Every strike, every counter, every move is fucking insanely powerful.
I try to move, but right now we’re all fucking struggling asthey move faster with every attack.
That’s the thing about war, about a battle: no matter how hard you train, nothing can really prepare you for the reality of war.
Then, Dante lands a crushing strike, and my eyes widen as Enzo reels backwards and, satisfyingly, I see his blood splatter across the ground. He clutches his shoulder, and in that moment, his power falters. It’s just a second, but it’s enough for me to get the hell out of here. Letting the chaos roar behind me, I turn and run towards the Westwood Mansion. I need to protect the tomes.
I let mist wrap around me, hiding myself as I pick up speed.
Jayce, where are the tomes?
Only one’s here. The rest are elsewhere. Why?
They’ve got to be here for a reason. Thought maybe it’s the tomes again. Where is it?
Fuck… it could be. There’s nothing else here for them. It’s in Dad’s office at the packhouse.
I’ll grab it.
Need backup?
No. I’ll be fine, bro,I answer, changing route.
They’d need Deimos blood to open it, even if they take it-
Unless there’s a traitor among us,I answer quietly,the thought sitting heavy.
You’re insinuating it’s one of our own? I don’t want to believe that.
Not wanting to believe something doesn’t stop it from being true.
I slip past the fighting lines, the formation holding strong under Uncle Damon and Aunty Maria’s command, Allie tearing through enemies like a force of nature while Renji’s girl fights beside her with savage precision. Didn’t know that sweet thing had it in her.
The barriers around the mansion still hum with power, though the packhouse itself has taken damage, nothing compared to the devastation in the woods.
I enter through the front door, the silence inside pressing down on me immediately. Everyone must have been evacuated to the bunkers, with those who can fight out there doing just that.
Rayhan, Delsanra, Leo, Azura, and Ahren are here. Raihana and Kiara are on the way,Dad informs us.
Perfect. I saw Delsanra, but didn’t know who else was here.
I walk through the hallway when I stop, spotting one of the omegas who I know works in the packhouse lying crumpled on the floor, her body twisted unnaturally, eyes glassy and unseeing. I crouch beside her, throat tight as I take in the deep, clean slice across her neck, the blood already cooling against the stone.
Some kind of power mixed with close combat…
Reaching over, I close her eyes before I rise to my feet and silently move deeper into the packhouse.
Someone’s here.
My every sense is on alert as I reach Dad’s office and find the door unlocked.
Jayce, where exactly is the tome, and which one is it?
Beneath the floorboard by the fireplace,he replies.Are there signs of a break-in?
Yeah, there is.
I slip inside, the door opening silently, and sure enough, inside the walls, there’s a woman searching the shelves swiftly. She hasn’t even noticed me, my powers masking me entirely. I know the power I have is equally incredible and terrifying, to be able to walk into any room, and take any life…
