Chapter 6: The Creature Beneath the Roots
The howl had silenced everything.
No wind.
No animals.
No sound but the ringing in Ethan's ears.
He stood frozen beside Ava in the ruins of the old church, both of them staring toward the forest where the scream had come from. Ethan's wolf stirred just beneath his skin, uneasy. Not scared. But… respectful.
That wasn't a vampire's cry.
It wasn't a wolf's either.
It was something else.
Older.
"We have to move," Ava whispered, her voice sharper than it had ever been.
Ethan turned to her. "You recognized that."
Ava nodded grimly. "Barely. It's a sound from history, not memory. My clan elders used to whisper about things that lived before vampires… before wolves. Things that were buried for a reason."
"And now they're awake."
Ava's eyes flashed. "Yes. And something must have triggered it."
---
They sprinted into the forest.
Ethan didn't question the direction. Ava seemed to follow something only she could feel. She was silent, swift, and terrifyingly focused. He kept pace, but barely.
The forest around them shifted as they ran.
What once felt like wilderness now felt cursed — the trees gnarled like bones, the air thick with tension, and the soil soft and damp, like it had been freshly dug.
After nearly an hour, they stopped at a cliffside. At the base, surrounded by ancient stone pillars, lay a sunken cavern — circular, black-mouthed, and pulsing with a faint red glow.
Ethan knelt beside it, sniffed. "Blood."
Ava stepped back. "It's not just blood. It's power. This place is a seal. Or was."
She looked at the stone pillars. Five total. One had shattered.
Ethan stood. "What happens when all five break?"
Ava didn't answer. She didn't have to.
---
They didn't descend the cavern yet.
It wasn't the time.
Instead, they marked the location and retreated, agreeing to return when they were better prepared. As they made their way back, Ethan's thoughts turned heavy.
"What if we're too late?" he asked as they walked.
Ava glanced at him. "Then everything burns."
---
Back at the estate, Ethan didn't sleep.
Instead, he found himself in the war room with Eli again, showing him the mark on his arm, and describing the broken seal.
Eli paled.
"I feared this," he whispered. "You've awakened the First Circle."
Ethan frowned. "The what?"
Eli walked to a dusty bookshelf and retrieved a thick black leather-bound tome. It creaked as he opened it.
"Long before werewolves ruled the wild and vampires drank from the living, there were the Primordials — beings forged from pure magic. Some say they were gods. Others say they were curses."
He flipped through the pages until he found a drawing — the same seal Ethan had seen at the cliff.
Eli tapped the image. "There are five of them. Each seal binds a different Primordial. If one is broken, the others stir. If all five break…" He trailed off.
Ethan finished the sentence. "The Great Shift begins."
Eli nodded solemnly.
---
The next morning, Luca confronted Ethan in the training yard.
"I warned you about her," Luca growled, stepping in close.
Ethan turned, eyes narrow. "You don't know her."
"I know enough," Luca said. "I know that since she showed up, you've been different. Weaker. Distracted."
Ethan clenched his jaw. "You think this is weakness?"
"I think it's love," Luca spat, "and love has no place in war."
Ethan grabbed Luca by the collar and shoved him against a post. "Say that again."
Luca didn't flinch. "Your father would've killed her on sight."
That cut deep.
But Ethan didn't release him.
Instead, he leaned in and whispered, "Maybe that's why he's dead."
Luca's fists tightened, but he said nothing.
When Ethan stepped back, he saw something flash in Luca's eyes.
Not anger.
Not jealousy.
Fear.
And that's when Ethan knew—Luca knew more than he was saying.
---
Later that night, Ethan met Ava in secret. They returned to the cavern, bringing supplies and torches. The deeper they went, the thicker the air became—hot, stinking of sulfur and age.
They reached the bottom chamber.
A ring of broken weapons surrounded a jagged stone altar. Blood stained everything. In the center, a symbol pulsed—identical to the soul-mark on Ethan and Ava's wrists.
"It's tied to us," Ava whispered. "Whatever this creature is… it's connected to our bond."
Ethan crouched. "So if we break the bond—"
"It might weaken it," she said.
"But we don't know how."
"No," she admitted. "But we need to find out before this place opens fully."
---
They returned to the surface just before dawn.
As the light touched Ava's skin, she hissed slightly and pulled her cloak over her head. Ethan watched, part curious, part heartbroken.
"You're really not like them, are you?"
She gave him a tired smile. "I was never like them. That's why I left."
Ethan stepped forward. "And you're really my mate?"
Ava nodded.
"I'm scared of what that means," he said.
"I'm terrified," she replied.
And then, without thinking, they kissed.
It wasn't soft.
It wasn't gentle.
It was desperate, electric, and aching—like two people caught in a storm trying to find something solid to hold onto.
When they broke apart, neither said a word.
They just stood there, breathing hard, soul-marks pulsing with heat between them.
---
That night, back at the estate, Ethan went to confront Luca.
But Luca was gone.
His room empty. His clothes missing.
All that remained was a single note on his bed, scrawled in rough handwriting:
"Forgive me."