Page 159 of Wolf Dad Energy

Her eyes narrow.

"I need to see."

"You can see from behind me."

"Rhett—"

"No."

My voice comes out sharper than intended. The entity shifts. Watching. Waiting. It wants division. It wants conflict. It wants us emotional.

I lower my voice.

"Not because I think you're weak."

She pauses.

"Then why?"

"Because it knows exactly where to hit."

Her expression changes. She understands. The entity isn't interested in defeating me physically. It wants me distracted. It wants me afraid. It wants me to choose badly.

Sayer steps closer to us.

"It's looking at me."

"Don't look back."

"I can feel it."

"I know."

The entity stretches forward. The mist around it pulls toward its form. The ground beneath us cracks. Roots twist upward. The entire Hollow seems to wake.

I shift. Bones crack. Muscles expand. The wolf rises. This time there is no hesitation.

No fear. No attempt to hold back. I let it come. The transformation tears through me, but I welcome it.

The world sharpens. Every scent. Every movement. Every heartbeat. Carys. Sayer. The entity. Everything becomes clear.

The creature lunges. I meet it. The impact shakes the ground. For a moment, there is only force. Darkness against instinct. Ancient hunger against something equally old. The entity has existed for generations. My wolf has existed since before I ever understood what it meant.

It drives against me. Trying to push past. Trying to reach Sayer. I hold.

The ground tears beneath my claws. Trees bend away from the collision. The entity lashes out. A wave of darkness slams into my side. Pain explodes through my ribs. I refuse to move. Behind me⁠—

"Carys!"

I hear Sayer's voice. My head snaps around. The entity is already trying to redirect. A tendril of shadow stretches toward him.

No. I launch sideways. I catch it before it reaches him. The darkness wraps around my arm. Cold floods my body. Images flash. Screaming families. Children crying. Names forgotten.

Generations erased.

The entity isn't a monster because it enjoys cruelty. It's worse. It's empty. It consumes because it has nothing else.

I rip my arm free. The force throws me backward. I hit the ground hard enough to crack the earth beneath me. The entity moves toward Sayer again. I force myself upright.