Chapter 104: _ Between Darkness And Light
Heidi swallows. Her throat is dry. Her heart races against her ribcage. Her wolf is scratching inside, restless.
Do not let them see you shaking, she warns herself. You’re already the weird one here. You already freaked out when you shifted. If you open your mouth now...
But the sounds grow louder.
The dark path moans again, the kind of hollow groan that makes your stomach clench like you’ve swallowed ice. The light path counters with swelling music, as if offended at being ignored, its tune gaining layers. They can hear drums now and faint laughter woven between notes.
The group’s nerves snap at the first sound of people and protests fly amongst them.
"Why are we even here?"
"This isn’t fair!"
"They’re throwing us in blind!"
"I didn’t sign up to die in some creepy labyrinth!"
"Hell, I didn’t even sign up at all!"
The sound of panic is rising just as much as the sounds of the paths. Heidi has been expecting a labyrinth filled with ugly demons hidden at every spot. She doesn’t realize it could come like a puzzle just like the one they are currently faced with.
Find the good demons...
... those were Amias’s words. She glances at the two paths again. Surely, the good demons can’t live in the stark darkness of the right path, could they?
It’s got to be the bright path. Yes.
A calm voice interrupts her thoughts. "Guys... please, let’s not lose our minds before we even start."
All heads turn toward the sound as a boy steps out from the crowd with squared shoulders. His presence pulls silence from them the way a storm hushes a forest.
Heidi knows him instantly.
It’s the Alpha boy from the striker. The one who stunned everyone at the awakening ceremony when he hit the highest point. She hadn’t even caught his name then. Well, he probably didn’t need one. Everyone remembered him as that guy. The boy who is not a Bellamy, but possesses the Alpha wolf.
Now, standing a few feet ahead of the cluster of frightened Moon Blessed, his voice is a calmness during a storm.
"Panicking helps no one," he says, sweeping a hard look across them. "If you want to scream, scream when we’re out. Drowning in fear right now won’t get us anywhere."
The hush deepens. Even the music and the moans seem to wait for him.
He folds his arms, confidence radiating in every motion. "We need to be smart. We need to work together. There are almost a hundred of us here. A hundred minds. A hundred chances. Someone has to know something about how to choose. So if anyone’s got a clue, step forward, please."
His words settle into the group like heavy stones. For a moment, no one speaks as everyone is caught at a crossroads.
Heidi’s stomach twists. Amias never mentioned this. In all his warnings and half-answers, not once had he said anything about a choice between light and dark. She wants to step forward, to admit she might know something, anything... but what? That her mentor’s advice has run dry? That she’s just as lost as the rest?
Her wolf claws at her insides, restless, whispering, "Say something, at least. Anything is better than standing like prey.
But her throat seals shut. Instead, she watches.
The eerie sounds continue... the darkness groaning like the belly of a beast, the light path piping its mocking tune. Someone shifts uneasily, and another mutters a prayer under her breath. A boy at the back lets out a half-laugh, and half-sob.
The Alpha boy lifts his chin. "We will not be picked off like idiots. Fear is a weapon. If you let it control you, you’re already dead, and I don’t intend to drag deadweight in me." His eyes sweep across them once again "So. Who’s brave enough to speak first?"
Junie, who has been glued to Heidi’s side since stepping through the portal, leans close and whispers in that way only college girls can; loud enough to be overheard if you’re nosy enough, but pitched as if it’s a secret.
"Wait, isn’t that the same boy who looked like he was about to pee himself when his Alpha wolf was discovered at the Awakening?"
Heidi nods. She remembers it too: the boy in question had gone so pale at the ceremony that she almost felt pity for him for being in the spotlight, not knowing she’d be put in a bigger one herself. He’d been, wide-eyed, like he was the last person who should have been blessed with an Alpha wolf.
Valentina, who is standing on Heidi’s other side, adjusts her glasses on the ridge of her nose and rolls her eyes. "Oh, please. He obviously put on a show for the school. Nobody goes from Bambi-eyed freshman to commanding drill sergeant in twenty-four hours. Look at him. His confidence is literally bursting through his shirt."
Junie snickers, covering her mouth like it’ll make the sound less obvious. "Bet he practiced this speech in the mirror last night. You know, ’Fear is a weapon’" she deepens her voice to mimic him, "’and I don’t carry dead weight!’"
Valentina giggles. "Totally. I bet he flexed a little too, just in case anyone was watching."
Heidi tries not to smile, but her lips twitch. The banter is ridiculous, but it’s also grounding. Like gossiping in a dorm hallway before an exam... except instead of failing a test, they’re facing death by labyrinth. Same energy, different stakes.
Her wolf chuckles at her thought. "They’re not wrong, though. Confidence like that doesn’t sprout overnight. Either he’s been hiding behind a mask, or..."
"Or?" Heidi presses silently.
Or he’s cracked already," her wolf replies dryly. "The ones who act too calm in chaos? They’re always a step away from losing it. Keep your eyes on him, cariño. If he breaks, he’ll take people with him.
Before Heidi can decide whether to trust that, another voice cuts into the uneasy quiet.
"I... I know something."