Chapter 127: Stella

In front of me stood a woman I never wished to see again, yet had to end if I ever wanted to live in peace.

"Ah, it seems my past indeed haunts me to this day. I couldn't believe the news, but I can believe my eyes at least." Stella announced, staring at what should have been a ghost to her.

In response, I couldn't help but smirk at her—something about seeing her there pleased me.

"Hello grandmother, it's nice that you got my message after leaving me to die that day." I greeted, bowing slightly to her.

Shade tilted her head as this was the first time she met Stella. However, the little cat saw her in my memories.

Oh… Lily, I'm going to rip into her. Just tell me when! She snickered.

"It seems I failed to kill you," Stella huffed coldly. "You always were an annoying roach that doesn't know when to die."

Around us were the warlocks and witches, who appeared wary of Shade and me as we took a step forward. They trembled where they stood as fear almost radiated out of them, though none ran away, loyal to their cause.

If their devotion were to Stella or Edna, I wouldn't know. Either way, their heads would roll if they stood in my way.

"Well, I'm grateful your incompetence allowed me to live to this day. Would it have been your friend behind the ritual, I surely would've been dead." I noted, stepping forward towards her.

Somehow, my bracelet still wasn't shining, letting me know Fenris was unaware of my detour. I tried not to overthink it as I focused on what was before me. Upon noticing my condition, Stella's lips curled as her eyes narrowed.

"So, everything they say was true. You carry that cursed Lycan's children. How much more disgrace can you be?" she rasped, noticing her blood would flow through the race she hated the most.

I sighed, shaking my head, not caring about her sentiments. "Ah, I'm finally happy, grandmother, something you failed to take from me and will continue to do so."

The steps before me were probably the most challenging part of this ordeal. My feet were getting the best of me.

So, the witch in front of me was a trivial thing, unworthy of being anything but that.

"But I'm not here to fight you. Can you be kind enough to step aside and let me in? I have other important businesses to attend to." I dismissed her significance in this.

Upon hearing my intentions to enter the ruin, she became defensive, taking out her grimoire.

Ah… I was hoping you'd do that.

This woman couldn't rule over me anymore. My binds were free—something I realized when standing before her. I no longer was the caged bird she cursed me to be all those years ago.

No, I'll fly into the deep blue sky and find my way back to you, Fenris.

"You think I'll let you through?" Stella glowered, ready for a fight.

I took the first few steps up the stairs, which was challenging. The cramps were slowly getting more annoying as I exerted myself further. They weren't unusual—I had been getting them for a while—but they appeared more prevalent than the others and came more rapidly each time.

However, I had to ignore them while I stared down at the person who had marked me for life once before. I wasn't about to let her do so again.

"Yes, you will, or you will die. Either way, I don't care." I smirked, not having the patience or time to deal with Stella, who appeared unafraid of me.

Perhaps she thought of me as the child I once was and nothing more. It was long ago, but she had made me tremble in terror beneath her. Power like that was hard to forget.

It's a mistake I'll gladly correct.

"And how will that happen? You're surrounded and outmatched." Stella huffed as her grimoire shimmered brightly.

I stopped in the fifth step out of the twenty before me. The entire ruin appeared full of flora, which had claimed the man-made building. That made it eerily pretty, even though it was the destination of pure chaos.

It would've been a shame to have it drenched in blood, but it appeared that was the destiny of those present.

"I'll let you figure that out as you did to me," I answered, grabbing Shade's fur for support.

My legs were indeed killing me. Something I didn't allow to show peeking around. The others weren't as strong as Stella was trying to be. They were visibly trembling because of Shade and me.

"What?" the old woman uttered, not quite following me.

She had ignored all the warnings I had sent her way. Perhaps she hoped I would shrivel up when I saw her confront me, but I felt nothing.

I thought I hated you, but if I did, then that means I'll let you have a hold on me. Never again will I allow such a pitiful being to control any aspect of me. You let yourself go so low for someone gone since I came into this world.

"Oh, I have one last question before you decide your fate. Where's our little eternal friend?" I asked, noticing no one here was spooky enough to be Edna.

However, I felt like someone was watching me from the shadows. To live this long, she had to know how to survive. She probably had others do her work for her, like Stella. The woman before me didn't know she was a disposable pawn.

"Who?" she asked while my grimoire floated next to me.

"Edna," I answered, taking another step towards up the stairs.

"Why would I betray her?" Stella questioned, studying my reactions.

"Ah, that's funny. You betrayed your family to accomplish your means. Maybe you'll betray her to live." I replied.

Even so, it felt good to tell her that.

"You were never my family," Stella declared, narrowing her eyes.

