Elle pressed a soft kiss to Cael's forehead, relief washing through her so intensely it left her dizzy. She had come far too close to losing the most important person in her world. Thank the gods Nova had appeared when she did—thank the gods she'd helped Elle get past Fin. She was still pissed at him. As far as she was concerned, he owed her an apology carved in stone.
"Careful, little one," Hyran said gently.
Elle's eyes snapped open just in time to see him push a floating vial back down onto the table.
She blinked.
Then blinked again—right as a loud clatter erupted around her and ten different items hit the floor at once.
Rex, Elias, Aeron, and Marra were all watching her.
Marra's expression stayed perfectly neutral.
Rex's brows pulled tight.
Elias looked vaguely traumatized—but to be fair, he had just endured a barrage of unannounced portals.
Aeron's face remained calm, curious even, not a hint of judgment in sight.
"What were you thinking about?" Hyran asked, voice steady, as though the room had not just levitated around her.
Elle flushed. "How relieved I am that Cael is okay… and grateful Nova was able to help me."
One of Hyran's eyebrows climbed.
Elle swallowed. "And… that I'm still upset with Fin," she admitted.
Across the infirmary, a glass vial exploded.
Elle jumped as the torch above Cael flared bright green.
She blinked again, confused. No one in the room commented.
Behind her, the window cracked—a sharp, splintering sound that made everyone flinch.
Elle's eyes flared again. Not fully transformed—her pupils remained—but the glow was unnatural, alive.
Another window across the infirmary began to crack in slow, spidering lines.
"How do I get it to stop?" she asked, trying—and failing—to keep her voice steady.
"Calm your mind," Hyran said.
Elle tried. Truly. She closed her eyes and pictured her favorite place—her closet, organized and peaceful and smelling faintly of cedar—but it didn't help.
When she opened her eyes again, the green engulfing them had intensified. The pupils were gone entirely now—only a blinding emerald shine remained.
She looked down.
Green flames—actual flames of magic—were buzzing and flickering violently around her hands, licking up her wrists like eager fire.
Elle shot to her feet, widening her eyes as she stared at her own glowing fingers.
Hyran stepped forward and began chanting in a low, ancient tongue. His eyes blazed red. Power rippled outward from him like a shockwave but nothing happened.
The green magic didn't dim or even flicker.
His spell slid off her like water off polished stone, dissolving before it could reach her.
He exhaled, resigned. "Come with me."
Elle didn't argue. Hyran guided her out of the infirmary as the others stared—wide-eyed, silent, and acutely aware the windows behind her were still cracking like fragile ice.
"Take me to your forest," Hyran said. "I will show you how to release excess."
Eyes welling, Elle nodded and hurried down the steps. As she passed, windows cracked in her wake and doors rattled on their hinges. Hyran said nothing—walking beside her with a calm that felt impossible.
Once they reached the open grass, heading toward the treeline, he finally spoke. "Do not worry. I have trained many mages. You are… considerably more powerful than most, but there is nothing here to fear."
Elle let out a sharp breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. The quiet—free of cracking glass—was already easing her nerves.
They stepped into the forest on the far side of the castle, the air cooler, the canopy muffling the world.
"This will do," Hyran said. "Face away from the castle. Palms forward."
Elle obeyed, swallowing hard.
"Close your eyes," he continued, "and feel the energy. Visualize it gathering between your hands—slow, steady. Hold it there. Do not let it escape yet."
Elle did as instructed. She breathed in. The air trembled. The grass around her shivered as green light coiled between her palms, unseen but undeniable—like warm static crawling along her skin, collecting in a single, humming point.
"Good," Hyran said quietly. "Now open your eyes. Release it—push it out toward the sky. If you struggle to find the energy, imagine the outcome you desire. Let your mind give it shape."
Elle opened her eyes slowly—her brief calm shattered in an instant.
The moment she released the energy, a pure green beam erupted from her palms, shooting straight into the sky. It was the width of her entire body, a column of searing emerald light. The trees around them bowed away from the force. Rocks tore free of the ground and floated. Even Hyran stumbled back a full step.
Elle stared, horrified. The second she willed it to stop, the beam vanished—but everything else remained suspended.
Leaves hovered in midair. Pebbles spun in lazy circles.
The creek nearby rose from its bed, water drifting through the air in shimmering ribbons.
Hyran exhaled thoughtfully.
