Fin slipped Nova's ring back onto her finger and pressed a quiet kiss to her temple, grounding, reverent.
Above them, the sun burned white in a washed-out sky as they climbed. Time blurred into effort. Hours passed measured only by aching muscles and scraped hands, raw skin rasping against jagged stone.
The air thinned with every step, breaths growing shallower, lungs working harder for less. Their training suits shielded them from the worst of the heat, but sweat still clung stubbornly to their skin.
The volcano dominated the horizon now.
Its throat glowed faintly red. Every few minutes, the mountain shuddered beneath their feet—deep, resonant tremors that rattled bone.
"Almost there," Rex murmured.
Sweat streaked down his jaw, darkening the collar of his suit. Even he didn't sound entirely convinced.
Fin stayed close to Nova, one hand settling instinctively at the small of her back whenever the path narrowed to a foot's width, whenever the drop beside them yawned too wide, too eager.
Her eyes flickered—silver, then back to green.
Focused. Strained. Holding.
The air shifted colder and dark clouds formed.
Just enough to be wrong.
Jax felt it first. A sharp, primal twitch of instinct. The sensation of something unseen leaning in close. Like a blade pressed lightly to the back of the neck, waiting to see who flinched first.
"Stop," he said, grabbing Nova's wrist. He pulled her firmly behind him. Fin stepped behind her protectively scanning the environment.
Rex turned, eyes flashing molten gold. His wolf was ready to surface. "What is it?"
The mountain went silent.
No wind.
SHRRRAAAAK.
Something crawled out of the shadows above them. Fast. Skittering. Hissing.
A figure with backward-bending limbs and long claws dropped onto a ledge ten feet above them, sniffing the air.
Then another.
Then four more.
Then dozens.
All pale violet-skinned. Eyes black as voids. Fangs dripping with silver-tinged hunger.
Rex cursed under his breath.
"Vampires. Again."
But these were different. Less humanoid. They looked almost feral. Like mountain feeders, starved and twisted by centuries under the volcano.
One shrieked and launched itself down the slope at them.
Nova didn't hesitate.
She whipped an arrow from her quiver, drew, and released in one fluid motion.
FWWWHUMP—KRAK!
The arrow hit the vampire's chest.
The creature exploded, taking all around it with the blast—chunks of violet ash and bone spraying across the rock.
Fin blinked, now fully understanding why those arrows were special.
Rex grinned.
"I will never stop being impressed by that."
But dozens more swarmed upward, clawing and scrambling unnaturally fast.
Jax pulled Nova behind him as another vampire lunged straight for her face.
He slashed it midair with a blade of gold magic.
Another burst. Another explosion.
But for every one killed, five more climbed over the bodies to replace them.
"We need to move!" Rex shouted, slashing another head off—only for the body to stitch itself back together and lunge again.
Nova fired twice more, taking out whole clusters, but they kept coming—crawling over each other, screeching, drooling black saliva that hissed when it hit the stone.
The ledge shuddered under their weight.
"Shit," Jax snarled. "There's too many—"
A vampire slammed into Nova's shield, cracking it.
Then another.
And another.
Rex shouted, "Form up! Back-to-back!"
They pressed together on the narrow ledge. All three men in front of Nova. She fired arrows behind them.
But it wasn't enough. The swarm was endless.
One sank its claws into Jax's arm. He grabbed its skull and smashed it into the cliff, magic flaring.
Another bit down on Rex's shoulder. He tore it off by the spine and hurled it into the lava below.
Nova fired again, the arrow hitting a cluster—
KRA-THOOM!
They exploded in a violent burst of purple fire.
But she was breathing hard now.
Jax's eyes flashed gold-sapphire.
"We shift and move."
Fin nodded sharply. "Agreed. On my mark—"
A vampire latched onto Nova's ankle and yanked.
Jax roared, slashing it off.
"MARK!" Fin shouted.
All four shifted at once, Nova's shift flash bright silver-white.
Jax and Fin's massive black wolves landed first, snarling like thunder.
Rex's black wolf crashed beside him, teeth bared.
Nova's wolf was in the center.
And the vampires shrieked—Because she was their prize. Jax lunged, ripping a feral vampire in half.
Rex barreled into another, tossing it off the cliff.
Seraphine darted under them both, too fast to catch, slashing with her claws—silver sparks erupting with each strike.
But still—the swarm climbed. They came in droves, wave after wave.
