The night was unusually quiet.
A cool breeze drifted through the open-air terrace, carrying the faint scent of pine and damp earth. Somewhere in the distance, the rustling of leaves echoed through the trees, but otherwise, the world was still.
Sky leaned back against the wooden railing, arms crossed, eyes scanning the moonlit landscape. Bright sat opposite him, one leg propped up, idly tossing a coin between his fingers. Phuwin was cross-legged on the ground, scrolling through his tablet, occasionally adjusting his glasses as if the screen held some life-changing secret.
It was peaceful. Too peaceful.
Sky didn't like it.
His instincts had been restless all night, like an itch beneath his skin he couldn't scratch.
A storm was coming. He could feel it.
"…You're brooding again."
Sky blinked. Bright was watching him, golden eyes glinting in the dim light.
"I don't brood," Sky muttered.
Phuwin snorted without looking up. "You do."
Bright smirked. "Yeah, it's your thing. Staring off dramatically into the night, looking like a tragic hero." He flipped the coin again. "Should I start calling you Alpha Shakespeare?"
Sky shot him a glare. "Do you want to get thrown off this balcony?"
Bright grinned, unfazed. "Wouldn't be the first time."
Before Sky could reply, a soft chuckle broke the moment.
Tee.
The vampire sat at the edge of the terrace, barely noticeable in the shadows, his presence quiet but unnerving. Unlike the others, he never looked completely at ease, as if his mind was somewhere else—or everywhere at once.
"You're all quite entertaining," Tee murmured. His voice was low, smooth, carrying an amusement that didn't quite reach his eyes. "It's almost… charming."
Bright raised an eyebrow. "You say that like you're watching a documentary on an endangered species."
Tee tilted his head, lips curving in something that wasn't quite a smile. "Perhaps I am."
Phuwin finally looked up. "You're weird."
"Agreed," Bright added.
Tee only chuckled again. He didn't deny it.
Sky exhaled, turning back to the view. "Shouldn't you be gone by now?"
The vampire's gaze flicked to him. "And miss the fun?"
Sky frowned. "What fun?"
Tee suddenly tilted his head slightly, as if listening to something they couldn't hear.
A fraction of a second later, his entire body stilled.
Not a flinch. Not a twitch.
Just... absolute, unnatural stillness.
Sky's instincts roared to life. Something was wrong.
Tee's fingers clenched around the cigarette case. His lips parted slightly, as if tasting the air, then his entire expression changed.
His usual unreadable calm shattered into something sharp. Urgent.
Sky was already on his feet before the vampire spoke.
"Dew is dying."
The words were ice-cold. Final.
For one split second, the world stopped.
Then—everything inside Sky snapped.
The breath in his lungs turned razor-sharp. His pulse thundered. A violent, uncontrolled snarl ripped from his throat as his wolf surged forward, demanding blood, demanding action.
He didn't think.
Didn't hesitate.
Didn't even question how Tee knew.
All that mattered was that Dew was down. And that meant Nani in the same battle.
And he wasn't there.
Bright was already moving, shifting mid-step, but Tee grabbed his wrist before he could take off.
"I can find them faster," Tee snapped.
Sky didn't care. He was already lunging forward, shifting in the air, his vision bleeding into red as his wolf howled for war.
They didn't have time to think.
Didn't have time to analyze.
Didn't have time to question if they'd even make it in time.
All they could do was run.
-----
The Battlefield
The wind howled past them as Sky ran, his massive form tearing through the forest like a storm given flesh. The world blurred around him—branches snapping in his wake, the scent of damp earth and pine thick in the air—but none of it mattered.
All he could focus on was the overwhelming, suffocating scent of blood.
Too much blood.
Dew's blood.
Nani's.
Win's.
Pond's.
The scent hit Sky like a punch to the gut, almost forcing his wolf to its knees. His vision pulsed red, rage curling through his chest like wildfire, but he shoved it down. Not now. Not yet.
Bright ran beside him, his sleek golden-brown wolf barely making a sound despite the speed. His mate—Win—was somewhere in that chaos, and Sky could feel the tension radiating off him in waves. But Bright didn't speak, didn't hesitate. They had one mission.
Get there. Save them. Kill anything in the way.
Tee was ahead, moving with supernatural grace, his silhouette barely visible in the shifting shadows. The vampire didn't run like a wolf—he glided, his body flickering in and out of sight as he blurred forward at a speed no werewolf could match.
He was following the pull.
The bond.
His mate was dying.
And then—
Gunfire.
Sharp. Precise. A steady, lethal rhythm that cut through the night.
Sky felt the bullets before he saw them, the unmistakable crack of high-caliber rounds slicing through the trees.
Hunters.
And not just any hunters.
Elite. Professional.
Smart enough to track the F4.
Stupid enough to think they could survive the consequences.
A snarl tore through Sky's throat, fury igniting in his veins like wildfire. They dared.
He didn't slow. Didn't stop.
Didn't hesitate.
And then he saw it.
The convoy. The destruction.
The carnage.
One vehicle still burned, its flames licking at the trees, casting jagged shadows against the massacre unfolding in the clearing.
Bodies littered the ground—both wolves and hunters.
