The rogues stepped fully into the clearing.
Their movements were slow and confident, as if they had already won. Their eyes glowed red in the firelight, and low growls rumbled through the forest like distant thunder.
The pack held their ground.
Gamma shifted first.
Bones cracked as his form grew larger, fur spreading across his arms and shoulders. Within seconds, the warrior Lycan stood ready, claws digging into the earth.
"Last chance," he warned the rogues.
"Leave."
The leader of the rogues laughed.
The sound was rough and mocking.
"You think we came all this way just to leave?"
His gaze shifted past Gamma.
Straight to Elara.
The rogue's smile widened.
"The girl comes with us."
Lucien moved before anyone else could react.
A powerful wave of energy rolled through the clearing as his eyes flared bright gold.
"No," he said calmly.
The word carried weight.
Authority.
Power.
Even the rogues hesitated for a second.
But their leader only tilted his head.
"You always were stubborn, Lucien."
Then he raised a clawed hand.
"Take her."
The rogues charged.
The clearing exploded into chaos.
Lycans leapt forward, claws slashing and bodies colliding in a blur of fur and teeth. Growls and snarls echoed through the forest as the two sides clashed.
Elara stumbled back, heart racing.
She had never seen anything like this.
Gamma tackled one rogue to the ground, his claws tearing through the creature's shoulder. Another rogue lunged toward Elara—
—but never reached her.
Lucien caught the attacker mid-air.
His transformation was faster this time.
Stronger.
His Lycan form towered over the rogue before crushing it into the ground.
"Stay behind me," Lucien growled.
But Elara could barely hear him.
The pendant around her neck had begun to glow again.
Brighter than ever.
A strange heat spread through her body.
Her heartbeat matched the rhythm of the pulsing light.
Something inside her was pushing outward.
Awakening.
The rogue leader noticed.
His eyes widened with excitement.
"Yes," he whispered.
"That's it."
He stepped forward, ignoring the battle around him.
"The seal is breaking."
Elara's vision blurred as another surge of energy burst from the pendant.
The ground beneath her feet trembled.
Lucien turned instantly.
"Elara!"
She looked at her hands.
Faint silver light flickered across her skin.
"I can't stop it," she gasped.
The rogue leader laughed.
"You were never meant to."
Above the trees, the clouds slowly parted.
Moonlight spilled across the clearing.
But the moon wasn't white.
It was red.
A blood moon.
And as its light touched the pendant—
The seal cracked.