Chapter Twenty: The Battle for the Bloodstone
The air froze, holding its breath, while the standoff in the Hollow was getting more intense. His muscles coiled, Damien was ready to spring, yet he held his place, knowing one wrong move would tip the scales. Ava's heart thundered in her chest as she watched the tension build, her eyes flicking between Damien, Elara, and the massive wolf looming just beyond them.
His voice was low and dangerous, his eyes cold. "Elara, you're playing with fire. Step aside."
Her smile remained sharp, cold. "I don't think you understand, Alpha. I've been patient long enough. You just waltz in here, taking what's mine? The Bloodstone belongs to me."
The flash of his eyes held rage, barely contained. "The Bloodstone doesn't belong to you, Elara. It has never belonged to you. You're playing with forces you can't understand.
The air crackled with power as Aric's wolf, still looming just a few paces behind Elara, let out another bone-chilling growl. Its yellow eyes gleamed with an unnatural ferocity, and its every movement radiated hostility. Ava could feel the hair on the back of her neck stand up as the wolf's gaze flicked between her and Damien, sizing them up like prey.
You think you can protect her, Alpha?" Elara said, dripping malice, as she stepped forward, eyes fixed on Ava. "She's nothing but a human. A weak, fragile little thing who doesn't belong in this world.
Ava's breath caught in her throat, the sting of Elara's words running deep. Yet, she would not show her weakness and let Elara see just how much those words made an impact upon her. She had heard worse.
"I am not afraid of you," Ava said, though her voice was level with fear eating at her insides. "You will have to do better than that to scare me.
Elara's eyes narrowed and her lips curled into a snarl. "Oh, I plan to."
Without warning, Elara raised her hand, the fingers glowing in a faint, eerie light. Energy seemed to shift around them, crackling with some promise of something dangerous, and Ava widened her eyes to realize what she was really doing-she was somehow tapping into magic, an ancient and powerful one, it seemed.
In an instant, Damien's demeanor changed. "Get down!" he growled at Ava.
Prior to Ava's ability to respond, Damien dove forward, pushing Ava out of the way just as a burst of dark energy shot towards them. The blast hit the ground where Ava had been standing, sending a shockwave through the forest. The force of the explosion sent trees crashing to the ground; the earth shook beneath their feet.
Ava lost her footing as Damien thrust her behind him, using his body as a shield. She gasped for air, her heart racing, and turned to see the destruction around them. Smoke and debris filled the air, and the forest seemed to be alive with the sound of cracking trees and shifting earth.
Damien growled low in his throat, eyes flashing dangerous, glowing amber. "This ends now."
In but a moment, he shifted, his body lengthening and rippling with raw power as he took on the form of a wolf. Seamless, his muscles bulged with strength as fur sprouted along his body. His eyes locked onto Elara, who now seemed uninterested in the chaos she had caused, her face masked in cold fury.
Stay back," Damien snarled, a growl low and reverberating throughout the Hollow. He was an enormous black wolf, half as big as Aric's wolf, and his very presence filled the space with dominance. He was the Alpha, and the forest knew it.
Ava's breath caught in her throat as she watched Damien turn into his wolf form. The raw beauty of it-a power she had never felt or seen before-laid in front of her eyes. She knew deep within herself that this was the part of him that always was kept hidden, the one part of him that held the strength needed to protect her. And still, as Elara stood before them, the shielding instincts of Damien seemed way stronger.
Elara's mouth twisted into a scornful smile as she stepped back. Her magic whirled around her. "You think your power can stop me, Damien? You think I'm afraid of you?
Damien uttered a low growl, like rumbling thunder, and sprang forward instantaneously. This enormous mountain of a creature hurtled toward Elara with unnatural speed, yet she had been too fast for him to catch. The flick of her wrist had conjured a barrier of dark energy before her, meeting the force of Damien's charge.
The collision of their powers sent a shockwave rippling through the forest, knocking trees to the ground and sending rocks tumbling in every direction. Ava had to brace herself against the force of it, her heart pounding in her chest as she watched the two powerful forces collide.
Elara laughed, a hard and jeering sound. "You think this is a fight you can win? You have always been so predictable, Damien. But you'll never defeat me."
Damian growled, raking his claws over the earth in an attempt to dig through the barrier, but it was no good; Elara's magic was too powerful, pulsing with some unnatural energy which sent him backward, away from them. The strength in her spell was overwhelming; he stumbled, struggling for ground.
Ava knew they couldn't keep this up. Elara was powerful, more so than she had first realized, and with Aric's wolf backing her up, they were at a severe disadvantage. But there was one thing she had that Elara didn't-something that could turn the tide.
Ava took the most advantage of her small stature and slipped quickly between Damien, right to the stone monument where the Bloodstone was kept hidden underwater. She didn't exactly know what she was doing, but it was their only chance, so she'd try whatever was possible: getting to the Bloodstone would let them turn the tables, at best.
As she approached the pool, she could feel the power of the Bloodstone calling to her, its energy surging through the air. But just as her fingers brushed the surface of the water, a sharp, painful growl ripped through the air—Aric's wolf was on the move.
Ava turned as her instincts screamed to get running. It was already too late. Aric's wolf was barreling at her, his eyes blazing with a dangerous hunger.
Damien's desperate voice rang out. "Ava, no!"