I barely had ti to blink before Damon moved.
The air around us shifted violently as his body blurred, bones cracking and reforming in a way that would have horrified but now felt terrifyingly familiar.
In seconds, where Damon had stood was a massive white wolf, towering and lethal, his fur glowing faintly under the moonlight like fresh snow. His roar split the night, deep and thunderous, shaking the trees around us.
The five rogues barely had ti to react. Damon launched himself forward with brutal speed, his massive jaws clamping down on the first rogue’s neck with a sickening crunch.
Blood sprayed across the forest floor as he tore through flesh and bone without hesitation. Another rogue lunged at his side, only for Damon to swipe him aside with one powerful paw, claws ripping straight through ribs and muscle like paper.
I watched in stunned silence as he dismantled them one by one, his movents precise and rciless. There was no hesitation, no restraint, only pure dominance.
The growls echoed through the woods, overlapping with pained yelps that ended far too quickly. By the ti the last rogue tried to flee, Damon was already on him, slamming him into the ground and ripping him apart with savage efficiency.
When the forest finally fell silent again, the ground was soaked red, steam rising faintly from the bloodied earth.
I forced myself to move.
My feet carried toward the light brown wolf without fully registering it, my heart hamring painfully against my ribs. He lay on his side, his body trembling violently, blood matting his fur and pooling beneath him. The sight made my chest ache in a way I had not felt in a long ti.
I dropped to my knees beside him, ignoring the ss, my hands hovering for a second before I placed them gently against his side. His breathing was shallow, uneven, every rise of his chest looking like it might be his last.
"Hey," I whispered softly, my voice breaking despite my efforts. "Stay with ."
The wolf shuddered, then his body began to glow faintly as he shifted back into his human form.
The transformation was ssy and incomplete, his skin already torn and bleeding where claws had ripped through him. Blood gushed freely from deep wounds along his torso and neck, soaking into the forest floor.
My throat tightened painfully.
He was young, far too young to be dying like this, and the way his body struggled to heal told everything I needed to know. He was an oga. His healing abilities were weak, slow, and painfully insufficient for injuries like these.
The sight dragged back to mories I had buried deep, to a ti when I had been nothing but an oga too, disposable, fragile, easy to break, and easier to forget.
Tears burned the back of my eyes as anger and grief twisted together inside my chest.
"No," I whispered fiercely, shaking my head. "You’re not dying here."
I closed my eyes and reached inward, calling upon my magic without hesitation. Warm golden light spilled from my palms, sinking into his wounds as I focused everything I had on keeping him alive. The magic humd through , draining but steady, knitting his torn flesh together, slowing the bleeding little by little.
The young man gasped suddenly, his back arching as he sucked in a ragged breath. His eyes fluttered open, unfocused and glassy, panic flashing across his face as he tried to speak.
His mouth moved, but no sound ca out.
"Shh," I said quickly, leaning closer. "Don’t try to talk. You’re making it worse."
Tears slipped from the corners of his eyes as he tried again, his hands twitching weakly against the ground. The effort caused one of his wounds to reopen slightly, blood seeping out despite my magic.
"Breathe," I urged gently, my voice trembling. "Just breathe and calm down. I’m here."
He listened, slowly, painfully, his breathing evening out as he focused on my voice. After a few seconds, his lips parted again, and this ti, words finally slipped out, broken and strained.
"Alpha... Allison," he rasped. "She sent ... to Alpha Damon."
My heart skipped. ’Allison? That bitch?’
"The Blood Moon pack," he continued weakly, each word costing him imnse effort. "They are going to attack... every ally. One by one to weaken him..."
His eyes began to flutter shut, fear etched deeply into his expression. "Protect them," he whispered, barely audible.
"No," I said urgently, panic rising as I felt his pulse falter beneath my hand. "Stay awake, you don’t have to say more, just stay with ."
But his lashes trembled, his eyes closing despite my efforts. The claw mark along his neck suddenly began to bleed again before slowly stitching itself shut, his body forcing what little healing it had left into survival rather than consciousness.
"Hey," I whispered hoarsely. "No, stay with ."
His body went slack.
I froze. My hands hovered uselessly above him, my magic fading as realization slamd into like a physical blow. My chest felt hollow, my fingers numb, as I stared at his still form.
"Did he... just die on ?" I murmured, my voice barely there.
A tear slipped down my cheek, then another, until my vision blurred completely. Guilt crushed down on , heavy and suffocating. I should have been stronger. I should have been faster. I should have saved him.
But I hadn’t.
A warm pair of arms wrapped around from behind, pulling gently but firmly into a solid embrace. Damon had shifted back, his arms anchoring as I trembled against his chest.
"This is how ogas are treated," I whispered numbly, staring at the body before us. "Why does it have to be the weak who suffer because of the strong?"
After a while and I was ready to speak, I told him what the young man had said, every word spilling out as if I were afraid they might vanish if I did not say them aloud. Damon stiffened slightly at the ntion of Alpha Allison, his brows furrowing deeply.
Reviews
All reviews (0)