The Chimera didn't move like a living thing. It moved like a glitch in reality snapping from one position to another with a sickening crunch of mechanical joints. Its red eyes locked onto me, ignoring Silas entirely. To the University, I was the only objective that mattered.
"Elara, run!" Silas screamed, shifting into his golden wolf. He lunged at the beast, his jaws aiming for its patchwork throat.
But the Chimera was built for this. It caught Silas mid-air with a clawed hand that looked like it was made of obsidian and silver. With a casual flick, it sent the Alpha crashing into the cave wall. Silas slumped to the ground, his golden fur matting with blood as he shifted back into a broken, unconscious human form.
I stood my ground, my fingers digging into the sharp slate. My wolf was screaming to come out, but the cave was too small if I shifted now, I'd bring the entire mountain down on our heads.
The Chimera lunged. I rolled to the side, the slate slicing a shallow line across its muscular leg. It didn't bleed red; a thick, black oil leaked from the wound. It turned, its jaw unhinging to reveal rows of rotating silver teeth.
"Is this what I am to you?" I shouted at the shadows, knowing the University's drones were watching through the beast's eyes. "A collection of parts?"
A sudden, deafening roar shook the cavern.
The waterfall at the entrance didn't just part; it exploded. A massive black shadow plummeted into the cave, colliding with the Chimera just as its teeth were inches from my face.
Malachi.
He was in his human form, but he looked like death itself. His skin was gray, his veins black with silver poisoning, and his eyes were bloodshot. Yet, his grip on the Chimera's throat was absolute.
"Touch... her... and... die," Malachi wheezed, his muscles bulging as he pinned the ten-foot monster against the stone.
"Malachi, stop!" I yelled. "The silver in your blood if you use your power now, your heart will stop!"
"Let it," he growled, looking back at me with a gaze so filled with raw, aching love that it hurt more than Silas's rejection. "I would rather die an honorable man than live another second as the monster who lied to you."
The Chimera stabbed a silver-tipped claw into Malachi's shoulder. He didn't even flinch. He just tightened his grip, his hands beginning to glow with a dying, violet flame.
"Elara," Malachi gasped, his strength fading. "The boy... Silas... he has the antidote in his pocket. The University gave it to him to keep him compliant. Take it. Use it on yourself so they can't track your blood."
I looked at Silas's limp body, then at Malachi, who was literally melting from the inside out to buy me ten seconds of life.
"No," I said, my voice cold and clear.
I walked toward them. I didn't reach for Silas's pocket. I reached for Malachi's hand.
"Elara, what are you doing? Get out!"
"We aren't doing this your way anymore," I whispered. "No more lies. No more sacrifices."
I bit my own lip until it bled, then I pressed my mouth to the wound on Malachi's shoulder.
The "White Origin" blood my blood hit his system like a lightning bolt. It wasn't just a cure; it was an upgrade. The black veins in his neck turned a brilliant, glowing white. The silver poisoning wasn't just neutralized; it was consumed by my power.
Malachi's eyes snapped open, now glowing a dual shade of violet and white.
"The Blood Pact," he whispered, his voice returning with the force of a hurricane.
"Finish it," I commanded.
Malachi didn't just fight the Chimera; he dismantled it. With a surge of combined Lycan and Origin power, he ripped the beast's head from its shoulders, the mechanical parts sparking and dying in the mud.
Silence returned to the cave, broken only by the heavy breathing of the man who had almost died for me.
Malachi turned to me, falling to his knees not out of weakness, but out of a new, profound respect. He didn't try to touch me. He waited.
"You saved me," he said, his voice trembling. "After everything I did... why?"
"Because the University wants us divided," I said, looking down at him. I glanced over at Silas, who was starting to groan as he regained consciousness. "And because I'm done being a prize. From now on, we aren't a King and a Mate. We are an Army."
I reached down and grabbed Silas by the hair, hauling him up. He blinked, terrified, seeing the King and the White Queen standing together.
"You want forgiveness, Silas?" I asked, my eyes glowing with a cold light. "You're going to get us into that University. You're going to be our Trojan Horse."
Silas looked at Malachi's lethal gaze, then at my terrifying power. He nodded frantically. "Anything. I'll do anything."
I looked out at the waterfall, where the sun was finally beginning to rise.
"Phase Three was a failure, Professor Lang," I said to the empty air, knowing she was listening. "Tell the Board to prepare. The 'Specimen' is coming to collect her mother's remains. And she's bringing the King with her."
Malachi stood up beside me, his hand finally finding mine. This time, I didn't pull away.
"Where do we start?" he asked.
"We start by burning the Silver Moon pack house to the ground," I said. "I want my sister to wa
tch the world she stole turn to ash."