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Eli
Agony rippled through the air, everyone’s emotions out of control and hitting me like a hammering drum. I sat with my head between my knees, trying to block out the chaos, but it was nearly impossible. A strong grip landed on my shoulder, and I looked up into Knox’s concerned eyes. Although heartbreak and anger spilled from Knox, I could also feel the worry pointed at me. Even though there was much more to worry about than how I was handling this, it only cemented Knox as my best friend, constantly putting me at the forefront of his mind.
“You need to get out of here man. There’s too much and you’re going to explode.” Knox urged me on, pushing my shoulder, but I didn’t budge, refusing to move. Although I knew his words were true and I felt myself teetering on the cusp of madness, I couldn’t leave. Looking to the side, Knox followed my gaze and his expression fell as his eyes landed on her.
Kalani’s body had shifted from her wolf form, and she was curled in the fetus position, covered with a blanket. I had followed Halley’s pleas and brought her body away from the carnage outside but now I was at a loss. I didn’t know what to do with her. I didn’t know where Halley was. And I couldn’t just leave, not only because Halley had asked, but because Kalani was my friend too. Over the past few months, I had grown to care about her, and I refused to leave her, just another body to be cleaned up.
Knox squeezed my shoulder once more and I took a shuddering breath. Death and grief surrounded us, and I felt helpless. There was nothing I could do in this moment, nothing but sit and wait for the staff, Council, and Guard to tell us what to do. I couldn’t help my anger at the thought of them. The people who were waiting to tell us what to do were the same people that had left us defenseless. The same ones who allowed the students to be massacred. Who didn’t step in to help when they should have. I couldn’t help but put the blame on them as I stared at Kalani. She would still be alive, laughing along with Halley in the dorm, no cares in the world except for figuring out their powers. But instead, someone would have to relay the news to her parents, to her little siblings, that their daughter, their big sister, was dead.
Suddenly, a choked sob sounded from behind Knox and me, and I turned to see Maeve standing there, tears staining her cheeks and hands covering her mouth. Maeve had rounded up the rest of the Ethos and Seers who couldn’t fight, but apparently, they were done hiding in the Enchanter’s dorm. I felt the sadness streaming out of her in waves and I moved from beneath Knox’s grip, engulfing her in my arms. And even though I felt everyone else’s emotions assaulting me, I gave into my own grief, wondering how we would move on from this. Not just Maeve, Halley, and me, but everyone who had lost someone in this fight. Kalani wasn’t the only victim to fall under the Hunter’s wrath and I knew none of us would be the same after this.
“What happened?” Maeve choked out, barely able to finish her sentence between her sobs.
I shook my head, not knowing how to respond, choked up by my own tears, but thankfully, Knox answered, ever strong, even in the face of disaster.
“She was blindsided by an attack from behind while fighting off other Hunters. Halley tried to heal her, but it was too late.”
Maeve began crying harder and for the first time, I let my own tears fall, allowing every emotion to filter through me. I don’t know how long we stood there, consoling each other through our shared grief, when a gruff voice sounded behind us.
I knew without looking who the voice belonged to and I felt his guilt mingle with the chaos in my head. Madden took being the Alpha of the Shifters seriously, even if he loathed speaking to the members of his Sector, and I could tell he was taking her death personally. That it washisfault she was dead.
“She was a strong fighter. A strong Shifter. She died protecting the other students.”
His voice barely stood above a whisper, but I felt Maeve shudder at his words. And I had to respect him for saying those kind words, even if he barely knew the girl.
Maeve unfurled herself from my embrace and wiped her eyes, pushing her shoulders back and trying to take back the strength we had all lost. I attempted to do the same but struggled under the weight of being battered by the emotions still swirling in the air. Knox wrapped an arm around my shoulders, holding me up, and I nodded my thanks.
Maeve walked towards Kalani’s body and knelt, running a soft hand over her hair, whispering quietly. Giving her a semblance of privacy, I turned towards Madden and Knox.
“What happens next?” I asked.
To my surprise, Madden was the one to respond.
“They clean up the grounds. Identify those who were killed. Notify the families. And then we move on. We continue training. And then we attack.”
I shook my head, refusing to believe it would be that simple. We couldn’t just move on. Not with what we had lost. I began to refute his words when a gasp came from where Maeve hunched over Kalani. The three of us turned simultaneously, wondering what had happened.
“Madden…” Maeve trailed off, continuing to brush Kalani’s hair away from her eyes. And as she continued the motion, we all watched as Kalani began shifting once again, away from her human form, but not into her wolf. Something else was being shifted before our eyes.
Madden looked confused as he walked towards Maeve, bending down to touch Kalani as she continued to shift. Closing his eyes, he pressed his hand to her chest, feeling something none of us could. I reached out as well, focusing with all my power, pushing away the emotions streaming around the room until I was focused on the body on the floor. I pushed and pushed and pushed, about to give up when I felt a tiny spark, so miniscule I thought I imagined it, but when Madden spoke, I knew it had been real.
“She’s alive.”
Chapter Three
Madden
As an Alpha Shifter, I was able to feel my Shifters on an instinctual level. It wasn’t anything creepy or an invasion of their privacy, but I could feel their whereabouts when shifted and after their first shift, I was able to identify what creature they were even in human form. And so, as I leaned over Kalani, I could feel the spark as she came back to this world. I let out a deep breath, not even realizing I had been holding it in. I may have been a gruff asshole most of the time, but I cared about my pack. It was impossible not to, and losing a Shifter felt like losing a member of my family. And I had to admit, I didn’t want to see Halley go through the pain of losing her closest friend.
Pressing my hand against Kalani’s chest, I felt her shallow and slow breaths deepening as she began shifting, but I couldn’t feel her wolf. As far as I knew, Kalani was only able to shift into her wolf and confusion boiled over me as I tried to get a read on this new creature. After interacting with most creatures that Shifters could turn in to, I waited for some sort of recognition to flare through me, but nothing came about. I had no fucking clue what this shift meant for her. Or for our Sector as a whole.
“She’s not in any pain. I don’t know how, but I can’t feel pain.” Eli gritted from behind me, clearly putting in immense concentration to read the emotions of Kalani and her alone.
Glancing behind me, I saw Knox and Eli standing shoulder to shoulder, blocking us from the rest of the crowd, avoiding a spectacle. Maeve held Kalani’s hand tightly, tears still streaming down her face, but as Kalani’s body began shifting more intensely, I gently moved her away.
“What are you doing?” Maeve screeched, clearly desperate to stay with her girl.
“I don’t know what she’s shifting into. You need to back away.” I said as nicely as I could, but seriously, this was not the place for this to be happening. New Shifters often lost control on their first shift and we were in a cramped room with lots of emotional and hurting people. Add on to the fact we had no idea what the fuck Kalani was shifting into after beingdeadand I knew we needed to get her out of here. Thankfully, Knox must have seen the same thing.