And four wolves braced on the mountainside, side-by-side, knowing—This fight wasn't stopping.
Not until they carved their way through. The mountain ripped them apart.
One moment the wolves fought shoulder-to-shoulder, ripping through the swarm of vampires that wouldn't stop coming.
The next— the path cracked down the middle, a violent fissure splitting the ground beneath their paws.
Jax leapt back.
Rex and Fin skidded sideways.
Seraphine's footing shattered.
She tumbled down a slope of broken stone and jagged obsidian, landing hard on a lower ledge. Before she could rise, three vampires were already on her—claws slicing, teeth snapping, forcing her back until her paws slipped on loose gravel.
She snarled, lunged, tore one away— but two others pinned her from either side.
Her white fur soaked with blood, breath ragged, legs trembling beneath their weight.
Four more climbed over them, hissing, piling on, drowning her in clawed limbs.
Seraphine's growl cracked with pain.
Then— a roar.
Fin's wolf, Xeon, slammed into the pile at full alpha speed, black fur bristling, his massive jaws clamping onto the first vampire and throwing it off the ledge. He barreled forward, ripping the others away from her, placing himself squarely between Seraphine and the swarm—head low, teeth bared, his body shielding hers.
Seraphine didn't waste the opening.
She bolted, scrambling beneath his wolf body, brushing against his chest as she shot past, forcing the vampires to choose—attack her, and face him.
They hesitated.
Only for a heartbeat.
Rex and Jax arrived in a storm of cold wind, fur bristling, eyes burning with murderous focus. He slammed one vampire into the cliff wall so hard the stone cracked, then ripped another off Jax's hind leg.
The ledge trembled under the weight of the battle.
Then a voice cut through the carnage—sharp, commanding, ancient.
"Shift."
The vampire leader stood above them—taller than the rest, face carved with hunger, eyes glowing like dying embers. His voice struck like a spell.
All four wolves jerked— and shifted back instantly, unwilling, magic forced.
Jax hit his knees, human again, chest heaving, blood smeared down his arms.
Rex rose with a snarl, barely upright, his ring glowing dangerously bright.
Fin hit the ground hard, catching himself on one hand, breath tearing from his lungs as gold flashed in his eyes.
Nova shifted last.
She collapsed beside them, hands scraping stone, breaths fast and shallow, disoriented from the forced change.
The vampire leader moved in a blur and vanished.
The first blade hit Fin before anyone saw him close the distance—steel driving into his side with bone-crushing force. Fin grunted sharply, body jerking, but he stayed upright through sheer refusal.
The second strike came from behind. Then a third. Each blow placed with precision, exploiting the split-second weakness left by the forced shift.
"Fin!" Nova shouted, scrambling toward him.
A vampire caught her by the arm and threw her backward like she weighed nothing. She hit the ground hard, gasping. Rex moved in front of her, placing himself in between her and the vampire that threw her.
Fin swung blindly, fist connecting with empty air as the leader stepped out of reach faster than thought. Another blade punched into his shoulder, severing muscle, forcing him to one knee at last.
Blood soaked his suit, hot and slick, vision tunneling as pain screamed through every nerve.
The vampire circled him slowly now.
"You endure well," he said mildly. "But wolves always do. Right up until they don't."
He stepped in close. Too close. The blade lifted.
Fin dragged his head up, teeth bared, gold burning in his eyes despite the blood pouring down his side.
"Touch her again," he rasped, voice shaking but lethal, "and I'll—"
The blade plunged—
And never landed.
Fin vanished right before it could make contact.
Rex mindlinked sharply.
Rex: Nova—your bow. Right side. Draw. You're faster than they are. Don't hesitate.
She obeyed without thinking. Arrow drawn. Silver eyes blazing.
The fight resumed— a whirlwind of claws, blades, gold magic, and sheer desperation.
They fought through a fresh wave— then another— then another— but exhaustion was becoming a noose.
Nova fired arrow after arrow, explosions ripping through the enemy lines. Jax held the front, tearing through every creature that lunged for her.
They continued up the mountain working as a unit. Rex grabbed an arrow and pointed it outward, scaring the vampires.
Jax's sword slashed vampire heads.
A vampire feinted left. Jax lunged to counter— and another vampire slammed a blade through his side from behind.
Jax choked, dropping to one knee, the weapon lodged deep.
"JAX!" Nova screamed trying to reach him.
