ELLIOTT POV

The moment he said it, Kol collapsed fully onto the ground and started writhing violently, his body jerking and twisting in agony like an invisible force was tearing him apart from the inside.

"What now?" Lance snorted. "First Eric. Now you. Give us a fucking break."

"Be sensitive, bro," Raphael snapped.

He stepped closer and reached out, but yanked his hand back with a sharp wince.

"He’s burning," he hissed through clenched teeth.

His eyes widened as he stared at his own palm. It was covered in dark, ashen soot.

"What the hell?" I murmured, looking back at Kol. On the surface he looked perfectly fine — no visible burns, no charred skin. Just deathly pale, sweat-slicked, and in excruciating pain.

Raphael tried again. He gritted his teeth and reached for the fabric of Kol’s hoodie instead of bare skin. The same reaction hit him. He growled in frustration and shot to his feet.

"What the fuck is going on?" he shouted into the heavy air. "Did we offend Mother Nature or something?" he snarled.

We did. By daring to step foot into this cursed place in the first place. We had no right to be here. Still, we had come anyway.

But shouting wouldn’t help Kol’s situation. It wouldn’t bring Eric back or save the others.

I felt eyes on me. I turned. The boys were all staring at me, expectant.

My brow raised slightly in question. "What?"

"You have a solution," they all said at once.

I snorted a short, disbelieving laugh and shook my head. "A solution?"

"Eric is gone," Azrael said, voice tight. He swallowed hard, glancing at where Kol lay reduced to a whimpering, convulsing mess.

"Kol is well... will soon face the same fate as Eric..."

"Don’t say that!" Raphael grunted, glowering at Azrael.

"Well, it’s the truth," Azrael shot back. "He’s going to face the same treatment. Each of us will if we don’t find a solution to this fucking problem!"

Raphael’s jaw clenched so tightly I could see the muscle jumping beneath his skin.

"Then what do you reckon we do, Sherlock?" Lance asked, his voice laced with heavy sarcasm.

Azrael shot him a quick glare before turning back to me. "I’m sorry to say this, but Elliott is next." He stared directly at me.

"Me?" I furrowed my brows in confusion.

"Why the hell do you think so?"

"I’m no different from the rest of you," I added.

Azrael snickered, rolling his eyes. "Oh please," he grunted, glaring at nothing in particular. "As if we don’t all know whatever the monster is doing has everything to do with strength. Even though we’re all called 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

Apex Alphas and given the same respect in the academy, we know we don’t share the same power."

Still didn’t make sense why he thought I could be the solution.

A brief moment of silence passed. Then realization hit me like a punch to the gut, and his words suddenly became crystal clear.

"Wait, are you trying to say I should submit myself and get killed?"

"Not exactly like that," Azrael said, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly.

I scoffed. "Exactly like how, then?" I folded my arms tightly across my chest.

"I’m talking about a more effective strategy," Azrael stated. "Something we can use to outsmart the monster before it gets the rest of us."

"Else, we’re all going to die," he continued grimly. "Including the people we’re supposed to rescue. The mission fails."

"The mission is better off failing than telling me to put my life on the line!" I snapped.

"I thought you were fearless," Azrael said. "Besides, isn’t the girl in question your ex? Shouldn’t you be doing everything to help her?"

"You can see I am trying my best!" I snapped at him. And since when did my past relationship with her even matter?

"You are not doing enough," Azrael fired back. "The only thing you’ve done since we stepped in here is create discord!"

I stared at him in disbelief, heat rising in my chest. "Really?!"

"Really," he growled. "How can you even be ranked number three in the whole academy when you barely have any sense of reasoning?"

His insult washed over me like acid. Heat burned at the corners of my eyes. My wolf stirred, pressing hard against my chest, urging me forward. My hands clenched into tight fists as I started toward him.

"Stop it!" Lance snarled, stepping between us and shoving a hand against my chest to halt me. He tugged roughly at his own hair, scowling at me like I was the root of every problem. "Are we really going to do this again?" he said, voice tight with frustration.

