Chapter 130 — Newborns

"Brianna, you can't outrun us forever!" Sebastian's roar echoed through the trees.

His massive lycan form moved with lethal grace, his eyes blazing with fury and authority with Ester right beside him.

Brianna glanced over her shoulder, her eyes wide with panic. "Stay quiet," she hissed to the baby, her grip tightening.

"Ester, flank her from the left! Elara, intercept her at the clearing! Boys cover the back! " Sebastian barked, his command slicing through the night.

Ester darted through the shadows, "You're only delaying the inevitable, witch," she snarled. "Give up what you are hiding, and we might go easy on you."

Elara's haunting melody drifted on the wind, shivering down Brianna's spine. " She has a newborn in her arms…hand it over, witch! Make it quick! ”

Brianna's heart pounded with the rhythm of her racing feet. She could feel the child's magic betray her every move.

It was strong. It was powerful.

"This isn't your fight!" she screamed back, desperation edging her voice. "The child is mine !”

Sebastian's growl was a thunderclap.

"That baby belongs with its family, not in your twisted hands.”

With a burst of speed, Brianna vaulted over a fallen tree, her cloak billowing like dark wings. Ester was on her in a flash, her claws outstretched.

Brianna twisted, narrowly avoiding the swipe, but lost her footing and stumbled.

"Gotcha now!" Ester lunged, tackling Brianna to the ground. The impact knocked the breath out of her, and she struggled against Ester's iron grip.

"Hold her down!" Sebastian ordered, closing in. "Elara, secure the child!"

Elara appeared like a wraith, her eyes fixed on the swaddled infant. With a swift motion, she wrenched the baby from Brianna's grasp. "I've got him!" she called out, cradling the child gently but firmly.

Brianna screamed, a sound of pure rage and frustration. "You don't understand! The prophecy…"

"Save it, Brianna," Sebastian growled, his presence looming over her. "Your lies end here.”

Ester pinned Brianna's arms behind her back, her breath hot and angry in her ear. "You've caused enough trouble. I am not particularly in the mood for more bullshit! Time to face the music.”

As Elara pulled back the cloak from the baby's face, she froze, her breath catching in her throat. The baby's eyes, wide and innocent, were a mirror image of David's.

Tears began to roll down her cheeks, unbidden and unstoppable. The forest seemed to still, the echoes of the chase fading into a haunting silence.

"Elara?" Ester called out, watching her crumble. "What's wrong?”

The baby's gaze, so familiar and piercing, held her captive. She gently touched the child's cheek, her tears falling onto his tiny face. "David's," was all that she could whisper, her voice breaking.

Ester, still holding Brianna down, glanced up sharply at Elara's tone. She saw the baby, saw Elara's tears, and realization struck her like a physical blow.

"No... it can't be," she murmured, her grip on Brianna tightening. “Brianna, is that...Where is Aria?"

"It's David's," Elara choked out, barely able to speak through her sobs. "This is David's baby.”

Elara seemed lost in a world of her own.

“You took my brother's child?" Ester growled, her voice low and dangerous. "Why?"

Brianna struggled against Ester's hold, her defiance flickering. "You don't understand," she spat. "The prophecy…”.

Brianna's struggles suddenly ceased, a flicker of regret crossing her face. "I... I was trying to protect him," she said, her voice trembling. "I thought…"And then a smirk crossed as she pulled out a pearl and smashed it.

“ It doesn't matter anymore. You are all done for. The darkness is coming. ”

"Save it," Sebastian cut her off, his voice cold and unyielding. "You took him from his family. There will be consequences.”

Ester’s nails dug into Brianna's skin, her rage barely contained. "Where did you get him? Where is Aria?”

Brianna's laughter rang out, chilling the night air. "It's not a him, it's her…and Aria is dead," she said with a twisted smile. "And soon, so will you all be. The darkness is coming, and there is nothing you can do to stop it.”

Suddenly, a shadow emerged from the tree line, moving with a deadly silence. Ragnar, his massive frame dwarfing even Sebastian, stepped into the clearing. In his arms, he carried the limp body of Aria.

"Ragnar?" Sebastian's voice faltered, the mere sight of him brought back terrors from their last encounter.

He protectively stepped in front of Ester as she gaped at the sight of Aria's immobile body. Her eyes, not bothering to look at her father.

