Chapter 48 The Creature’s Fury
The forest went silent.
Not quiet — silent.
No wind.
No birds.
No breath from the world outside the barrier.
Lina felt the hairs rise on the back of her neck as Kael lifted her gently into a seated position, staying pressed close, one arm around her back. Her body still trembled from the soul-strain, but she forced herself to focus.
Because something was coming.
Something massive.
Something enraged.
Riven’s daggers were already drawn.
Yara’s bowstring trembled with tension.
Aric stood slightly in front of Cassian, hands glowing in defensive runes.
Cassian leaned weakly against a fallen stone column, silver-light flickering beneath his skin like lightning trapped under flesh.
“Kael…” Lina whispered.
He didn’t look away from the tree line.
His voice dropped to a low, protective growl.
“I know.”
The shadows thickened—
twisting, churning, gathering—
Until they formed the outline of something in the trees.
Something huge.
A voice tore through the forest, deep and guttural, vibrating through the barrier:
“VALERIUSSSS.”
Yara stepped back, eyes wide. “That’s not Cassian’s voice…”
“No,” Cassian rasped, gripping his chest.
“That’s the creature itself.”
Kael shifted his stance protectively in front of Lina, though she kept a firm grip on his arm and refused to move behind him completely.
The creature stepped forward.
And its true form emerged.
A towering shape of shadow and bone.
Over ten feet tall.
Limbs elongated and twisted.
A head that looked nearly wolfish, but stretched unnaturally, as if sculpted out of fear itself.
Its eyes—
Two burning white voids.
Empty.
Endless.
Hungry.
Lina’s breath hitched painfully.
Kael snarled, shifting partially — his fangs extending, muscles tensing, his wolf ready to rip this thing to pieces.
Aric whispered, “Gods help us…”
The creature placed one clawed, shadowed hand against the barrier.
The barrier trembled like a frightened heartbeat.
Lina felt the impact in her soul.
She gasped and Kael instantly steadied her, his arm tightening around her waist.
The creature leaned in.
Its distorted voice rolled through the clearing—
“You took what is mine.”
Kael bared his fangs.
“You mean my brother?” he growled.
“He was never yours.”
The creature’s head tilted.
“Not him.”
Kael stiffened.
Lina froze.
The creature lifted a claw the size of a human torso—
and pointed directly at Lina.
“Her.”
Kael snarled so violently the ground cracked beneath him.
“You don’t touch her.”
The creature’s mouth curled into a semblance of a smile—
too wide, too sharp, too wrong.
“Give.
Her.
To me.”
Kael’s voice dropped into a deadly, quiet growl.
“Over my dead body.”
The creature’s massive claw pressed harder against the barrier — cracks spiderwebbing instantly.
Aric cursed under his breath.
“It shouldn’t break that easily—Lina, it’s targeting you. It’s feeding on the bond.”
Lina’s chest squeezed.
Her magic sparked painfully.
“I can reinforce—” she began.
“No.” Kael’s voice was iron.
“You almost died an hour ago. You’re not touching that barrier.”
The creature tilted its head again.
“You love her.”
Kael didn’t move.
Didn’t deny it.
The creature’s voice deepened, shaking the trees.
“Love makes a soul… ripe.”
A ripple of horror cut through the group.
Riven gagged. “Okay. That’s the most disturbing thing I’ve ever heard. And I’ve seen Kael kill a demon with a rock.”
Yara whispered, “It wants her soul—”
Aric gritted his teeth.
“No. It wants her power. Her Valerius magic. The creature is old, but it’s incomplete. If it consumes her energy, it will become unstoppable.”
Kael’s golden eyes blazed like fire.
“You will never touch her,” he snarled.
The creature pressed harder against the barrier—
the cracks widened—
Lina felt her magic draining, pulling toward the breaking point.
Kael grabbed her hands instantly.
His magic wrapped around hers like a protective shield.
She gasped.
“Kael—”
“I’ve got you,” he whispered fiercely.
“Stay with me.”
But the pressure increased—
Lina’s body trembled—
the bond flared painfully—
Cassian struggled to stand, gripping the stone for support.
“Kael,” he rasped, voice shaking, “it’s going to break through. We need—”
His words cut off as the creature’s second arm slammed into the barrier.
CRACK.
The entire barrier flickered—
Then held.
But barely.
Lina cried out, collapsing to her knees, clutching her chest.
The creature laughed.
A long, slow, echoing sound of triumph.
Kael caught her, lifting her instantly into his arms.
“Lina—sweetheart—stay with me—”
She gasped, sweat dripping down her forehead.
“It’s… hitting the bond… directly…”
Aric shouted, “It’s trying to rip her soul from you! Kael—shield her—NOW!”
Kael didn’t hesitate.
He wrapped his arms around her, one hand cradling her head, the other pressed over her heart.
He closed his eyes—
And opened the bond fully again.
All the way.
The explosion of magic nearly knocked Aric backward.
Kael’s golden power wrapped around Lina’s silver glow like armor—
shielding her, covering her, anchoring her—
Lina gasped as warmth flooded her chest.
Kael whispered into her hair:
“I won’t let him take you.
I won’t.
I won’t.”
The creature slammed into the barrier again—
CRACK.
This time, pieces of light shattered like glass.
Yara shouted, “It’s breaking through!”
Riven stepped forward, blades ready. “Let it. I’ll stab its face.”
“Riven, its face is twelve feet high!” Yara yelled.
“I’ll jump!”
Aric lifted both arms.
“I can reinforce the barrier for a moment, but not long—Kael, Lina, prepare yourselves—”
Kael gently pulled Lina up to her feet, keeping her in his arms because her legs couldn’t hold her weight.
Her head rested against his shoulder, but her eyes sharpened with determination.
“Kael…” she whispered.
“Yes?”
“If it breaks through… we fight together.”
He held her tighter.
“Always,” he whispered.
The creature drew back its massive arm—
The barrier screamed under the pressure—
Lina and Kael’s bonded magic flared—
Cassian tried to stand—
Aric chanted—
Riven yelled something profane—
Yara drew an arrow glowing with runic fire—
And the creature roared—
“MINE.”
It struck.
The barrier shattered—
BOOM—
Light exploded outward—
A shockwave tore through the ruins—
And the creature lunged straight for them.
Kael shoved Lina behind him—
But she grabbed his hand—
And the moment its claws reached them—
Their joined magic ignited.