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Chapter 18. The Spirit Within

Author: Meedah
last update Last Updated: 2025-05-05 06:03:00

She remained there beneath the emerging stars, the taste of cave dust still on her tongue, the echo of ancient words haunting her chest. Samantha dropped to her knees, her shoulders quivering under the weight of a truth that made no sense—but felt terrifyingly real.

Tears spilled freely now. She bowed her head and let the sorrow fall.

“This was just a waste of time,” she whispered through clenched teeth. “I came all this way for riddles… for silence.”

A sharp gust of wind swirled around her, though the forest ahead remained still. And then—

“Child…”

The voice returned. Not from outside—but from deep, deep within the cave. Not loud, but thunderous in its own way. Not cruel, but cold enough to freeze the blood.

She turned her head slowly. The cave mouth loomed behind her like the jaw of a sleeping beast.

“The answers you seek… they are not hidden in stone or shadow. They live within you.”

Her breath hitched.

“Your past… your present… and what is yet to come they are stitched into your spirit. There lies the truth.”

Samantha’s heart beat louder, faster. “Please,” she begged, her voice cracking. “I need more. I need something clear. I need to know who I am. What I am. Who left me. Why.”

“Look within,” the cave echoed again. “Channel your inner spirit… and remember your bloodline.”

The wind grew louder, sharper. And then—

The lights in the cave those dim glows of pale silver flickered once more… and vanished.

A scream lodged in her throat. Darkness slammed into her like a wave. She spun around, reaching, searching but the world was gone.

“No, no—please!” she shouted, stumbling backward. “Don’t do this again!”

No answer.

She ran.

Her boots pounded against the cave floor as she dashed toward the exit, her arms outstretched, tripping once, then twice. Stone scraped against her palms, her knees, but she didn’t stop.

She burst from the mouth of the cave, panting. And then her vision returned.

The sky was black now, lit with stars, and the forest beyond the ridge was silent.

She stood there, panting, trembling. Everything inside her felt shaken loose. The words, the warnings, the truth.

“I’m… not human,” she whispered aloud, voice barely audible.

That truth, sharp, strange, and foreign sank into her bones. The wolves had mocked her. The pack had called her an outsider. But all along, her blood had been whispering a secret.

She wasn’t an outcast.

She has a wolf in her.

No… not fully. Not yet. But the bloodline ran through her veins. The cave confirmed it. And it explained everything why she hadn’t gone blind, why the darkness hadn’t swallowed her, why she always felt something burning under her skin.

She might not have a name… not yet. But she had something better.

A starting point.

Her hands clenched into fists. “So be it,” she said aloud. “If the answers are inside me… I’ll find them. I’ll bring them out myself.”

The wind whispered again, but this time not with voices—just the rustle of leaves.

The cave behind her stood silent, yet not empty. She could feel it watching her, waiting.

She turned her back to it, finally. Not out of fear—but acceptance.

She would return one day.

Stronger.

Awakened.

The journey wasn’t over. It was just beginning.

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