Morning light bled across Blackwood Village, faint and fragile against the scars of last night's battle. Smoke still curled lazily from broken rooftops, and ash dusted the soil like gray snow. The air carried a heaviness—a tension that weighed on every villager who walked among the wreckage.
But the true storm was gathering inside the longhouse at the village center.
The council had been called. Elders, hunters, and representatives of families filled the hall. The air was thick with murmurs and fear. Some faces bore gratitude for survival. Others carried suspicion sharpened into hostility.
At the front sat Oswin, the elder whose voice often steadied disputes. He leaned on his cane, eyes weary but sharp. Beside him, Miriam stood quietly, her staff resting against the floor.
Aiden sat at the far end of the hall. Alone. His shoulders were tense, his face calm, though his mind churned. Dozens of eyes pierced him—some admiring, most afraid.
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"He is no ordinary boy," one hunter declared, his voice carrying. "You saw what happened last night. That was not the strength of a man. That was… monstrous."
A woman stood in response, her tone trembling but defiant. "And without that 'monstrous' power, we would be corpses beneath that beast's claws. You call him dangerous, but I call him our savior."
A chorus of voices erupted, arguments clashing like blades.
"He's a threat—"
"He's a protector—"
"He's both!"
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Oswin struck his cane against the floor. The noise silenced the hall. "We speak one at a time." His gaze swept across them, sharp as steel.
He turned first to Aiden. "You fought for this village, Aiden. No one can deny that. But there are questions that must be answered. Not for my sake, but for the people who wake each day wondering if you will remain ally or become enemy."
The words were deliberate, fair—but heavy.
"What are you?" Oswin asked simply.
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The hall grew still.
Aiden inhaled slowly, his hand unconsciously clenching. "I don't know," he admitted. "I was born here, raised here. I've bled beside you, hunted beside you, lived as one of you. But… what woke inside me, I can't deny it's not normal. Last night, when I fought that beast… part of me wanted to lose myself in it."
Murmurs stirred again—some fearful, others conflicted.
"But I didn't," Aiden said louder, his voice hardening. "I chose not to. Whatever I am, I'm still me. And I will fight for this village as long as I breathe."
His words carried conviction, yet the silence that followed revealed how deeply fear still rooted itself in the villagers' hearts.
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Miriam finally spoke, stepping forward. "You ask what he is. I'll tell you what I see: a boy who carries something terrible, yes, but who fights against it. Do you not see the strength in restraint? Do you not see how much harder it is to deny hunger than to give in?"
Her eyes swept across them, firm and unyielding. "You call him a monster, but I call him braver than any of us."
The hall wavered between her words and their fear.
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Then a hunter rose from the shadows of the room, his tone biting. "Brave or not, what happens the day he fails? What happens when he loses control? Will you still defend him when your families lie torn apart? The beast we saw last night was not human."
A hush fell. That fear clung to the room, undeniable.
Oswin closed his eyes briefly, then spoke. "This council will not condemn nor embrace hastily. Aiden will remain under our watch. He will not be cast out—but neither will he be left unchecked."
The compromise fell heavy. Not trust, not rejection. A cage of suspicion wrapped in gratitude.
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Aiden left the hall in silence, the villagers' whispers biting at his heels. Outside, the sunlight felt colder than the night before.
Miriam caught up to him, her hand gripping his sleeve. "Don't let their fear decide who you are."
He forced a faint smile. "It already has. To them, I'm not Aiden anymore. I'm something else." His eyes flickered, crimson glinting faintly before he blinked it away. "And maybe they're not wrong."
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Deep in Blackwood Forest, shadows stirred again. The death of the Direfang Sovereign had not only shaken the beasts—it had awakened something older.
A distant roar echoed through the trees. Not one voice, but many.
Rank 5 beasts prowled restlessly. Rank 6 predators shifted territories. And deeper still, a Rank 7 presence stirred, sensing blood in the air.
The forest was changing.
And soon, the village would face the price of survival.
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