The ground trembled beneath our feet as we sprinted back toward the center of the Court, the violent light from the archway painting the standing stones in flickering silver and violet, casting long, distorted shadows across the grass.
"What happens if it completes the ritual alone," I shouted to Thessaly, struggling to keep pace despite my exhaustion.
"Nothing good," she called back. "Without willing consent, without proper balance, it will simply tear whatever power it can reach directly out of anyone standing nearby, regardless of the damage that causes."
We reached the center just as Vesper and Isolde arrived from the opposite direction, warriors from both packs forming a rough perimeter around the archway despite clear uncertainty about what exactly they were meant to be defending