“ Did you… ”

Ragnar's expression was grave as he laid Aria gently on the ground. "I found her like this," he said, his voice a deep rumble.

Ester's eyes widened in shock and realization, her grip on Brianna loosening for a moment. "No... Aria...No! This can't be. Where is David?"

Her voice broke, tears welling up in her eyes. She looked back at Brianna, her fury reignited. "What have you done? Where is my brother?”

Brianna's smile faded, replaced by a look of triumph. "You think you can stop the prophecy? The darkness will consume everything. The child is the key…”

Brianna's eyes gleamed with mad malevolence. “The child carries the power to either save or destroy us all. By taking him, I set events into motion that cannot be undone.”

Ester grabbed her by the neck and hurled her above the ground, dangling in midair.

“ Where is David? I am not playing around anymore, woman! What did you all do to him? ”

“ Ahhh! Ester, calm down! Your brother is alright! He will be rushing here in a moment, just give me some time. ”

Ragnar's eyes suddenly darkened.

Without warning, he lunged at Aria's limp body, his massive hand transforming into claws mid-air.

The movement was so swift and brutal that it took everyone by surprise.

“ Nooooooooo! ”

They couldn't even yell in unison as his claws aimed directly for her heart, intending to rip through her chest with deadly precision.

***

Back at the SilverScales Pack-

Ava's hands trembled as she held the newborn birthed by Seraphina, upside down.

Its tiny forms barely fit into her grasp.

The baby's skin was an eerie shade of ashen gray, and its eyes, voids of infinite darkness, stared back at her. There was a transparent layer over its heart and it beat with an unusual rhythm. It slithered in and out of transparency.

With a gasp of horror, Ava recoiled and let go, the realization hitting her like a thunderclap.

Lucas, who had been watching intently, reacted with lightning speed. He lunged forward, catching the baby mere inches before it hit the ground. His heart pounded in his chest as he cradled the infant protectively.

"Ava, what were you thinking?" he scolded, his voice tight with fear and anger.

She glanced back at the unconscious Seraphina and then back at Lucas.

“ What did you do with her? Did you… ”

This child belonged to the darkness, it also had werewolf features but what surprised Ava was its features belonging to the Jinns.

Ava's face was a mask of terror, her eyes wide and unblinking. "I didn’t know... I couldn’t tell until just now. It's an abomination. Even if we compare it with us. You can't keep it, Lucas. This... thing...You will be punished. We will be punished…Damn! Why is it so difficult for men to keep it in their pants? ”

Lucas held the baby close, a mixture of dread and awe in his gaze. He and Ava were no strangers to darkness; both had made wicked deals that bound them to it. Yet this was something different.

"Calm down, Ava. We need to think rationally. I had no idea this bitch had been chosen for the seed. I would never…”

“ But you did! ” Ava retorted. “ Damn! I was just trying to survive out here. Why is it so damn complicated to live! ”

She started pacing the room with her hands over her head.

“What are we going to do?” Lucas's voice was weaker this time.

“We get rid of it before we are caught! We can't let it stay here. It’s too dangerous. The darkness has many seeds. Not all bloom. We can hope this one will go unnoticed as well! "

Ava rubbed her hands, thinking.

Lucas looked at her sharply. "And how do you propose we do that? We can't just abandon it."

“No! We need to destroy it," Ava said, desperation creeping into her voice.

Lucas felt a chill run down his spine. Ava's eyes pleaded with him. "Lucas, you know what this means. If we don’t act now, we might regret it forever."

Lucas sighed, his mind racing, his voice tinted with emotions that he didn't know existed. "I know, Ava. But there has to be another way. Maybe we can find someone who knows how to handle this, someone who…”

Before he could finish, a sharp sensation pierced through him, like the snapping of a pearl. He clutched his chest, a groan escaping his lips.

Oedipus inside him growled.

Ava stepped forward concern replacing her fear.

"Lucas, what’s happening?”

Lucas struggled to speak, the summoning pulling at him with an irresistible force. "I’m being summoned. I don't know by whom, but it's powerful. Take the baby... hide it somewhere safe until I return. We can't let anyone know about this, not yet.”

Ava nodded but she just made one big mistake.

She touched Lucas's shoulder as she nodded, the baby still in her arms.

A summoning magic for a jinn is stronger than the earth's magnetic pull.

She seemed to have forgotten that.

In an instant, she got sucked in it along with Lucas and the life in her arms, of which she was so scared.