Chapter 11 - I'm Ready
1072 Words
Chapter 11 - I'm Ready
Nyra's POV
I never liked gym class.
Too many eyes. Too many chances to screw up. But today felt different. I’d actually been doing okay. The weather was crisp, the sun streaming through the windows, and Coach had us doing dodgeball drills instead of the usual sprints. That should've been a relief.
But it wasn’t.
Something had been stirring inside me all morning—like a live wire humming under my skin, snapping against my ribs. My wolf. She was restless. Angry. And still completely silent.
Naria threw me a grin from across the court as I dodged another ball, then returned fire. Jade ducked behind a stack of gym mats, yelling something about sabotage. For a second, I laughed.
Then it happened.
A blur of orange came flying at my head. I turned too late.
Whack.
The ball slammed against my temple. It wasn’t even that hard, but something in me snapped.
Before my brain could catch up, my body surged forward. My vision blurred. My hearing dulled. All I saw was the boy who threw it—Tommy, from the junior class. He was laughing, not maliciously, just the way you do when a game gets intense.
But to my wolf, it was a threat.
Mine.
A growl ripped from my throat as I lunged. The sound didn’t even feel like it came from me. I tackled him in one move, flipping him onto the floor with a force I didn’t know I had. A sickening c***k echoed as he landed. His scream followed, sharp and sudden.
Then silence.
Everyone froze. Timmy clutched his arm, face contorted in pain. His wrist bent at an unnatural angle.
Naria gasped. Jade stood stunned, eyes wide.
Bethany—perfect, polished Bethany—backed away slowly.
And Coach… Coach was already on his feet, his whistle falling from his lips.
"Nyra," he said, voice cautious but firm. "Step back. Now."
My breath came in ragged gulps. My hands were still curled like claws. And when I looked up—
Every single face in that gym was staring at me.
At my eyes.
Silver. Glowing. Unmistakable.
“Oh, Goddess,” Naria whispered.
I stumbled back, horror washing over me like a tidal wave. What had I done?
I didn’t wait for answers.
I turned and ran. Past the bleachers. Through the locker room. Out the side doors into the open air. The schoolyard blurred around me. I didn’t stop until I was well beyond the track field, past the fences, into the trees.
She still hadn’t spoken to me. My wolf. Whatever bond we were supposed to share, whatever calm she was supposed to give me—it wasn’t there. Just rage. A storm of it.
Why won’t you talk to me?! I screamed internally.
No answer.
I kept running. Branches slapped against my arms. My lungs burned. My shoes slid through the muddy forest floor as I followed no path, just instinct.
Faster.
Farther.
Away.
Finally, when I collapsed to my knees by a moss-covered boulder, my breath came in desperate gasps. The forest was noisy, river flow, birds twitching, leaves, the air I could hear them all. I clenched my fists against the soil, shaking.
“Get it together,” I hissed through my teeth.
But I couldn’t. My wolf wasn’t just silent. She was unreachable. I felt like a ticking bomb, ready to explode all over again.
A thought slipped in: You hurt someone. In front of everyone.
I’d never felt more monstrous.
I don’t know how long I sat there. Ten minutes? An hour? Long enough for the panic to cool into something dull and hollow. Long enough to make a decision.
If anyone knew how to help me… it was him.
I found myself walking. Not back to school. Not home.
To the place I swore I wouldn’t return to unless dragged: the safehouse in the woods. The one where Ivan and the outsiders stayed. The one where I’d woken up after my k********g.
But it didn’t feel like danger anymore.
It felt like a last resort.
When I reached the clearing, the cabin stood quiet and watchful, tucked between towering pines. Smoke curled from the chimney. I could smell wolves—more than one—but I didn’t hesitate.
I knocked. Hard.
The door opened almost instantly, like someone had been waiting. Ivan stood there, his broad shoulders filling the frame, arms crossed. His dark eyes scanned me like he was checking for blood.
“You look like hell,” he said.
“I feel worse.”
He stepped aside without a word. I entered.
The place looked warmer than I remembered. A fire in the hearth. A kettle on the stove. Two new strangers sat near the fire—outsiders, like him—but they rose politely when they saw me. Ivan gave a nod, and they left the room.
Only then did I speak.
“I need help.”
His eyebrows lifted slightly. “Help?”
I sat down hard on the wooden bench near the fireplace. “I lost control. During gym class. I—hurt someone.”
Ivan leaned against the doorframe, arms still folded. He didn’t look surprised.
“She won’t talk to me,” I continued, voice shaking. “My wolf. Since I felt she’s just been… silent. But today, she acted on her own. I didn’t even know I was shifting until it was too late.”
He was quiet for a moment. Then he walked over, crouching in front of me.
“You’re not going to like what I have to say.”
I met his eyes. “Try me.”
“You don’t control her,” he said simply. “Because you don’t know her. You haven’t earned her trust.”
I flinched. “She’s me. Isn’t she?”
“She’s a part of you,” he corrected. “But not just you. Lunaborn wolves are different. They carry ancestral power. Instincts older than your mind can comprehend. You can’t command her until you understand what she is.”
“Then teach me.”
Ivan blinked. Slowly. “You’re sure?”
“I’m ready,” I said. “If I’m going to accept this power, this wolf then i need to know how to control it.”
A flicker of approval crossed his face.
“Good,” he said. “Training starts now Luna.”
- Writer
