THE ESCAPE

The world blurred beneath me.

The forest rushed past like a dark river, trees bending in the storm of our escape. Helena’s paws pounded the earth  fast, wild, desperate. Each stride shook through me, each breath was a battle between fear and freedom.

The wind tore through our fur, cold and sharp, carrying the taste of blood and smoke.

For the first time in years, freedom didn’t feel like a dream. It felt real.

Helena… My voice trembled inside our shared mind. You’re strong. I didn’t know you had this much left in you.

Her growl rippled like thunder. You’ve been holding me back for too long.

A faint laugh slipped through me  half awe, half disbelief. But before I could answer, the night shattered.

A howl split the silence  deep, sharp, and close. Then another. And another.

My heart lurched.

“They’ve found out,” I whispered. “Greg’s men. They’re hunting us.”

Let them come, Helena snarled, pushing harder. We’re not going back.

Her fury burned through my veins, but underneath it was something else fear. Not for herself. For me.

The ground blurred beneath us. Branches whipped our face, cutting skin, streaking blood through our fur. My lungs screamed for air.

He won’t stop, I whispered. Greg never stops until he destroys.

Helena didn’t reply, but her pace quickened until the forest became streaks of shadow and silver moonlight. Then, without warning, she veered left and skidded to a halt beside a shallow stream.

There, she said, her voice low and urgent. We hide our scent here.

Before I could think, she leapt into the muddy water. The stench hit me  rotten leaves, wet soil  but it swallowed our scent whole. The mud clung to our fur, cold and heavy, turning Helena’s snowy coat into a dull, filthy brown.

We sank lower, every breath shallow, every sound amplified.

Then the rhythm of paws. Heavy. Fast. Coming closer.

Helena went still. My heart nearly stopped.

Five wolves emerged from the darkness, black as shadows, eyes glowing a fierce crimson. Greg’s men. I could smell the iron of their rage, the hunger in their breath.

“She came this way,” one of them snarled.

“I can’t smell her.”

“Spread out!”

They prowled near the water. One wolf stopped so close I could see his snout twitching, catching nothing but mud and rot.

My body trembled, every muscle locked, praying to the Moon Goddess they wouldn’t look down.

“I think she doubled back,” another said after a tense silence.

The leader growled low. “She won’t last the night. Let’s go.”

Their paws thundered away. The forest fell quiet again.

They’re gone, I whispered, my breath shaky.

Not yet, Helena murmured. Wait.

We waited. I could hear my heartbeat, could feel the mud clinging to my skin like fear itself. Only when the silence felt thick enough to choke did Helena finally move.

We rose from the filth, dripping and shivering, then ran  deeper, faster, until the stream was far behind and the trees grew so thick no moonlight could pass through.

Helena, I said softly. Let me take over. You’re exhausted.

Her growl was softer this time. Not until we’re safe.

That’s when I smelled it  a metallic tang in the air. Sharp. Wrong.

Blood.

And something darker.

My stomach turned. Helena… rogues.

She froze. The forest around us seemed to hold its breath.

Then, out of nowhere, a massive wolf lunged from the bushes bigger, darker, his fangs dripping. His eyes were wild with hunger.

Helena didn’t hesitate. She roared and collided with him mid-air. Their bodies crashed into the ground, claws tearing, teeth snapping. Pain flared in my side  hers ours. The rogue’s claws ripped across our shoulder.

Then its fangs sank deep into our neck.

Helena! I screamed inside.

Blood spilled down her fur, warm and slick, soaking the dirt. The world spun, the pain blinding.

But Helena didn’t fall. She staggered, eyes blazing gold through the blood.

We’re not dying here, Aria, she rasped. Not after coming this far.

With a vicious snarl, she lunged again, her jaws locking around the rogue’s throat. The air filled with snarls and gasps  then a sickening crack. The rogue went limp.

Silence.

You… you killed it, I whispered, stunned.

We had no choice.

Her strength faded fast. I felt it the way her heartbeat slowed, the way her breaths came shorter.

Without thinking, I shifted back. My human form hit the cold earth, naked and trembling. The pain was everywhere  in my bones, in my soul. Blood gushed from the wound on my neck. I tore a strip from my filthy dress and pressed it against Helena’s wound, crying softly as I worked.

“It’s okay,” I whispered. “It’s okay, we’re alive.”

Helena’s voice was faint in my head. Barely.

I forced myself to stand. The forest was endless, the night thick and unkind. My legs shook beneath me.

“Where do we go now?” she asked weakly.

“I don’t know,” I admitted. My throat burned from the cold air. “But anywhere is better than there.”

I stumbled forward, barefoot and bleeding, following the faint pull in my gut  that strange instinct that whispered this way.

Time blurred. The forest thinned. The scent of pine and smoke filled the air.

Then I saw it.

A massive iron gate, towering in the moonlight. Torches burned along its walls, casting gold light across the night. Guard towers loomed above.

A pack.

Hope flickered  fragile, trembling, but alive.

My heart pounded as I stepped closer, my hand brushing the cold metal. My entire body was shaking  from exhaustion, from fear, from the sheer disbelief that I’d made it this far.

“Maybe they’ll take us in,” I whispered to Helena. “Even if it’s just as a servant. At least we’ll live.”

She didn’t answer, too weak to. I could feel her heartbeat fading, merging with mine.

The torches flickered. The gate loomed. My fingers hovered, ready to knock, when a deep growl rumbled behind me  low, commanding, powerful enough to freeze the air in my lungs.

I turned slowly.

Two glowing eyes stared at me from the shadows, eyes that burned like stormlight.

“Nooooooo”. I whispered in fear.