Chapter 116: Claws and Secrets

The black feather lay between Elias’s fingers like a curse.

Serena stared at it, her heart racing. The shadows didn’t leave trophies unless they wanted one thing—fear. And a message: We are always watching.

Across the clearing, warriors gathered in tight clusters, murmuring in low tones. The scent of anxiety rolled off them in waves. Leila wasn’t just any warrior—she was one of their fiercest trackers, trained to survive in the most hostile terrains. If she’d been taken, it meant the shadows were no longer playing.

They were hunting.

Elias stood at the center of it all, silent, shoulders squared. Serena moved toward him, her boots crunching against the gravel, and joined him at his side.

“We move tonight,” he said without turning.

She nodded. “You think they’re in the abandoned catacombs near the mountain base?”

“They’ve used them before. The tunnels run deep, and they know the terrain. If they’ve taken Leila alive, they’ll want to use her—either for information or as leverage.”

Theron approached, a map in hand. He unrolled it across the nearest flat stone, pinning it down with two knives. “I scouted the southern ridge just before dawn. There were faint tracks heading southeast—toward the old ravine. That would give them access to the tunnel system.”

“Good,” Elias said. “That narrows it.”

He looked up at Serena, his eyes meeting hers. “I want you with me.”

Serena blinked. “Of course.”

“I mean it,” he added, voice low. “If this turns into an ambush, I want someone I trust at my back.”

Their gaze held for a beat too long, and Theron cleared his throat. “I’ll take the left flank with five of our fastest runners. Silent entry, no torches.”

Elias nodded. “We go at dusk.”

As the sun dipped behind the distant peaks, shadows stretched across the valley, blanketing the land in eerie twilight. The pack moved like whispers—silent, swift, deadly.

Serena ran beside Elias, heart steady, mind focused. The air grew colder the farther they descended, until the rich scent of pine gave way to damp earth and stone. The entrance to the catacombs appeared like a gaping mouth in the hillside, partially hidden by twisted brambles.

Elias signaled for silence, and they slipped inside.

The walls breathed ancient secrets—etched with runes older than any of them, pulsing faintly with residual magic. Serena could feel it in her bones, like static under her skin.

They moved in pairs, stepping over rubble and avoiding loose stone. The deeper they went, the more the air shifted—thicker, rank with mildew and something else.

Blood.

Serena’s nose twitched.

“They’ve been here recently,” she whispered. “And they’re still close.”

Theron’s voice came from ahead, echoing softly. “There’s a chamber up here. Large. Maybe a holding room.”

They rounded a bend—and froze.

A wide cavern opened before them, lit by dim blue crystals embedded in the stone. Chains hung from the walls, some still stained red. And in the far corner—bound and unconscious—was Leila.

Serena’s breath hitched.

But before she could move, Elias flung out his arm, stopping her. “Wait.”

A slow clap echoed through the chamber.

From the shadows, a man emerged—tall, cloaked in obsidian armor. His eyes were not human. Pale and glowing like ghostfire.

“You came,” he said smoothly. “I was hoping you would.”

Serena stepped forward, blade ready. “Let her go.”

The man tilted his head. “So you’re the infamous hybrid. The king speaks of you often. Says you’re... unpredictable.”

Elias growled low in his throat. “You have one chance to leave this place alive.”

The man chuckled. “Oh, Alpha. This place is mine.”

He whistled sharply.

Dozens of shadows peeled away from the cavern walls—figures in dark cloaks, faces covered, moving in near silence. They surrounded the chamber, blades drawn, fangs bared.

“We’re not leaving without her,” Serena said, voice steel.

The man smiled. “Then bleed.”

Chaos erupted.

Elias was a blur of motion, shifting mid-leap, his massive black wolf crashing into two cloaked figures. Serena moved beside him, a whirlwind of silver and fury, her blade dancing in arcs that painted streaks of red across the stone floor.

Theron led his flank from behind, cutting down attackers with lethal precision.

Serena ducked a blade and drove her knife upward, feeling it sink into flesh. She spun just in time to block a second strike—then another. The shadows were relentless. But they weren’t invincible.

She saw Elias fighting like a storm, his wolf form magnificent—pure power and rage. But he was outnumbered.

Then she spotted Leila, still unmoving.

“Cover me!” Serena shouted, dashing toward the prisoner.

Two shadows lunged for her, but Theron intercepted one mid-air, taking the hit, while Serena dodged the other and reached Leila’s side. Her fingers worked fast, snapping the chains with a stolen blade.

“Leila! Wake up!”

The warrior groaned, eyelids fluttering. “Serena...?”

“We’ve got you. Hold on.”

She slung Leila’s arm over her shoulder and began dragging her toward the edge of the fight—but the enemy leader stepped into her path.

“I don’t think so,” he said.

Serena met his glowing eyes—and something inside her snapped.

A surge of raw power erupted from her core. Her hybrid form took over—eyes blazing gold, claws lengthening, fangs bared. With a feral roar, she launched herself at him.

They collided hard, the clash of strength reverberating through the chamber. He was strong—unnaturally so. But Serena had something he didn’t: rage... and purpose.

She fought with everything—claws, fists, blade, fire.

And then Elias was there, joining her, his wolf slamming into the shadow with enough force to crack bone. Together, they overwhelmed him. With one final strike, Serena drove her blade through his chest.

He gasped—then crumbled into dust.

The rest of the shadows scattered.

Silence returned to the cavern like a falling curtain.

Elias shifted back, panting, covered in blood and sweat. He looked at Serena, eyes wide. “Are you hurt?”

She shook her head, chest heaving. “No. But I think I just tapped into something... deeper.”

He nodded slowly. “I felt it too.”

They helped Leila out of the chamber, Theron limping beside them.

As they stepped into the fresh night air, the stars above seemed to burn brighter. And though the battle was won, Serena knew this was just the beginning.

The shadows were retreating—for now.

But war was far from over.