The first stone wolf hit me like a boulder.Its weight drove me back a step, claws of jagged rock slashing across my chest. Sparks flew as they scraped against the hardened, blackened veins that had spread from the shard. The wound barely cut, but the heat in my blood surged—fast, wild, demanding I use it.
The wolf lunged again, stone jaws snapping. I ducked low, my claws slicing through its legs. They shattered like brittle ice, but the creature didn't fall. The broken pieces reformed mid-air, twisting back together with a sound like grinding bones.
Behind me, Aria stirred weakly on the ground, her breath uneven. Every pulse of the glowing chains above the gate made the curse-mark on her neck flare brighter. Each flare drew another pained gasp from her lips.
Lyra didn't move to help. She leaned casually on her blade, her crimson eyes gleaming faintly. "The gate won't let you through until it decides you're worthy. And it doesn't like half-measures."
Another wolf lunged, this one from the side. I caught it by the throat, the shard's heat spilling into my claws. The veins along my arms pulsed as the energy burned outward, and when I tightened my grip, the stone cracked—not from strength alone, but from the shard's searing power eating through it.
The whispers roared inside my skull, no longer soft, no longer coaxing.
More. Feed. Burn them all.
Each kill made the pulse stronger, the voices louder. My wolf didn't resist—it thrived on it, howling in my head, pushing me to give in, to let the shard loose entirely.
Three more wolves circled, their stone claws scraping the soil, their glowing eyes fixed on me. They moved in perfect unison, as if guided by the chains above.
The ground split beneath us, thin rivers of red light cutting through the dark earth. The heat from below mixed with the shard's burn, until I could barely tell which one came from me and which came from the Veil itself.
Aria groaned, rolling weakly onto her side. Her voice was hoarse, trembling. "Kael… don't… let it take you. Please…"
I gritted my teeth, every muscle tense. My vision blurred at the edges, the world flickering between its usual darkness and a deep crimson hue. Each pulse of the shard sent another wave of heat through me, making my claws lengthen, my teeth sharpen.
The wolves lunged together.
I met them head-on.
The first swipe shattered one's jaw; the second tore through another's chest, black flames trailing from my claws where the shard's energy leaked. The third slammed into me from the side, knocking me to one knee. Its weight crushed against my ribs, claws digging deep, but I didn't feel pain—only heat, rage, and the shard's urging command:
Let go. End it. FEED.
A growl ripped from my throat, deeper than any sound I'd made before. For a moment, I didn't sound like myself. I sounded like something else entirely.
The shard flared, the veins along my neck and arms glowing brighter, and a surge of raw energy erupted from me. The force blasted the wolves back, shattering their forms into clouds of black dust that scattered into the air.
The ground stilled. The glowing chains above the gate dimmed, pulsing slower, almost… approvingly.
I staggered, planting one clawed hand into the soil to steady myself. My breaths came sharp, ragged. My reflection, faint in the sheen of the glowing cracks beneath, didn't look like me. My eyes burned red, my veins dark, my claws blackened and tipped with faint ember-like glow.
Aria's voice broke the silence, weak but clear. "Kael… stop… before it keeps you."
Lyra's boots crunched softly against the cracked ground as she approached, her blade resting against her shoulder. "Or," she said, her tone smooth, almost amused, "you could stop fighting it. Let it claim you. It's the only way you'll make it through the gate alive."
The shard pulsed again, stronger than ever. My wolf howled in agreement.
And for the first time… I wasn't sure I wanted to fight it.