The snap of twigs and the crunch of dead leaves echoed in rapid succession. Rowan's heart pounded louder than her footsteps, breath burning in her chest. Her legs ached, her lungs begged for air, but there was no slowing down. The raptors were too close — the guttural snarls and rhythmic growls from behind her were a constant reminder. They were being hunted.
"Faster, Rowan!" Sylva's voice rang out, her glow flickering with every pulse of effort. She floated just ahead, weaving between trees like a green-tinted wisp of smoke caught in a storm.
"I'm going as fast as I can!" Rowan snapped back, leaping over a twisted root that jutted from the ground like a grasping hand. Her spear clanged against her back, its weight jostling with every impact. She hated retreating. She hated running.
Sylva's eyes darted back, her glow flaring with urgency. "They're gaining! We need to—"
"Don't say it!" Rowan cut her off, eyes locked forward. "We're not stopping!"
The underbrush to their left exploded. One of the raptors darted from the treeline, claws raised high. Rowan's instincts snapped into action. She twisted mid-step, ripping her spear from its harness. The sharp metal edge met the raptor mid-lunge, the clang of impact ringing in her ears. Sparks flew as claw met metal. Her feet dug into the dirt, sliding back from the force, but she held firm.
"Too close!" Rowan snarled, muscles straining as she shoved the raptor back. It snarled in reply, clicking its teeth with that sickening hollow clatter only these things could make.
Sylva shot past her, a pulse of green light flashing like a strobe. The raptor staggered, eyes blinking rapidly from the flash. "Don't get stuck, Rowan!" Sylva yelled, floating higher.
"Working on it!" Rowan spun her spear in a sweeping arc, the metal head slicing across the raptor's jaw. Black ichor splattered the ground. It hissed and recoiled into the undergrowth.
Another snarl from behind. Another one was coming.
Rowan spun, just in time to see the next raptor leap for her back. Her eyes widened, too slow to turn, too slow to swing—
Sylva's glow surged like a sunburst. A wall of green force struck the raptor mid-air, sending it tumbling into a tree. The impact shook the branches above, leaves raining down like confetti.
"Move!" Sylva barked, eyes wild with urgency. "More are coming!"
"Fine!" Rowan growled, yanking her spear back into position. Her pulse was erratic, breath ragged. They couldn't do this forever. No. No more running. Not again.
They sprinted again, darting through trees and leaping over roots. Her body moved on instinct, every step calculated. Her breath came short and fast, but she forced herself forward.
But then the trees thinned. The roar of the forest wind grew louder, sharper, like air rushing into a hollow void. The ground ahead suddenly dropped away. Rowan's boots skidded to a stop, her arms flailing as loose dirt crumbled beneath her feet.
"Whoa!" She threw herself back just in time, breathing hard as she stared down at the sheer cliff face in front of them. Her eyes widened as she leaned forward cautiously. Below, jagged roots jutted out like a mouth full of broken teeth peading to a dark abyss.
Beyond that, far, far beyond — there, in the distance, framed against the smoky orange glow of a fractured sky, stood two towers of steel and concrete. They loomed like ancient, wounded giants. One was cleaved in half, the top section collapsed inward like a broken spine. The other remained upright but visibly cracked, with beams exposed like ribs. Rusted metal scars traced down their frames.
Rowan didn't realize she'd stopped breathing. She blinked twice, taking it in. The size. The weight of them. The history hanging in the air like ash.
"...What is that?" she muttered, her voice small but sharp, like she was afraid to speak too loud. Her chest rose and fell with labored breaths, her legs trembling from the run. Her mind raced, trying to place them. Some ruined fortress? A city, maybe?
Sylva hovered beside her, her glow dimming as she gazed at the towers with quiet reverence. "...The Twin Towers," she said softly, her voice distant, haunted. Her eyes lingered on them, her glow flickering unevenly. "They stood in New York. Symbols of power. Of wealth. Until they fell."
"Symbols of wealth?" Rowan tilted her head, squinting. "Looks like they've been here forever."
Sylva glanced at her, eyes half-lidded, somber. "They have."
Rowan stayed quiet, her gaze locked on the ruins in the distance. She could see it now — not just ruins, but something more. Something deeper. A moment frozen in time. A fragment of another world, embedded here like a splinter in flesh. She felt it in her bones. It wasn't just a ruin. It was a wound.
Her chest rose and fell with shallow breaths, her eyes distant. "They fell once. But not here."
A sharp snarl echoed behind them, louder this time. Rowan turned to see them emerge from the tree line — three raptors, sleek and shadow-drenched, their eyes burning like hot embers. Their feathers were slick like oiled metal, their claws clicking with deliberate patience. Each step was slow, methodical, like predators savoring the hunt.
"Options, Sylva," Rowan growled, adjusting her grip on the spear. "Tell me we have options."
