~Ella Windsor POV~
Leonard slammed the brakes, the SUV skidding to a stop. "Edward, Markus. We end this now!"
The doors flew open, and Edward shifted before his feet hit the ground, his body morphing into a massive white wolf mid-leap. Markus rolled out, knives flashing in each hand, and Leonard stepped out with his sword drawn, the golden glow of his eyes cutting through the rain.
I climbed out last, gripping the moonsteel sword so tight my knuckles ached. The scarred hunter laughed when she saw me. "She thinks she's one of them," she said to her men. "Let's show her what happens to traitors."
Edward met the first wave with a snarl, claws ripping through the wet night. Markus danced between hunters, his knives spinning, each strike precise and deadly, and Leonard cut down anyone who came near me, his movements fierce and protective.
But more hunters poured out of the woods, they were everywhere.
One aimed for me, I blocked his glowing spear with my sword, the clash sending vibrations up my arm. He was strong, but not fast enough, as I twisted, driving my blade into his side. The silver burns on my wrists flared with pain, but I ignored it, my wolf growled, guiding my movements.
"Ella, behind you!" Edward's voice roared in my head. I turned just in time to see another hunter swinging down with a blade, but Leonard blocked it, his sword sparking against the weapon.
"Stay close!" he ordered.
Markus whistled from the other side of the clearing. "We've got more guests incoming!"
I glanced up...and froze. Through the trees, I saw glowing eyes, dozens of them. Wolves, but not ours. The silver-coated beasts were coming.
The scarred woman laughed, stepping back as the massive shapes emerged from the dark. "You see, little blood girl? We don't need to kill you, we'll let them do it instead."
Edward snarled, his hackles rising. "Leonard! We can't fight both hunters and silver wolves at once."
Leonard's gaze darted between them, his expression grim. "Then we hold the line until we find an opening. Ella, stay between us! Don't let them touch you."
The first silver wolf lunged from the shadows, its metallic fur glinting under the lightning. I tightened my grip on the sword, fear and rage boiling in my chest. This was no random attack...this was a war.
The scarred woman raised her hand. "Take them all!"
And then the silver wolves charged.
Edward braced, Leonard moved forward, and Markus laughed like a madman, his knives ready.
I lifted my sword, the rain dripping down my face, and whispered to myself, "I'm not afraid of you."
But deep inside, my wolf whispered a warning...this is only the beginning.
The silver wolves crashed into the clear space like a storm, their claws tearing up the wet earth as they lunged toward us. Their fur glimmered like liquid metal under the lightning, and every movement carried the hiss of burning silver. The smell of scorched earth mixed with blood and rain. My heartbeat thundered in my ears.
"Stay behind me!" Leonard shouted, his blade catching the light as he blocked the first strike. The clang of metal rang out as one of the beasts' claws scraped across his sword, sending sparks flying. He gritted his teeth, forcing it back with a sharp kick.
Edward roared in his wolf form, leaping into the pack with unmatched fury. He tore through two of the silver wolves, his claws sinking deep into their metallic hide, but even he couldn't take them all. Each beast was fast and unnaturally strong, and they didn't seem to feel pain.
"Ella!" Markus yelled from my left. He threw a knife with a perfect spin, landing it straight into a wolf's eye. "Don't freeze up now! Swing that sword or you're dead!"
I clenched my grip on the moonsteel blade, my hands shook, but my wolf surged inside me, snarling with the kind of rage that burned hotter than fear. We're not prey, she whispered. We're hunters too.
One of the wolves came for me, its silver-coated body moving like a shadow. I waited until the last second, then ducked low and slashed upward. The sword met its throat, slicing clean through, a burst of glowing silver blood sprayed across the rain, hissing as it touched the ground. The beast collapsed at my feet.
For a second, I couldn't breathe, then I heard Leonard's voice.
"Good strike!" he said without looking at me, his blade moving in a blur as he fought off two wolves at once. "Stay sharp, Ella!"
Edward slammed into another wolf, pinning it to the ground, but a third one leapt onto his back. He snarled, twisting to throw it off, but the beast's claws dug into his fur, leaving deep gashes. I moved before I could think, driving my sword into its side, it screamed, a sound like grinding steel, and crumpled.
Edward shifted back, panting heavily. "We can't hold them much longer," he growled, blood dripping from his side. "There's too many of them!"
Markus landed beside us, his coat streaked with blood, but his grin was as sharp as his knives. "Then we make a way out, let cut through them and run."
"We're not running," Leonard snapped, his eyes blazing gold. "If we keep running, they'll never stop chasing us! We finish this...now!"
I felt the ground vibrate beneath my feet, the tremor of claws and rain mixing into chaos. Another silver wolf lunged at Leonard, he met it head-on, but its sheer strength forced him to his knees. I moved to help, but then I saw the scarred hunter standing at the edge of the clearing, smiling like the chaos pleased her.
She raised a strange weapon, glowing with a bluish energy, and pointed it at me.
"Ella!" Edward shouted, moving toward me, but it was too late.
A bolt of energy shot through the air, hitting me square in the chest. My breath caught, and for a moment, I felt like I was being torn apart from the inside. Pain seared through every nerve, as I collapsed to my knees, my sword clattering to the ground.
"Stop fighting," the scarred woman called out, her voice cutting through the storm. "Or I kill her now!"
Leonard froze, and Edward growled but hesitated, his wolf form shaking. Markus flicked his wrist, ready to throw a knife, but even he didn't move.
The hunter smirked. "That's better! Hand over the girl, you know what she is worth."
My wolf screamed inside me, a wild, furious howl, and I could feel something deep in my chest...an energy I had never felt before...rising like fire. My vision blurred, and for a second, everything slowed.
"Get up."
The voice wasn't mine, it was my mother's.