Chapter Seven: Help and Answers

Thalia

I woke up that morning with renewed strength and vigor. I was going on a quest to seek answers to the powers that was growing more stronger by the day. My eyes fluttered open, and for a brief moment, I forgot where I was. No chains. No cold dungeon walls. No sneering voices calling me "omega." Just trees, birdsong, and the steady thump of my heart.

This was freedom.

But freedom didn’t come with direction. I had no map. No one and no idea where I was headed. Or where I would seek answers. All I had was a fire burning inside me and a vague, persistent instinct urging me to keep going. Maybe the moon goddess was nudging me. Maybe it was the woman from my dreams. Or maybe it was just my wolf.

Either way, I couldn’t stay hidden forever. I could not stay alone in the forests forever. I needed to find people that could help me. I needed to build a new family. I stood, brushing leaves from my skin, and shifted into my wolf form. My body still ached from the last transformation, but I welcomed the pain. It reminded me that I was real.

The rogue land stretched wide before me. Wild, unclaimed, and dangerous. No scent markers along these lands. No rules. Just survival of the fittest. It was eerything I learnt from the tales and more. I had to move carefully this time. I walked cautiously through the thick underbrush, with my senses sharp. I was alert and soon I sensed it. I wasn’t alone out here.

I could hear low growlings at my sides. I could feel them approaching towards me. Then It happened fast. A snarl. A flicker of movement. Then something slammed into my side, sending me rolling down a slope in pains. I shifted mid-air and landed on my feet, gasping, my clothes torn and bleeding from a gash on my shoulder.

Six figures emerged from the trees, surrounding me. They were no longer wolves. They were rogues. Dirty, bloodthirsty, wild-eyed rogues. They looked like they hadn’t shifted back in weeks. Their clothes were torn, eyes fierce and muscles twitching with the promise of violence.

“Well, well,” the tallest one sneered. “Look what we have here. A little lost pup.”

“She’s alone,” another muttered, licking his cracked lips and grinning. “She smells... different.”

“Like smoke and ashes. I'm sure she burns like fire,” another said, narrowing his eyes. “You sure she ain’t cursed?”

I didn’t answer. I just straightened and let my hands roll into a ball of fists by my sides. My heart rate skped. My chest thudded with fear, raw and real but behind it was a steady hum. That deep, hot vibration in my chest that I was learning to trust.

Fire.

“She’s mine,” the leader growled and lunged.

I tried to dodge but his claws grazed my ribs. The pain was immerse. I stung at my sides but I didn’t fall. I struck back, wild and untrained. It's been years since I first learnt the ways of battle. Of self defense. It's been years since I practiced. Ever since my mother died I became defensless. I never struck back when I was attacked. I never fought back. Instead I surrendered. I surrendered and ran away each time. Forgetting all I had learnt.

My fist met his jaw as it all came coming back to me. He stumbled backwards, surprised. But it wasn't strong enough to make him fall.

I didn’t wait.

I turned and ran, not because I was weak, but because I needed space, time to think. They chased me, all six of them, crashing through the forest like rabid wolves. One leapt, tackling me to the ground. We rolled in the dirt, teeth snapping. His claws tore at my arm, but I drove my knee into his gut and threw him off.

Another one threw a dagger at me which passed me by a tiny bit. My Instinct surged immediately. I held up my hand and screamed and fire erupted from my palm. It blasted across the trees, and the rogue that threw the dagger caught the edge of the flame. He screamed, flailing as he burned. The others hesitated. Which was bad news for them.

I turned and fought.

This time I didn’t run. I dished out blows and kicks at the rogue close to me. I didn't stop until he was dead. I stood still, surprised. The second rogue charged, and I ducked low, sweeping his legs out from under him. I pounced on him before he could stand. I tried to hit him but he was too strong for me. So I looked around and found the sharpest thing I could find. Finally I grabbed it and drove a sharpened stick into his chest before he could rise. He gurgled and went still.

Another rogue grabbed me from behind. I slammed my head back, feeling the crunch of his nose as I broke his nose, then i elbowed him in the ribs. He staggered, and I spun, clawing across his throat with my nails. They weren’t just nails anymore. They glowed faintly with heat, sizzling as they sliced through his skin.

Three down.