"Hmm. Let us try another method. Shift—allow your wolf to take control. Run for several minutes. Then return to me, shift back, and walk a full circle."
Elle glanced at her clothing. "I need a training suit or spare clothes. These will rip."
"Easily solved," Hyran said. He lifted a hand and murmured a spell under his breath. Red magic flowed from his fingertips and washed over her clothing like a soft ripple of heat.
"There. They will vanish when you shift and return intact when you shift back. I can teach you this spell in time."
Elle nodded gratefully. "Thank you."
She didn't hesitate.
Her body shifted in a breath—bones rearranging, fur rippling out, her red wolf emerging with bright green, glowing eyes. The moment she launched forward, the levitating debris around them fell—only for new leaves, stones, and branches to lift in her wake as she raced deeper into the trees.
Fin and Jax arrived at alpha speed the moment they saw the column of green light tear into the sky—only to witness Elle shift and sprint into the forest.
"Hyran?" Fin demanded.
"My apologies for invading your forest. Your Beta Luna is experiencing some… difficulty. I am acting in Aeron's stead." Hyran said, inclining his head.
"Thank you," Fin said, already scanning the treeline. Jax did the same—eyes wide—taking in the floating debris and the stream that was still suspended midair. "Where is she?"
"She shifted and ran a mile that way," Hyran said, pointing. "I instructed her to return immediately."
A moment later, Elle burst back through the trees, shifting in a breath. Her clothing and shoes reappeared intact, exactly as Hyran had promised. Her eyes, however, still glowed an unbroken green.
Fin and Jax both noticed the pristine clothes—both wondered—but neither asked.
"Let us repeat it once more," Hyran said. "This time, do not build the energy. Simply release it. Then a short run again."
Elle nodded—though the moment Fin and Jax drew closer, her heart spiked. She hid it well. She refused to cry. She had shed enough tears today to drown a kingdom.
"It worsens because of your reaction—not because you lack control," Hyran murmured. "Do not fear the power. You will not harm anyone."
Elle nodded again, turned from the castle, and released the magic.
A beam of green shot skyward—stronger than the first—so powerful the ground vibrated. Hyran, Fin, and Jax all staggered back a full step, pushed by the force rippling through the air.
Elle opened her eyes, shifted in a breath, and ran.
Fin and Jax stared after her, stunned.
Hyran exhaled. "We may need to have her run longer—let her wolf take dominance and reset her mind. Are there rogues nearby?"
"Yes," Fin said immediately, concern tightening every muscle. "I'll go with her."
Hyran nodded once. "This began in the infirmary. I asked what she was thinking of, and… I suspect she might be angry with you."
Fin's brow furrowed sharply.
"I'll run with her then," Jax said, stepping forward.
Hyran nodded once and swept a hand through the air. Red magic shimmered, washing over Jax's clothes—no permission requested. Another wave followed, settling over Fin.
Jax blinked. "Did that just make it so my clothes won't rip when I shift?"
"Yes," Hyran replied simply.
Jax stared at him like he had just unveiled the greatest advancement in the history of wolf-kind. "Can you show me that?"
Hyran laughed—a low, amused sound. "Yes. I can."
Elle burst back through the trees, shifting in a breath.
"We will release again," Hyran said gently, "but this time, when you shift, Thorne will go with you so you may run longer. Allow your wolf to claim the mind. Do not fight her."
The creek beside them—still suspended—began to glow green, the floating water pulsing in time with Elle's heartbeat. On the forest floor, faint runes flickered to life beneath the leaves.
Elle turned toward the open sky.
She released.
A blast of green tore upward—violent, breathtaking—so powerful that Hyran, Fin, and Jax all staggered back again. The trees bowed. The air cracked like lightning.
Elle was shaking. Fighting tears. But with her eyes pupil-less and glowing, no one could tell. She only nodded, silent and composed in the way someone must be when everything inside them is unraveling.
She shifted—red fur bursting forth, eyes blazing emerald—and ran without looking at any of them.
Jax shifted the moment she bolted and took off after her, matching her stride without effort. He wanted to reach for her, to offer something—comfort, steadiness, anything. She was reacting exactly how Nova would react. He didn't need a matebond to see that truth.
But he stayed silent. Her wolf was driving now, and he would not interrupt.
He followed instead—quiet, steady, protective—letting her lead him through the glowing, trembling forest.