The crimson beam swallowed Lyria whole. Pain ripped through her body with such force that her scream echoed across every corner of Ashwood. The ground trembled violently. A blinding silver light burst from within her, forcing everyone to shield their eyes.
The warriors staggered backward. Several were thrown off their feet by the sheer force of the explosion.
"Lyria!" Elder Rowan cried.
He tried to reach her, but an invisible wave of energy hurled him backward. His walking stick slipped from his grasp as he crashed against the stone steps of the council hall.
Alpha Darius dug his boots into the earth, shielding his face with one arm. "What is this?" No one answered. No one could. The air itself seemed alive. The crimson moon above Ashwood pulsed once... Then again... As though respondi