The fourth and fifth came at once. I met them head-on. I shifted mid-run, fur exploding from my skin, bones snapping into place. My wolf tore into the first one, teeth at his throat. Blood sprayed. I turned to the other. He slashed at my side but I ducked and pounced, claws driving into his chest, tearing through his ribs.

I stood over the bodies, panting. My chest heaved, blood dripping from my fur. The forest was silent again, too silent. Then I heard a cough.

The first rogue was still alive. He stood across the clearing, not attacking, just watching. He looked younger and inexpirenced, but his eyes were wild, like he knew something I did not.

“You fight like a possessed wolf,” he rasped, blood running down his chin, he looked burnt but henot burnt. He was blackened with sooth. “You’re not normal anymore.”

“Come at me, then,” I snarled. My fur bristled. My wolf looked agile. Ready to pounce

He shook his head, which surprised me.

“I’m not here to die,” he said. “I’m here to warn you.”

I stared. “Warn me?”

“You’re heading east, aren’t you?” he said, pointing. “That path will take you straight to the camp of the Direwolves.”

“Direwolves?”

He nodded slowly. “They’re not a pack. Not in the way you understand it. They’re a hidden tribe. Outcasts. They are not werewolves anymore. They are wolves with elemental blood. The tribe born of magic. Fire. Wind. Earth. Water. There is much we don't know about them, because no one has ever lived to tell the tales. You must be careful.”

I blinked, my pulse rising. “Are they dangerous?”

“Extremely. But they’re also... powerful. Ancient. If you have fire in you, they’ll sense it. They may even take you in. Only if you survive the trials.”

“What trials?”

He gave me a bloodied grin. “Every outcast must earn their place. They don’t accept weakness. If you want to join them, you’ll have to prove you’re worthy of your gift.”

"My gift" I said to myself. Surprised that he knew. Then I felt it. Strange dreams suddenly having meaning. The woman cloaked in flame. This was where I was meant to go. This is my path to answers. To learning to control and use my gift.

“I’ll find them,” I said softly. “No matter the trial. No matter the danger.”

The old rogue tilted his head. “Then go. But tread carefully, cursed girl. The Direwolves don’t play by the rules you knew.”

He turned and walked away, leaving me alone in the clearing, surrounded by the dead. I shifted back into my human form, bloody and breathless, my skin marked with new scars. My hands trembled as I looked at them. At what I had done. What I had become. I didn’t feel regret, I felt strong.

For the first time in my life, I didn’t need saving. I had saved myself. My first kills in defense of myself. I suddenly wished I had this power when they came for me and my mother. I suddenly wished I killed every single one of them just as I have done today. But now wasn't the time for that. There was no need crying over spilled milk.

"We would find them don't worry" my wolf said to me. I sighed and knelt beside one of the fallen rogues and closed his eyes. Whatever evil they had in them, they had once been wolves too. They deserved that much. I whispered a quiet prayer to the moon goddess, then rose.

The journey was east. The family I sought dwelled in the east. I walked towards the east, hoping I'll be accepted. Hoping I'd pass the trials and be worthy of my gift.

I made a silent prayer to the moon goddess and walked faster. The wind picked up as I moved, whispering through the trees like a voice guiding me forward. Birds scattered from the canopy, and animals fell silent as I passed. The forest could feel it too.

Something was changing. Something ancient was awakening, and it was inside me.

It was getting dark when I finally stopped. Below me was a large stretch of land unlike any I had seen before. I didn't know how to get down, but the scent here was stronger, not of wolves, but of raw elemental power. The rogue was right. This was no ordinary land. I looked down once again and I could only see few tents. It looked like a temporary settlement not like any tribe I had ever seen before. It was empty, deserted even. I became confused. I didn't know how to get down and the camp was deserted. Just when I thought I had reached my answers I was at a road block again.

I was about to give up. I was about to rest before scouring the area when a doorway opened before me. It wasn't an ordinary doorway. It was a mighty ball of fire which stood created an opening in the air. That was when I remembered that it was a hidden tribe. Opened to only outcasts who carried the gift. I became unsure of myself. I doubted if I was ready for what was coming. My wolf had to make sure

"You don't know what to expect." she said. "Are you ready for this?"

I breathed heavily. "I'm ready" I replied to myself. I held my necklace and was about to step into the doorway when I was pushed back by a mighty force. Then I heard voices. Not just the voice of one but the voice of many. Hundreds of people who spoke at the same time. A soft hum sounded around me.