Chapter 12 The Shadow Within

• The dawn crept over the horizon, pale and hesitant, as if the world itself was unsure what the new day might bring. Ivy sat alone on a fallen log near the edge of the camp, the early morning chill biting through her cloak. Her breath rose in soft clouds, mingling with the mist that hovered low over the forest floor.
• Her mind churned with the warnings Serena had delivered—the rogues were more dangerous than ever, their spies hidden in the shadows. But what gnawed at Ivy more was the growing storm inside her—the hunger, the power that pulsed beneath her skin like a restless beast, begging to be unleashed.
• She traced her fingers over the faint mark on her wrist—the symbol that had appeared the night of her first transformation. It glowed faintly, an unyielding reminder that she was bound to a destiny she barely understood.