The moon hung low in the sky, a cold silver eye watching over the dense forest. Its pale light spilled through the branches, casting long shadows that twisted and curled like silent specters. The air was thick with the scent of pine and earth, mixed with something older—something wild.

I crouched behind a fallen log, muscles tense and senses sharp. My breath came in slow, controlled bursts, the cold air biting at my lungs. Somewhere in the darkness, a low growl echoed—a sound both familiar and terrifying. It sent a shiver down my spine, but it wasn’t fear. It was a call, a summons to something deep within me.

I glanced down at my hands, trembling slightly despite my efforts to remain calm. The last few months had been a nightmare of strange dreams, inexplicable strength, and an aching hunger I could no longer control. At first, I’d thought it was madness—something breaking inside me. But now, as the full moon bathed the forest in silver light, I understood the truth.

The wolf was waking.

My ears twitched at the faintest sound—a twig snapping beneath unseen paws. I held my breath, every nerve screaming to run, to fight, to surrender to the beast inside me. My vision sharpened, shadows shifting into shapes: the gleam of eyes in the dark, the flicker of movement between the trees.

Then she stepped out—a woman with molten gold eyes and a presence like stormfront. 'You feel it too,' she said. 'The blood calling. The power waiting to be claimed.'

She reached out. 'We are the Lupus Noctis—the wolves of the night. And you, Rhydian, are one of us.'

The wind stilled. My pulse roared. One step forward, and I embrace this legacy. One step back, and I vanish into the trees, human once more—if I even remember how.