But ten vampires swarmed on them and blocked her path.
Jax staggered, blood pouring down his torso, his vision tunneling. Another blade slashed across his ribs. A third vampire slammed him against the stone wall, pinning him there.
A blade lifted to his throat.
He knew. He knew this was it.
He braced for the killing strike—eyes blazing with the primal, feral need to get to Nova. But before steel met flesh, he vanished.
He was ripped out of the world mid-breath.
Light swallowed him— cold, ruthless, absolute. He crashed onto hard stone.
Fin was unconscious next to him.
The rune Nova carved glowing violently under him like a brand.
His bracelet flashed once— painfully bright— locking him into place.
Jax tried to rise. His body gave out. He collapsed, coughing, hand clawing at the ground.
Instead, a brutal, broken scream tore out of him.
"No!"
His voice echoed off the stone walls, raw with rage and terror— because Nova was still up there.
Bleeding. Cornered. Alone. And Jax couldn't get back.
Hyran and Aeron were already standing in the cavern moving to Fin when Jax slammed into the stone floor—crumpled, bleeding, gasping.
To them, no time had passed between Fin and Jax. Or for that matter, them entering the portal.
They'd just seen both. Just spoken to them. And now both were on the ground, covered in blood. Jax's eyes were feral with panic.
Both blinked— once— twice— utterly confused.
"What—Jax? Fin?" Aeron stepped forward, brows knitting. "We saw you ten seconds ago. How—?"
A strangled groan tore from Jax's throat as he tried to push himself upright. His arms buckled. He collapsed again, bracing himself on trembling fists.
He didn't answer. He couldn't. His entire mind was locked on Nova—still on that mountainside, still fighting, still alone.
Aeron's instincts flared. He dropped beside him and then noticed Fin.
His hands flared gold as he poured healing magic into Fin. At the same time, Hyran dropped beside Aeron, red magic igniting as he turned his focus on Jax.
The magic hit him, spreading down Jax's ribs like cool water. The bleeding slowed. Muscles knitted. His breathing steadied—but the terror in his eyes burned hotter.
Aeron's magic healed Fin's in the same way.
"They both still need medial attention." Aeron said. Hyran nodded, mindlinking Alejandro.
Fin's eyes opened.
"Where is she?" He said. "What happened? What did they do to you—what did they do to Nova?"
Jax barely got the words out. Voice shredded. Raw.
"She's—" He sucked in a breath. "She's still up there."
Aeron kept healing, faster now, both hands on Fin's shoulders.
"Jax, breathe." Hyran said still healing him.
"Don't—" Jax snarled, shoving his hand away. "Don't tell me to breathe—get me back up there!"
"Jax—your body can't even—" Hyran started.
"GET ME BACK UP THERE!"
His roar bounced off the stone walls, ripping out of him with the force of a dying animal. The rune beneath him glowed violently again, reacting to his desperation, his bond, his rage.
Fin put his hand on Jax's arm.
"Jax," he growled, low and deadly. "Look at me."
Jax met his eyes.
Fin's jaw flexed once. Twice.
"We're going to get her," he said. "All of us. But you can't go back if you bleed out on the floor."
Jax's breath shook. His hands shook harder.
He didn't argue.
Hyron resumed healing him, seeping deeper. The color returned to Jax's face as the worst of the wounds closed.
"Did you see Fin vanish?" Hyran asked.
"Yes," Jax said immediately.
"How much time passed between that and you returning?"
Jax didn't hesitate. "Over three hours."
Hyran went still. Then he exhaled slowly. "That's… interesting. On our end, you two reappeared seconds apart. And it's been maybe five minutes since we last saw either of you."
The words settled wrong.
Aeron frowned, already doing the math. "Which means time inside is distorted." He glanced toward the sealed passage. "If the pattern holds, it's likely been another three hours for them in there."
Jax's jaw tightened.
"Rex hasn't appeared," Aeron added quietly. "Which means she's still alive."
The words were meant to reassure. They didn't. Not even a little.
Jax tried mindlinking the second Hyran finished healing him.
Jax: Nova. Nova—respond.
Nothing.
Fin: Rex. Report. Now.
Silence.
Aeron and Hyran tried as well, but the result was the same. A dead, echoing void.
Hyran's expression tightened. "The cuffs are only transmitting within Redmoon now."
Fin's stomach dropped.
Jax's eyes went dead cold. "They're on their own."