But in the middle of it—Nani's father and Pond's father stood, fighting alone.
No backup. No reinforcements.
Just two Alphas against a swarm of hunters.
And they were falling.
Sky didn't think.
He moved.
Faster than instinct, faster than reason—his wolf took over.
A roar ripped through his throat, his claws unsheathing mid-air as he launched at the nearest hunter. Bone crunched beneath his strike.
Another turned, aiming his rifle—too slow.
Sky ripped his throat out.
His vision blurred red.
They dared to attack his kind?
They dared to hunt Nani?
They didn't deserve a quick death.
Bright was already there, shifting mid-air, his wolf form colliding with another hunter. A whirlwind of teeth and claws.
The hunters tried to regroup. Tried to react.
Too late.
Sky's fangs sank into another throat, tearing through armor, flesh, bone.
Nani's father caught sight of him—a flicker of recognition. A brief nod.
No words.
None were needed.
Sky was here.
And he was ending this.
---
Tee moved first.
Tee knew something was wrong before he even saw Dew.
The bond—it was fading.
He didn't hesitate.
Didn't pause.
Didn't even breathe.
He vanished.
And then—
The air ripped apart.
Tee was a shadow—no, something worse. One second, a hunter was aiming his rifle at the wolf, the next—he was gone. A blur of motion, a sickening crunch, and Tee reappeared behind the man, his fingers still curled around what was left of the hunter's skull.
His eyes burned crimson.
His fangs dripped blood.
Then he moved again.
Fast. Lethal. Merciless.
But then, for a second, Tee couldn't breathe.
Then, panic kicked in.
He move. Faster than he ever had.
And then—he found them.
Pond—barely standing, bloodied and bruised.
Win—his gun still raised, his eyes sharp, but his body trembling from exhaustion.
And Dew—
Dying.
Tee froze.
A split second. A single heartbeat.
He dropped to his knees beside Dew, pressing a shaking hand to his chest. Blood soaked through Dew's clothes, warm, sticky.
Too much.
Tee gritted his teeth, his pulse hammering.
He could feel Dew slipping.
No.
Not now.
Not him.
He dug his nails into his own palm, forcing his power outward.
It wasn't healing—not in the way wolves or vampires should.
But it was something.
A desperate, instinctive force—energy bleeding from Tee into Dew, holding him here.
Dew's breath hitched.
His eyes fluttered.
Tee leaned in close, voice low, rough. "Don't you dare."
Dew's lips barely parted. No words.
Tee's jaw tightened. His hands shook against Dew's chest.
He wouldn't let go.
Not until Dew was stable.
Not until he was sure.
And then—
A gunshot.
A sharp gasp.
Tee's head snapped up just in time to see Nani collapse.
Shot.
His body hit the dirt. Still.
A second later, someone caught him.
Sky.
---
Sky barely registered the gunfire.
One second, Nani was standing.
The next—he was falling.
Sky moved before thought. Before reason.
He caught Nani's limp body before he hit the ground, his arms locking around him as if he could hold him together just by sheer will.
The scent of blood hit him like a blade to the gut.
Nani's blood.
For a split second, the world stopped.
His shallow, uneven breaths. The warmth draining from his body.
Sky's claws dug into the dirt.
Something inside him shattered.
He lifted his head.
The hunter who fired the shot was still there.
Still breathing.
Sky's body went cold.
His wolf roared inside him, a violent, primal force—not just anger. Not just rage.
A need to destroy.
The hunter barely had time to react before Sky was on him.
A blur of motion.
Fangs. Claws. Flesh ripping.
A scream—cut short.
The hunter's body crumpled. Unrecognizable.
The other hunters froze.
For the first time—they hesitated.
Sky's eyes snapped to them.
And then—he moved.
Faster than instinct. Faster than thought.
A second hunter raised his rifle—too slow.
Sky's claws tore through his throat. Blood sprayed the air, warm and thick, soaking into the dirt.
Another one turned to run—
Sky's fangs found his spine.
A sickening crunch. A body dropping lifeless.
One tried to fight. Blade drawn.
Sky didn't give him the chance.
A single swipe—his arm severed.
A single bite—his screams ended.
The remaining hunters broke, panicked, running.
It didn't matter.
Sky hunted them down.
One by one.
No hesitation. No mercy.
They had come here thinking they were the predators.
They weren't.
And Sky was about to show them why.
The last hunter barely made it three steps before Sky ripped his heart out.
The battlefield went silent.
The scent of blood thickened the air.
Bodies. Everywhere.
No survivors.
Only Sky, standing in the middle of the massacre—his breath heavy, his eyes still burning with fury.
And in his arms—Nani.
Still bleeding. Still weak.
A sharp whistle.
Tee.
His voice was urgent, but cautious. "Sky. We need to go. Now."
Sky's grip tightened on Nani.
Alive.
Barely.
Sky exhaled, a shudder running through his body. The rage still burned. The wolf still wanted blood.
But—
Nani needed him more.
He turned, lifted Nani fully into his arms.
Bright had Win. Tee held Dew.
Pond stumbled but moved.
They ran.
Leaving behind a battlefield of the dead.
But this wasn't over.
Not even close.
The hunters had made a move.
Now—Sky would make them regret it.