Chapter 2 Rogue's rising

The forest was thick and huge; it swallowed Lia as she stumbled through tangled underbrush. It was barely dawn, the sky was beautiful but she couldn't appreciate it cause she was exhausted. Each step she took sent some kind of pain through the cursed mark. Her wolf, that was now silent which was not natural cause it has always been a fierce in her mind, weakened by the curse. Her witch magic also, usually a warm feeling an untapped energy in her core-felt like dust, almost nonexistent . Lia gritted her teeth, one hand placed on her stomach. She wasn't running for herself alone anymore.

The faint life inside her, Kael's child, was the only thing pushing her forward through pain.Her boots deeped into the muddy parts of the once stream now frozen with ice, cold water water slipping through the worn leather. She'd been on the move for hours, maybe even days-the concept of time was no longer important as she was fatigue and scared. Blackthorn's territory was far behind, but safety was a distant dream. Lone wolves didn't survive long, especially not hybrids branded with a curse. Lia's silver eyes darted to the trees, half-expecting Kael's enforcers to emerge from the mist. Had he sent them to ensure she never returned? Or did he trust his dark magic to finish her?A twig snapped. Lia froze, her senses straining despite the curse's dampening effect. Her wolf growled faintly, a ghost of its former strength. She crouched behind a fallen log, heart racing, her breath shallow to avoid detection. Footsteps crunched closer, deliberate but not stealthy. Not a wolf-too clumsy. A human? No, the scent was wrong: earth, blood, and something feral. A rogue."Who's there?" a rough voice called, male and edged with suspicion.Lia weighed her options. Running was risky-the curse sapped her strength, and her legs trembled from exhaustion. Fighting was out of the question; her claws wouldn't extend, and her magic was a faint sputter. She stood slowly, hands raised to show she meant no harm. "Just passing through," she said, voice hoarse from disuse. "You can relax, I am not a threat."He came out from the shadows of the mist, he looked battle scarred and muscular, he had long brown hair and dull green eyes, he sized her up. His boots caked with mud. "You are not just a random stray," he said, sniffing the air. "Blackthorn scent, but... something else. Witch?"Lia got tensed up, her hand getting ready to go for the dagger at her belt. "And?"He smirked, revealing a chipped tooth. "Name's Torren. I lead a rogue camp south of here. You're either running from something or to something. Which is it?""Running," Lia admitted, her voice low. "From Blackthorn."Torren's eyes narrowed, lingering on the cursed mark peeking from her torn dress. The jagged crescent glowed faintly, pulsing with her heartbeat. "That's no ordinary wound. Alpha Kael's work?"Her silence confirmed it. Torren whistled low. "You've got guts, crossing him. Come with me. My camp's no paradise, but it's better than dying alone out here."Lia's instincts screamed caution. Rogues were outcasts-wolves who'd abandoned pack laws, often violent and unpredictable. But she had no allies, no plan. The mark flared, sending a wave of nausea through her-her pregnancy, already complicating her survival. "Why help me?" she asked, eyes narrowing.Torren shrugged, his smirk fading. "We rogues stick together. Besides, anyone who pisses off Kael is worth knowing. You coming or not?"With no better option, Lia nodded. The rogue camp was not too far, hidden in the thickness of the forest where patched up tents and huts were built around a smoldering fire pit. A dozen and half rogues,men, women, and a few wary children all watching her arrival. Their scents were a chaotic mix: wolves, half-breeds, even a faint trace of vampire blood. Outcasts, like her, bound by survival rather than loyalty.Torren led her to Mara, a wiry woman with gray-streaked hair and a healer's satchel slung over her shoulder. "She's got a curse," Torren said, nodding at Lia's mark. "Can you help?"Mara's eyes widened as she peeled back Lia's collar to examine the crescent. "Dark magic," she muttered, her fingers hovering over the mark without touching it. "Not wolf-made. Old, maybe from a blood pact. It's draining her life force." She looked at Lia's pale face, then to the hand resting protectively on her stomach. "You're pregnant. The curse could harm the pup."Lia's heart stuttered, fear spiking. "Will you be able to stop it?" she asked, voice almost inaudible .Mara shook her head, her expression grim. "I can slow it with herbs, maybe a warding spell, but breaking it? That's beyond me. You need a witch stronger than whoever fueled Kael's claws-someone who knows blood magic."Lia's mind reeled. Kael had used forbidden magic to curse her-why? To ensure she'd never challenge his rejection? Or was it personal, a twisted punishment for her hybrid blood? She pushed the questions aside. Survival came first, for her and her child. "Do what you can," she told Mara.Over the next week, Lia settled into the rogue camp, an uneasy guest among outcasts. The rogues were rough but not cruel. Torren taught her to hunt without her wolf, relying on traps and stealth, his gruff demeanor softening as she proved her grit. Mara's herbal poultices dulled the mark's pain, though it never stopped burning, and her warding spells kept the curse from spreading-for now. At night, Lia layed down on a blanket in a shared tent, her hand on her stomach, whispering to her unborn child. "We'll survive," she vowed. "I'll find a way to keep you safe."But safety was fleeting. One evening, as Lia helped Mara grind herbs by the fire pit, a scout burst into camp, his face slick with sweat. "Blackthorn wolves," he panted, clutching his side. "Three miles out, moving fast. They're tracking a scent."Lia's blood ran cold. Kael's enforcers. Had he learned she'd survived? Or worse-did he sense the child she carried, a bond even his rejection couldn't sever? The camp erupted into chaos, rogues grabbing weapons and shouting orders. Torren appeared, his axe gleaming in the firelight. "We fight or we run," he said, his green eyes locking on Lia. "Your call."Her silver eyes hardened. She wasn't the broken girl who'd fled Blackthorn. The curse might weaken her, but it hadn't killed her spirit. She gripped the dagger Torren had given her, its weight steadying her trembling hands. "We fight," she said, her voice ringing with defiance. "I'm done running."Mara grabbed her arm, eyes wide. "Lia, if Kael's enforcers find you, they'll kill you-and the child."Lia's hand tightened on her stomach, the faint pulse of life grounding her. "They won't," she said. "Not if I stop them first."As howls echoed through the ravine, closer now, a chill ran through her. Kael's wolves were relentless, and the cursed mark burned hotter, as if sensing their approach. Lia glanced at the rogues-her unlikely allies-and steeled herself. Kael wanted her dead, but he'd underestimated her. This time, she'd fight back. But as the first wolf's silhouette appeared on the ridge, a familiar amber glow in its eyes, Lia's heart sank. It wasn't just enforcers. Kael himself was coming.