Nyxara’s Playground

Nyxara’s Playground
Ivy’s POV

It’s finally happening, isn’t it?

Nyxara stirred under my skin, restless and ready to fight. 

‘Step aside, Ivy,’ she sneered in my mind, teeth gleaming in shadows I couldn’t see. 

‘We need to get this done quickly because I need to go clubbing. It’s been a long time,’ she whined.

‘You’re thinking of clubbing right now? Did you forget for a second that we are married?’ I shot back. 

But she only growled further. ‘Fine. Then, let me tear them all apart. This courtyard will be my playground. I want blood, I want teeth, I want the thrill. If you can’t give me a club, then let me turn this place into my own club!’

‘You’re so dramatic,’ I said to her, rolling my eyes.

‘Watch how dramatic I’ll be when I start tearing into everyone from that abominable pack that once killed me,’ she muttered in head. ‘I bet our mate would want to fuck us right there on the battle ground when he sees how awesome I am,” she purred, making me shiver at the idea.

How vulgar!

I swallowed, hand tightening over the fur of my jacket as a certain type of silence came over me.

The weight of the pup pressed against me and a chill ran down my spine.

‘Let me out,’ I heard her snarl. 

‘Not yet,’ I whispered, letting her teeth slide against the edges of my thoughts. ‘We wait for the signal.’

‘You’re boring,’ she growled. ‘Fine. But remember, when we start, I don’t hold back.’

‘Nyxara. We will be fine…right?’ I asked after a second thought.

‘Of course! I am Nyxara!’ She reassured me and for some reason, I felt lighter.

The barrier around the palace hummed faintly, the air vibrating with Shina’s chants. The priestesses’ voices wound like knives through the night, holding the weave in place. 

Suddenly, it happened.

The night broke with a scream.

Not a human scream, not a faltering one, but the howl of prepared warriors. I felt it coil in my chest, a drumbeat in bone, and I knew the moment had come.

“Now,” I whispered to myself, but it wasn’t me who moved.

Nyxara slid awake, stretching inside me like a shadow with claws. 

‘Finally,’ she purred. ‘The playground is open. The music is blood, the floor is teeth, and Leo is mine to dance beside.’

I exhaled and let her take over, retreating to the corner of my mind. I could still feel everything…the smell of the courtyard, the chant of the priestesses inside, the pounding of Dina against the barrier…but Nyxara was the predator now. She flexed her claws, flexed her gray massive body inside me, and when the transformation hit, I let her howl through me.

I stepped out onto the courtyard as Nyxara fully emerged. My hands became claws, my senses became knife-sharp, and my gray wolf crouched low, fur bristling, muscles ready to spring. Beside me, Leo’s huge brown wolf mirrored me perfectly, nuzzling into me for a brief second.

The enemies came, unaware. They had crossed the perimeter, thinking the festival was really happening. 

They did not know the king, his queen and their people had been waiting, sharpening claws on wood, on stone, in the dark hours when no one could watch.

They ran straight into our trap and we had them right at the spot where we wanted them. Our enemies realized too late…they were inside a cage we carefully built for them.

They thought they were smart. But we let them in ourselves.

Nyxara lunged first, a blur of gray fur and teeth, and I let her fully take over. The world narrowed to the scent of blood and the sound of hearts hammering in terror. One wolf tried to flank us…Nyxara spun and sank her fangs into its neck. It fell before it could cry out, fur flying, blood spilling like paint on stone.

Leo’s brown wolf answered immediately, teeth finding gaps in armor, jaws snapping, claws tearing. Back-to-back, we were tearing down our enemies while protecting each other. 

Our warriors fanned out, closing the courtyard into a trap. Every entrance, every shadow, every angle was cut off. We took them out easily because we had them surrounded.

I could hear Dina’s fists against the barrier, could smell her anger and frustration beyond the palace walls. The priestesses’ chants hummed like a live wire across the courtyard, keeping her at bay. Shina’s voice rose and fell, a song of fire and power.

We struck in unison. Nyxara twisted, lunging at one wolf while Leo’s brown form tore into another. A howl erupted somewhere to the left; a wolf fell, pinned, blood dripping into the cracks of stone. Another leapt for Leo; Nyxara intercepted it with teeth clamped over the shoulder, claws raking into the back.

I watched from the corner of my mind, proud and detached as my wolf tore into men like she was starved and finally feasting.

Nyxara danced across the battlefield like she owned it. Her gray fur slick with blood, her eyes bright with carnage. She turned, letting Leo’s brown wolf mirror every strike, and together we tore through them, teeth and claws flashing, snapping, biting.

A wolf lunged at me from behind…Nyxara pivoted mid-air, spinning it down to the stone. Blood sprayed, staining my fur, my face, my hands. I laughed, a deep, guttural sound that belonged to the wolf and not me, and lunged at another.

We became a whirlwind of teeth, claws, and movement. Every wolf who thought themselves clever enough to breach the courtyard’s lines fell before us. We were precise, unstoppable, back-to-back, moving like one creature. I could feel Leo’s energy beside me, steady, strong, and my wolf swelled with pride.

Some dared to reach for the edges, trying to escape. Nyxara cut them off, circling, teeth sinking, claws raking. I could see the terror in their eyes when they realized we were prepared, smell it, taste it…it was like candy, like fire, and it drove us faster, hungrier.

Every step we took closed the trap tighter. The courtyard became a river of blood and fur slick underfoot, and Nyxara howled over it all. She was wild, untamed, the predator I had always dreamed of letting loose.

And then the world shifted. Amid the chaos, the air shivered, the scent of death mingling with something older, darker. 

Alpha Raul appeared at the center, the carnage parting around him like a tide obeying his presence. His fur receded, claws pulling into fingers, muscles folding, shrinking. His transformation into human threw Nyxara into a fit of rage, seeing the man who killed her.

He stepped forward, eyes scanning the battlefield, past the wolves, past the blood, past me and Leo standing back-to-back, untouchable. A slow smile curved his lips.

“Well,” he said, voice smooth and cold. “It seems we walked right into your trap, Your Majesty.”