The tunnel's air turned horribly thick, heavy with the stench of something ancient and rotten, as a creature's glowing red eyes from the darkness locked onto Drew. It was massive, a twisted amalgamation of wolf and somethings only seen in nightmares, its fur matted with blood and shadow. One could not be sure which part was real or shadow. Its roar shook the stone walls, and as if it was a reply; Drew's curse surged in response, a wildfire in his veins that felt as if it was threatening to burn him from the inside out. He planted himself between the beast and his pack, claws extended, fighting the urge to let the curse take over.
"Get back!" Drew snarled, his voice barely human with more of the monster sound. Lena whimpered, pressing against the tunnel wall watching, while Rhona's claws snapped out, her eyes wide with a mix of fear and some small sense of defiance. Elena stood at Drew's side, her dagger raised, her steady heartbeat a stark contrast to the chaos in his own chest. Werewolf killing had made her more used to seeing supernatural elements and not be Afraid. One could say monsters not werewolf was her fort.
"What *is* that thing?" Elena hissed, her green eyes narrowing as she studied the creature, clearly not seeing its full form. Its form flickered, like it wasn't fully solid, its edges blurring into the shadows. "I don't think this is a werewolf."
"No," Matthias said, his voice eerily calm as he stepped forward, too close to the beast for Drew's liking. "It's older. Hungrier." His smirk was gone, replaced by a glint of something Drew couldn't read—excitement, maybe, or recognition. As much as he was an elder and mysterious, but what in full moon's name would be friends with a person like Matthias?
The creature lunged, its claws raking the stone where Drew had stood some seconds before. He dove aside, shoving Elena out of the way as the beast's jaws snapped shut inches from his arm. The curse roared, urging him to shift fully, to match the monster's savagery, madness for madness and even more. He resisted, but his vision turned tinted red, his control slipping like sand through his fingers. Almost a waste of time as he tried to regain control as his body slowly changed; as his nail extended, furs growing and his legs growing longer.
"Rhona, get Lena out!" Drew shouted, dodging another swipe. The tunnel was too narrow for a full fight, and the docks were still a mile away. They needed to move, not brawl. Even if it would be a fight, it would be better in an open space as the creature was huger and faster. And it seemed to block them from going forward to the larger part of the tunnel.
Rhona grabbed Lena's arm, pulling her back toward a left path, but Lena's eyes were still locked on the creature, when her face paled. "It's… calling me," she whispered, her voice trembling. "Like it knows me."
Drew's blood ran cold. The prophecy's words echoed in his mind: *the alpha's blood will break or bind.* was this thing tied to his curse? To Lena? He didn't have time to think as the creature charged again. Elena moved faster than he expected, her dagger slashing across the flank of the beast. The blade drew blood—black and viscous—but the beast barely flinched.
"Silver doesn't work!" Elena called, rolling away to avoid a coming counterattack from the beast. "We need another way out! Quickly!"
Everyone turned to look at her as she was the one giving them directions. They walked slowly back towards where Rhona and Lena were running to.
For Matthias, he chuckled, low and dark, as he circled the creature, his movements too deliberate. "Oh, there's always another way, hunter. But it comes at a price." His eyes flicked to Drew, then to Lena, and Drew's stomach twisted. Matthias knew something—something he wasn't sharing.
"Matthias, help or get out!" Drew roared, tackling the creature to buy more time. Its weight was crushing, its breath hot and foul, but Drew's curse-fueled strength held it back. Barely. He clawed at its throat, drawing more of that unnatural blood, but the beast's eyes glowed brighter, its form seeming to grow.
Elena caught sight of something on the ground. She grabbed what was a loose pipe from the tunnel floor, swinging it with what she thought was enough force to crack the creature's skull. It staggered, giving Drew a moment to breathe. "We can't kill it here," she said, panting as she had used all her strength. "We need to trap it or run."
Drew nodded, his mind was racing. The docks were their best shot, but the creature was too fast. And right now, he wasn't sure if the creature was targeting all of them and it was being specific as it had its focus on Lena. "Lena!" he called, glancing back. "Can you mask us again?"
Lena shook her head, tears streaming down her face. "It's too strong. It… sees me."
Matthias stepped back closer to Lena, his hand resting on her shoulder. "Let it see you, pup," he murmured, his voice almost tender. "You're stronger than you know."
Drew's claws twitched, every instinct screaming to rip Matthias away from her. "Back off, Matthias," he growled, shoving the elder aside. The creature roared again, recovering, and Drew made a split-second decision. "Elena, with me. We hold it off. Rhona, take Lena to the docks."
Rhona hesitated, her eyes flicking to Elena. "You're trusting her *again*?"
"Just do it!" Drew snapped, the curse lacing his voice with a feral edge once again. Rhona obeyed, dragging the now scared fully Lena down the tunnel as the creature lunged once more.
Drew and Elena fought side by side, a blur of claws and steel. Her movements were precise, and they were complementing his raw power, and for what looked like a moment, he felt something beyond the curse—a connection, unspoken but real. She glanced at him, her eyes fierce, and he knew she felt it too. But this wasn't the time they could voice out words to understand what was happeninig between them. They could only fight.
But the creature wasn't slowing down and once again, Matthias's absence gnawed at Drew. The elder had slipped away during the fight without a single hint and his tainted scent lingered like a warning. The fight continued, with the beast's claws grazing Drew's chest, and the curse whispering louder, its voice now clear as an echo: *Blood calls to blood.*
The tunnel shook again, and new sounds echoed—human voices, hunters, closing in from behind. Drew's heart sank. They were trapped between a monster and their pursuers, and Matthias's betrayal was starting to take shape. The first two might have been an issue, but with Matthias; this was a big problem.