CHAPTER 117: THE SACRIFICE’S SIDE EFFECTS

Lily POV

The vampire hissed and backed away from me like I was made of fire. His red eyes went wide with fear as I stepped closer, trying to help him up from where he’d fallen during the fight.

"Stay back!" he screamed, scrambling across the cave floor. "What are you?"

I froze, my hand still stretched out to help. "I’m Lily. I’m trying to help you."

But he just kept backing away, his fangs showing as he growled. "You’re not normal. You smell like... like the space between worlds."

Around us, the emergency meeting had turned into chaos after Luna exposed herself as a Void King servant. But now everyone was staring at me instead of fighting the real enemy. Werewolves I’d known my whole life looked at me like I was a stranger. The dragon-woman had actually moved to put more distance between us.

What was wrong with me?

Ever since Prince Ash had tried to move his soul to save Emma, I’d felt different. The spell had failed when the Void King corrupted it, but something had changed inside me. I could feel it like a cold weight in my chest, something that hadn’t been there before.

"Lily?" Aiden’s voice sounded unsure. Even my own mate’s brother was looking at me strangely. "Are you okay? You feel... different."

Different. That word kept following me around like a bad smell.

"I’m fine," I lied, pulling my hands back to my sides. But I wasn’t great. Every supernatural being in the cave was responding to me like I was dangerous. Even Emma, sleeping in her carrier, had started crying the moment I got close.

The elf elder stepped forward carefully, like he was approaching a wild animal. "Child, may I check you? Something has changed your essence."

I wanted to say no. I wanted to run back to my house and pretend none of this was happening. But if something was wrong with me, I needed to know what it was.

The elf put his hands near my shoulders, not quite touching. His face went pale.

"Impossible," he whispered. "You’re partially phased out of this world. How are you still standing here?"

"What does that mean?" I asked, though I was afraid to hear the answer.

"It means," said a new voice from the cave opening, "that you’re becoming like us."

Everyone turned to see three more figures entering - not the Void Lieutenants we’d been fighting, but something else. They looked almost human, but their edges seemed blurry, like they weren’t quite all there.

"The Between Walkers," Elder Marcus breathed. "I thought they were myths."

"Very real," the first figure said with a sad smile. "We were like you once. Supernatural beings who got caught between worlds during magical accidents."

My heart started pounding. "Caught between realities?"

"When Prince Ash’s spell was corrupted," the second figure explained, "it created a rift between worlds. You were standing too close. Part of you got pulled into the space between dimensions."

I felt sick. "Am I going to die?"

"Not die," the third figure said softly. "But you’re not fully alive in this world anymore either. That’s why everyone responds to you strangely. You’re becoming unstuck from normal life."

The vampire who’d been afraid of me earlier spoke up. "Is that why she smells wrong? Like she’s not completely here?"

"Exactly," the first Between Walker said. "And it’s going to get worse. Soon she won’t be able to touch things in this world at all. She’ll fade away totally."

Panic rose in my throat. I thought about Emma, about Caleb, about the baby growing inside me. I couldn’t fade away. I had too much to live for.

"There has to be a way to fix this," I said desperately.

The Between Walkers exchanged looks. "There is one way. But it takes a choice that can’t be undone."

"What choice?"

"You can anchor yourself to this reality permanently," the second one explained. "But to do it, you have to give up something precious. Something that connects you to the magical world."

I felt hope and fear at the same time. "What would I have to give up?"

"Your wolf," the third Between Walker said quietly. "Your link to the pack. Your mate bond. Everything that makes you supernatural."

The cave went completely silent. I could hear my own heartbeat booming off the walls.

Give up being a werewolf? Give up my connection to Caleb, to the pack, to everything I’d ever known? I’d spent my whole life feeling like I didn’t fit because I was just an omega. Now I was being asked to give up being a wolf entirely.

But the option was fading away into nothing, leaving Caleb and our unborn child behind.

"How long do I have to decide?" I asked.

"Not long," the first Between Walker said sadly. "The process is accelerating. Maybe a few hours before you’re too far gone to choose."

That’s when Brock burst into the cave, his face wild with fear. "Caleb’s missing! I can’t find him anywhere, and there’s magical interference blocking our pack bond!"

My heart stopped. In all the chaos and revelations about my condition, I’d forgotten that Caleb had gone to research in the library. Now he was lost, and I might not have long before I couldn’t help find him.

"Where did you see him last?" I asked, trying to stay calm.

"The storage room. But the door’s sealed with magic I’ve never seen before. Aiden’s trying to break it down, but—"

"I can get through," I interrupted. Everyone stared at me. "If I’m partially between realities, maybe I can walk through magical barriers."

The Between Walkers nodded slowly. "It’s possible. But using your between-state skills will make the fading process happen faster. You might only have minutes to decide about the grounding after that."

I didn’t hesitate. "Then we better hurry."

As I ran toward the storage room with Brock, the Between Walkers called after me: "Remember, once you’re fully between worlds, there’s no coming back! The choice has to be made while you can still touch this reality!"

I pushed down my fear and ran faster. Whatever was happening to me, whatever choice I had to make, it would have to wait. Caleb needed me now.

But as we reached the storage room, I could see through the magically sealed door like it was made of glass. What I saw inside made my blood turn to ice.

Caleb was pressed against the far wall, terror on his face. Standing over him was Elder Iris, but her eyes were solid black and her hands glowed with dark energy.

"Please," Caleb was saying. "I won’t tell anyone what I found. I swear."

Elder Iris smiled with too many teeth. "Oh, you won’t tell anyone, dear boy. Because dead dogs tell no tales."

She raised her hands, dark power crackling between her fingers.

I had seconds to save him, but using my between-worlds skills might cost me everything I had left.