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Hunted Hybrid Aegis War Saga 1
Chapter 108
My heart swelled so damn full I thought it might burst. I spun to Lachlan, who was already smirking, and he gave me a nod. “Go on, mo ghrá. Show ‘em what ye can do.”
I took a deep breath and planted my feet into the earth, letting the magic rise. The portal formed in front of us like a rippling mirror of moonlight, smooth, seamless, and stable. My first solo portal. No help. No guidance. Just raw power and purpose.
We stepped through. And chaos greeted us on the other side.
Minnesota air hit me like a wall, full of pine and smoke and adrenaline. The moment my foot touched the grassy field, every Marine in sight snapped to attention. Wolves howled, soldiers straightened, and the field full of training chaos froze like we were gods descending from the clouds.
Daxon stepped forward beside me, tall and intimidating, his arms folded as his gaze swept the soldiers. “At ease.”
Ashrian smirked and cracked his knuckles, his violet eyes burning. “I hope you all had fun playing while we were gone.
Lachlan just chuckled and tossed his hair back. “Ye’ve all missed quite a show, aye?”
I stepped forward, my voice strong even as my hands trembled from the rush of it all. “I know a lot has happened. And a lot more is coming. But you’re not alone in this. Not anymore. The covens are coming. The beast shifters are coming. The fucking gods are with us.
And so are we.”
The Marines saluted in perfect unison, a sea of fists to chests and roaring OOH–RAHS that echoed off the trees.
I blinked rapidly, overwhelmed, but standing tall.
And then, with the weight of destiny pressing against our backs and the strength of the earth in my veins, we turned toward the keep. There was work to be done. And war was coming. The second I stepped foot onto the training field, a flash of pink and red hair barreled toward me like a warhead.
“BITCHHHHHHHHHH!” Taya.
She slammed into me full force, arms wrapped around my neck, legs around my waist, and we both went down in a heap of squealing, giggling chaos. Her wolf Zuki was howling so loud in my mind I actually flinched, and Lyssira responded with a purring growl of joy.
“Holy shit…you’re glowing,” Taya gasped, pushing back just enough to get a good look at me. “Like literally fucking glowing. Your hair! Silver and green!? Did you ascend or some shit?!”
“I’ll explain!” I laughed breathlessly. “But first….what the hell happened here? And why are there so many Marines walking around like it’s a damn shifter boot camp?”
She launched into her mile a minute chatter like her mouth was powered by espresso. “Ohmygods okay….so Rylen and I got the humans on board, there’s like ten thousand of them, Captain Monroe is a queen, and the mages are making weapons like magical ARS and shit, and we’ve been training nonstop…oh and your mate ball is still happening so shave your legs and get ready!”
I cackled as she pulled me into another hug, and we both jumped up and down in a full on girl moment that made at least a dozen wolves stare like we were feral. Jace and Amaris strolled over with Rylen in tow, all three of them grinning wide.
Jace yanked me into a bear hug and spun me. “Gods, it’s good to see you, El. You look… damn. What happened to you?” “Long story,” I
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Chapter 108
breathed, hugging Amaris next, who looked relieved and emotional all at once.
Rylen nodded respectfully and gave me a crooked smile. “You’ve got some serious power rolling off you, Thorne, It’s like the moon and the earth both want to crown your ass.”
“Don’t give her ideas,” Daxon muttered from behind me. “Her ego already has its own gravity field.”
I stuck my tongue out at him.
We made our way to the keep as a unit, and the moment we crossed the courtyard, Alpha King Draven and Luna Aelira stepped outside. The king’s brows lifted. The Luna audibly gasped.
And everyone froze. I could feel their eyes drinking me in and yeah, I knew I looked… different.
My hair, once mostly black with small silver and blue tips, cascaded down my back past my booty in a sheet of moonlight silver tipped with deep green and iridescent blue, like the forest had dipped her fingers in paint and blessed me. My skin was porcelain smooth, carved like a statue of old. My eyes glowed with silver and blue fire. My body? A goddess’s weapon, toned and honed, shaped by magic and battle. The mark of the Earth Goddess pulsed on my chest in a radiant green spiral, resting above my heart like a brand of destiny.
I bowed respectfully. “Alpha. Luna.” Draven blinked. “Moon preserve us…” Aelira stepped closer, voice reverent. “You’ve been chosen. Twice. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Neither had I. “Let me show you something,” I said softly, stepping forward and sinking to my knees.
I pressed both hands to the courtyard stone and whispered the words Isolde had etched into the grimoire. The magic surged, bursting from my fingertips in pulses of silver and green. The stone trembled, then cracked.
From the fissures, moonlight poured like liquid silver, and soft moss spread in gentle spirals. Flowers burst into bloom, rare, ethereal herbs from the Moon Garden. White blossoms with healing cores, glowing vines of sleeproot, silverstalks for pain.
The mages nearby lost their shit. “She grew a garden from rock,” one cried.
“Those plants don’t even exist outside coven lands!” another shouted. I stood slowly, brushing moss from my knees.
“They do now.”
The entire courtyard erupted into cheers and howls, and I caught Taya in the corner of my eye wiping tears off her cheeks while mouthing bad. ass.
Chosen by the Moon.
Blessed by the Earth.
Elowen Skye Thorne, ready as hell to change the world.
