The Last Account

With the residue of the last battle lingering in the air like a dense fog, the battlefield was eerily quiet. As she attempted to control her breathing, Leah's pulse roared in her ears. The intense energy she had just released caused her body to tremble as the light from her powers flickered. Despite the fact that it was too much—too much for her to control—she experienced an overwhelming sense of power that was unlike anything she had ever experienced.

Standing a few steps away, Eliot took deep, steady breaths that caused his chest to rise and fall. Although the wolf's fury was still just visible in his eyes, he appeared composed and in control of his emotions, something he had never done before. He had fought the beast fiercely, but the beast had been driven back, maybe permanently this time.

“Leah,” She could feel the desperation in Eliot's scratchy voice, which made her heart accelerate. "There is not much time left."

With wide eyes filled with a mixture of dread and resolve, Leah turned to confront him. She sensed that the rift's gravity was still strong enough to distort the air, still tugging at the fabric of the world around them. Though it was waning, the rift had not yet disappeared.

Eliot went on, his voice growing louder, "We must complete this." The creature remains in the wild. It is not finished.

Nodding, Leah turned her eyes to the horizon, where the last of the rift's remnants glowed like a dying star. "How can we stop it, though? How do we put an end to this for good?

The air was filled with a high-pitched scream that sent shivers down Leah's spine before Eliot could respond. Her heart pumped faster.

Something loomed out of the darkness, a silhouette that made Leah's heart race with fear. Her mother was the person in question.

Leah's gaze remained fixed on the person in front of her. Every instinct told her that something was amiss, and she gasped for air. The woman who had left her and made the decision to leave everything Leah had ever known had a face she recognized.

“Mom?” With a tremulous voice, Leah whispered. "Is it you?"

There was a sad, almost pitying grin on her mother's lips. She answered, "Of course it is me, sweetheart," in a calm, collected tone as if nothing had changed.

But now everything was different.

Sensing the change in the air, Eliot's body stiffened next to her. The defeated thing that had ripped open the rift was still very much alive in her mother's eyes.

"Why have you come here?" With an increasingly frantic tone, Leah demanded. With fear and incredulity lighting up every nerve in her body, she took a step back. "You... you are responsible for everything, are not you?"

The charge did not cause her mother to recoil. Rather, her eyes gleamed with a disturbing serenity. She answered in a chilly, aloof voice, "I had to." "Leah, you would not get it. The focus has always been on survival.

Leah felt a knot in her stomach. "Living? You mean what? I have been deceived by you my entire life.

The hollow sound of the woman's quiet giggle chilled Leah to the bone. "Hiding? No, I have been keeping the truth from you. from the reality of who you truly are. Regarding what you were destined to be.

The rift's power rushed through the air, causing the ground to tremble beneath them. With dark energy pulsing through her fingertips, Leah's mother raised her hands. Her eyes were shining as she whispered, "Leah, you are more than simply a wolf." "You hold the key to either permanently repairing the rift or destroying it entirely."

With her head reeling from what her mother had just disclosed, Leah staggered backward. She could not help but hear the words in her mind. The secret? You mean what?

Her mom did not respond right away. Rather, she moved forward, bringing them closer together. With the power emanating from her in waves, her presence was oppressive.

With a hint of something Leah could not quite place in her voice, she added, "You have always been the key, my dear." "You have ancient blood coursing through you. It connects you to the fissure and the energy that passes through it. Additionally, it can be permanently closed if you accept it. However, it will destroy everything if you struggle against it and resist.

Eyes tightening, Eliot looked at Leah, his fingers tightened into a fist. He did not trust her mother because he sensed her manipulation and wickedness.

But Leah was having a hard time settling in. It came to her like a ton of bricks that her own mother had been involved in all of this. She was being used as a pawn in a struggle for survival, not merely a victim.

"No," Leah said in a whisper while shaking her head. "I refuse to be under your authority. not in this manner.

Her mother's ruthless smile sent a shockwave of rage through Leah's chest. "Darling, you have no option. This is the destiny you were always destined to fulfill. Simply put, you have been too blind to notice it.

An old, primordial energy that seemed to awaken in reaction to her mother's words was the source of the dark flicker that Leah sensed within herself.

She was caught in a tornado of power before she could respond as her mother held up her palm and a blast of dark energy came hurtling toward her.

Leah sensed the force of the energy surrounding her, rushing over her like a wave. The old power inside her, which she had never really comprehended but could now feel in every fiber of her existence, started to stir, and her body shook as her head reeled. The force that was flowing through her veins was the rift.

She screamed, "No!" as she attempted to deflect the force. A faint, strange light glowed in her palms as she struggled against the darkening within.

Eliot moved forward, speaking in a forceful but strained tone. "Leah, do not pay attention to her! You are not this. You must oppose it!

Leah's mother, however, was relentless, her words cutting like daggers through the atmosphere. It is unavoidable, Leah. You have control of the power. This is what you were meant to be.

The energy that was feeding off Leah's doubt and anxiety caused her chest to tighten. She wanted to resist, to fight it, but she was pulled to it like a moth to a flame.

Her mother reiterated, "You are the key," in a mesmerizing tone. Acceptance is all that is required of you. Acknowledge your actual strength.

The light surrounding Leah flickered and dimmed as her hands trembled. She was losing herself, and she was afraid that she was changing completely at that very moment.

A sharp agony jolted through her just as she was ready to give in, causing her to cry out and drop to her knees. Her vision became blurry, and Eliot's voice yelled her name, but it sounded faint and far away, as if she were drowning in the dark.

Leah was experiencing excruciating pain that seemed like a thousand voices all yelling at once within her mind. The rift's might was choking her, engulfing her in an uncontrollable sea of power. She had short, panicked gasps of breath and her eyesight clouded.

With an agitated voice, Eliot hurried to her side. "Leah, you must battle! You are more powerful than this!

Leah was unable to hear him, though. Her inner strength was overwhelming. Her mother's words, which told her she was destined for greatness, replayed in her head. The rift required her to recognize that it wanted her.

And she wanted to, for a minute, a short, horrifying one.

A flashback then brought back memories of her initial encounter with Eliot, their relationship, and their love. Her thoughts turned to the pack and all they had battled for.

She shook her head in a murmur, "No." “You will not prevail.”

Her hands slammed to the earth with a last surge of strength, a blast of force that broke the black hold on her soul. The electricity crackled like thunder as the rift shook in response.

It was insufficient, though. With a knowing smile, Leah's mother remained upright. "Leah, you have only just started to realize the reality. Your fate cannot be avoided. After that, she raised her hand again and laughed icily.

The conflict was far from ended.