Chapter Six: Unspoken Howls
852 Words
The wind howled through the broken window, carrying with it the acrid scent of blood and something fouler—something unnatural.
Aurora crouched behind a fallen tree, heart hammering in her chest. Her breath came in short, controlled bursts, but every sound seemed amplified: the rustle of leaves, the snap of twigs, the low growl that stalked her from the shadows.
She’d run from the house with nothing but a survival pack and the memory of Elias’s voice telling her to run.
But her feet had only taken her so far.
She wasn’t a warrior. She wasn’t even fully transformed. Her wolf—if she could call it that—was still dormant, still wounded by the seal placed on her years ago.
She touched the scar behind her ear—the crescent-shaped mark that pulsed now, glowing faintly under moonlight. Her mother had placed it there to protect her from shifting, from the curse of their lineage. Now, she wasn’t so sure it had protected her at all.
She was vulnerable. And alone.
A twig snapped. Aurora’s muscles locked.
“Don’t run,” came a voice behind her.
She turned sharply, fists raised.
It wasn’t Elias.
The man who stood there looked almost human, except for his eyes. Golden and serpentine, they glowed with feral glee. His hair was white as bone, slicked back, and he wore a black coat stitched in runic patterns that shimmered faintly under the moonlight.
“You must be the girl,” he said, smiling. “The one Elias broke the vow for.”
“Who are you?”
“Someone who’s been hunting your bloodline for generations.” He stepped forward. “My name is Rovan. And your death is long overdue.”
Aurora stepped back instinctively, but then stopped herself.
She couldn’t outrun this. Not anymore.
“I don’t even know who you are,” she said, voice shaking.
“But I know you. And that’s all that matters.” He tilted his head. “Though I must admit, I expected more. Elias made quite a fuss about protecting you.”
Her throat tightened at the mention of Elias.
“Where is he?”
“Alive. For now. But bound. He should never have interfered.”
Aurora clenched her jaw. “Let him go.”
Rovan laughed. “You’re not in a position to make demands, little mutt.”
He lunged.
Aurora barely rolled away, landing hard against the trunk of another tree. Pain flared in her shoulder, but adrenaline pushed her up. Her fingers curled around a silver dagger she’d tucked into her boot—one of the few things her mother had left her.
As Rovan approached, she slashed.
He dodged with ease, the blade nicking only his coat. But it was enough. His smile faltered.
“Silver?” he mused. “Cute.”
Aurora didn’t wait for him to recover. She darted forward again, feinting left, then slicing right. This time, the blade cut his arm.
Rovan roared.
In that instant, Aurora felt it—a surge of heat within her. The scar on her neck pulsed, then cracked. Power flooded her chest like wildfire.
Her knees buckled as her vision blurred. Her ears lengthened. Her hands began to shift—fingers bending into claws, skin heating.
The seal was breaking.
“No…” she gasped, but the transformation had already begun.
Rovan’s eyes widened. “Impossible.”
Her bones cracked and reshaped, fur sprouting along her arms. She screamed, half from pain, half from release. Then the world blurred, her instincts sharpened, and Aurora—newborn and wild—lunged.
She collided with Rovan mid-air, knocking him back into a tree. He yelped, clawing at her, but she was faster now, more precise. Her wolf wasn’t complete, but it was enough.
She tore into his shoulder, forcing him to scream again.
He slammed a rune-stamped fist against her side, and her body flew several feet, crashing against rock. Pain screamed in her ribs, but she growled and stood.
Rovan hissed, blood staining his coat.
“This isn’t over,” he spat. “Your power just delayed your death.”
He disappeared into the shadows before she could strike again.
Aurora collapsed to her knees, gasping, trembling, half-wolf, half-woman.
She didn’t know how long she had knelt there before a familiar scent reached her.
Elias.
He emerged from the forest, wounded, limping, blood down his temple. But alive.
When he saw her, his eyes widened—not with fear, but awe.
“You shifted,” he whispered.
Aurora nodded, her voice breaking. “I didn’t mean to. He broke the seal.”
Elias knelt beside her, cupping her cheek. “That seal was killing you slowly, anyway.”
She blinked. “What?”
“I saw the scar weeks ago. Your mother didn’t just suppress your wolf—she locked part of your soul away. If Rovan hadn’t attacked tonight, you might never have survived what’s coming.”
Her breath trembled. “What is coming?”
He looked out toward the trees, where the shadows still lingered.
“A war.”
- Writer