A giggle left me, enjoying this last memory with her. "Well… don't worry, grandmother. I never thought of you as such, either. It's probably why I found love with Fenris, whom you hate so much. Despite what you tried to make me be, if Mom could see me now, she would be overjoyed to see who I am." I smirked.

"How dare you say that! My daughter is mine alone!" Stella screamed before chanting a spell that was soon followed by her fellows who surrounded her.

The more witches and warlocks joined an incantation. The more powerful it was, much like the ritual she cast, turning me into the witch I was. Around me, circles began to appear as I cocked my head before snapping my fingers, triggering a spell she had taught me herself to come into effect with a twist of my own.

Lingua vestra cattus est perdere.

Lose your tongue to the cat.

My grimoire shimmered brightly as all the warlocks and witches surrounding us suddenly stopped chanting. The original spell robbed people of their voice; however, mine caused blood to erupt from their mouths before they all fell to their knees, reaching to their mouths as more blood spurted out and into the ground.

Shade snickered as Stella glanced around her to find all her apostates dropping onto the ground.

"Oh, how sad; Shade seems to have gotten their tongues," I cackled as their appendages fell around me.

My grandmother took a step back before her mouth bled as well, yet instead of taking her tongue, I took her teeth. Even though her life had no meaning for me, we still needed her to speak about Edna's plans.

Ending it, there would be nothing compared to what she did to me, and she didn't deserve a quick death.

"Aw, does that hurt?" I asked as the witches and warlocks gaggled, choking on their blood.

She shrieked, reaching for her face as a pulse of energy left me, allowing two shadow beasts to come forward into the world. It was effortless, unlike the last time I had tried to let them out. With no orders, they killed each of the renegades who were writhing in pain.

Stella struggled to form coherent words because of her missing teeth and gushing blood that she struggled to swallow. Yet it didn't stop her from trying to run inside the building as Shade pounced on the older woman while I slowly made my way up the stairs.

When I reached the last step, the beasts roamed the ruin, looking for stragglers, which included Edna. I didn't know how she appeared, but any dead witch in this forest was better than a live one.

After those simple steps, though, my feet were obliterated. The cramps remained annoyingly present the entire time and got worse as I progressed. Gazing down to where I started, I wondered how I had made it up the steps.

When I finally reached Stella, Shade had already broken her legs and arms. Unfortunately, the pain appeared to have made her lose consciousness.

"I'll carve her up good when she wakes, Lily." Her tail wagged as I sighed.

At least she wasn't going anywhere in that condition. Focusing on what was ahead of me, I went inside the temple. The way in was a long corridor leading to an opening in the distance made by a type of stone I didn't recognize.

Just how old is this place?

There was no doubt that a scholar would go crazy investigating this place if the hybrids were allowed to. With Shade by my side, my aide, we walked towards the other side with little to no events., yet what we witnessed once out of the corridor left me with eyes and jaw wide open.

In the middle of the room, the shattered staff pieces lay on the ground next to Cora's body. From where I stood, she appeared unconscious. Above her and the broken staff was a distortion fracturing our dimensions into an opening reflected light, making it seem like a mirror that had broken into pieces.

It's too late.

"Lily, let's investigate; maybe there is a way to stop it." Shade announced, walking towards the downed vampire.

Hesitantly, I stepped forward, only for a weird sensation to rise within me. It differed from the earlier cramps, triggering me to clasp my belly as a warmness radiated from within me. A soft shimmer of purple was also present.

All this time, I had thought it was the other soul within me who was calling me to this place, but it wasn't. It was one of my babies resonating with Alijah's arrival.

"Are you okay?" Shade shifted her gaze towards me, feeling the same.

I caressed my belly, only to receive a gentle kick in response.

"Yes… I'm fine." I glowered at the distortion created by the artifact.

Alijah, you won't have access to my child. I can them promise that much.

Taking another step, Shade reached Cora before pawing her, only to feel her stiff body under her paw.

"Lily, she's dead. It must've happened hours ago for her to be like this." Shade informed, joining me again.

"We got here too late. The only thing left is…" I trailed off as the distortion became bigger, allowing something to begin to emerge from it.

First, a hand erupted from its core, prompting the warmth that had radiated within me to become overwhelming. A bright light shimmered, giving away to something as it fell onto the ground before us.

After the hue dimmed, in an instant, I recognized who had been summoned into our world. Yet something was off.

Why isn't Edna here?

Even though it worried me, there was a more pressing matter. The wolf from my dreams had finally arrived, and my part to play in this encounter was about to begin. The fight for my family's survival wouldn't be one of strength but of wits.

Outsmarting this wolf wouldn't be effortless, but it had to be done if I wanted those I loved to live another day.