Chapter 160: When the Forest Bleeds

Chapter 160: When the Forest Bleeds

“Eli look!”

Lyla’s voice tore from her throat as the shattered crescent blazed across the clearing. Fragments of violet light rained down like meteors, burning holes into the ground. The forest itself wailed, every tree trembling, every wolf clutching their heads in agony.

Eli’s grip on her arm tightened. His voice was gravel. “The bond’s tearing. If it snaps completely, Silverwood won’t survive the night.”

The Third Bond stepped forward, her fractured mark glowing like a second moon. Jonas was beside her, shoulders squared, eyes glowing brighter than the stars. Together, they looked unstoppable.

“Do you feel it?” the Third Bond whispered, her tone almost reverent. “The forest screaming, begging to be free? That’s not destruction, Guardian. That’s rebirth.”

Lyla spat blood, fury vibrating through her bones. “You’re killing it.”

Jonas’s eyes flickered just for a second. Then he raised his violet blade. “No. We’re saving it.”

The Third Bond thrust her palm toward Lyla. A shockwave of violet fire ripped through the clearing. Lyla braced, silver claws flaring, but the force hurled her into the air. She hit the ground hard, dirt filling her mouth.

“LYLA!” Eli roared, his body half-shifted, fur bristling, eyes wild. He darted toward her, but Jonas intercepted, their blades clashing in a violent spray of sparks.

“You don’t get to touch her,” Jonas snarled, his voice layered, unnatural.

Eli’s reply was pure venom. “She was mine before you crawled back, and she’ll still be mine when I bury you.”

They fought like storms colliding. Eli’s movements were sharp, brutal, born of desperation. Jonas’s were precise, almost mechanical, the Third Bond’s rhythm guiding his every strike. Claws slashed, blades sparked, the ground cracked under their rage.

Dani finally ripped free of the roots and threw herself into the fray. “Corin! Mason! Now or never!”

Corin raised his staff, chanting in a tongue that vibrated in Lyla’s bones. Mason grabbed Dani’s shoulder. “Cover me!” he barked, before charging into the violet storm like a battering ram.

Lyla staggered up, her body screaming in protest. The Third Bond’s laughter cut through the chaos.

“You think they can save you, Guardian? You think your precious Beta can stand against blood?”

Her smirk twisted. “I am blood. His blood. Your blood. All of you belong to me.”

Lyla’s claws dug into her palms. “You’ll never own us.”

The Third Bond tilted her head, cruel delight sparking in her eyes. “Then why is your brother mine already?”

Lyla froze, her heart dropping. Jonas’s blade locked against Eli’s claws. For just a heartbeat, Jonas’s gaze flicked to her raw pain flashing behind the violet. He hesitated. Just barely. But enough.

“Jonas,” she whispered, voice breaking. “You’re still in there. Fight her.”

The Third Bond’s smile faltered, then sharpened again. “No. He chose me.”

But Lyla saw it, the tremor in his stance, the twitch of his jaw, the war raging inside him.

Eli slammed Jonas back, panting hard. Blood trickled down his temple, his shirt torn, his chest heaving. He whipped his head toward Lyla, eyes burning with something fierce and desperate.

“Don’t waste time on him. You’re mine, Lyla. Look at me.”

Her breath hitched. The storm howled around them, but all she saw was him bruised, battered, unbreakable. His voice was a lifeline, dragging her out of despair.

“You hear me? Mine. Not hers. Not his. Mine.”

Her chest tightened, heat coiling low in her stomach even as terror clawed at her ribs. “Eli ”

“Say it.” His demand cracked like thunder. “Say it before this forest swallows us whole.”

The Third Bond shrieked, launching another wave of violet fire. Lyla raised her claws, deflecting it, her voice ringing out, fierce and raw.

“I’m yours, Eli. Always.”

Their eyes locked across the battlefield, tethered by something stronger than magic, stronger than blood.

The Third Bond’s scream shook the air. “ENOUGH!”

She grabbed Jonas’s wrist, forcing his blade upward. Together, they slammed it into the fractured crescent mark on her chest. The violet light exploded, swallowing them both.

Corin’s voice broke, panicked. “She’s using him as a conduit if they merge completely, the Guardian bond won’t exist anymore!”

Mason cursed. “Then how the hell do we stop it?”

Corin’s hands trembled. “There’s only one way. Sever the connection.”

Dani’s head whipped around. “You mean kill her?”

