The Moon Rot

Chapter Eighteen: Power Unleashed

The creatures charged like a wave of darkness.

Dozens of twisted bodies rushed toward us — pale skin, black eyes, claws dripping with shadow. The ground shook under their feet.

I stepped forward without thinking.

Power surged through me like lightning in my veins. The glowing orange patterns on my skin burned bright and steady. My claws grew longer, sharper. My senses exploded — I could hear every heartbeat, smell the rot on their breath, see every movement in slow motion.

“Stay behind me!” I growled. My voice came out deeper, almost echoing.

Max and Zara didn’t argue. They took positions on my sides.

The first creature leaped at me. I swung my arm and tore through its chest with one strike. Black blood sprayed across the stones. It didn’t even have time to scream.

Two more came at once. I ducked low and slashed upward, ripping through both of them. Their bodies flew backward and slammed into trees.

Zara moved like fire beside me — fast, graceful, deadly. She took down three creatures in seconds, her golden eyes blazing.

Max was pure force. Every punch broke bones. Every roar shook the air.

But the creatures kept coming.

One jumped on my back and sank its teeth into my wounded shoulder. Pain exploded through me. I roared and threw it off, then drove my claws through its throat.

The more I fought, the stronger I felt.

The ancient voice from the stone circle whispered in my head again:

**“This is what you are.”**

I roared louder. The sound rolled through the clearing like thunder. Several creatures stumbled and clutched their heads.

I charged into the middle of them.

My hands became weapons. I moved faster than I ever had before. s***h. Rip. Throw. The glowing patterns on my skin pulsed with every kill, feeding me more power.

Zara shouted my name. “Arian! On your left!”

I spun and caught a creature mid-leap, slamming it into the ground so hard the earth cracked.

Max fought his way to my side, breathing heavily. “You’re glowing brighter. Whatever happened in that circle… it’s waking up completely.”

The last few creatures hesitated. For the first time, they looked afraid.

Then they turned and fled back into the dark trees.

Silence fell over the clearing.

I stood in the middle, chest heaving, covered in black blood. The glowing patterns on my body slowly faded, but the power still hummed under my skin.

Zara walked up to me slowly. She touched my face with shaking fingers. “Your eyes… they stayed glowing. Even now.”

Max looked at the bodies around us. “You didn’t just fight them. You scared them.”

I looked down at my hands. The claws were still out. I could feel the wolf clearly now — not fighting me, but standing beside me. Like a partner.

“I saw things in the circle,” I said quietly. “Memories. Old packs. Wars. There’s more to us than just the curse. Much more.”

Zara stepped closer. “Then we find out what it is. Together.”

Max nodded, but his face stayed serious. “That kind of power… the Order will want it even more now. And whatever lives in this forest felt it too.”

A low howl echoed in the distance. Not from the twisted creatures. Something deeper. Bigger.

We all turned toward the sound.

The forest seemed to grow darker.

“We need to keep moving north,” Max said. “Whatever just woke up with you… I think it’s calling more things.”

I looked at both of them — my pack, my only family now.

The new power inside me felt dangerous.

But for the first time, it also felt like hope.

We started walking again, deeper into the Dead Zone.

Behind us, the stone circle glowed faintly one last time before going dark.

Something ancient had noticed me.

And it was following.

---

To be continued…