Chapter 19 Nineteen
The moment Koda and Harper burst into the main hall, chaos swallowed them whole.
Music had stopped. Lights flickered wildly. Students screamed and scrambled in every direction, knocking over tables, spilling drinks, tripping over each other in blind panic. The once-luxurious house now felt like a war zone—glass shattered underfoot, the air thick with fear and the sharp, metallic scent of blood.
And at the center of it all—
Kai.
Or rather, Kai and the thing he was fighting.
“What the heck is that?” Harper breathed, her voice barely audible over the screaming as her eyes locked onto the massive, fur-covered beast circling Kai.
The creature was enormous—twisted muscle and dark, matted fur, its eyes glowing an unnatural yellow. Its movements were erratic, feral, like it was driven purely by hunger and rage. This wasn’t a normal wolf. It was wrong.
“That’s a rogue beast,” Koda said tightly, already shifting his stance. His shoulders squared, his jaw clenched. “Very dangerous. Completely untamed.”
Before Harper could even process his words, the beast lunged again.
Kai barely dodged it, claws slicing through the air where his head had been a second earlier. He hadn’t fully transformed—only partial claws, glowing eyes, fangs bared. He was fast, skilled—but it was obvious he was holding back.
Too much.
The rogue slammed into him with brutal force.
Gasps erupted from the crowd.
Kai was sent flying across the room like a rag doll, his body crashing hard into the wall. The sound was sickening—a dull, heavy thud that echoed through the hall.
“Kai!” Koda roared.
Kai slid down the wall and collapsed to the floor, unmoving for a terrifying second.
Panic exploded.
People screamed louder, some rushing for exits, others frozen in place. A girl fell while trying to run, crying as someone dragged her back up. The rogue beast turned, its attention shifting from Kai to easier prey.
It attacked.
Students scattered as the creature snapped and swiped, claws shredding furniture like paper. Someone screamed in pain. Someone else shouted for help. No one knew where to go.
Harper backed away instinctively, heart pounding so hard it felt like it would tear out of her chest. She pressed herself against the wall, trying to stay unseen.
I don’t have a wolf. I can’t fight this.
Her breathing became shallow.
Then—
The beast’s head snapped toward her.
Its glowing eyes locked onto hers.
Harper’s blood ran cold.
“Oh no,” she whispered.
Time slowed.
The rogue growled low, saliva dripping from its fangs as it crouched, muscles coiling. Harper’s body refused to move—fear rooting her to the spot. She knew she couldn’t outrun it. She knew she couldn’t fight it.
She closed her eyes.
So this is it.
The beast launched.
A blur of motion cut through the air—
“KODA!” someone screamed.
Koda slammed into the rogue midair, knocking it sideways with a ferocious snarl. The two crashed into a table, splintering it on impact. Drinks exploded everywhere, glass raining down as the beast rolled and recovered with a furious roar.
Harper gasped, dropping to her knees as the world rushed back in.
Koda stood between her and the rogue now, chest heaving, eyes glowing dangerously. His growl vibrated through the floor—low, primal, furious.
“You do not touch her,” he snarled.
The beast charged again.
Koda met it head-on.
Claws clashed. Teeth snapped. They slammed into walls, knocked over couches, tearing through the room in a whirlwind of violence. The fight was messy—confusing—raw. Students screamed every time the beast got too close or Koda was thrown back.
Kai groaned behind them, struggling to push himself up.
“Koda—behind you!” Harper screamed.
The rogue swiped wildly, catching Koda across the shoulder and sending him skidding across the floor. Harper’s heart stopped.
“Koda!” she cried, scrambling toward him before stopping herself.
The beast turned back toward her.
Again.
No.
Koda forced himself up, blood dripping down his arm, fury blazing in his eyes. He didn’t hesitate this time.
He shifted.
Not fully—but enough.
