The moment the wolf-man and the dragon both said "She's mine," the forest transformed.
The air thickened with instinct so strong it felt like a physical weight pressing against my chest. Frost swirled outward from the dragon's claws, creeping over roots and rocks, while heat rolled off the wolf-man in waves, almost like he was fighting freezing temperatures with raw body heat.
Neither took their eyes off me.
Neither blinked.
Neither breathed normally.
It was like two predators circling the same prey—me—and neither was willing to back down.
I pressed myself against the tree, trying to stay as small as possible. It didn't help. They still stared at me with the intensity of starved animals.
"Okay," I whispered, holding my hands up. "Everyone just—relax. Please. I didn't ask to be here. I'm not anyone's anything."
The wolf-man responded first, his jaw clenching as he angled his body protectively in front of me.
"You don't understand," he said, voice low and rough. "Your arrival woke every instinct I have. I can't ignore it."
"That's not my problem!" I hissed back. "I didn't choose to—whatever this is!"
He looked like he wanted to argue—but the dragon moved first.
The enormous creature lowered its head until its glowing eyes were level with mine. Frost hissed around its nostrils. When it spoke, the voice vibrated through my bones.
"Human," it repeated, tone darker this time. "You will come with me."
"No," the wolf-man growled, stepping between us. "She stays with me."
The dragon's neck arched, scales glittering like shards of ice. "Move, pup."
"I'm not your pup," the wolf snapped, half-shifting in a flash. His claws elongated, fangs sharp, eyes glowing like wildfire. "Touch her and I'll rip your throat out."
"You can try."
The dragon's wings spread, sending a gust of freezing wind exploding across the clearing.
I shielded my face. The cold bit into my skin like needles.
"Can we not fight?" I shouted. "Seriously! I almost died twice already! I don't need two more monsters trying to kill each other over me!"
They didn't listen.
Of course, they didn't.
They were locked onto each other like the only language they understood was violence.
The dragon lunged. The wolf-man reacted.
Everything happened at once.
The dragon's front claws slashed downward. The wolf-man grabbed me and shoved us both aside just as the claws cracked the earth where we'd been standing.
My shoulder slammed into the ground. Pain shot down my arm.
Before I could breathe, the wolf-man scooped me up again—just in time to dodge a blast of icy breath that turned an entire tree into solid frost.
"What the hell—" I gasped.
"Move!" he yelled.
He pulled me behind him as the dragon roared and charged again.
The ground trembled so violently it felt like the world was collapsing.
The wolf-man pushed me behind a boulder. "Stay here."
"Like hell!" I said. "I'm coming with—"
But he wasn't listening.
He launched himself at the dragon, shifting midair. Bones cracked, fur sprouted, and his wolf form hit the dragon's head with the force of a wrecking ball.
The dragon retaliated immediately, snapping its jaws, barely missing the wolf's tail as he leaped aside.
They clashed again—dragon breath vs. wolf claws—each impact sending shockwaves through the ground.
I crouched behind the boulder, heart pounding, watching two impossibly powerful creatures try to kill each other over me.
All because I was human.
A species that apparently didn't exist here anymore.
My hands shook so hard I had to grip the rock to steady myself.
This wasn't just a fight. It was territorial insanity.
The wolf—Owain, he had said his name in the split second before he shoved me aside—fought like he was protecting something vital.
The dragon fought like he was claiming something that belonged to him.
Both of them kept glancing toward me between blows.
Both were losing control.
And both were going to destroy the entire damn forest if I didn't get out of here.
I crawled backward, trying to keep low, looking for any path into the trees that wasn't blocked by monsters murdering each other.
A violent crash shook the earth as the dragon slammed Owain into a tree—the entire trunk split in half.
"Owain!" I shouted before I could stop myself.
His wolf head snapped up at the sound of my voice.
That tiny distraction nearly got him killed.
The dragon's tail whipped around, smashing into him and sending him flying across the clearing. He rolled, hitting the ground hard.
"No!" I bolted forward before I could stop myself. "Stop! Please—stop!"
The dragon turned toward me instantly, nostrils flaring.
Owain staggered back to his feet, fur bristling, blood dripping from his shoulder. He snarled at the dragon, then at me.
"Run!" he shouted in a half-human growl. "Kanah, run!"
The dragon spread its wings, blocking the sky.
There was no more time.
I sprinted into the forest.
Branches whipped my face. My breath tore out of me in painful gasps. The forest blurred around me. My ribs ached with every step, and my entire body screamed at me to stop—
But I didn't.
Behind me, I heard them both roar.
That sound pushed me faster.
I didn't look back. I didn't want to see which one was closer or who would catch me first or what would happen if they did.
I just ran.
The forest floor dipped, and I nearly rolled into a ditch. I caught myself against a root, panting, chest heaving.
I could still hear them. Crashing. Roaring. Hunting.
And not for food.
For me.
Panic clawed at my throat. One part of me wanted to curl into a ball and scream. Another part wanted to find anything—a weapon, a stick, a rock—to defend myself.
I didn't get the chance.
A dark shape burst through the trees ahead. Not the wolf. Not the dragon.
Another man.
Tall, elegant, and terrifyingly beautiful, with silver-blonde hair that looked almost white in the strange light and eyes glowing pale green like fireflies in fog. His skin had faint glowing markings, swirling like liquid vines.
And unlike the wolf and dragon, he wasn't breathing hard or injured.
He looked calm. Too calm.
An elf.
