Nymera's POV
Dain stood over me, his body burning with a silver glow.
His wounds—healed.
His eyes—shining with raw, unleashed power.
The tent was gone, blown apart by the force of his awakening.
Astra stumbled back, her face twisting in horror.
"This—this isn't possible," she spat, black magic crackling at her fingertips.
Dain bared his teeth.
"You threatened what's mine," he said, voice rumbling low and terrible. "And you will pay."
Without warning, he lunged.
Faster than any wolf. Faster than any man.
Astra hurled a blast of magic—but Dain was already there.
His fist connected with her chest in a savage blow that sent her flying across the battlefield.
She crashed into a tree with a bone-crunching thud, dropping to her knees.
The battle around us froze for a moment.
Both sides—MoonBlood and enemy—watched in stunned silence.
Dain turned, helping me to my feet.
The brand on my arm blazed hot, answering the power in his blood.
"Stay behind me," he ordered.
I could barely nod, my body still trembling from Astra's spell.
Kaelith appeared at my side, battered but alive.
"She's not done," he muttered grimly, eyes locked on Astra.
And he was right.
Astra rose to her feet, blood dripping from the corner of her mouth.
Her magic flared dark and ugly, pulsing with rage.
"You think you've won?" she shrieked.
"You know nothing! I am chosen! I was promised this power!"
The ground trembled.
Dark shapes slithered out of the forest—twisted beasts made of shadow and bone.
Not wolves.
Not human.
Something worse.
The Shadowspawn.
Hundreds of them.
Dain didn't flinch.
He reached for me, and Kaelith, and the MoonBlood warriors.
A command rippled out through the bond—the Alpha's Call.
And we answered.
Together, we charged into the heart of the darkness.
The battle was chaos.
Steel clashed against claw.
Magic burned the night air.
The screams of the wounded tore at my ears.
I fought like a wild thing, my wolf instincts sharper than ever.
Everywhere I turned, Kaelith was there—covering my flank, driving back the monsters.
And at the center of it all—Dain.
A whirlwind of silver and death.
He fought like something out of legend, his blows breaking bones, his roars shaking the very ground.
But Astra's magic grew stronger too.
She drew power from the blood spilled on the battlefield, her body glowing with a sickly red light.
I saw her raise both hands high, chanting words that made my skin crawl.
A portal ripped open behind her—swirling blackness, endless and hungry.
She was calling reinforcements.
More Shadowspawn poured through, screeching.
We couldn't hold them.
Not for long.
I stumbled, a claw raking across my arm.
I whirled, slashing my sword across the creature's throat.
Black ichor sprayed the ground.
Dain's voice roared across the field.
"Hold the line!"
But we were being pushed back, inch by bloody inch.
Kaelith grabbed my arm, panting.
"We have to stop her," he gasped. "At the source."
I followed his gaze.
The portal.
If we didn't close it—we were dead.
I nodded grimly.
Together, we fought our way toward Astra, step by agonizing step.
The closer we got, the worse it became.
The air was thick with the stench of rot and magic.
Astra stood at the heart of it, her arms raised, her body trembling with the power she was channeling.
Kaelith threw himself into the enemy ranks, carving a path.
I sprinted the last few feet.
Astra turned, too late.
I slammed into her, knocking her off balance.
The portal shuddered.
Astra shrieked, lashing out with dark fire.
It caught my side—I screamed, the pain unbearable.
But I didn't stop.
I drove my blade into the ground at the portal's edge, focusing all my strength.
The portal flickered.
Astra howled.
"You don't understand what you're doing!" she screamed. "If you close it—"
I shoved harder.
The portal buckled, the ground splitting open around it.
Astra's scream echoed into the night as the portal imploded, dragging her into the collapsing void.
In the final moment, her hand shot out—grabbing my ankle.
I gasped, yanked toward the swirling darkness.
Kaelith grabbed my wrist, holding me back with all his strength.
"Hold on!" he roared.
The pull was relentless, sucking the air from my lungs.
Dain appeared beside Kaelith, adding his strength to the tug-of-war.
The darkness roared hungrily.
And then—
The portal closed.
The force snapped back violently, hurling us all to the ground.
Silence fell.
Broken only by the ragged breathing of the survivors.
Astra was gone.
For now.
I lay on the shattered ground, staring up at the blood-red moon, feeling the bond to Dain humming through my veins.
Alive.
Victorious.
But somewhere deep inside me—
I knew the war had only just begun.