Chapter 103:
Growls and bone-crunching sounds filled the air, and the cabin trembled under the weight of the attackers. Amidst the chaos, Solomon's silhouette emerged from the shadows. The monsters seemed to recognize him, hesitating slightly as if in doubt. Sanathiel, using his beast-like claws, blocked the front entrance, preventing any from getting inside, with only the moon at its highest point as witness.
"You'd better keep your word, Solomon," the white wolf emphasized, pushing the monsters back.
"Doubt me not, White Wolf."
With superhuman fury, Solomon sliced the bodies to shreds, clearing the entrance and freeing Sanathiel, who immediately blocked Varek's path.
"You're not leaving!" Sanathiel exclaimed, driving his hands onto Varek's shoulders, his claws barely restraining themselves from tearing the skin. "You brought the others here!"
Varek locked eyes with Sanathiel, and in that instant, something invisible slid between them. With a slight, almost imperceptible movement, he broke the white wolf's grip, as if physical strength meant nothing—only will.
Fear flooded Aisha like an icy tide, leaving her paralyzed. Her hands trembled at her sides, and her breathing turned shallow, as if the air refused to enter. What if he's right? she thought in a flash, unable to articulate a word.
Varek perceived her hesitation instantly. He raised his gaze, meeting Sanathiel's golden eyes, and his mouth curled into a contained smirk. With a slight movement, he freed himself from the grip, pushing the white wolf's arms aside with his forearm, showing no fear, only annoyance.
"Enough, Sanathiel," Varek said, his brow furrowed, his voice laden with tension. "This isn't the time for sermons."
The cabin door burst open, though no one was outside. Sanathiel pierced Varek with a glare, and for a moment, it seemed the two would clash in a titanic struggle. But then, Aisha raised her voice.
"Enough, both of you!" Her voice echoed through the forest, silencing even the whisper of wind through the branches. She stepped forward, placing herself between Varek and Sanathiel, fists clenched and chest heaving with contained fury. "This is nothing but a game of control for you both. If I'm still here, it's for Rasen. Nothing else."
Sanathiel let out a low growl but took a step back, closing the door as if the weight of her words had struck him. Yet his grey eyes remained fixed like daggers on Varek, charged with a lethal warning.
"Then tell me, Varek," Sanathiel said, his tone cold as steel, "what are you really doing here? Are you seeking to eliminate your beloved brother?"
Varek let out a short, almost defiant laugh and crossed his arms.
"I've come to warn. And to take Aisha away," he responded, a spark of malice in his eyes. "Rasen won't be able to contain Sariel much longer. And when he fails, there will be no turning back."
She frowned, bewildered.
"What are you talking about?"
Varek stepped toward her, leaning close enough that only she could hear his words.
"Your connection to Sariel… is deeper than you believe. And I'm not the only one who knows," Varek whispered, his voice barely a breath among the trees, yet his words struck her like a blow.
Aisha took a step back, a chill running down her spine.
"What does that mean?" she asked, but Varek didn't respond. His face was a mask of ambiguity, like a well of secrets about to overflow.
Sanathiel advanced, interposing himself between them again, and the atmosphere tensed to the breaking point.
"If you know something, Varek, you'd better say it now," he demanded, his tone threatening. "You won't play games with us."
Varek offered a lopsided smile, but his eyes shone with a mix of challenge and pain.
"It's not my game, Sanathiel. But if you don't act, Sariel will destroy everything. Even Rasen."
Before any could respond, Aisha spun on her heel, frustrated, and walked away from the cabin, heading into the forest. She couldn't hear another word without going mad.
"Aisha!" Sanathiel called, but she didn't stop.
Varek followed without hesitation, leaving Sanathiel behind amidst growls and curses. The white wolf hesitated for a moment, then, without taking his eyes off them, slipped into the shadows, keeping his distance while watching them. His steps were light, his breath held, like a predator stalking.
They caught up to her after a few meters, where the murmur of the trees and the darkness swallowed the last traces of the cabin.
"I'm trying to protect you, Aisha," Varek said, his voice lower now, as if the forest were listening. "If Luciano and Sariel discover what your blood is capable of… they won't let you leave alive."
She stopped dead in her tracks, turning toward him with a frown.
"What am I capable of?" she asked, her voice trembling.
Varek hesitated for a moment before answering, clutching his head.
"Your blood can turn the Nevri into more than beasts. It can transform them into uncontrollable weapons. You saw it with Solomon. But… it could also be the key to stopping all of this."
The revelation lashed the air like a whip. Sanathiel, still hidden among the trees, let out a choked growl. His claws unsheathed instinctively, scratching the bark of the tree he sheltered behind.
"That's what they truly seek!" he roared, emerging from the shadows with blazing eyes. "Not you, Aisha! But the weapon your blood can forge!"
The idea struck her like lightning. For an instant, she remembered Rasen, the promise she'd made to Crystal, and everything she'd sacrificed until now.
"Then, if I use my blood, he'll come to me, right, Varek?"
Varek shook his head, his dark eyes filled with what seemed like guilt.
"There will be no turning back for you. Or for any of us."
Aisha felt the ground give way beneath her feet. Was her blood a curse or a hope? Before she could voice another question, Varek continued, his voice urgent:
"That's only half the truth, Aisha. There's more… something anchoring Sariel to this world."
"What?" demanded Sanathiel, planting himself between them with a look that demanded answers.
Varek fixed his violet eyes on Aisha, a shadow of pain crossing his face.
"You are bound to Sariel, Aisha. That connection is a lifeline for him… and the only thing allowing Rasen to contain him. But it's a fraying rope. Only one choice remains for you: accept him as part of yourself… or destroy him forever."
The impact of his words made her stagger. Destroying Sariel meant losing Rasen forever. But accepting him…
"That can't be true…" she whispered, stumbling back until she collided with a tree trunk.
"It's truer than you think," Varek said, his tone softer this time. "But you don't have to do it alone."
Aisha looked at him, searching his eyes for a crack in the lie.
"Why are you doing this?"
Varek lowered his gaze for an instant, an internal struggle visible in his tense grimace.
"Because I've seen what happens when someone tries to save another at any cost… including their soul." His voice cracked as he mentioned something—or someone—from the past. "Don't repeat that mistake."
Sanathiel, his fists still clenched beside his bared claws, took a step forward.
"She won't make any decision without understanding the price she'll pay. Neither you nor anyone else will drag her into the darkness."
Varek looked at him with contempt, but before he could respond, Aisha raised a hand, silencing them.
"Enough. Both of you. I won't make any decision. Rasen must survive. That is my only truth."
Both men looked at her, and for a moment, they seemed to understand that Aisha wasn't just another piece in their game. She was the one who would decide how it all ended.
"There's no salvation for him," Varek managed to say.
The words hung in the air, heavier than the forest's silence. And in Aisha's chest, something shattered. For the first time, she understood it wasn't just destiny watching her… it was a cage closing around her.
A thick silence, laden with broken futures, seized the clearing. It was in that void of words that a dry, unnatural thunderclap resonated. But it didn't come from the sky.
Sanathiel looked up, a curse freezing on his lips. There, snaking among the trees like black veins, cracks in the earth began to open.
Time was running out.