The camp no longer felt like a place of shelter.
It felt like a graveyard.
Bodies lay still, covered hastily, but the fear remained thick, suffocating, crawling into every corner.
No one spoke loudly anymore.
No one felt safe.
At the center of it all, Lira stood unmoving, her silver eyes glowing faintly as the wind circled her like a silent storm.
"They're still here," she said quietly.
Behind her, Ronan shook his head.
"I can't feel anything."
"That's the problem," Lira replied.
Her gaze hardened.
"They're hiding in plain sight."
A tense silence followed.
Ronan exhaled slowly.
"So what's the plan?" he asked. "We wait? Set traps? Strengthen the camp?"
Lira turned to him.
"No."
One word.
Cold.
Final.
"We hunt."
Ronan frowned. "We don't even know what we're hunting."
Lira stepped forward slightly, her presence shifting heavier now, more focused.
"I know enough."
The wind picked up, responding to her rising power.
"They drain life without leaving a trace… move without scent… hide from even me…"
Her eyes flashed brighter.
"That's not a random enemy."
Ronan crossed his arms, studying her.
"Then what is it?"
Lira paused.
Then said quietly
"Something that was waiting for me."
That answer didn't sit well.
Ronan ran a hand through his hair.
"Alright… let's say you're right. How do we find something that doesn't want to be found?"
Lira's lips curved slightly.
"You don't find it."
She turned toward the dark forest beyond the camp.
"You make it come to you."
Ronan's eyes narrowed.
"And how exactly do you plan to do that?"
Lira didn't answer immediately.
Instead,
She stepped forward into the open clearing.
The wind began to swirl around her faster now.
Stronger.
The air shifted.
The ground beneath her feet trembled slightly.
"What are you doing?" Ronan asked, alert.
Lira lifted her head toward the sky.
"I'm done hiding," she said.
Then
She released it.
Not a fraction.
Not a glimpse.
But a surge.
A powerful wave of energy exploded from her body, spreading across the entire valley like a shockwave.
The trees shook violently.
The ground cracked.
Every wolf in the camp dropped to their knees instantly.
Ronan staggered, barely holding himself up.
"What the Lira!" he shouted.
But she didn't stop.
Her silver eyes burned like twin moons as her voice echoed
"I know you're watching."
The wind howled louder.
The sky darkened unnaturally fast.
"Come out."
Another pulse of power surged outward.
Stronger.
Sharper.
Deadlier.
"I'm not prey."
Her voice dropped.
Cold.
Commanding.
"I'm the one you should fear."
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Waiting.
Then
A response.
A whisper.
Everywhere.
Nowhere.
"You are bold…"
The same cold voice from before.
Ronan froze.
"That thing again…" he muttered.
Lira didn't move.
"Boldness is not strength," the voice continued.
A shadow flickered between the trees.
Gone.
Then another.
Closer.
"And power without control…"
The temperature dropped again.
"…is easy to break."
Ronan stepped closer to Lira.
"It's here," he said under his breath.
"I know," she replied.
Then
Everything went still.
Too still.
The wind stopped.
The sounds vanished.
Even the air felt frozen.
And then,
A figure appeared.
Right in front of her.
Close.
Closer than before.
Cloaked in darkness.
Face hidden.
Presence overwhelming.
Ronan's breath caught.
"That's… not normal…"
Lira stared directly at it.
Unshaken.
"You finally showed up," she said.
The figure tilted its head slightly.
"As did you."
Its voice was no longer a whisper.
It was clear.
Cold.
Ancient.
"You've grown… but not enough."
Lira's eyes narrowed.
"Try me."
The figure chuckled softly.
"No."
A pause.
Then
"I don't intend to fight you yet."
That made the air tense again.
"Then why are you here?" Lira asked.
The figure stepped closer.
The darkness around it shifted unnaturally.
"To remind you."
Lira didn't move.
"Remind me of what?"
The figure leaned slightly forward.
And for a brief second
Lira felt it.
A memory.
A pain.
Something buried deep within her past.
"You were not the only one who survived…"
Her eyes widened slightly.
Just for a moment.
Then
The figure vanished.
Like it was never there.
The wind rushed back.
The sounds returned.
Everything snapped back into place.
But Lira remained still.
Ronan looked around, tense.
"It's gone… again," he said.
But Lira wasn't focused on that.
Her expression had changed.
Not fear.
Not anger.
Something deeper.
"Survived…" she repeated softly.
The voice within her spoke again.
Disturbed.
"That means…"
Lira finished it quietly.
"I'm not the only one who came back."
A dangerous realization settled in.
This wasn't just an enemy.
This was something connected to her past.
Something that knew her.
Something that had been waiting.
Ronan looked at her.
"What does that mean for us?"
Lira slowly lifted her gaze.
Her silver eyes now burning with something stronger than before.
"It means…"
Her voice hardened.
"This isn't just a hunt anymore."
The wind rose once more.
But this time
It felt sharper.
More focused.
More deadly.
"It's a war of origins."