The ground didn't just tremble.
It reacted.
A pulse of shadow rippled outward from my feet, thin but sharp, like a warning shot. Wolves stumbled back. Rowan grabbed Kade's arm before he could lunge. The entire arena shifted into a defensive stance without a single command.
Rylan didn't move.
He stood in front of me, chest rising and falling too fast, eyes locked on mine like he was trying to hold me in place with sheer will.
"Lyra," he said softly, "tell me you felt that."
I swallowed. "I didn't do it."
Rowan's voice was tight. "Then what did?"
The Hollow stirred again — a cold twist beneath my ribs, like something stretching after a long sleep.
I winced.
Rylan saw it. "Lyra?"
"I'm fine," I lied.
The Hollow disagreed.
A second pulse shot outward — stronger this time. The stone cracked beneath me, a thin fracture splitting the arena floor. Wolves growled, ears flat, bodies low.
Rowan hissed, "She's losing control."
"I'm not," I snapped.
But the shadow inside me pulsed again, like it was answering him.
Rylan stepped closer, voice low and steady. "Lyra. Look at me."
I did.
His eyes were full of fear and something worse — something that made my chest ache.
Helplessness.
"Tell me what it feels like," he whispered.
I opened my mouth.
The Hollow answered first.
A low hum vibrated through my bones, through the ground, through the air. The wolves flinched. Rowan swore. Kade backed up a full step.
Rylan didn't move.
He just whispered, "Lyra… that wasn't you."
I pressed a hand to my chest. "It's… awake."
Rowan muttered, "Brilliant."
Kade added, "Fantastic."
Rylan ignored them. "Lyra, what does it want?"
I shook my head. "I don't know."
The Hollow pulsed again.
This time, it wasn't random.
It was reacting.
To movement.
To sound.
To threat.
A wolf on the left shifted his weight — barely a twitch.
The shadow inside me surged.
A ring of darkness shot outward, slamming into the ground near him. The wolf yelped and scrambled back. The packs erupted into chaos, growls and shouts echoing across the arena.
Rowan yelled, "Everyone back! Now!"
Kade grabbed two wolves by the scruffs, dragging them away. The others scattered, forming a wide circle around me.
Rylan didn't move.
He stood his ground even as the shadow rippled again, brushing against his boots like a warning.
"Lyra," he said quietly, "it's defending you."
My breath caught. "From what?"
Rowan answered grimly. "From us."
The Hollow pulsed again — sharper, faster, like it was tracking every heartbeat around me.
Rylan stepped closer.
The shadow surged.
I gasped. "Rylan, stop—"
He didn't.
He walked straight into the ring of darkness.
The shadow hit him like a wall — but instead of throwing him back, it wrapped around him, swirling up his legs, his arms, his chest.
He didn't flinch.
He just kept walking until he was right in front of me.
"Lyra," he whispered, "look at me."
The shadow tightened around him.
He didn't care.
"Whatever's inside you… it thinks I'm a threat."
My voice cracked. "You're not."
"I know that." He cupped my face, ignoring the darkness crawling up his arms. "But it doesn't."
The Hollow pulsed — a low, warning thrum.
Rylan leaned closer, forehead touching mine.
"Lyra… you need to tell it."
I swallowed hard. "Tell it what?"
"That I'm yours."
The shadow froze.
The Hollow stilled.
The entire arena went silent.
Rylan's voice dropped to a whisper.
"Say it."
My heart hammered.
The Hollow waited.
I closed my eyes.
And breathed the truth.
"You're mine."
The shadow collapsed.
The Hollow went quiet.
Rylan exhaled shakily, pulling me into his arms as the darkness retreated beneath my skin.
Rowan whispered, "Holy hell…"
Kade muttered, "She just tamed it."
But Rylan held me tighter, voice trembling against my hair.
"No," he whispered. "She didn't tame it."
He pulled back, eyes dark with fear.
"It listened."