ERIC POV

My eyes flew open as I jerked awake. A sharp gasp tore from my parted lips.

My skull felt like it had been split open with a dull axe. The metallic tang of blood coated my tongue, thick and coppery. Cold, damp earth pressed against my back, seeping through my torn shirt and chilling my skin.

Sharp leaves and twigs dug into me like tiny knives.

I tried to sit up. I managed halfway — then something yanked me brutally back down.

Blinking against the haze, I stared down at myself. "What the..." I wheezed, eyes widening in horror.

Thick, coarse ropes bound my ankles and wrists, pinning me flat against the forest floor. They scraped raw against my flesh, tightening like living serpents with every twitch I made.

Rough roots and jagged rocks ground painfully into my spine. I could barely move more than a few inches. My arms were stretched taut above my head, legs spread and secured. Completely helpless.

"What the fuck is this?" I whispered, voice hoarse and raw.

"Eric!" A sharp cry split through the pounding in my head, making it worse. I groaned, squeezing my eyes shut.

I opened them again. Kol. That was definitely his voice.

"Eric!" he shouted again. "You fucking son of a bitch! Where the hell are you?!"

I managed a short scoff. He was the one who had complained about screaming in this cursed place, yet here he was, bellowing loud enough for every monster in the forest to hear.

The memory of how I ended up like this flooded back. My heart picked up speed. Kol could be taken next. The thing that got me could go after him too.

"Kol," I grunted, struggling against the ropes even though I knew it was futile. I didn’t stop. The coarse fibers burned deeper into my wrists.

"You can’t be in here," I whispered desperately, eyes darting around the ominous darkness.

"Eric!"

"Damn it, Kol!" I bit back a curse, voice cracking.

I was the stubborn one. I should have been the one screaming at the top of my lungs if someone went missing. It wasn’t Kol’s style.

Besides, we had the greatest rivalry in the academy, he probably should have been happy I was out of the way.

Still, he was stressing this much.

"Brotherly love," a cold, creepy voice murmured directly into my head. "Such a wonderful sight to witness." 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

My eyes darted frantically around the forest. But I saw no one. A violent shiver raced down my spine.

"He’s really cute," the voice continued, almost playful. "But ugh..." It grunted, sounding like it was gagging. "I hate happy endings."

My stomach churned violently.

"The thought of a happy ending makes me want to throw up."

"Who are you?" I whispered hoarsely.

The voice went silent. I thought it wouldn’t answer until it spoke again in that same chilling tone.

"You want to know?"

Of course I did. I wouldn’t have asked otherwise.

The voice sighed. A faint rustling came from my left. My head snapped in that direction.

"See for yourself," it said.

As soon as the words faded, it felt like something lifted from my eyes. My vision sharpened unnaturally. White and black light flashed before me like a broken television screen.

Then I saw them.

The boys — Kol, Azrael, Raphael, Lance, and Elliott — were wandering aimlessly through the trees. They couldn’t have been too far from where I was. If I screamed, they would hear me. They would come.

I gritted my teeth, mouth opening wide as I prepared to shout but the voice cut through my thoughts, stopping me cold.

"Do not trouble yourself," it said, low and smooth, yet still carrying a dangerous edge. "I wouldn’t do that if I were you."

"Who the hell are you and what do you want with me?" I snapped. "With us?!"

"I want that girl, Willa," the voice said simply.

"Willa... what?" I muttered, brows pulling together in confusion.

I had never heard that name before. I couldn’t even think of anyone in the entire academy who went by it. Call me self-centered, but I wasn’t exactly in the habit of learning every student’s name.

"Who the hell is that?" I demanded.

The voice chuckled, low and mocking. "You clueless human," it murmured. "That just shows how easily someone can infiltrate your midst without you even realizing."

"You call yourselves werewolves with your keen sight, enhanced smell, and sharp hearing... yet... yet a fucking rat..."

"I have no idea what you’re talking about," I cut the voice off sharply. I glanced back toward where Kol and the others were still wandering aimlessly through the trees.

They must have broken the third rule. That was why they were trapped in that loop. I breathed out through clenched teeth, jaw tight. "Let my friends go. It’s me you want..."

"I want Willa!" the voice snarled. "I have no need for mere beings like you!"

The words echoed through the forest, sending another violent jolt through my body.

It pissed me off that it dismissed me so easily. I was one of the strongest in the academy. I had trained relentlessly to earn my place. I wasn’t just wearing the Alpha title for show. I had bled for it.

And I wouldn’t let some unknown voice diminish that.

"Since you have no need for me, then let my friends go," I said. "Let me go."

It let out a dark, chilling chuckle. "You foolish mortal!" it snarled. "You think you can negotiate with me?!"

"No, but—"

"I am the Warden!" it roared.

I gulped hard, sweat beading on my forehead. The Warden.

That was the guardian of the forest itself.

My breath caught in my throat.

The only time someone had come close to seeing the Warden, they had died, burnt to a crisp, their soul condemned to wander this cursed forest forever.

Perhaps I shouldn’t have asked for its identity. Now... now it might really appear and kill me.

"Kill you?" the voice growled, snapping me out of my spiraling thoughts. "That is a luxury I would never grant you. But for your friends?"

It trailed off. I looked back toward the boys.

"It’s high time I play god. Perhaps you’ll tell me the truth after seeing that boy..."

"What boy—" I didn’t finish the words before Kol suddenly dropped to his knees, clutching his throat desperately.

My eyes widened in horror as he began to gag violently, clawing at his neck like an invisible hand was strangling the life out of him.

"W-what are you doing to him?!" I shouted, thrashing wildly against the ropes that bit deeper into my wrists and ankles.

"Tell me where Willa is," the voice replied coldly, "and I shall spare him."

—

ELLIOTT POV

Our journey didn’t improve. Even though we had gone over the rules and solutions in the guide again and again, we were still trapped in the same damn dilemma.

"Maybe we should have continued like Elliott said," Lance murmured, voice heavy with exhaustion. "This is getting annoying."

I had thought so too. But it didn’t matter who was right or wrong anymore. I needed a solution that actually worked. I wanted to return to the academy with everyone alive. With Elyse.

The thought of her facing an even greater threat sent another sharp wave of despair through me.

"Nothing is working," Lance muttered again.

He stopped walking the moment we arrived back at the same cursed spot — the tree with the mocking arrow pointing in every direction at once.

"Yeah, I’m all for this quest," he continued. "I knew what I was getting into when I agreed to come here. I wanted to save my mate."

His eyes narrowed, flicking up to the darkening sky, then across each of us. "But I didn’t sign up to sleep the night in this damned forest."

"Neither did I," Azrael let out with a frustrated sigh.

I glowered at them. I was sure none of us had signed up for this. I hated how they were acting like this was somehow my fault when we were all stuck in the same nightmare.

"I think..." Raphael started.

A sharp gasp from the side cut him off. I turned just in time to see Kol stumble away from where he had been standing. He didn’t make it far. His knees buckled, and he collapsed forward, palms slamming into the dead grass.

His back rose and fell rapidly as he struggled to breathe.

"Are you alright, man?" Raphael asked, a deep frown etched on his face.

Kol said nothing. He remained bent over, breathing hard like the air itself was fighting him.

"If you need to rest, we can—" I murmured, stepping closer.

"No..." Kol forced out through gritted teeth.

"I... I..." His hand flew to his throat, veins bulging sharply along the side of his neck as he struggled for air.

He lifted his face to us. Pale. Sweaty. Eyes wide with raw panic.

"I can’t... breathe," he wheezed, the words barely scraping past his lips.