Chapter Nine — The Hunter in the Vale
710 Words
The sky above the Ancient Vale darkened as night settled over the enchanted forest. Strange fireflies drifted through the air, their glow soft and eerie.
Elyria and Raven followed the seeker’s mark as it tugged faintly in one direction—northwest, toward a mountain faintly outlined by lightning far in the distance.
Shadow Mountain.
“Once we reach the base, we need to find an entrance,” Raven said. “And avoid getting murdered.”
“Helpful advice,” Elyria murmured.
Suddenly, the mark on her chest flared hot.
She froze. “Raven…”
“I feel it,” he said.
No—he didn’t. He wasn’t connected to Selene.
He felt something else.
The bushes rustled.
Elyria turned slowly.
A man stepped into the clearing.
Tall. Human. Dressed in dark hunter’s leathers, a crossbow strapped to his back and silver stakes lining his belt. His eyes were sharp, calculating.
A Hunter.
Raven hissed under his breath. “This just keeps getting better.”
The Hunter smiled coldly. “Elyria Veylock. I’ve been following you for days.”
Elyria’s blood iced. “How do you know my name?”
“Everyone wants you,” he said casually. “Vampires. Werewolves. Pixies. The Dark Coven. The Council. And now… me.”
Raven stepped protectively in front of her. “Back off, human.”
“I’m not here for you,” the Hunter said. “I’m here for her. The girl worth more than any bounty I’ve seen.”
Elyria’s heart hammered. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”
The Hunter shrugged. “I expected you to say that.”
He moved too fast for a human.
Raven lunged—
—just as the Hunter fired a bolt of glowing silver.
Elyria dove aside. The bolt grazed her arm, burning like fire. She gasped, clutching her skin as it sizzled.
“What was that?” she hissed.
“Witchbane silver,” the Hunter said calmly. “Highly concentrated. You’re lucky I need you alive.”
He reached for another bolt.
Raven snarled, eyes blazing gold. “Touch her again,” he growled, “and I’ll tear your throat out.”
The Hunter smirked. “You’re welcome to try.”
The two blurred into movement—Raven slashing, the Hunter dodging with unnatural precision. Raven’s strikes were fast, lethal, fueled by protective rage—but the Hunter countered every attack like he’d spent his entire life studying vampires.
Elyria’s head spun. She needed to help—she needed magic—
But the Witchbane burned through her veins, her power sparking and sputtering.
The Hunter kicked Raven back, raised his weapon, and aimed straight at Elyria’s chest.
Too fast.
Too close.
Elyria raised her hands—
—and a burst of wild magic exploded from her palms, knocking the Hunter backward into a tree.
The forest crackled with power.
Raven raced to Elyria’s side. “Are you okay?”
She nodded shakily. “Yeah. But he’s still—”
A low groan.
The Hunter stood, glaring, crossbow broken at his feet.
“That,” he growled, “hurt.”
Raven pulled Elyria behind him. “You want another taste?”
The Hunter reached slowly into his coat.
“You think you’ve won?” he said. “I’m not the only one tracking you.”
He threw something at Elyria’s feet.
A black medallion.
The symbol etched into it made her blood run cold.
The black circle crossed by a jagged line.
The symbol she saw in Mira’s vision.
The mark of the Covenant of Shadow.
The Hunter smirked. “They know you’re coming. And they’re ready.”
Then he vanished into the trees—too silently to be human.
Raven cursed. “Great. Now the hunters AND the coven are after us.”
Elyria stared at the medallion, her heart pounding.
If the coven knew she was coming…
Then they knew she was close to Selene.
And they were preparing.
“We need to reach Shadow Mountain,” she whispered.
Raven nodded grimly. “Then we move now.”
Elyria clenched the medallion in her fist.
It burned cold against her skin.
Somewhere in the distance, thunder rolled over the shadowed peak.
And Elyria felt it in her bones.
Her sister was waiting.
- Writer
