The HOWL BEFORE THE END
The forest trembled as Maya lay in the clearing with her knees slightly bent, claws half-extended, breath coming in slow, controlled pulls. And Around her lay broken trees. The moon hung high above, pale and watchful, its light glinting off the steel ring on Patrick's finger.
Her eyes—golden, sharp, burning with restrained fury—never left him.
"Where are they?" Maya asked, her voice steady despite the storm raging inside her. "My pack. Every single one of them."
Patrick smiled. It was the kind of smile that didn't belong on any living creature—cold, amused, and cruelly patient. He lifted his hand slightly, as the moonlight catches the runes engraved into the silver ring wrapped around his finger.
"Safe," he said lightly. "Contained. They are trapped in my ring space."
Sarah's control fractured for just a heartbeat.
"You took them," she growled. "Elders, the Warriors and even the children who had nothing to do with this."
Patrick shrugged. "Collateral is inevitable in war. Besides…" As his eyes dragged over her slowly. "They'll be released." hope flashed in Maya Golden eyes "But, after I kill you."
The surroundings exploded with sound.
Maya surged forward roaring in outrage. Raw, furious, shaking the night sky. It wasn't just a sound; it was a declaration. A refusal to kneel. And a promise of blood.
Maya lunged. Her claws aimed straight for Patrick's throat, speed fueled by rage and desperation. The ground cracked beneath her feet as she closed the distance in a blur of moment.
But patrick didn't move. At the last second, a steel flashed.
His sword slid from its sheath with effortless grace, the blade humming as it cut through the air. One clean motion—precise, controlled, deadly.
Maya felt the impact before she saw it.
The flat of the blade struck her ribs, sending her flying backward like a broken doll. She crashed through a tree, bark exploding outward as her body slammed into the trunk and dropped to the ground.
Pain flared white-hot.
She rolled, barely managing to rise before Patrick was already there.
"Too wild," he said calmly, circling her. "Too emotional. That's why wolves lose."
Sarah snarled and attacked again. Her strikes came faster, heavier. Claws clashed against steel, sparks flying with every collision.
But Patrick who was a grand sword master he blocked all of her attacks with ease. Each of his movements was minimal, efficient. He blocked her strikes with infuriating ease, and also countering with blows that drained her strength, cut her flesh, and shattered her rhythm.
A slash across her shoulder.
A kick to her knee.
A pommel strike to her jaw
Sarah stumbled, blood staining the ground beneath her.
Maya screamed inside her mind, refusing to submit,while forcing her body to rise again even as pain threatened to drag her into darkness.
We don't bow, Maya snarled.
Patrick sighed, already feeling bored, to be honest he sincerely like someone like her, someone who is determined, ferocious, but sadly.
"This ends now."
He raised his sword, the blade angled downward, as it aimed straight at Maya's heart.
Maya looked up at him, blood running down her chin, chest heaving. Her thoughts weren't on herself—but on something.
Suddenly The air shifted.
A pressure slammed into the surroundings—heavy, suffocating,and ancient. Patrick froze mid-step, eyes widening just slightly.
A new presence had arrived. This presence.
"Step away from her."
The voice was calm. Way too calm.
Patrick turned slowly.
Trevor stood at the edge of the clearing, cloak brushing the grass, eyes dark and unreadable. He hadn't drawn a weapon. He didn't look rushed or tense.
But then the forest itself seemed to recoil from him.
Patrick narrowed his eyes. "Trevor."
Sarah's breath caught. She shifted back to her human form.
Relief flooded her so fast it hurt.
But beneath it was fear—because if Patrick was dangerous, Trevor was something else entirely.
Patrick laughed softly. "So the rumors were true."
"what rumors?" Trevor couldn't believe the news could travel so fast.
This people thinks highly of him, and they were hell testing his patience. His gaze flicked to Sarah, then lingered on her trembling form. His eyes sharpened, an unexplainable emotion, well inside him. His aura Radiating. Something dark passed through Trevor's eyes.
Patrick noticed—and smiled wider.
"I've always wondered," Patrick continued casually, lowering his sword just a fraction. "Why did so many people fear you? You kill. You leave nothing behind. But fear usually has a reason."
He shifted his stance. "Let me test this waters."
Patrick moved first.
His sword cut forward in a blinding arc, energy rippling along the blade. The strike would have cleaved a mountain in half.
But then trevor stepped aside.
That was all.
No effort. No strain.
Patrick frowned.
This time, He attacked again—faster, stronger, at the same time layering technique upon technique. Steel sang as his sword danced, strikes weaving into a deadly pattern meant to overwhelm any opponent.
Trevor vanished.
Not moved— He vanished.
Patrick felt it a second too late.
As a hand pierced through his chest from behind.
Blood spilled from his mouth as Trevor's grip closed around his heart. Space twisted unnaturally around them, folding in on itself like a collapsing wound.
"You asked why they fear me," Trevor said quietly, leaning close to Patrick's ear. "This is why."
He crushed Patrick's heart.
The sword clattered uselessly to the ground as Patrick's body collapsed, lifeless before it hit the ground.
Silence followed.
Sarah stared in shock, chest rising and falling as she tried to process what she'd just witnessed.
Trevor turned to her.
The killing pressure faded instantly.
"Are you hurt?" he asked. His voice mix with concern and demanding.
Sarah nodded slowly. "I'll heal." her eyes looking around apart from Trevor's eyes. She saw Patrick corpse, and unknowingly Shivered. Trevor killed a grand master so easily. Her eyes went further till they met the ring that bind around Patrick's finger
Trevor followed her eyes, looking at the corpse, he felt something familiar, he extended his hand toward Patrick's corpse. Space rippled around his fingers, responding to his will. The silver ring slid free from Patrick's hand, hovering in the air.
Trevor clenched his fist.
The ring shattered.