Elara POV
The attack came at midnight.
I was asleep. Dreaming. Not of Theron this time. Just darkness. Peaceful.
Then the alarm bells shattered everything.
They rang across Moonscar Summit in frantic waves. Loud. Urgent. The sound of war.
I jerked awake. My heart was already racing. The fever was back. Burning. Kaelen had left an hour ago to check the perimeter.
Now I was alone.
Footsteps thundered in the hallway outside. Shouts. The clash of steel. Snarls that sounded more animal than human.
Something was wrong.
I threw off the furs. Stumbled out of bed. My legs shook. The fever made everything difficult. Every movement felt like wading through mud.
I made it three steps before my door burst open.
Not Mira. Not Kaelen.
Three vampires.
They moved fast. Too fast. One second they were in the doorway. The next they were surrounding me.
Pale skin. Red eyes. Fangs already out.
"There she is," one of them hissed. Male. Young. His eyes were wild. Hungry. "The twin-flame. Lord Theron wants her alive."
"Barely," another one said. Female. She smiled. "He didn't say unharmed."
They lunged.
All three at once.
My body reacted before my brain caught up. I threw up my hands. Instinct. Pure survival.
And something inside me broke.
No.
Not broke. Snapped. Like a rope pulled too tight finally giving way.
Power exploded from my palms.
Silver light. Harsh. Blinding. It slammed into the first vampire mid-leap.
I watched in horror as his body unraveled.
Not torn apart. Not burned. Unraveled. Like he was made of threads and I'd grabbed one and pulled.
His scream cut off halfway. His body turned to dust. Just crumbled. Gone in seconds.
The other two vampires scrambled backward. Hissing. Their eyes wide with fear.
But I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. Couldn't think.
I'd just killed someone.
Turned him to dust with my bare hands.
What was I?
A roar shook the room.
Kaelen burst through the door. Already shifting. His body rippled. Changed. Bones cracked and reformed. In seconds, the man became a massive silver wolf.
He tore into the remaining vampires with savage efficiency.
No hesitation. Just pure violence.
I covered my face with my hands. Tried not to see. Tried not to hear the wet sounds of claws ripping through flesh.
It was over in seconds.
When I finally looked up, both vampires were dead. Their bodies sprawled on the floor. Blood everywhere.
The wolf shimmered. Shifted back. Kaelen stood in the middle of the carnage. Chest heaving. Blood splattered across his skin and clothes.
His eyes found mine.
"Are you hurt?"
I shook my head. Couldn't speak. If I opened my mouth, I'd scream.
Mira burst through the door. Blood on her tunic. Fury in her eyes.
"Three breaches on the east wall. Coordinated. Professional. They weren't trying to take the summit." She looked at me. "They were targeting her."
"I know." Kaelen's voice was flat. He looked at the pile of ash on the floor. What used to be a vampire. "Get rid of these. Quietly. I don't want the pack panicking."
Mira nodded. Started dragging the bodies toward the door.
But before she left, she looked at me. Not with fear. With something close to awe.
"Whatever you are," she said quietly, "you're strong. Don't let them make you afraid of it."
Then she was gone.
I sank onto the bed. My legs wouldn't hold me anymore. I was shaking so hard my teeth chattered.
Kaelen sat beside me. Careful not to touch.
"Are you hurt?" he asked again.
"No." My voice came out broken. "I'm fine. They're the ones who died."
"Because they attacked you."
"Because I'm a monster." I looked at my hands. They looked normal. But I knew what they could do. What I'd done. "I turned him to dust, Kaelen. With my bare hands."
"You defended yourself." He moved closer. Slowly. Like I was a spooked animal. "Elara, look at me."
I did. His golden eyes were steady. Certain.
"You did what you had to. That's all."
"I killed him."
"Yes. And if you hadn't, he would've killed you." His voice was firm. Final. "Don't apologize for surviving."
I wanted to believe him. Wanted to accept that it was okay. That I hadn't just become the monster everyone feared.
But my hands wouldn't stop shaking.
Before I could respond, a sound cut through the night.
Wings. Sharp and precise.
A raven landed on the windowsill.
Black feathers. Red eyes. Another one of Theron's messengers.
It cocked its head. Studied us. Then opened its beak.
Theron's voice poured out. Smooth. Amused.
"Well done, little flame. Three of my children reduced to ash in seconds. I'm impressed. And eager to see what else you can do."
The raven's wings spread wide.
"Twenty-seven days, Elara. But I'm not a patient man. Come to me willingly and I'll teach you to wield that power without fear. Stay with Kaelen and watch everyone you care about die trying to protect you."
A pause. Then, softer. Almost intimate.
"I'll be dreaming of you tonight. Try not to enjoy it too much."
The raven exploded in black smoke.
I was shaking again. Harder this time. I felt Theron's presence through the crimson mark. Felt his satisfaction. His hunger. His certainty that I would come to him eventually.
"I won't let him take you," Kaelen said.
His voice was hard. Absolute.
"You can't stop him forever."
"Then we'll figure out how to break this before thirty days are up." He stood. Offered me his hand. "Your mother's journal says you're the key. So let's find the lock."
I looked at his hand for a long moment.
The silver mark on my left wrist pulsed. Warm. Steady.
The crimson mark on my right burned. Hot. Demanding.
Two bonds. Two kings. Two impossible choices.
Finally, I took his hand.
His palm was warm. Rough with calluses. The marks on our wrists flared. Silver and crimson bleeding together.
Through the bond, I felt his resolve. His determination. His absolute refusal to let me go.
And underneath that—fear.
He was as terrified as I was.
But he was going to fight anyway.
I looked at the pile of ash on the floor. At the blood. At the evidence of what I'd done.
I wasn't going to run. Wasn't going to hide.
I was going to fight too.
Twenty-seven days.
That's all the time I had.
Time to figure out what I was. Time to break a system designed to enslave. Time to find a third path when everyone said only two existed.
The ground beneath me felt steady for the first time since the Barrens.
I was terrified.
But I was ready.