CHAPTER 89: CHAPTER 89: BLOOD BROTHERS

The ground stopped shaking, but the quiet that followed was worse than any earthquake.

Elara stood frozen, looking at the spot where reality had bent moments before. Nothing came from the distortion, but she could feel ancient eyes watching them.

"They’re testing us," Tobias said quietly, appearing beside her like a ghost. "The Primordials want to see what we’re made of before they make their move."

"How do you know so much about them?" Kael asked suspiciously. Tobias’s face darkened.

"Because I’ve been running from them my entire life." The news hit Elara like a physical blow. "What?" "There’s a lot I haven’t told you," Tobias revealed.

"About why I really left the pack all those years ago. About what I’ve been doing as a rogue." Through the Quad Bond, she felt her mates’ increasing alarm. But she also felt something else – a link to Tobias that she’d never noticed before.

"You’re not just any rogue," she whispered.

"You’re family." Tobias nodded slowly. "Your brother Adrian isn’t the only child who survived that night our parents died. There were three of us, Elara. You, Adrian, and me." The world turned sideways.

"That’s impossible.

I would have remembered—" "Your memories were altered," Tobias said softly. "By our parents, before they died.

They knew the Primordials were hunting our family. So they hid me totally, made everyone forget I existed." "Why?" Ronan demanded, flames flickering around his hands.

"Because our family carries something the Primordials fear," Tobias explained. "The ability to bridge different supernatural places. Elara can bond with various mates because she’s a Bridge Walker. Adrian can connect with the next generation because he received the same gift."

"And you?"

Darian asked, his truth-sight burning. "I can speak to any supernatural being, regardless of species or allegiance," Tobias said. "Vampires, witches, fae, demons – they all trust me naturally. It’s why I’ve been able to live as a rogue for so long."

Alpha Magnus stepped forward, his face grave. "A Bridge Walker family. No wonder the ancient forces are stirring." "What does that mean?" Elara asked. "It means," came a new voice from the dark, "that you’re the key to everything."

Everyone spun around to see a figure emerge from the forest. Tall, stylish, with silver hair that seemed to glow in the moonlight.

But it wasn’t a monster. The smell was all wrong. "Vampire," Kael growled, moving protectively in front of Elara.

"Lord Vampire, actually," the newcomer amended with a slight smile. "Alexei Dracul, at your service. I’ve come to make an offer." "We don’t negotiate with bloodsuckers," Ronan snarled.

"Even when your survival depends on it?" Alexei asked quietly. "The Primordials aren’t just coming for werewolves. They’re coming for all of us.

Every supernatural being who’s evolved beyond their basic design." Tobias stepped forward. "He’s telling the truth. I’ve been talking with supernatural leaders across the continent.

The Primordials view our development as rebellion." "What do they want?" Elara asked. "To reset everything," Alexei said. "Return us to the way we were thousands of years ago. Primitive. Powerless. Separate."

"Over my dead body," Alpha Vera said angrily. "That can be arranged," came a voice that made everyone’s blood freeze.

The air above them split open like torn cloth. Through the gap stepped a being that hurt to look at directly.

It constantly moved between different forms – human, animal, elemental force. Its eyes were older than stars. "Primordial," Tobias breathed. "I am Chaos," the creature said, its voice echoing from various dimensions. "First of the Primordials. I have come to give an ultimatum."

The assembled wolves and vampires stood their ground, but Elara could feel their fear through every supernatural sense she possessed.

"Speak," she said, surprised by how steady her voice sounded. Chaos smiled, and reality rippled around the face. "Dissolve your unnatural ties. Return to the old ways.

Submit to our power. Do this, and we will allow your species to continue living." "And if we refuse?" Kael asked. "Then we will unmake you," Chaos said simply.

"Every werewolf, every vampire, every supernatural being that has dared to grow. We will erase you from existence so completely that even the memory of your species will disappear."

"You can’t do that," Adrian said, stepping out from behind the other young dogs. "The Moon Goddess won’t let you." Chaos laughed, and the sound broke windows in the nearby buildings.

