Chapter 108

Chapter 108
Ioannis scanned the forest ahead, searching for any sign of movement among the trees. The pendant warmed insistently against her skin as a sound caught her attention, a twig snapping somewhere to their left, followed by a hastily stifled gasp.

Emma froze, her hand rising in a silent signal for the others to halt. Ioannis's breath caught in her throat as she turned slowly toward the sound. The pendant pulsed with warmth, its rhythm matching her quickening heartbeat.

"Hello?" she called softly, keeping her voice gentle and non-threatening. "Ellie? Micha? We're not here to hurt you."

Silence answered her, though Ioannis could feel eyes watching from the dense underbrush about thirty yards away. She slipped the pack from her shoulders with deliberate slowness, every movement careful and telegraphed.

"My name is Ioannis," she continued, her voice pitched low and soothing. "We found Lucas. He's safe now."

A rustle from the underbrush, followed by another stifled sound, a whisper perhaps, or a small child being shushed. The pendant warmed against her skin as Ioannis unzipped her pack, removing the purple and green wolves with gentle care.

"Lucas told us about you," she said, holding the plush toys where they would be visible from the underbrush. "He told us Ellie likes purple and Micha likes green. He's worried about you both."

"Is Lucas really okay?" The voice that emerged from the underbrush was young but steady, a girl's voice, trying to sound older than her years.

"Yes," Ioannis replied honestly, her heart aching at the wariness in that young voice. "He's nearby, actually. He has a wolf of his own now. He is grey, and he named him Shadow."

More rustling, then a glimpse of movement, a thin face peering cautiously around a tree trunk. Dark hair hung in tangled strands around hollow cheeks, but the eyes that studied Ioannis were sharp with intelligence and calculation.

"Are you from the facility?" the girl asked, still mostly hidden behind the tree. "Is this a new test?"

"No," Ioannis said firmly, the pendant warming against her skin. "I'm a werewolf, like you. Like Lucas. We all are." She gestured toward Emma and the other trackers who remained motionless, giving the children space. "We're here to help you."

The girl, Ellie, it had to be, emerged partially from behind the tree, her thin body poised for flight. She wore what appeared to be standard-issue grey clothing similar to Lucas's, now torn and dirty from days in the wilderness. Her dark eyes scanned the group with tactical assessment that no thirteen-year-old should possess.

"There are men looking for us," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "With machines that fly. They almost found us yesterday."

"We know," Ioannis acknowledged, still holding the plush wolves where Ellie could see them, as both toy wolf cubs made a soft cry as if calling to their new friends.

Something in the girl's expression shifted as the toys made their soft sounds. Ellie moved slightly forward, one arm extended behind her in clear protection of someone still hidden.

"Is that...a toy?" Her voice held disbelief, as if the concept itself was foreign.

"Yes," Ioannis said, keeping her voice gentle. "This purple one is for you, and the green one is for Micha. Lucas picked the colours himself."

At the mention of Micha's name, a small face peered around Ellie's protective form. A boy with a completely shaved head and enormous eyes stared at the plush wolves with undisguised wonder. He couldn't have been more than eight, painfully thin with the same grey institutional clothing as the others, now filthy and torn.

"Can I..." The boy's voice was barely audible, but his eyes remained fixed on the green wolf.

"Shh, Micha," Ellie warned, her arm tightening protectively around him. "It could be a trap."

Ioannis knelt slowly, placing both plush wolves on the ground before her. The pendant at her throat pulsed with reassuring warmth as she carefully backed away two steps.

"Not a trap," she promised. "These are gifts. From Lucas. He's very worried about you both."

Micha tugged at Ellie's tattered sleeve. "Lucas is okay? They didn't put him in the quiet room?"

"Lucas is safe," Ioannis confirmed. "No quiet rooms where we live. No punishment for crying or touching trees or anything else. Just safety and care."

Ellie's calculating gaze assessed the women around them, lingering on their practical clothing, with clear recognition of the Storm Striders' blue. "You're pack wolves," she said, not a question but a realisation. "They said you didn't exist anymore. That we were the last."

"They lied," Emma said softly, speaking for the first time. "There are thousands of us across many territories. Different packs living in harmony."

Ellie's expression hardened with suspicion. "Prove it. Prove you're like us."

Ioannis exchanged a quick glance with Emma, understanding flowing between them. The pendant warmed against her skin as she nodded once.

"We can do that," she said gently. "But it might be frightening if you haven't seen it before. We'll change partially, just enough to show you, okay?"

Ellie gave a terse nod, her arm still protectively around Micha, who continued to stare longingly at the green wolf toy.

With practised ease, Ioannis allowed a partial shift, just enough for her eyes to glow their lupine silver-blue, for claws to extend from her fingertips, for her teeth to sharpen visibly when she smiled. Emma and the other trackers did the same, each showing just enough of their wolf nature to prove their kinship without shifting completely.