"Down," Sylva replied quickly, her glow shifting erratically as she glanced toward the cliff. "I can carry you. I can... I think I can float us down, but—" She hesitated, biting her lip. Her glow dimmed again. "I don't know if I can hold your weight that long."
Rowan blinked. Slowly, she turned toward Sylva, one brow raised. "My weight?"
Sylva winced, realizing her mistake. "No! I mean— You're not—"
"Oh, no, no, no," Rowan said, voice sharp with mock offense. She dropped her spear into one hand, rolling her shoulder like she was warming up for something big.
"I get it, Sylva. I know I'm thick." She patted her thigh for emphasis, grinning like a wolf. "Don't worry, I'm not about to let you throw out your back carrying all this perfection."
Sylva's glow stuttered. "That's not what I—"
"Too late, it's locked in," Rowan said, flashing a grin sharp enough to cut stone. "Now it's personal." Her voice was light, but her eyes weren't. They locked on the raptors, her grin sharpening into something predatory. Her fingers brushed the length of her spear with slow, deliberate movement.
Her grin vanished.
Her breath steadied.
Her fingers gripped tighter.
"No more falling behind."
Her spear began to glow. Not with light — but with flame. Dim, violent purple flame. Her eyes narrowed to sharp points of focus. "Aiden's out there. Amara's out there. I'm not about to be the weak link."
The glow surged along the shaft of the spear. Sparks crackled. Metal shifted.
The spear bent. It twisted. It unfurled into a chain. The top end broke apart, forming a spiked ball covered in jagged flames that spun in place, trailing arcs of violet. The bottom half condensed, forming a sharp, wicked dart.
The air trembled.
Rowan's eyes sharpened. Her breath steadied. "No more running."
One raptor growled. The other two lowered themselves to pounce.
Rowan spun the chain with a flick of her wrist. Whup-whup-whup-whup! It spun in a tight circle, an orbit of fire, and her stance shifted. Her face darkened with glee. "Oh, it's on."
The first raptor lunged.
Rowan moved, but she didn't dodge.
The raptor's claws slashed straight for her chest—contact was certain. But it didn't feel anything. No resistance. No bone. No flesh. The claws ripped through air, and her body crumbled into steam, dissipating like fog under sunlight.
The raptor's eyes flicked around, wild with confusion. It spun in frantic circles.
"Over here, genius," Rowan's voice echoed from behind..
The raptor spun around just as the dart end of the chain shot out from the mist. It sank into its back with a solid THUNK.
"Now, Get over here!" Rowan yanked the chain hard, her body twisting with the motion. The raptor was yanked forward, feet dragging against the dirt. It snarled, limbs flailing.
Rowan stepped into the pull, whirling the chain around its neck in one fluid motion. It wrapped tight. She yanked again, harder this time. The chain snapped tight.
The raptor thrashed. Snarled. Choked.
Her breath slowed.
Her eyes burned with fierce, sharp focus.
"Finish him." She pulled hard, Rowan twisted, yanking the chain taut. Her whole body moved with it, like a conductor guiding the crescendo of a symphony. The flames crackled brighter, the heat distorting the air. Her muscles strained. Her fingers gripped tighter. Her heart thudded in time with the pull.
The raptor's limbs flailed once, twice. Then the SNAP came. Sharp. Loud. Final.
Its body crumpled in a heap, legs twitching once, then still.
The other two raptors stepped back, eyes darting between her and the body of their fallen packmate.
Her chain spun again, slow and methodical, the spiked ball orbiting around her like a satellite. She glanced at them, grinned slow and sharp. "Who's next?"
One of the raptors growled, eyes locked on hers, legs tensing.
"Rowan, stop wasting time!" Sylva's voice rang sharp. "We need to go!"
"Then get ready to float, Sylva," Rowan growled, spinning the chain faster. Her stance shifted. Her legs bent. Her grin sharpened. "Because I'm sending one of these freaks over the cliff with us."
Her eyes flicked to the cliff's edge. The air smelled of smoke and iron.
Her heart thudded like war drums.
The final raptor charged.
Rowan grinned wide, eyes wild with energy. The chain spun faster, a whirl of light, flame, and sharp metal.
She stepped forward, twisting her hips, and hurled the dart-end of the chain. It caught the raptor mid-leap, the dart embedding in its side. Rowan yanked hard, pulling it toward her.
Her body twisted, The chain wrapped its ignited neck, the fire flickering brighter.
She pulled once, hard.
The chain snapped.
So did the raptor's neck Rowan's grin lasted a heartbeat longer than it should have.
The ground vanished beneath her feet.
Her stomach lurched. Gravity seized her. Her heart shot into her throat as she fell.
Sylva's scream echoed over the rushing wind. Her glow surged, wild and frantic, as her hand shot down, grabbing Rowan's wrist.
Their descent slowed — but not enough. The weight pulled them both down, closer to the jagged roots below.
"Don't let go!" Rowan gasped, her heart hammering against her ribs.
"I'm not!" Sylva's teeth grit, glow flickering wildly as her arms strained.