The first light of dawn barely cut through the trees, painting the world in muted shades of gray and amber. Eryk stood at the edge of the clearing, his mind still whirling from the explosion of power that had surged through him moments earlier. His hands were still trembling, and he could feel the echo of the dark magic humming in his veins, a constant reminder that whatever had happened, nothing was the same anymore.

Kael was still by his side, his eyes scanning the horizon, but his stance was weary, his movements slower than usual. The energy from the magic had clearly affected him too. But there was no time to linger on it.

“We need to go,” Kael said, his voice rough but urgent. “The longer we stay here, the more likely it is they’ll find us. That magic—your magic—it’s not something that can be hidden for long.”

Eryk nodded, though every fiber of his being screamed for him to stop, to sit and figure out what had happened, what he had unleashed. But there was no time for that. He had no choice but to follow Kael, his only guide in this dark new world that seemed to have opened up before him.

“What now?” Eryk asked, his voice hoarse, his throat still raw from the energy that had exploded through him. “Where do we go?”

Kael glanced at him, his expression a mixture of concern and determination. “We go to the north. There’s a safe haven there. A place where we can lay low, regroup. But you need to be careful. The wolves will be hunting you, Eryk. You’re not just a prince anymore. You’re something else. Something far more dangerous.”

Eryk felt a pang of guilt twist inside him. “I didn’t mean to... whatever this is. It wasn’t me. I don’t understand it. I never asked for this.”

Kael’s gaze softened for a moment, his voice dropping to a quiet whisper. “I know you didn’t. But sometimes, we don’t get to choose. Not when the blood of your ancestors is coursing through you. It’s not your fault, Eryk. You didn’t ask for this power, but you have it now. And you’ll need to learn how to control it, or it will control you.”

Eryk’s heart thudded painfully in his chest. “How? How do I control something like this?”

Kael paused, his eyes dark with an emotion Eryk couldn’t quite decipher. “We’ll figure it out. Together.”

The words were comforting, but they didn’t erase the gnawing fear in Eryk’s gut. What if it was too much? What if the power was already consuming him, changing him into something he didn’t recognize? How could he fight against something that was so deeply ingrained in his blood?

They began to move, Kael leading the way through the thick forest, his sharp eyes ever-watchful. Every so often, Eryk would catch glimpses of movement at the edges of his vision, shadows darting in the corners of his mind. But it was always a trick of the light—or at least, he told himself it was. The feeling of being watched, of being hunted, clung to him, though. It was a constant, nagging sensation that made his skin crawl.

They walked in silence for what felt like hours, the sound of their footsteps muffled by the dense underbrush beneath their feet. Eryk’s mind kept returning to the stranger—the one who had triggered the power within him, the one who had known so much about his bloodline and its dark legacy.

“Do you know who he was?” Eryk finally asked, breaking the silence. “The one who attacked us. He knew things about me... about my family. Who was he?”

Kael’s pace faltered for just a moment, his jaw tightening. “I don’t know,” he admitted, his voice grim. “But I’ve heard of him. His name is Velkor. He’s a rogue sorcerer, someone who has been searching for the bloodline’s power for years. There are rumors of his existence, but no one’s seen him until now. He’s dangerous, Eryk. And he’s not alone.”

Eryk’s heart sank. “What do you mean, ‘not alone’? What does he want with me?”

Kael’s eyes flickered to Eryk, a mixture of caution and something darker in his gaze. “The power in your blood. The one that’s been dormant for centuries. Velkor and others like him have been trying to awaken it, to harness it. They believe it can give them control over the entire kingdom—or even the world.”

Eryk swallowed hard, the weight of Kael’s words pressing on him. “But I don’t want that power. I don’t want anything to do with it.”

“I know,” Kael said quietly. “But the truth is, you don’t have a choice anymore. The magic’s been awakened. There’s no turning back from that.”

Eryk felt a sickening knot tighten in his stomach. What had he unleashed? What had that dark energy done to him? How long until it consumed him, just as Kael feared?

They reached the edge of the forest as the sun rose fully above the horizon, casting a soft golden glow across the landscape. Kael paused, his eyes scanning the path ahead, and Eryk’s own gaze drifted to the distance. The landscape was calm, deceptively peaceful, but there was something about it that felt wrong. The feeling of being hunted was only growing stronger.

“I think we’re safe for now,” Kael murmured, but there was no conviction in his voice.

Eryk’s senses were on high alert. The air felt thick, oppressive, as though something—or someone—was watching them from the shadows. He stepped closer to Kael, his hand instinctively brushing against the sword at his side.

Kael turned to him, his eyes meeting Eryk’s with an intensity that sent a shiver down his spine. “We’ll make it through this,” Kael said, his voice low but filled with resolve. “I won’t let anything happen to you. I swear it.”

Eryk nodded, though uncertainty twisted in his gut. The promise was comforting, but in the back of his mind, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something far darker was closing in on them—something that neither Kael’s sword nor his words could protect them from.

A howl echoed in the distance.

Eryk’s heart stopped, his body freezing in place. It was distant, but unmistakable. A wolf’s howl.

A warning.

Kael’s eyes flickered to the sound, his posture shifting, alert. “We need to move, now.”

They turned and began to run, the sounds of the forest blurring as Eryk’s pulse raced in his ears. With each step, the howls grew louder, closer. And though he knew Kael was right beside him, there was no denying it: they were being hunted.