Reya’s POV
The cave elled of ash and age.
Helen’s eyes were bright golden and leaf fire as she put a gnarled hand on my forehead. Her voice sounded like tree bark as she spoke words I did not know. The flickering flames behind her danced higher with each syllable.
“Why now?” I whispered; my breath shaky. “Why tell me this after everything?”
“Because you are finally ready,” Helen said, leaning in. “The blood has awakened.”
I drew back. Not at what she said, but at what I felt—something deeply alive inside me, throbbing like a second pulse. Something had happened to me since the battle. Something violent. Something… ancient.
“You were never meant to be ruled,” Helen said. “You were meant to command.”
“What are you talking about?”
She took my hand, flipped my wrist up, and dug her claw-like nail into the skin. I gasped. My blood pooled red—but shimmered faintly with silver.
“Blood Alpha,” she said. “Your mother was the last true one. They hunted her down. Hid your birth. And when you wer
