The forest groaned like something alive. The ground split beneath the survivors’ feet, cracking open with deep, jagged lines. Smoke and ash rose from the earth, glowing red as if fire burned far below, then came the roar.It shook the trees. It rattled the survivors’ bones. Birds burst from the canopy in flocks, screeching as they fled into the night sky. The survivors huddled together, eyes wide with terror.Jonah stood at the front, claws flexing, wings twitching, his body glowing gold and black. His red eyes blazed in the dark. He could feel the Hive’s laughter inside his skull, each note sharp as a knife. “It comes. Our heart. Our beginning. Our child. Through you, it wakes.”Kevin clung to Jonah’s leg, his small voice shaking. “Jonah… what is it?”Jonah crouched, pulling the boy close with one clawed arm. His voice was rough, but steady. “Stay with Lisa. Don’t move until I say.”Lisa’s face was pale in the firelight, but her hand found Kevin’s shoulder and pulled him close. “I’

The forest was quiet again, but it was not the silence of peace. It was heavy, like a weight pressing on every chest. Smoke drifted up from broken trees, and black ash clung to the leaves. The ground still shook sometimes, little tremors that made everyone flinch as if the monster would rise again at any second.The survivors stood in a loose circle, their faces pale, their eyes flicking between Jonah and the broken battlefield where the Hive’s vessel had fallen. None of them dared to speak at first. It was Kevin who broke the silence. The boy still clung to Jonah’s side, his small hands gripping the edge of Jonah’s burned cloak.Jonah crouched near the ground, breathing in ragged gasps. His monstrous body had not gone away. The golden fire that had saved them all still burned faintly on his skin, but it looked unstable, wild. Black veins crawled up his arms, twisting under his skin. His eyes glowed in the shadows, neither fully human nor fully beast. He looked like a nightmare we

The night had been long, and when dawn finally came, it was gray and heavy, as if the sky itself carried the weight of what had happened. Smoke drifted across the trees. The forest was broken, burned in patches where Jonah’s fire had scorched the ground. The air smelled of ash and rot, and the survivors woke to a silence that was not peace but warning.They gathered in a clearing not far from the battlefield. The survivors were ragged and exhausted, their clothes torn, their faces pale. Some sat in small groups, whispering. Others just stared at the dirt, lost in thought.Jonah stood apart. His back leaned against a cracked tree, his wings curled tight around him like a cloak. His body was half-shadow, half-fire, and neither side was calm. His glowing eyes dimmed and flared with every heartbeat. Sometimes his claws retreated, leaving only burned hands. Other times they extended, black and sharp, as if his body could no longer decide what he was.Kevin sat beside him, refusing to m

The ground trembled so hard that the survivors could barely stay on their feet. The ridge cracked and split, throwing people down, scattering packs and weapons. Children screamed as parents pulled them close. The forest around them was breaking apart, trees ripped from the soil, roots snapping like bones.From the torn earth ahead, the Hive’s true body kept rising. It was vast, larger than any mountain, a living nightmare made of flesh, stone, and countless broken faces. Some faces screamed, others wept, others whispered, their mouths moving in silence. Its claws tore through the land as if it were nothing but sand. Black rivers poured from its wounds, flooding the forest floor.The survivors could not look at it without breaking. Some fell to their knees and covered their faces. Others clutched each other and prayed, their voices trembling. Derek shouted above the chaos, his voice hoarse and sharp. “Do you see now? This is what he brought down on us! He is the reason this thing is

The Hive’s claw came down like a mountain falling from the sky. Its shadow swallowed the ridge, its black talons longer than trees, its weight enough to shatter the earth. The survivors screamed, clutching one another as the ground split beneath their feet.Jonah leapt. His wings spread wide, fire burning brighter than the sun. Golden flames wrapped around his claws as he hurled himself upward, roaring with a voice that shook the forest. The two forces met in the air.The impact was like an explosion. Fire and shadow collided, sending shockwaves across the land. Rocks tore free from the ridge, trees ripped from the ground, the survivors thrown to their knees. The sky itself seemed to scream as golden fire clashed with black corruption.Jonah’s claws sank deep into the Hive’s massive talon. Fire seared the flesh, golden light hissing against the black ooze that poured from its wounds. The Hive roared, its countless mouths opening at once. “You cannot win, Jonah Crest. You are us. Yo