"I thought we agreed to set aside our rivalry and work together, but it keeps coming up and—"

"Don’t blame me," I sneered. "Blame that piece of shit who kept vital information from us. The fucking guide and now he wants me to throw myself to some forest beasts so the rest of you can live..."

"Damn it!" Lance mumbled. He shot me a stern look before turning to Azrael, who only shrugged one shoulder. "I’m not trying to blame anyone here. I’m only saying fighting gets us nowhere. How the hell is that supposed to help, Kol?!"

Right. It wouldn’t.

"Maybe we’ve lost Eric forever. Maybe we haven’t. We need to help each other, find Elyse and Dash if we can, then get the hell out of here. The council can help us find Eric later."

"No."

We all turned toward the voice.

It was Kol.

I raced toward him without hesitation and crouched in front of Kol, careful not to touch him.

"Are you alright?" I murmured, worry pulling at the corners of my mouth.

Kol winced, his face pinched tight with pain. His lips opened and closed, but no words came out at first. He lifted one trembling hand and pointed weakly toward the sky.

My eyes followed. There was nothing unusual, just the clouds growing darker, heavier, reminding us that night was closing in fast and we would soon be stuck here in complete darkness.

"What are we supposed to see?" Azrael asked insensitively.

"Shut up, bitch," I muttered under my breath.

He heard it. He shot me a pointed glare. I held his gaze without flinching, not giving a fuck.

"The sky," Kol finally managed, voice strained and raspy. Then he fell silent again. We waited another agonizing two minutes before he spoke once more. "You need to run."

"We would have done that if we could," Azrael stated flatly.

"You can’t win it," Kol murmured, barely audible.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious," Azrael shot back.

"You don’t have to reply, you know," Raphael said quietly.

Azrael ignored him, rising to his feet. He stalked over to the tree, leaned against it for a moment, then slid down its rough bark until he was sitting with his knees drawn up to his chest, head resting on them.

I looked away.

"What do you mean we can’t win?" I asked.

"Are you saying we’re eventually going to have to fight the monsters?" Lance bombarded without missing a beat. "Is the forest trying to speak through you? How many monsters are there? Are we all going to die?" His voice rose with each question. "What about Elyse... is she going to be alright and—"

"That’s too many questions," I cut in. He hadn’t even answered mine yet.

Lance exhaled softly. "Sorry," he muttered.

I shrugged. Another two minutes passed before Kol spoke again. "Elyse..." He trailed off, voice weak and fading.

I started counting in my head, but stopped when he began to wheeze violently, each breath a tortured rasp.

I reached out to touch him, then yanked my hand back, remembering what had happened to Raphael. Kol jerked hard, his body spasming as he fought for air.

His veins stood out sharply along his jawline, more prominent than I had ever seen them. His eyes bulged, pupils blown wide with terror. His face had gone deathly pale, slick with sweat.

"Someone do something," Raphael said, voice tight with panic. "Is he going to die?"

"What... no!" I shouted.

Absolutely not.

I gripped the front of his hoodie. White-hot pain shot through my palm the instant I made contact, like I had shoved my hand into a blazing furnace. If I was feeling this, Kol must have been in pure agony.

I didn’t let go. I shook him hard. "Fight it!" I growled through clenched teeth. "You can’t just hold the title of number one in the whole academy and give in to this shit!"

His lips moved, but I couldn’t catch the words. Then they parted into a small, broken smile.

"Is this the time to fucking smile?!" I shouted, voice cracking.

"Elyse," Kol managed, a little clearer now.

"Save her. That is my dying wish."

Dying wish?

"Don’t you dare!" I thundered, fear and rage twisting together in my chest.

How could he give up so easily? Why would he talk about dying when we were all here, fighting for him despite how hopeless it felt?

I shook him harder, my wrists burning, until the desperate need to press my face close to his and scream sense into him overwhelmed me.

"Elliott!" Lance shouted.

I ignored him.

My fist clenched. I was ready to punch him until his senses returned.

"Elliott," Lance said again, this time in a broken, urgent voice.

My head snapped to the right. The sight of tears streaming down Lance’s cheeks instantly killed the glare on my face.

"H...he’s dead."