Nymera’s POV
The world swam back in pieces.
Pain first. A sharp, searing ache across my wrists and ankles.
Then cold—the floor under me was stone, rough and damp.
And finally, the scent.
Rot. Blood. Magic gone sour.
I opened my eyes to darkness.
Chains clinked when I moved. My hands were shackled above my head, my legs pinned. Panic rose in my throat like bile.
"She’s awake," a voice hissed nearby.
A torch flared to life, blinding me for a second.
When my vision cleared, I saw him.
The cloaked figure from the council chamber.
Now unmasked.
A face pale as bone, eyes burning black with a red core.
Not human.
Not wolf.
Something older. Something worse.
"You shifted," he said, voice scraping against the walls. "Faster than expected. Good. Stronger vessels last longer."
I stru
