KOL
Call it instinct, but sothing inside scread that sothing was terribly wrong.
It wasn’t just the sudden monster attack on the academy. We were usually given so kind of warning before a creature of that caliber breached the protective wards. Now? Nothing.
Then there was the rain. It felt... off.
I had been at this academy longer than most. The standard entry age was sixteen, after a wolf had first triggered. My own wolf had awakened earlier, so I arrived sooner.
In all that ti, the weather in Velkan had always followed strict seasonal patterns — spring was spring, winter was winter, sumr was sumr, and autumn was autumn. No strange overlaps. No anomalies.
Until now.
I stared out the window, eyes narrowed at the trees swaying violently in the wind. The heavy rain hamring against the roof should have been calming, but instead it set my nerves on edge.
My ears twitched. A dull throb ford in my temples as the communication mindlink suddenly opened.
"What is the situation in your houses?" Headmaster Alaric’s voice cut through.
I stayed silent. The others spoke first.
"I’ve seen nothing," Azrael said, irritation clear in his tone. "So much for rushing back to the house."
"Neither have I," Eric muttered.
"You?" Headmaster Alaric grunted. The faint sound of pages turning echoed through the link.
I straightened, gripping the edge of the curtain. "Nothing," I replied, then added more firmly, "But I think sothing strange is going on."
"You can feel it too, right?" Eric and Azrael said at the sa ti.
They both paused, then muttered under their breath. I could practically see them glaring at each other.
I sighed, shoving my fingers through my hair before walking over to the bed and sitting on the edge.
"Yes," I replied, rubbing the back of my neck as it tingled. "Sothing strange is definitely happening, but I can’t put my finger on exactly what it is."
"A powerful foe is at play," Headmaster Alaric mumbled.
"Do you an the Hollow Hound?" I asked, swallowing hard.
My thoughts imdiately drifted to Elyse. I wondered if she was okay.
"I’m afraid not," Headmaster Alaric said, then fell silent.
I stood up, curiosity spiking. "What do you an?"
He remained quiet for a mont. Outside, the rain grew louder and angrier, pounding against the roof like it was battling sothing unseen.
"The Hollow Hounds are re slaves," he finally said. His voice dropped even lower, dead serious. "I’m afraid I’ll have to take this straight to the council."
I glared at the wall in front of . I opened my mouth to speak, but Eric beat to it.
"The council this, the council that," he snarled.
I flinched at the loud bang that ca through the link — he must have punched a wall or sothing. He winced right after.
"They refused to say anything about the mate bond, dismissing it as teenage hormones like we’re idiots who don’t know what we feel. The student’s death? Swept under the carpet as an ’unfortunate accident.’ And now this..." Eric growled.
"What do you think they’re going to say?!"
"Nothing!" he shouted. "My fucking father is on that damned council, and he’ll be the first to dismiss it all as bullshit while students keep dying!"
"I understand your frustration—" Headmaster Alaric started.
"No, you don’t!" Eric cut him off sharply. "My mate is in that house, and Goddess forbid it’s the first target of whatever this thing is. We haven’t even heard from them yet!"
A small smile ford on my face despite myself. For the first ti in a while, I couldn’t argue with anything Eric had said.
Elyse was in that house. If the Hollow Hound’s first stop was Valerius House again — like it had been the last ti — they were all dood.
"Like I said," Headmaster Alaric continued, completely unfazed by Eric’s outburst, "the council will take this up. It’s nothing any of you can handle..."
"Oh please," Eric snapped. "If it was about sending us to our deaths, I’m sure none of the council mbers would think it was impossible. Not even you!"
Headmaster Alaric sighed heavily. "The Hollow Hound is not a situation you can just—"
Another voice suddenly cut through the link.
"Help!" Verah cried, her voice cracking with panic.
My heart quickened.
"I need help right now! If anyone can hear !" she added, sobbing loudly.
Elyse.
"Is she alright?" I asked urgently. "I an Elyse."
Verah’s sobs only grew louder. My anxiety spiked.
"Good goddess," Eric grimaced through the link. "You want help but you keep crying. How the hell are we supposed to know what we’re helping with?!"
"Eric!" Headmaster Alaric admonished.
"What?" he muttered. "I’m just saying the truth."
Whether he was right or not didn’t matter right now.
"Take your ti, Miss Hart," Headmaster Alaric said gently.
Verah hiccuped, sniffling. For a few agonizing seconds, only the sound of her broken sobs filled the link.
Eventually, she managed to speak again, her voice shaking. "It’s Elliott and Lance."
"What about them?" Headmaster Alaric asked.
"Let guess?" Eric chid in with that familiar air of nonchalance. "They fought."
He continued, "Whoa. Nothing weird about that, Hart. We all fight all the damn ti. Now say sothing that’s actually new."
God, Eric. I wished I could reach through the link and shove sothing in his mouth to shut him up.
"No, they didn’t fight," Verah murmured. Then, almost instantly, she broke down again. "It’s Oleander. They’ve both been poisoned."
My eyes widened.
Poisoned?! That was the last thing I expected to hear.
"I can’t get through to the school infirmary," Verah whimpered. "They’re dying. They need help right now!"
Without even questioning why Lance was in Valerius House in the first place, Headmaster Alaric spoke with calm assurance.
"They’ll be there soon. No one is dying on my watch."
"What about Elyse?" Eric and I asked at the sa ti as the Headmaster began arranging for dical help.
"S... she is missing," Verah choked out.
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