Chapter 106: When the Wolf Answered
[WARNING! Unedited! Don’t buy!]
We ran.
Not away.
Around.
Flanking.
Valerius and Sol were locked together, power tearing the air apart. We moved behind Valerius.
"Now!" I shouted.
Caroline unleashed everything she had.
Water crushed him from behind, slamming him forward into Sol’s shadows. The collision was violent enough to split the ground.
Valerius screamed.
And vanished.
Just—gone.
The air stilled.
Sol collapsed to one knee.
Caroline dropped beside him. "Did we—?"
"No," Sol breathed. "But we hurt him."
My chest heaved.
Sol looked at Caroline. "You fought an immortal."
She stared at her hands. "I didn’t die."
"No," he agreed. "You did not."
Silence settled.
Then—
Sol smiled.
A real one.
"You are dangerous," he said.
Caroline swallowed. "Thank you?"
He stood. "Tomorrow will be worse."
I groaned. "Of course it will."
Sol vanished again.
Caroline slumped against me. "I think I hate our life now."
I laughed weakly. "Same."
But deep inside—
Something else stirred.
Not fear.
Not dread.
Hope.
We weren’t prey anymore.
We were learning how to bite back.
Valerius was gone.
Not dead—never dead—but gone in the way predators vanish when wounded. The air still carried his scent, sharp and metallic, a reminder that he would return.
Always.
Caroline sank to the ground, shaking violently. "I thought he was going to kill me."
I dropped beside her, pulling her into my arms. "You didn’t freeze. You didn’t run. You fought."
Her breath hitched. "I almost liked it."
That confession scared her more than anything else.
Sol watched us from a short distance away, his expression unreadable. "Power awakens something primal," he said quietly. "Do not confuse strength with righteousness."
Caroline nodded against my shoulder. "I won’t."
But doubt lingered in her eyes.
We spent the rest of the afternoon repairing what Valerius had destroyed. Not because the monastery mattered—but because rebuilding forced our hands to work, our minds to slow. Caroline steadied fallen stones with careful streams of water. I cleared debris, wincing every time my ribs protested.
"You should rest," she said.
"So should you."
"Touché."
The sky burned gold as evening fell.
Sol reappeared near the archway. "You will not be attacked again tonight."
"How can you be sure?" I asked.
"Because Valerius does not retreat unless he must," Sol replied. "And he must now."
Caroline frowned. "We really hurt him?"
"Yes," Sol said. "Enough to wound his pride. That may be worse."
Great.
We ate what little food we had left—dry bread and a piece of fruit Caroline had somehow managed to keep uncrushed. Hunger gnawed at me, but fear dulled it.
Night returned.
This time, I let myself sleep.
Dreams came anyway.
Water rising around me.
Hands dragging me under.
Valerius laughing as I sank.
I woke gasping.
Caroline was already awake, staring at the ceiling. "You too?"
"Yeah."
We sat up together.
"I keep thinking," she whispered, "what if I become something I don’t recognize?"
I met her eyes. "Then I’ll remind you who you are."
Her lips trembled. "Promise?"
"I swear."
Morning broke with rain.
Soft at first. Then heavy.
Sol smiled faintly. "Perfect."
"For what?" Caroline asked.
"Today," he said, "you learn to fight blind."
My stomach dropped. "Absolutely not."
He ignored me.
He led us outside into the downpour. Rain soaked through our clothes instantly, plastering hair to skin. The monastery courtyard became slick stone and mud.
"Close your eyes," Sol ordered.
Caroline hesitated. Then obeyed.
"Feel the rain," he said. "Not with sight. With instinct."
Water moved around her immediately, reacting like a living thing. Streams bent, droplets hovering.
"Now," Sol continued, "I will attack."
"What?!" I snapped.
Too late.
A burst of arcane slammed toward her.
Caroline screamed—but the water moved on its own, slamming into the attack and dispersing it.
She staggered but stayed standing.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Attack after attack came without warning. Caroline learned to feel the shift in the air, the ripple before impact. She blocked blindly, sometimes barely in time.
I paced the edge like a caged animal.
"Stop this!" I yelled.
"She must learn," Sol replied calmly. "Sight will fail her. Fear will blind her. Only instinct remains."
Caroline fell to one knee.
"Enough," she gasped.
Sol lowered his hand.
"Good," he said. "Better than yesterday."
She ripped off her blindfold, breathing hard. "You’re trying to kill me!"
"Yes," he said simply. "So others won’t."
I wanted to hit him.
Instead, I hugged her.
She clung to me. "I hate him."
"I know."
By afternoon, she could block strikes without looking.
Not perfectly.
But enough.
Progress.
Then Sol turned to me.
"You," he said.
"What about me?"
"You are not helpless," he replied. "You just believe you are."
"I don’t have arcane."
"No," Sol said. "But you have something older."
The necklace burned.
"What are you talking about?" I demanded.
"Your bloodline," he said. "Your wolf."
My chest tightened. "I can’t shift."
"Yet."
Caroline stared. "Yet?"
Sol studied me. "You lost it. That does not mean it is gone."
Hope slammed into me so hard it hurt.
"You can bring it back," he continued. "But it will cost you."
"Everything costs something with you."
"Yes."
I swallowed. "What do I do?"
"Tonight," Sol said, "you will bleed."
Caroline gasped. "No."
"Voluntarily," he added. "A ritual. Old. Painful. Necessary."
I didn’t hesitate. "Fine."
"No," Caroline said fiercely. "You’re not doing this alone."
Sol nodded. "Good."
The ritual circle was drawn at dusk.
Symbols carved into stone. Candles lit. Blood required.
Mine.
I sliced my palm without flinching.
It burned.
Dripped.
The necklace pulsed violently.
Sol began to chant—not words I recognized. The air thickened. The forest went silent.
Pain exploded in my chest.
Not physical.
Internal.
Like something tearing its way back to life.
I screamed.
Caroline held me.
"Stay," she whispered. "Don’t leave me."
I clutched her wrist. "I’m here."
The pain intensified.
Images flooded me—
Running.
Hunting.
Moonlight on fur.
My wolf.
Trapped.
Starving.
I felt it.
Myself.
I sobbed.
"Let it in," Sol commanded.
I did.
Something broke.
Power surged.
Not arcane.
Wild.
Primal.
The candles went out.
Wind howled.
I collapsed.
When I woke—
The world smelled different.
Sharper.
Louder.
Alive.
Caroline stared at me. "Your eyes..."
"What?" I whispered.
"They’re glowing."
Sol smiled slowly. "Welcome back."
I sat up.
Strength thrummed through my veins.
Not full.
But real.
"I can feel her," I whispered. "My wolf."
Tears spilled down Caroline’s face. "You did it."
"No," I said quietly. "We did."
Far away—
Something howled in answer.
Valerius.
Or something worse.
Sol’s smile faded. "They felt that."
I met his gaze. "Good."
Because this time—
I wouldn’t run.
