After receiving treatment and rest, all the Alphas were finally allowed to return to the Alpha House. The moment they stepped inside, exhaustion washed over them again but this time, it wasn't just physical.
They had made it back.
They were alive.
As they dropped onto couches, mats, and beds, the usual chatter slowly returned whispers of what happened in the forest, who they saw, what they felt. Relief and adrenaline began to fade… until Aella Reeze Wilson looked around and froze.
"Wait…" she said slowly. "Where is Khierra?"
The room quieted.
"And… Ynah?" Chrisha Van Dele added, her voice uncertain.
Aella's brows furrowed deeper as she scanned the room again. "Where is Winter?"
The realization struck like a cold wind. The three girls were gone.
"They were here before, right?"Avrille asked.
"No," said Ruscell, sitting up straighter now. "I haven't seen them since the professors arrived."
"They didn't come back with us…" Micko Lee muttered from the corner, where his painting supplies lay untouched. "Did they… sneak out?"
Aella's heart dropped. "They wouldn't…"
But deep down, everyone in the room knew they would.
Khierra. Ynah. Winter.
They had gone back into the forest.
This time, not as the ones who needed saving.
But as the ones who refused to wait.
Silence lingered, thick with worry.
In the far end of the room, Jeremiah sat by the window, jaw clenched and fingers tapping against the frame. His usually calm demeanor was gone, replaced by a storm brewing behind his eyes.
"This isn't like them to go without saying anything," he muttered.
"They probably didn't want to be stopped," Axel Devuncheek replied, arms folded, his gaze hard on the floor. "Still doesn't mean it's right."
Rey Vien Windsor was unusually quiet, hands buried in the pockets of his coat, pacing slowly. "What if they run into the same thing you did? Or worse…"
"They're strong," Micko said, but his voice wasn't convincing even to himself. "But that doesn't mean they should have gone alone."
"They're not alone," Jeremiah said sharply, standing. "They have each other. But still…"
"They shouldn't have had to go in the first place," Axel added.
No one said it but the thought hung in the air:
If something happens to them out there… it'll be on all of us.
________
The air was colder the deeper they went, and the trees grew thicker, their twisted limbs blotting out even the faintest moonlight. Every crunch of a leaf underfoot echoed too loudly. But the three girls didn't slow down.
Winter Briaella Cross led the way, her sharp eyes scanning every shadow, every flicker between the trees. Her silver hair, though messy from the wind, caught the faint glow of her small magic orb floating near her shoulder.
Just behind her, Khierra Sky Smith gripped the fire in her fist tightly. Her expression was unreadable, but her eyes flicked to every noise, every shift in the air. She wasn't afraidvshe was ready.
Ynah Blair walked beside them, quiet but alert, her fingers twitching as if ready to cast a spell at the first sign of danger.
"We should've left a message," Ynah finally said, voice low. "They'll know we're gone by now."
"They'll figure it out," Winter replied, not stopping. "But we can't wait for permission anymore."
"They were lucky if we found them this time," Khierra muttered. "This forest isn't just cursed. It's alive. And angry."
They reached a clearing where the ground was scorched the exact spot where the explosion had gone off earlier. Ash lingered in the air.
Winter knelt and touched the burnt soil. "Something dark was here. Strong magic."
"Do you think it's the same thing that's haunting the academy?" Ynah asked.
Winter nodded slowly. "And worse."
They shared a look.
Then—a sound.
Rustling.
All three turned.
Nothing.
But Winter's eyes narrowed. "We're being watched."
Khierra drew her fire slowly. "Let them watch. We're not backing down."
And just as they turned toward the path ahead, a distant cry rang through the forest faint but undeniable.
"Help!"
They froze.
"That was a voice," Ynah whispered.
"It's coming from the east," Winter said, already running.
The others followed.
They didn't know who it was.
They didn't know what waited ahead.
But they knew one thing for sure:
They weren't leaving anyone behind.
The trees blurred as they sprinted toward the sound. Branches clawed at their arms and faces, but they didn't stop. The cry echoed again this time clearer, more desperate.
"Help me!"
They pushed through a thick wall of vines, and the forest opened up into a hollowed-out glade, lit faintly by scattered moonlight slipping through the branches. In the center, half-collapsed on the ground, was a girl around their age.
Her uniform was torn and dirt-stained. Blood streaked one leg where a cut ran down to her shin, and her breathing was ragged. She looked up at them with wide, terrified eyes.
"Help… please…" she whispered.
Winter was the first to reach her. She knelt quickly, inspecting the injury. "It's not too deep, but it's infected."
Khierra stood guard nearby, scanning the shadows. "She's alone?"
Ynah moved beside Winter. "What's your name?" she asked gently.
The girl swallowed hard. "Ayra… Ayra Thompson… I-I was with a different group. From the BetaHouse. We were doing independent training. But something attacked us. I got separated… I didn't know where to go."
Winter and Ynah exchanged glances.
"There's been too many disappearances lately," Khierra muttered. "This isn't a coincidence."
"I can't walk," Ayra said, shame lacing her voice.
"It's okay," Winter reassured. "We're not leaving you."
Ynah began tending the wound as best she could, while Winter helped steady Ayra.
As Khierra took a step forward, she paused. Her gaze swept the trees something had shifted again. The forest was quiet… too quiet.
"Let's move," she said sharply. "Now."
Winter nodded and slipped Ayra's arm around her shoulders to support her.
Together, the four girls began retreating through the woods aware that though they'd found someone, they might've also drawn something else closer.