Page 163 of When Sisters Collide
Snapping her wrist, she unleashed a scorching gust. The blast hit the soldier full in the face, ripping the breath from his lungs and sending him stumbling into a comrade. Both hit the ground in a tangle of limbs.
Alena swept her gaze over the battlefield, chest heaving. Phoebe fought ahead, her round shield smashing into an enemy’s with a bone-jarringclang, each strike forcing them back. They couldn’t hold for long.
Her eyes turned to the tree line—a jagged wall of black-green pines, their shadows spilling forward. The forest loomed, its stillness unnatural, the silence between the trees heavy enough to smother sound.
Desperation drove her to reach into it with the Huntress’ Gift, silver tendrils of magic unfurling in search of wolves.
But instead of the familiar bonds, the tendrils wrenched tight—iron chains of magic coiling around her.
“Alena!” Phoebe’s voice cut through the chaos behind her.
“Phoebe—”
The force wrenched her off balance, dragging her towards the trees. Her boots carved long furrows through the pine needles. She clawed at trunks, grasped at low branches, but they tore from her grip. The forest swallowed her whole.
The South Wind’s Gift was gone. No whisper of magic answered her call—only the relentless pull, drawing her faster, deeper, until the battlefield vanished behind the shadows of the ancient pines.
Her pulse thundered in her ears. She followed the silver tendrils that should’ve led her to the wolves—and froze.
Massive shapes prowled at the other end, hulking frames bristling, hackles raised, lips peeled back to bare rows of jagged, glistening teeth.
These were not wolves.
Her body jerked to a halt midair, suspended as if on invisible strings. No matter how hard she struggled, she was trapped, something ancient and unseen coiling tighter.
Panic clawed its way up her throat.
From the oppressive stillness, young voices echoed between the trees—soft, singsong, unsettling. “A maiden, a maiden, calling for aid. We hear you, we see you, but there’s a price to be paid.”
Alena’s breath caught. “What price?”
The clash of steel and shouts swelled behind her. She risked a glance over her shoulder—her Gifted eyes picking out flashes of red tunics and glinting steel. Rasennan soldiers were closing in fast. She was a sitting target, pinned like prey in a hunter’s snare. She yanked at the invisible bonds, but it was useless.
“Oh, maiden, oh maiden, the price is your soul. To the forest, to the Huntress, you’ll give yourself whole.”
The words slid through the air, winding around her with the same cold magic that held her fast.
“Join us, maiden,” they whispered in eerie unison, the sound weaving through the forest, echoing the rustle of fallen leaves. “Leave your heart behind. The Huntress will find you, the Huntress will keep you, as hers for all time.”
Alena’s pulse hammered, fear clawing at her ribs, yet her voice held steady. “I can’t stay. I’m the Omega. The Huntress has already Gifted me.”
The forest stilled. Only the faint clash of battle far behind broke through.
Alena held her breath.
After what felt like an eternity, the invisible bonds snapped, and she dropped hard to the forest floor. Pain jolted up her spine. Gritting her teeth, she pushed herself upright and whirled, ready for the Rasennan soldiers to burst through the trees.
Instead, she froze.
A little girl stood before her, no older than Kaixo. She wore a soft white chiton, its purity marred by dirt streaks across her face. Twigs tangled in her wild, dark hair, and her wide brown eyes gleamed with a depth and wisdom far beyond her years.
“Will you be our sister?” the girl asked, her voice soft and melodic. “The Huntress told us how you saved her. We wanted to meet you. Will you play with us?”
Her tiny hand slipped into Alena’s, warm and gentle. Who was she? Where had she come from? Alena didn’t know—but despite the pressing danger, a strange calm bloomed inside her.
The pounding footsteps of soldiers drew nearer, but for a brief moment, Alena knelt, brushing a stray curl from the girl’s cheek. “I’d love to play,” she whispered, heart twisting, “but I have to save my friends. Bad men are coming for us.”
“That’s all right,” the girl said with a sweet smile. “We can watch you play with the hounds instead.”
