The ground beneath Aria cracked wider.
Not a small fracture.
A deep split—spreading outward like something beneath the earth was trying to rise.
Her body hovered slightly above the ground.
Unmoving.
Unaware.
But the power around her—
Was no longer unstable.
It was building.
"Correction imminent."
The voices of the creatures echoed together now.
Not separate.
Not individual.
One.
Alpha Kael turned fully toward her.
Everything else faded.
The fight.
The danger.
The creatures.
None of it mattered.
"Aria… wake up."
Behind him, one of the creatures lunged.
Fast.
Silent.
Deadly.
Ikechukwu moved instantly.
His staff collided with it—
Tok!
A burst of force pushed it back.
But not far.
"Alpha! Focus!"
Kael didn't respond.
His eyes stayed locked on Aria.
Her glow intensified.
Silver—
But darker now.
Heavier.
Then—
Her body lifted higher.
The wind exploded outward.
Trees bent violently.
The ground trembled.
Ikechukwu staggered slightly.
"Ah! Wetin be this?!"
The creatures stopped.
All of them.
For the first time—
They didn't move forward.
They observed.
"Escalation detected."
Kael's voice broke through the chaos.
"ARIA!"
Her eyes snapped open.
Not silver.
Not glowing.
Blinding.
A mix of light and darkness swirling together.
Unstable.
Terrifying.
She inhaled sharply.
Like she had been drowning.
Then—
She screamed.
Not in pain.
Not in fear.
In release.
The power exploded.
BOOM!
Everything was thrown back.
Kael.
Ikechukwu.
The creatures.
Trees snapped.
The ground split.
The air shattered.
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Crushing.
Then—
She stood.
Slowly.
Calmly.
Her feet touched the ground again.
But something about the way she moved—
Was different.
Too controlled.
Too precise.
"Correction failed."
The creatures spoke again.
But this time—
There was something new in their tone.
Uncertainty.
Aria tilted her head slightly.
Looking at them.
Not confused.
Not afraid.
Understanding.
"You came for me."
Her voice echoed.
Layered.
Deep.
Kael pushed himself up from the ground.
His chest tight.
"Aria…"
She didn't look at him.
"You think I'm a mistake."
The creatures stepped forward again.
Slow.
Cautious now.
"Balance must be restored."
Aria smiled.
Slightly.
But it wasn't soft.
It was dangerous.
"Then try."
She moved.
Faster than anything they had seen before.
One second—
She was standing still.
Next—
She was in front of one of them.
Her hand raised.
CRACK!
The creature was slammed into the ground with a force that shattered the earth beneath it.
Ikechukwu's eyes widened.
"Jesus—!"
The other creatures attacked instantly.
From all sides.
But Aria didn't move like before.
Didn't react late.
Didn't struggle.
She flowed.
Every movement precise.
Every strike controlled.
She caught one mid-attack—
Twisted—
And threw it into another.
The impact echoed like thunder.
Kael watched.
Stunned.
This wasn't just power.
This was mastery.
But something felt wrong.
Too perfect.
Too empty.
"Aria… stop!"
She didn't respond.
One of the creatures lunged again—
This time from behind.
Before it could touch her—
She stopped.
Mid-motion.
Her body froze.
Her hand trembled.
The power flickered.
"…No…"
Her voice changed.
Back to her own.
Weak.
Breaking.
"I… can't…"
The creatures moved again.
Sensing the weakness.
Kael's expression changed instantly.
"ARIA!"
She turned toward him.
Eyes flickering between control and chaos.
"Help me…"
That broke him.
He ran.
Straight into the danger.
Ikechukwu shouted behind him.
"Alpha, wait—!"
Too late.
Kael reached her just as the creatures closed in.
He grabbed her shoulders.
Forcing her to look at him.
"Stay with me."
Her breathing was uneven.
Her power unstable again.
"I'm trying…"
The ground shook.
Again.
The creatures stopped once more.
All of them looked at her.
Then spoke.
"Anomaly confirmed."
A pause.
Then—
"Correction… impossible."
Silence.
Even Ikechukwu froze.
"…Wetin?"
The creatures stepped back.
All of them.
At once.
Retreating.
Not defeated.
Not destroyed.
But leaving.
Kael frowned.
"Why are they—"
One of them turned slightly.
Looking directly at Aria.
"New directive required."
Then—
They vanished.
Just like that.
Gone.
The forest fell silent again.
But this silence was different.
Not calm.
Uncertain.
Aria's body went limp.
Her power disappeared instantly.
Kael caught her again before she fell.
"Aria—"
She was unconscious.
Again.
Ikechukwu walked closer slowly.
Still processing.
"…Alpha…"
Kael didn't look up.
"…dem no fit handle her."
That realization sat heavy in the air.
Because if those things couldn't control her…
Then what exactly had she become?
Kael looked down at her face.
Unconscious.
Peaceful.
But now—
More dangerous than ever.
And far away in the darkness—
Something watched.
And this time…
It wasn't the moon.