The universe doesn't just shake—
it splits.
A blinding burst of silver light detonates from deep inside the Primordial's core, sending shockwaves through the void so violently that even the ancient hands gripping me hesitate.
For a moment, it feels like gravity loses meaning.
The void stretches.
Contracts.
Screams.
And then—
through the swirling gold-red storm—
I see him.
Aiden.
Not falling.
Not chained.
Not dying.
RISING.
Silver fire spills from his body like he's carrying a star inside his ribs.
Every tendril holding him trembles, then cracks.
The Primordial's twelve glowing eyes snap wide.
"Impossible."
Aiden isn't a wolf anymore.
He's something more.
His fur burns with moving light.
His muscles ripple like molten silver.
His eyes blaze pure moonlight—older, deeper, more dangerous than I've ever seen.
He lands on all fours, claws digging into the void like it's solid ground.
He lifts his head.
And he growls.
Not a normal growl.
Not an Alpha's growl.
Something bigger.
Something primal.
Something divine.
The sound travels through the void like a crack in reality.
My heart stops.
"Aiden…" I whisper, voice trembling.
"What… what are you?"
He doesn't answer.
He doesn't even look at himself.
He looks at me.
Like he only exists to reach me.
The bond between us ignites—
silver, gold, and black swirling violently until I feel it in my bones.
The ring of molten red-gold binding me pulses,
as if it recognizes Aiden's power and fears it.
Aiden lunges.
The void reacts instantly—
five massive hands rise to intercept him.
He doesn't slow.
He doesn't hesitate.
He hits the first hand with so much force it shatters like glass.
Fragments of starlight scatter around him, dissolving into sparks.
The Primordial roars.
"YOU—!!"
Aiden leaps again.
The second hand swings toward him—
but he dodges with impossible speed, twisting mid-air, claws tearing through the wrist.
Silver fire burns the wound.
The Primordial howls in pain.
Aiden lands on the back of a third hand, slamming his jaws into it.
When he pulls back, a chunk of glowing matter rips free.
The void convulses.
Power screams through the air.
"STOP THIS!"
the Primordial bellows,
its voice shaking the realm.
Aiden snarls,
"THEN LET HER GO!"
The Primordial's twelve eyes turn to me—
then to Aiden—
studying us.
I feel something cold slip through my spine.
Fear.
But not mine.
The Primordial's.
It is afraid of him.
"Aiden—!"
My voice cracks with awe and terror both.
"You're hurting it!"
"Good!" he growls,
his fur blazing brighter.
"Stay with me, Liyana! I'm getting you out!"
The void thickens around him—
hands multiplying, like the realm itself is trying to crush him.
A giant fist swings toward him.
He leaps—
Barely escaping as the impact shakes the entire core.
"Aiden—BE CAREFUL—!"
He doesn't listen.
He can't.
His eyes are locked on me.
Only me.
Every movement he makes
Every breath he takes
Every blast of silver fire—
Is for me.
The Primordial tries again.
Three hands slam downward—
Aiden dodges the first.
Slides under the second.
Jumps off the third—
Straight toward me.
He almost reaches me.
Our fingers almost touch.
But then—
The Primordial's voice echoes like thunder.
"ENOUGH."
A single enormous hand—
bigger than the others—
erupts from the heart of the void,
glowing with red-gold fury.
It grabs Aiden mid-air.
He roars in agony
as the hand crushes him like a fist of pure gravity.
"AIDEN!!"
My scream rips out of my chest.
"LET HIM GO—LET HIM GO—STOP IT—!!"
The Primordial's voice drops low.
"Your wolf is powerful."
A pause.
"Too powerful."
Aiden thrashes, silver fire exploding from his body—
but the giant hand only tightens.
His ribs bend.
Bones creak.
Blood spills from his mouth.
"No—NO—NO—!!"
I fight the molten ring holding me, wings flaring wildly.
"I SAID LET HIM GO!"
The Primordial tilts its great, shifting head.
"His power is young.
Untamed.
A spark ignited by you.
I will extinguish it."
My heart stops.
"You can't—YOU CAN'T—!!"
Aiden chokes, but still snarls:
"DON'T—Liyana—DON'T LET IT—TOUCH YOU—RUN—"
"NO!" I scream.
"I'm not leaving you in here! I'm never leaving you!"
The Primordial's gaze sharpens.
"Then choose."
My breath freezes.
"Choose… what?"
"Your throne."
Aiden's eyes widen in horror.
"Liyana—DON'T LISTEN—DON'T YOU DARE—"
The Primordial continues:
"Accept your nature.
Become what you were born to be.
And your wolf lives."
Ice floods my veins.
My wings curl inward.
"No…"
I whisper.
"No, no—don't do this—"
"Claim your inheritance,"
the Primordial says,
"and he walks free."
Aiden thrashes so hard the void shakes with him.
"NO!!
NO, LIYANA—LOOK AT ME—DON'T LISTEN—DON'T LET IT CONTROL YOU—LISTEN TO MY VOICE—"
I stare at him,
silver fire bleeding down his fur,
ribs cracking,
still fighting for me.
He's dying.
And still his voice is the same.
Save yourself.
Not me.
My eyes blur with tears.
"Aiden… I can't lose you."
His voice breaks.
"You won't.
Just don't—give—yourself—away—"
The Primordial floats closer.
"You are more than Moon.
More than Shadow.
More than mortal.
You are my first-born."
Everything inside me shatters.
"No…"
I whisper.
"I am NOT your child…"
"You carry my core."
Aiden roars:
"NO SHE DOESN'T—SHE'S HERS—SHE'S MINE—SHE'S NOT YOURS—!!"
The Primordial's voice shakes the void.
"You carry what the gods fear.
POWER without allegiance.
POWER without boundaries.
POWER enough to unmake worlds."
I shake violently.
My wings flare uncontrollably.
"Stop—STOP—LET HIM GO—!!"
The Primordial whispers:
"Choose…
and the wolf lives."
Aiden screams:
"DON'T DO IT!"
My heart slams.
My breath stutters.
My soul pulls in two directions.
If I say yes—
I lose myself.
If I say no—
I lose him.
Silver fire spills from Aiden's body as he tries to break free again—
And the molten ring holding me cracks—
Light bursts out of my chest—
black
gold
and silver.
Exploding like a star.
The Primordial's eyes widen.
Aiden's breath stops.
I look down at myself—
my wings trembling,
shifting into a new shape,
a new color—
Something the void has never seen.
And the chapter ends with:
Liyana's wings turning into a third, unknown form—
as the entire universe holds its breath.