Chapter 4 THE AWAKENING

The air tore around me as the silver-eyed creature lunged. Time slowed till I could feel every muscle fiber in its body, the power coiled in its legs, the way its claws barely brushed the leaves. My heart slammed against my ribs, but my wolf or the thing inside me, screamed in triumph.

I didn't even think. I reacted.

My vision blurred. My teeth elongated, sharper than they had any right to be. My nails dug into the soil as my body shifted violently, bones stretching, muscles tearing, fur sprouting where there had been skin. The world became a jagged mosaic of smells, sounds, and raw energy.

Kelan screamed. "Ayla! Stop-"

But I couldn't.

I didn't want to.

The creature landed before me, silver eyes burning, and I realized the truth in the way my wolf pulsed: this was not an enemy. Not entirely. It recognized me, and in that recognition, it awakened something old, something buried, something terrifying.

I surged forward. Faster than thought. Faster than light. My claws scraped bark, tore soil, and I felt the creature's presence in every cell of my being. It circled me, testing, daring, and I mirrored it instinctively.

Something deep in my mind shifted. I wasn't running, I wasn't hiding... I was hungry.

The silver-eyed wolf lunged again, and this time I met it midair. Our claws collided, sparks of energy exploding in the night. My teeth bared instinctively; my mind screamed, my wolf roared, and the forest fell silent, watching us.

Kelan's voice was faint, almost drowned out. "Ayla... don't-"

I shook my head, teeth gnashing. I didn't even know if I could stop. Every heartbeat, every breath, every movement was magnified. My senses screamed: it's not just a fight. It's a test. I felt the voice in the creature's mind calling to me, whispering secrets I couldn't yet comprehend.

I dodged a swipe that would have torn me apart, and the creature retreated just a fraction. Its silver eyes locked on mine, and I saw something horrifying and exhilarating.

Recognition. Respect. Challenge.

And then... it spoke in my mind again, clearer this time.

"Do you understand yet? You are one of us. You were made for this."

A cold chill ran through me, a thrill I had never known. My wolf shivered in approval. My instincts screamed: yes.

Kelan lunged at me, trying to pull me back. "Ayla! Snap out of it!"

But the moment his hands touched me, a wave of power exploded through my body. I felt every nerve, every atom vibrate with something primal and dangerous. My claws dug deep into the earth. My teeth snapped at the air. My eyes-human and wolf combined-glimmered with silver fury.

The creature circled again, crouching low. Its intent was clear: fight, hunt, test and claim. And I realized, with a shiver down my spine, that it was mirroring me. Every move I made, it responded. Every twitch, it anticipated. Every roar in my mind was echoed in its own.

And then the forest answered.

The wind picked up, tearing leaves and branches into the air. Trees shivered violently, and I could hear the life force of every living thing reacting to my presence. Every animal froze, every creature that had ever been underfoot paused. The world, somehow, seemed to bend around me.

I growled a sound that wasn't human, and not entirely wolf. It was something that made the silver-eyed creature flinch.

The first strike came, and I met it head-on. Claws ripped through fur, talons scraped, and the force of the impact sent me skidding back across the forest floor. My wolf screamed in delight, a deep, guttural sound vibrating in my chest.

Kelan fell to his knees, staring at me with wide eyes. "Ayla... what... what are you?"

I didn't answer. I couldn't. Because I was not fully me anymore. Something inside had awakened. Something wild, ancient, and untamable. My mind was clouded with instinct, yet my consciousness remained just enough to realize the truth: I wasn't human. I wasn't a normal wolf. I was... something else. Dangerous. Something they had been hiding from everyone...including me.

The creature lunged again, faster this time. Its silver eyes glinted like molten metal in the firelight, and I felt its power seep into my mind. Not attack. Not threat. Recognition. It was testing me. Teaching me. Awakening me.

I matched it. Faster than I ever thought possible. Stronger than any wolf should be. My claws raked against its flank, teeth aimed for its throat but it twisted, slid away, and landed with impossible grace.

Then the creature did something I didn't expect. It stopped. Sat back slightly, and in its mind, a single, horrifying word echoed:

"Hunt."

The command shattered my calm, and in that instant, every ounce of restraint I had dissolved. My wolf roared in triumph. My body shifted fully, a perfect blend of human cunning and wolf predation. Every fiber of me was alive, and I knew, instinctively, that I could kill with terrifying ease.

Kelan screamed again, but it didn't reach me. My senses were too sharp. Every movement, every heartbeat around me was mine to see.

This made me realize that... it wasn't an enemy. Not entirely. It was like me. And that thought both thrilled and terrified me. My heart pounded. My wolf screamed in ecstasy.

And then, just as quickly, it vanished.

One second it existed and the next it dissolved into nothing but a suffocating hush, shadows closing in where it had stood.

Every instinct inside me screamed while my thoughts spiraled out of control, until understanding struck with a nauseating, electric clarity:

It hadn't gone anywhere. It lingered just beyond sight, patient and alert, waiting for the perfect moment.

Yet it wasn't alone.

Another presence stirred beneath the fear, darker than the night pressing around me, aware of me in a way that made my pulse race because it wasn't calling out into the void, it was calling to me.

Then, from within the hush of the trees, a voice slipped into my thoughts- not human, not wolf, not bound by any tongue I knew- but soft and certain.

"You are ready. They are coming. Be prepared."

I froze, terror and exhilaration coursing through me. My wolf surged again. I knew nothing would ever be the same.

And in that moment, as the forest trembled with unseen energy and shadowed figures stirred just beyond the firelight, I realized I was not just a part of this world anymore. I was the storm that was coming.