Chapter 87: Darkness Rising
ARIA POV
"Everyone get down!" I screamed as another wave of dark energy blasted through the trees. The forest around us shook, trees splitting and falling like matchsticks.
I dove behind a rock, hands protecting my pregnant belly as the ground trembled beneath me. Dirt and leaves rained down as the wave passed over us.
Three days had passed since the First Enemy escaped in Jaxon’s body. Three days of tracking him through the territory, watching helplessly as he got stronger.
"He’s getting closer to the pack lands," Kael said, crawling to my side. Blood trickled from a cut on his face. "We can’t let him reach the pack house."
My heart felt like it was being torn in two. Part of me still saw Jaxon when I looked at the monster he’d become. The other part knew we were running out of time.
"Did you see that?" Lucien whispered, pointing through the trees.
I peeked over the rock. In the distance, Jaxon—or what used to be Jaxon—floated above the ground. His skin glowed with that strange blue light, and darkness swirled around him like a storm cloud.
"What is he doing?" I asked.
As if hearing my question, Jaxon’s head turned toward us. Those black eyes seemed to stare right into my soul. Even from this distance, I could feel the cold hate radiating from him.
He raised his hand, and the ground beneath our boulder began to crack.