rushing to him.
Kael groaned, his wolf instincts struggling to surface, claws flexing, golden eyes flickering dangerously. His control was shaky.
Nyra reached him, placing her hands over his chest. Silver light pulsed from her veins into him, her bond with him stabilizing his wolf energy. Kael's breathing gradually steadied, his eyes meeting hers.
"You've got this," she whispered, voice trembling but resolute.
Together, they rose. Kael fully shifted, his massive wolf form surging with renewed strength. Nyra's energy radiated outward, linking with his, forming a combined aura that made the remaining hunters falter.
Lucien stepped from the shadows, his grey eyes gleaming coldly. "Impressive, Blood Moon Heir," he said calmly. "But this is only a taste. Your power is awakening… but it is still uncontrolled. You cannot protect him forever."
Kael growled low, his fur bristling. "She won't stand alone," he said. "And neither will I."
Nyra's pulse thrummed with ancestral energy. She raised her hands, focusing on the connection she felt with the pack, with Kael, with the spirits of her bloodline. A massive wave of silver light erupted across the battlefield, knocking hunters off their feet, their weapons clattering harmlessly to the ground.
The forest shook. Trees bent under the force, but no wolf was harmed. The ancestral guardians in her energy shielded the pack completely.
Lucien's eyes narrowed. He raised a hand, and the remaining hunters began retreating, vanishing into the mist.
Nyra fell to her knees, exhausted. Her silver glow dimmed, leaving her trembling but alive.
Kael shifted back into human form, kneeling beside her. He brushed a damp strand of hair from her face, his expression soft but fierce.
"You did it," he whispered. "You protected everyone. And you… you controlled your power. Fully."
Nyra's chest heaved, tears slipping down her cheeks. "I… I didn't think I could. I was so scared…"
Kael cupped her face in both hands, thumbs brushing her cheeks gently. "Fear doesn't make you weak," he murmured. "It makes you alive. And it makes you stronger than anyone who dares threaten us."
Nyra pressed her forehead against his, grounding herself against his steady heartbeat.
Deep in the forest, unseen, Lucien's smile was sharp and calculating.
"So she awakens… good. This will be even more… entertaining."
And Nyra, still trembling but alive, knew one thing with terrifying certainty: the real war was only beginning.