Chapter 14: Fenrir Unleashed
843 Words
Chapter 14: Fenrir Unleashed
Fenrir's roar echoed across the valley.
The monstrous wolf towered over the battlefield, its crimson eyes glowing like burning coals. Every breath that escaped its mouth carried dark mist that withered the grass beneath its feet.
The Blackwood warriors instinctively stepped back.
Even the Shadow King's own soldiers kept their distance.
"Impossible..." Damon whispered.
Kael had fought rogues, rival Alphas, and monstrous beasts before.
Nothing compared to this.
Fenrir wasn't simply a wolf.
It was a nightmare brought to life.
---
Lyra felt her knees weaken.
Her wolf trembled inside her.
That's... the beast...
"You know it?"
No... but my instincts do.
A memory older than us.
Seraphine appeared beside Lyra, her face unusually pale.
"Fenrir was once the Guardian of the Northern Moon Gate."
Lyra looked at her in shock.
"It was a guardian?"
"Yes."
"Long ago, he protected the Moonborn."
"What happened?"
Seraphine's voice broke with sorrow.
"The Shadow King captured him."
"He corrupted his heart with forbidden dark magic."
"For centuries, Fenrir has been forced to serve him."
Lyra looked at the giant wolf again.
Beneath its rage...
She saw pain.
Its crimson eyes held a sadness that didn't belong to a monster.
---
The Shadow King mounted his horse once more.
"Destroy them."
Fenrir obeyed instantly.
With one swipe of its enormous paw, three cottages collapsed into splinters.
Villagers screamed.
Kael leaped forward.
"Protect the civilians!"
The Alpha shifted into his wolf.
His enormous black wolf was powerful...
But beside Fenrir, he looked tiny.
Kael lunged.
His fangs sank into Fenrir's foreleg.
The giant beast barely reacted.
Instead, it swung its tail.
Kael was hurled through the air.
He crashed through the wall of a nearby building.
"Alpha!" Damon shouted.
---
Lyra's heart pounded.
Without thinking, she ran toward the fallen Alpha.
Orion blocked her path.
"My Queen!"
"He'll die!"
"You cannot risk yourself!"
"I won't let anyone else die because of me!"
Before Orion could stop her, Lyra sprinted across the battlefield.
Fenrir raised one massive paw.
It came crashing down toward Kael.
There wasn't enough time.
Lyra stretched out both hands.
"Stop!"
Silver light burst from her body.
A glowing shield appeared over Kael just as Fenrir's paw slammed into it.
The impact shook the valley.
The shield cracked...
But held.
Kael looked up in disbelief.
She had saved him.
Again.
Lyra dropped to one knee, breathing hard.
Maintaining the barrier drained her strength.
Fenrir growled.
Instead of attacking again...
It lowered its enormous head.
Its crimson eyes locked onto Lyra.
Then something unexpected happened.
The beast hesitated.
For a brief second, the rage disappeared.
Its eyes flickered from crimson...
To silver.
Only for an instant.
Then the darkness returned.
Seraphine gasped.
"It recognized her."
---
The Shadow King's smile vanished.
"Fenrir!"
The beast flinched at the command.
"Finish them!"
Fenrir growled in pain but didn't move.
The Shadow King's expression darkened.
He raised his black sword.
Dark chains shot from the blade and wrapped around Fenrir's neck.
The beast howled in agony.
"No!" Lyra cried.
The chains tightened.
Fenrir let out a heartbreaking roar before turning toward the village once more.
Its movements were slower now.
Almost unwilling.
"He isn't choosing this," Lyra whispered.
"He's being controlled."
Orion nodded.
"The Shadow King's curse still binds him."
---
Kael slowly stood, his injuries already beginning to heal.
He looked at Lyra.
"You saved me."
She didn't answer.
Instead, she kept her eyes on Fenrir.
Kael stepped closer.
"I know I don't deserve your kindness."
"You don't," she replied quietly.
The words struck like a blade.
"But innocent people do."
She looked at him at last.
"I didn't come back for you, Kael."
"I came back because this is still my home."
Shame washed over him.
He had called her unworthy.
Yet here she was, risking her life to protect the very people who had turned their backs on her.
At that moment, Kael understood something painful.
He had never deserved her.
---
A sudden flash of silver light erupted from Lyra's pendant.
Everyone turned toward her.
The glowing markings on her wrists spread up her arms, forming beautiful patterns that shimmered like moonlight.
Her wolf cried out.
Another seal has broken!
Power surged through her body.
The air around her began to glow.
Seraphine smiled through tears.
"The Queen's magic is awakening."
The Shadow King's eyes narrowed.
"No..."
He pointed his sword directly at Lyra.
"Kill her!"
Fenrir charged.
The earth trembled beneath every step.
Lyra closed her eyes.
She wasn't running.
She wasn't afraid.
Deep within her heart, she heard a voice she hadn't heard since she was a child.
Her mother's voice.
"Compassion is the greatest strength of the Moonborn."
Lyra opened her eyes.
Instead of preparing to attack...
She opened her arms.
"I'm not your enemy, Fenrir."
The giant wolf froze only a few feet away.
Its crimson eyes met her silver ones.
A single tear rolled down the beast's scarred face.
For the first time in centuries...
Someone had looked at the monster...
And seen the victim trapped inside.
- Writer
