Chapter 4 The heir of shadows

The dream came again.

Maxine stood barefoot in a snow-covered forest, the moon above red as blood. Voices whispered from the trees in a language she almost understood. A woman in a black veil appeared at the edge of the clearing. Her presence stilled the wind and froze Maxine in place.

"You were not meant to be," the woman said, voice heavy with sorrow. "And yet, you are."

When Maxine tried to speak, the woman raised a finger. "They will fear you, child of chaos. The blood in your veins will either end them... or unite them."

Then the dream shattered.

---

She woke with a gasp, heart pounding. Her sheets were tangled, her pillow damp with sweat. Outside, thunder rolled low over the hills. A storm was coming.

She didn't need a weatherman to tell her that.

---

At school, whispers followed her more than usual.

"She's the one..."

"Did you see her eyes last night during practice?"

"I heard she speaks to the dead."

Maxine ignored them. She was used to being the outcast. But what rattled her was who wasn't speaking.

Aurel.

He didn't show up to first period. Or second. Not even in the halls. Maxine couldn't explain the tightness in her chest at his absence.

Not that she cared.

Except... she did.

---

By lunchtime, Clara found her under the courtyard arch.

"He's gone to the border," Clara whispered.

"What border?"

"The old one. The wolves' territory."

Maxine stood up too quickly. "Why?"

"They say the Alphas summoned him. Something about a... tribrid."

Maxine's blood turned cold.

"What do you know about the Alphas?" she asked carefully.

Clara looked away. "Only that they don't like your kind. Any part of it."

---

That night, Maxine stood at the edge of the woods.

She knew she shouldn't follow. She knew the stories: the wolves that hunted outsiders, the spell circles that warded off magic users, the ancient blood oaths carved into the bark of trees. But she also knew something else-she was tired of hiding.

She stepped into the forest, the moonlight guiding her path.

And somewhere in the distance, a howl broke the silence.

Not a warning.

A welcome.

Or a challenge.