His form surged with power, eyes burning bright as he tackled the rogue once more. This time, he didn’t let go. They crashed through a doorway, disappearing into another room as the sounds of snarling, crashing, and roaring shook the house.
For a moment, all that remained was screaming, confusion, and the sharp realization that nothing about this night was accidental.
Harper stared after them, shaking.
Koda kept fighting.
Blood slicked the floor beneath his feet, his breaths coming out rough and uneven, but he didn’t slow down. If anything, he grew more vicious—every strike fueled by one singular instinct: protect.
The rogue beast lunged again, claws tearing through the air where Harper had stood moments earlier. Koda intercepted it with a savage growl, slamming his shoulder into its ribcage. The impact sent both of them crashing into the wall, the force cracking wood and plaster.
Harper stumbled backward, panic clawing up her throat.
“Koda!” she screamed, her voice breaking as she watched him stagger.
The house felt too small now. Too fragile to contain the violence tearing through it. Furniture lay overturned, walls smeared with blood and claw marks. Students hid behind stair rails, under tables, some crying openly while others filmed with shaking hands before someone slapped the phones out of their grip.
This wasn’t entertainment anymore.
This was survival.
The rogue snapped at Koda’s face, teeth grazing his cheek. Koda roared in pain and rage, grabbing the beast by the throat and throwing it across the room. It crashed into a pillar, cracking it clean down the middle—but it got back up almost immediately, shaking its head like the damage meant nothing.
“That thing isn’t slowing down,” Harper whispered, her hands trembling.
Kai, still slumped against the wall, forced himself to his knees. His head rang, vision blurred, but the moment he saw Koda take another hit, clarity punched through the pain.
“Koda!” Kai shouted hoarsely. “Stop pushing yourself—you’re going too far!”
But Koda didn’t hear him.
Or maybe he did—and didn’t care.
The rogue charged again, faster this time, its movements wild and unpredictable. Koda barely dodged, claws raking across his side. He hissed sharply, blood spilling freely now. Harper’s stomach twisted.
He’s going to get killed.
Without thinking, Harper took a step forward.
“Stop!” she cried, though she knew the beast wouldn’t understand her words.
But Koda did.
For half a second—just half—his head snapped in her direction.
That moment of distraction cost him.
The rogue slammed into him with brutal force, driving him into the ground. Its claws pinned his shoulders, its jaws lowering toward his throat.
Harper screamed.
“Koda!”
Something inside him snapped.
A shockwave rippled through the room—strong enough to knock people off their feet. The rogue was thrown back violently, crashing into the ceiling before dropping hard to the floor.
Silence fell.
Not peace—just stunned, horrified quiet.
Koda rose slowly.
Too slowly.
His body trembled as he pushed himself upright, shoulders rolling as if something inside him was struggling to break free. His breathing sounded wrong now—deeper, heavier, almost distorted.
Kai’s heart skipped.
“No…” he muttered.
The rogue staggered to its feet again, clearly confused now. It growled uncertainly, backing away a step.
Koda straightened fully.
The air around him felt charged, thick with pressure. The lights flickered violently, glass rattling in window frames. Harper felt it too—a strange heat spreading across her skin, her chest tightening as if she were standing too close to a storm.
“Koda…” she whispered.
He didn’t respond.
The rogue lunged one last time.
Koda moved faster than before—too fast.
He caught the beast mid-attack, lifting it off the ground with a roar that didn’t sound entirely human. He slammed it down, once—twice—each impact cracking the floor beneath them. The rogue whimpered, finally showing fear.
Koda stood over it, chest heaving.
And then—
His eyes changed.
Harper’s breath hitched.
At first, they flashed yellow—the familiar glow of a wolf.
Then red flared beneath it.
Yellow and red.
Together.
Power rolled off him in violent waves, forcing everyone back. Kai froze completely, terror and disbelief crashing into him at once.
“Oh no…” Kai breathed, eyes widening in horror.
“This can’t be happening right now.”