An hour before midnight, the world around them felt impossibly still. The weight of the coming battle hung in the air like a suffocating fog, and every step Tessa took felt heavier than the last.

  She walked at the front, just behind Morgana, who led the way. The goddess’s silver hair shimmered like moonlight, though her face remained unreadable—touched with a sorrow that Tessa couldn’t quite place. The sharp beauty of the forest surrounded them, but the usual sense of peace was absent. Every branch, every rustle in the underbrush, every whisper of wind seemed like an omen. The trees themselves, ancient and wise, stood silent in the darkened night, as though they, too, were holding their breath.

  Tessa could feel it all: the fear, the uncertainty, the silent preparations for the battle that would shape their fates.

  Beside her, Liam moved with his usual grace, though there was a tautness in his shoulders, an edge in his movements. His eyes were constantly scanning the surroundings, his senses stretched to their limits. He looked over at her once, his expression a mix of resolve and something deeper—a kind of shared fear that neither of them dared to voice.

  “Are you ready?” he asked quietly, though it didn’t sound like a question so much as an observation.

  Tessa wasn’t sure how to answer. She wasn’t sure what being ready even meant anymore. The fear inside her gnawed at her stomach, but there was also something else—something bright, something that kept her moving forward even as her heart thundered in her chest.

  “Yeah,” she said, her voice steadier than she felt. “I’m ready.”

  Ryker walked at the rear, his presence solid and reassuring, even if his usual confident air was missing tonight. His posture was a little stiffer than usual, his eyes narrow with focus. Tessa caught a glimpse of his face, the grim set of his jaw, and she knew he was feeling the weight of it, too.

  He hadn’t said much since they’d left the Hale estate, but she could feel the strain in the air between them. She wanted to say something—anything to break the tension—but the words refused to come. They didn’t need to speak to understand each other tonight.

  The fairies and fae flitted nervously around them, their ethereal forms darting between trees like fleeting whispers. Their faces were unreadable, a mixture of fear and anticipation in their eyes, and Tessa could hear the quiet fluttering of their wings in the silence. She knew that they, too, felt the weight of the night ahead. They were not warriors by nature—these were creatures of beauty, of light, of nature—but tonight, they would fight. And they would fight alongside them.

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  Tessa glanced up at Morgana. The goddess’s face was calm, but the faint shadows under her eyes spoke volumes. Morgana’s power was immense, but even she wasn’t immune to the looming terror that the Reaper and the vampire clan would bring.

  Tessa couldn’t help but wonder if Morgana had felt this before—the weight of an impending battle, the fear that came with the unknown. The fear of loss.

  But Morgana’s steps never faltered, her eyes focused ahead, as though she knew exactly what was to come, and yet, in that quiet stillness, Tessa couldn’t shake the feeling that even Morgana didn’t know how it would end.

  They reached the clearing’s edge, the trees parting to reveal the open space bathed in the moon’s silvery light. It was a place of beauty and danger, where the light seemed to hold its breath, waiting for something to break the fragile silence. Tessa felt the pull of the place—the very heart of the forest, the place where everything would change.

  They stopped, standing in the moonlit clearing, the soft glow casting shadows on their faces. It was the calm before the storm, the silence that always preceded battle.

  Liam was the first to speak, his voice low, laced with tension. “It’s too quiet.”

  Tessa nodded, her throat tight. “They’ll come.”

  Morgana stepped forward, her presence filling the clearing. She raised her hands, her silver robes shimmering in the pale light. “This is our ground,” she said, her voice clear and strong. “This is where we stand.”

  There was something reassuring in her words, something about the certainty that radiated from her. But Tessa could still feel the tremble of uncertainty in her own chest. She wasn’t sure if they could stand against what was coming. She wasn’t sure if they were strong enough.

  But they would fight, because they had no choice. They would fight for each other.

  For Liam.

  For Ryker.

  For the fae and the fairies, who had already risked so much.

  And for herself.

  The fae gathered in a loose circle around the edges of the clearing, their expressions both distant and focused, their tiny wings fluttering restlessly. The sound of their wings seemed like a soft hum beneath the tense silence. They were ready, even if they were afraid.

  Tessa could feel the power inside her—the light that had always been there, pulsing, waiting. It was warmer now, stronger, but it was still a part of her that she had yet to fully understand. It was a strange thing, the power that now flowed through her veins. A light that had once been buried deep inside her, a hidden potential she had never asked for.

  And yet, it was hers.

  As they all stood together in the center of the clearing, a deep shiver ran through Tessa’s spine. The forest had fallen completely silent now. Even the wind had stopped, as if holding its breath, waiting for the moment when the first move would be made.

  The night stretched on, the moon rising higher in the sky.

  The distant sounds of the approaching enemy began to echo through the trees, too faint to be clear, but enough to send a ripple of dread through everyone gathered.

  Liam’s grip on his weapon tightened, his jaw clenched. Ryker’s stance shifted as he readied himself, his body coiled like a spring.

  Tessa’s breath caught in her throat.

  And then, as if the world itself had been waiting, there was a sound in the distance—a faint rustling, growing louder with every passing second. The enemies were drawing closer. The battle was near. And there was no more time to prepare.

  The moment had arrived.