Hunted by My Own Kind
836 Words
Her POV:
The horn sounds again.
Closer this time.
Vampire.
I feel it in my bones before anyone speaks. That sharp pull in my chest that has never lied to me, not once in five years. They’re moving fast. Elite. Silent.
Sent to erase mistakes.
“Untie me,” I say.
The Alpha doesn’t hesitate.
Steel claws slice through the enchanted chains like paper. Pain flares as circulation floods back into my hands, but I bite it down, already pushing myself upright.
“You trust me now?” I ask coldly.
“I trust the enemy I can see,” he replies. “Not the one coming for you.”
The wolf messenger pales. “Alpha, scouts report three vampire units crossing the outer wards. Council sigils confirmed.”
Of course they sent marks.
I laugh, breathless and bitter. “They really want me dead.”
“They want you silent,” he corrects. “There’s a difference.”
Another horn—closer still.
“Move,” he orders.
The tunnels beneath the Silverwood are narrow and ancient, carved long before borders mattered. Wolves melt into the shadows, guiding us through roots and stone as the forest groans above. My side screams with every step, but adrenaline is a powerful thing.
A blast shakes the tunnel behind us.
Fire.
“They’re burning through the wards,” someone shouts.
I turn to him. “They’ll collapse the forest if they have to.”
His jaw tightens. “Not if I collapse them first.”
We burst into an open cavern split by moonlight pouring through a cracked ceiling. The ravine lies ahead—our only escape.
And waiting at the far end—
Vaelor.
Alive. Armed. Smiling.
Relief dies instantly.
“Well,” he says smoothly, eyes flicking to the Alpha. “This is disappointing. I hoped you’d bleed out.”
My hand goes to my blade. “You led them here.”
“Of course I did,” he replies. “Did you really think the council would forgive treason?”
“I didn’t betray anyone.”
Vaelor laughs. “You stepped in front of him. That was enough.”
Behind him, vampire soldiers emerge from the shadows, eyes glowing red, weapons raised.
The Alpha steps forward, placing himself between me and Vaelor. “Leave,” he growls. “This doesn’t concern you.”
“Oh, it concerns us very much,” Vaelor says. “You’re standing on vampire territory now.”
I snarl. “This forest was never ours.”
His gaze sharpens. “Careful. You’re already condemned.”
I feel it then.
The shift.
The line snapping tight inside me.
“You burned the city,” I say slowly. “Five years ago. Didn’t you?”
Vaelor’s smile flickers.
“That night,” I continue, voice shaking with fury, “you gave the order.”
Silence slams down hard.
The Alpha turns his head slightly. “You knew.”
Vaelor sighs. “I did what was necessary. Peace was never an option. Fear is easier to control.”
The words seal it.
I move.
Steel meets steel as I lunge, fury lending strength my wounded body shouldn’t have. Vaelor barely blocks in time, shock flashing across his face.
“You chose power over peace,” I spit. “Over thousands of lives.”
“And you chose him,” Vaelor snaps back. “Now die with him.”
The cavern explodes into violence.
Wolves crash into vampires. Stone shatters. Blood sprays the walls. I fight like something unchained, every strike fueled by rage and revelation. The Alpha is beside me, brutal and unstoppable, our movements syncing without thought.
We’ve always fought well together.
Vaelor retreats toward the ravine, signaling his remaining soldiers. “Kill them all!”
“No,” I say, voice ringing sharp and final. “Kill him.”
I leap.
Vaelor stumbles, eyes wide as he loses footing at the ravine’s edge.
“You can’t,” he gasps. “They’ll brand you a traitor.”
I smile grimly. “They already have.”
He falls.
The scream cuts off too fast.
The battle stops.
What remains of the vampire unit stares at me in horror.
The Alpha watches too, something unreadable burning in his eyes.
“You’ve crossed a line,” he says quietly.
I wipe blood from my blade. “I erased one.”
Another horn sounds—farther now.
Retreat.
More will come.
I look at him, at the wolves gathering behind us, at the forest trembling with what we’ve unleashed.
“Looks like I’m out of a home,” I say.
He studies me for a long moment.
Then he turns and faces his army.
“She fights with us now,” he declares.
Murmurs ripple through the wolves.
I inhale sharply. “You can’t just—”
“I can,” he says, meeting my gaze. “And so can you.”
Behind us, the Silverwood burns.
Ahead of us—
A war just chose new sides.
- Writer
