The impact echoed like thunder.
Kael and Ronan clashed again—faster, harder, more brutal than before. Each strike carried enough force to shake the ground beneath them.
Claws. Strength. Speed.
Neither of them held back.
Nyra stood frozen, her heart racing wildly as she watched them fight.
It wasn't just a battle.
It was dominance.
Power against power.
Alpha against Alpha.
And the air—
It was suffocating.
"Stop…" she whispered again.
No one heard her.
Or maybe—
They just didn't care.
Kael lunged forward, his fist connecting with Ronan's jaw, sending him skidding across the ground. Ronan recovered instantly, wiping the blood from his lip with a slow grin.
"Is that all?" he taunted.
Kael's eyes burned.
"Stay away from her."
Ronan laughed.
"Make me."
They moved again—
Faster than before.
Stronger.
Deadlier.
Nyra's breathing became uneven.
Her chest tightened.
That feeling—
It was back.
Stronger than ever.
The power inside her wasn't just reacting anymore.
It was… rising.
Demanding.
Enough.
The voice echoed clearly now.
Not distant.
Not faint.
Loud.
Commanding.
Nyra's eyes widened.
"No…" she whispered, shaking her head slightly.
Not here.
Not now.
But it didn't listen.
It never did.
Kael grabbed Ronan by the collar, slamming him into a tree with enough force to crack the bark.
"End this," Kael growled.
Ronan's eyes flashed dangerously.
"Gladly."
Dark energy pulsed around him—
And something inside Nyra snapped.
"STOP!"
Her scream tore through the air.
Everything froze.
Literally.
The wind stilled.
The trees stopped swaying.
Even the ground seemed to hold its breath.
A pulse of energy exploded outward from Nyra—
Invisible.
But devastating.
Kael and Ronan were thrown apart instantly, both forced back several steps as if something massive had shoved them away.
Silence fell.
Heavy.
Terrifying.
Nyra stood in the center of it all.
Her body trembling.
Her head lowered.
Her breathing uneven.
Then—
Slowly—
She lifted her head.
Her eyes—
They weren't normal anymore.
They glowed.
Bright silver—
Mixed with deep, unnatural darkness.
Not wolf.
Not human.
Something else.
Something older.
Every wolf present felt it.
That pressure.
That dominance.
It wasn't Alpha.
It was beyond that.
Several warriors dropped to one knee instinctively.
Others couldn't even move.
Fear.
Pure fear.
Kael stared at her.
Shock written clearly across his face for the first time.
"…Nyra…?" he said, his voice quieter than before.
But she didn't respond.
Because she wasn't fully there.
Inside her—
The voice spoke again.
They will destroy each other… and you.
Nyra's hands clenched at her sides.
"Stop…" she whispered.
Take control.
"I don't know how—"
You do.
The energy surged again.
Stronger.
Wilder.
The ground beneath her cracked slightly.
Kael took a cautious step forward.
"Nyra, listen to me—"
"Don't come closer," she said.
Her voice—
It wasn't just hers anymore.
It echoed.
Layered.
Dangerous.
Kael froze.
Ronan watched her carefully, his usual smirk completely gone.
For the first time—
He looked serious.
Focused.
Respectful.
"Now this…" he murmured, "…is power."
Nyra turned her gaze toward them.
Both of them.
Her glowing eyes locked onto theirs.
"You're both going to stop," she said.
Not loud.
Not forced.
But absolute.
Commanding.
Irresistible.
And somehow—
They listened.
Silence.
Kael's fists clenched, but he didn't move.
Ronan tilted his head slightly, studying her with something close to fascination.
"Well," he said slowly, "that's new."
Nyra's chest rose and fell heavily.
The energy inside her was too much.
Too strong.
Too overwhelming.
Her body began to shake.
"I can't—" she gasped.
The glow in her eyes flickered violently.
The pressure around them spiked—
Then dropped suddenly.
Nyra's legs gave out.
She collapsed.
But before she hit the ground—
Two figures moved at the same time.
Kael.
Ronan.
They both caught her.
Their hands met.
Their eyes locked.
Tension exploded instantly.
"Let go," Kael growled.
Ronan smirked faintly.
"You first."
Nyra lay unconscious between them.
Unaware.
Unmoving.
But the air around her still pulsed faintly with that terrifying power.
A reminder.
A warning.
She wasn't weak.
She wasn't normal.
And she definitely wasn't someone they could control.