My brain supplied it without permission—his ears were slightly pointed, but that wasn't it. It was the air around him. It felt colder, sharper, like the forest bent toward him.
He raised a hand slowly, palm upward, as if approaching a startled animal.
"Human," he said softly. His voice was low and smooth, but carried an edge. "You are causing quite the disaster."
"No—nope." I backed up hard. "Don't come near me. I'm done with—everyone. No more weird men for five minutes. Please."
He blinked, surprised.
Then he smiled a slow, dangerous smile.
"I'm not here to harm you."
"That's what people say before they harm you."
"True," he admitted.
Okay. Not comforting.
He took a single step toward me.
The moment he did, the ground behind us exploded.
The dragon crashed through the trees, frost blasting outward.
Owain burst in from the opposite side, half-shifted, snarling, eyes locked on me.
The elf's magic flared, glowing bright across his skin.
All three were focused on me.
Again.
I stepped back until a tree blocked my escape.
"You're drawing them like predators to a wounded deer," the elf murmured. "Your presence is… disruptive."
"I didn't ask to be disruptive!" I snapped. "I didn't even ask to be here!"
Owain growled, low and threatening, shifting fully into human form as he staggered forward, chest heaving. "Get away from her, elf."
The dragon shifted too—his wings snapping inward, his massive form shrinking and twisting until a tall, white-haired man stepped out of the swirling frost.
Yllas.
He stood completely bare, ice clinging to his skin like armor, golden eyes burning with fury.
"You touch her, Sylvarin," Yllas said, "and I freeze your heart."
"I don't take orders from lizards," the elf responded calmly.
Owain bristled. "Both of you need to back off."
This was insane. Absolutely insane.
I held out both hands.
"STOP!"
All three paused.
They stared at me with a level of focus that made my skin crawl.
"Enough," I said, breathing hard. "I don't belong to any of you. I'm not staying with any of you. And I don't want to die today, so—if you're going to fight, leave me out of it!"
Silence.
Then—the forest shifted.
A fourth presence entered.
I didn't see him at first—just felt something dark and silent glide behind me, smooth as a shadow.
Then a hand brushed my waist.
I jerked, spinning around—
—and stared into honey-gold eyes.
A man leaned casually against the tree I'd been pressed to, expression unreadable.
Golden-brown skin, lean body, faint leopard-like markings on his shoulders. His hair was tied back loosely, a few strands falling into his eyes.
He hadn't made a sound. Not one.
Helion.
His voice was a soft whisper against my ear.
"I've been watching you run."
I swallowed hard. "Kept up easily, didn't you?"
A faint smile curved his lips. "I wasn't trying."
The other three tensed instantly.
Helion's fingers brushed my wrist, light as silk, but slow enough to claim territory.
"Don't touch her," Owain snapped.
The dragon's voice dropped dangerously. "Remove your hand, leopard."
The elf's eyes glowed brighter. "She is not yours."
Helion didn't even look at them. His gaze stayed on me.
"She could be."
My heart hammered so violently I felt dizzy.
Four powerful beastmen surrounding me.
All territorial. All dangerous. All focused solely on me.
This wasn't instinct anymore. This was obsession.
And I'd been in this world for less than an hour.
I lifted both hands again, backing into the tree helplessly. "Guys—please. I can't handle this. I don't know what's going on. I don't know what I did to trigger whatever this is, but—"
"You exist," Yllas said simply.
His voice was strangely steady, almost controlled despite the frost still swirling around him.
"That is what you did."
Gerrin, the elf, stepped slightly closer. Magic flickered faintly along his fingertips.
"You should not exist," he whispered. "Humans are extinct. Seeing you is… impossible."
Owain moved closer too, though not threateningly—more like he was trying to shield me. "And yet she's here. And she's mine."
"She is not yours," Yllas corrected coldly.
"No," Gerrin said. "She's mine."
Helion's hand slid to my hip, so soft I barely felt it. "We'll see."
I pushed him away, voice breaking. "STOP TOUCHING ME!"
They all froze again.
Something in the air shifted—tension, scent, something instinctual I couldn't read but they clearly could.
Their eyes widened. Not with fear. Not with anger.
With realization.
Owain whispered first, stunned:
"She refused us."
Gerrin stepped back slightly, voice softening. "Her will overrides instinct."
Yllas's eyes sharpened. "Impossible."
Helion tilted his head, intrigued. "Interesting."
All four stared at me like I had just broken a natural law.
I didn't understand any of it.
Suddenly, a new sound cut through the clearing—
A distant, thunderous howl.
Every beastman's head snapped toward the noise.
Owain cursed under his breath. "Others are coming."
Yllas frowned. "Dragons too."
Gerrin's eyes narrowed. "Elves."
Helion clicked his tongue. "Leopards."
"Wait," I said, panicking. "Why are more coming? What did I do?"
Owain grabbed my arm—not hurting, but firm. "They felt you."
"Felt me how?"
The forest shook. Leaves rained down. More howls, more roars, more everything.
Yllas answered with a voice that belonged to someone used to commanding armies.
"You entering this world reset the balance, human. Every creature for miles felt the shift. They are coming to hunt, claim, or kill."
My blood went cold.
"All because I'm human?"
"Because you're the first human," Gerrin said quietly. "In six hundred years."
Owain pulled me toward him protectively.
"There's no time. Move."
"Wait—where are we going?"
He gripped tighter.
"To keep you alive."
Before I could respond—
The forest exploded into chaos again.
And I was dragged into the heart of a world that was determined to tear itself apart because I existed.