Corin’s eyes were grim. “Kill both of them.”

Lyla froze. Her pulse thundered. Kill Jonas? Her brother, broken but still there?

“No,” she whispered. “There has to be another way.”

Eli snarled, teeth bared. “Lyla. Look at them. That thing isn’t your brother anymore. If we don’t end this ”

“I won’t kill him!” she screamed, silver flames bursting from her claws. “Don’t you dare ask me to.”

The Third Bond’s laughter echoed, louder, sharper. “And that’s why you’ll lose.”

“Lyla!”

Eli’s voice snapped like a whip. His hands gripped her arms, forcing her to steady. The battlefield roared, but he was the only thing holding her together. “If you hesitate, they’ll take everything. You know that.”

Tears blurred her vision, though the silver flames on her claws burned hotter. “He’s my brother.” Her voice cracked. “He’s still in there I can feel it.”

Eli’s jaw clenched, eyes storming. “And I feel you. I feel the Guardian bond ripping apart. If you let this drag out, it won’t just kill him, Lyla. It’ll kill you too. And I won’t let that happen.”

Their foreheads touched, sweat, blood, and ash between them. His whisper was raw, a thread of desperation. “I’d rather damn myself than lose you.”

Her breath stuttered. She wanted to kiss him, to cling to him, to forget the war blazing around them. But the storm howled, and Jonas’s scream split the night half his voice, half the Third Bond’s.

“Lyla!” Jonas’s eyes flared violet, but behind the glow, she saw him. A flash of pain, of regret. “Do it. Please before she ” His words choked off, drowned in violet fire.

The Third Bond jerked his body back into her control, smirking through him. “See? Even your brother begs for release. And still you hesitate. That’s why you’ll never truly be Alpha.”

Lyla’s claws trembled, her chest heaving. Every instinct screamed at her to fight but how do you fight when victory means killing family?

A blast of violet energy ripped outward, hurling Mason and Dani across the clearing. Corin staggered, his staff sparking violently, almost snapping in half.

“We can’t hold this much longer!” he shouted. “Every second she drains him, the bond unravels more!”

Eli shoved Lyla aside as Jonas lunged, blade slashing down. Sparks exploded as Eli caught the strike on his claws, muscles straining. Their faces were inches apart, growls vibrating in their throats.

“You think you can have her?” Eli spat, fangs bared. “Over my dead body.”

The Third Bond laughed through Jonas’s mouth, low and venomous. “That can be arranged.”

The blade inched closer to Eli’s throat. Lyla’s heart seized. She launched forward, silver fire blazing, slamming into Jonas with a scream. The three of them collided, claws, steel, and fire locked in a desperate storm.

For a heartbeat, Lyla’s palm pressed flat against Jonas’s chest. Beneath the burning violet light, she felt it, the flutter of his true bond, faint, fragile, but there. His voice brushed her mind, broken and soft.

Lyla… don’t let her win. Whatever it takes… don’t let her win.

Her claws flared. She could sever the bond now. She could end it. But ending it meant ending him.

“Don’t make me do this,” she begged, tears cutting through ash on her face. “Please, don’t make me choose.”

Eli’s snarl cut across the chaos. “Lyla! Do it now!” His voice cracked. “I can’t hold him!”

The Third Bond’s laughter turned into a scream, and suddenly Jonas’s body convulsed. The violet mark surged brighter, consuming his chest, crawling across his skin like fire. His head snapped back, and when his eyes met Lyla’s again, they weren’t violet. They were silver. Pure, clear, and full of sorrow.

“Lyla…” His lips trembled. “I love you. Always. But if you hesitate she wins everything. Do it.”

“No!” she cried, claw shaking against his chest. “I can’t ”

“You can.” His voice wavered, but it was his. Fully his. “Because you’re stronger than me. Stronger than all of us. End this… end me.”

Eli’s roar tore through the storm. “LYLA! NOW!”

Her claws glowed, silver fire spiraling higher, ready to strike. The storm shrieked, the ground splitting beneath their feet. Wolves across the clearing cried out as the bond ripped wider.

And then 

A flash of steel cut the air.

Jonas gasped, eyes going wide as blood spilled across his lips. Not from Lyla’s claws. From a blade piercing straight through his back.

The Third Bond shrieked. Lyla froze. Eli’s eyes went feral.

And standing behind Jonas, her blade buried to the hilt was Dani.

Her face was pale, her voice a whisper. “I’m sorry. But you weren’t fast enough.”