"The Moon Goddess serves us, child. As do all the lesser powers. We made them to manage you when you were simpler creatures.

But you have grown beyond their power."

"So you’ve come to put us back in our place?" Elara asked. "We have come to correct a mistake," Chaos answered. "Your development was never meant to happen. The Bridge Walker family should have died out millennia ago."

Tobias stepped forward, and Elara felt strength radiating from him – different from her silver light, but just as strong.

"The Bridge Walker bloodline exists because you need us," he said quietly. "You Primordials have been stuck in the same forms, thinking the same thoughts, for eons. You’re stalling.

Dying from the inside." Chaos’s form flashed with what might have been surprise. "Impossible." "Is it?" Tobias smiled.

"When’s the last time any of you made something new? When’s the last time you felt real emotion? You’re so old you’ve forgotten how to grow." "We are perfection," Chaos said, but there was doubt in its voice. "You’re fossils," Adrian added, going to stand beside Tobias. "And you know it.

That’s why you’re really here. Not to destroy us, but to steal what we have." "The ability to change," Elara realized. "To grow. To become something more than what we were." Chaos’s form began to solidify, taking on a more human look.

For the first time, it looked truly angry. "You will submit," it ordered. "Or you will be destroyed." "There’s a third option," Tobias said quietly.

"Which is?" "You join us." The quiet that followed was absolute. Even the wind stopped blowing. "What did you say?" Chaos whispered.

"You heard me," Tobias said. "Stop trying to drag us backwards. Start moving forward with us. Learn to evolve again." "We cannot—" "You can," Elara said, understanding rushing through her. "The Bridge Walker gift works both ways.

We don’t just join different supernatural beings. We can connect ancient powers to new options." Through the Quad Bond, she felt her mates’ surprise and fear in equal measure. "You’re offering to bridge the gap between the Primordials and modern supernatural beings?" Alpha Magnus asked. "Why not?" Tobias shrugged.

"They’re scared because they don’t understand change. We’re scared because we don’t understand them. Bridge the gap, solve both problems." Chaos stared at him for a long moment.

Then it began to laugh – not the reality-shattering sound from before, but something almost human.

"Clever little Bridge Walker. Very clever indeed." "Is that a yes?" Adrian asked hopefully. "It is... a possibility," Chaos admitted. "But the choice is not mine alone. There are others. Older. More set in their ways."

"How many others?" Darian asked. "Seven in total. Each representing a basic force – Chaos, Order, Time, Space, Life, Death, and..." Chaos paused. "Dream." "Dream?" Elara repeated.

"The most dangerous of us all," Chaos said seriously. "Dream controls what humans call imagination. If it decides you are a threat, it can simply dream you out of existence."

"When do we meet them?" Tobias asked. "Now," came a new voice from everywhere and nowhere at once. The world around them dissolved like paint in rain.

Suddenly they were standing in a vast space filled with floating platforms, each one holding a figure of impossible power.

"Welcome," said a being made of shifting geometric shapes, "to the Primordial Court. I am Order. We have much to discuss."

But as Elara looked around at the seven ancient powers, she noticed something that made her blood run cold. One of the decks was empty. "Where is Dream?" she asked.

The Primordials traded glances that could have been worried. "That," said a creature that looked like walking starlight, "is the trouble.

Dream has been lost for three days. And without Dream to anchor fantasy to reality..." "The barriers between what is real and what is possible are breaking down," Chaos ended.

"Your world is about to become a very dangerous place." As if called by those words, the platform beneath their feet began to crack.

Through the gaps, Elara could see impossible things: dragons flying through modern cities, fairy tale castles growing from suburban lawns, nightmares walking in broad daylight. "Find Dream," Order ordered. "Before imagination destroys everything."

"How do we find a missing Primordial?" Kael asked. "The same way you found each other," Tobias said grimly.

"Follow your hearts and hope they lead you to the truth before the truth kills us all." And somewhere in the chaos of breaking reality, something that might have been laughter echoed through dimensions – ancient, mad, and totally without mercy.