---External POV---

Moonlight was prying through the branches, faintly illuminating the blackened soil beneath, along with the small group of humans in the heart of the forest. Nothing moved, safe for a column of deep blue light.

It flickered between the trees, dancing from space to space, always followed by its dark twin shadow, dancing around it in perfect harmony. It rushed over the humans, hovering a few feet above them but those that opened their eyes halfheartedly in their sleep didn't see a thing, only the dark sky above.

The light didn't wait for them to close their eyes, instead, it rushed over every individual, as if checking that they were still there before it floated back to the edge of the forest. The action was repeated in a slow cycle, each time the light would return back to hover over the small group of people before it hovered over the young man, whom was sleeping between two children.

Every time the light passed over them, the younger man stirred in his sleep before relaxing slightly with each pass. The flash of blue darted back to the edge of the forest, curling between the trees while its black twin rushed around in a playful dance.

And right then, several things occurred at once.

In the middle of a twirl towards the sky, the dark shadow suddenly shot away from its twin to dart towards the southern edge of the clearing whilst the deep blue light flared up brightly and sped in the opposite direction before it rushed through the young man's chest.

It was at that time that a pair of sharp blue eyes shot open just as the light made contact with Thorn's chest. Without making a single sound, he sat up straight and stared into the darkness, his eyes eerily glowing in the dark before they darted down.

Thorn awakened the two children still sleeping in his lap before wordlessly going to the rest of the group. His hands were gentle yet firm as they took hold on each of the adults' shoulders and shook them awake, waking them with a start before muffling the gasp that always followed.

"Trouble. Quiet and wake the others." He whispered as softly as possible, ignoring the humans' reaction to his bright blue eyes, which seemed to float in the darkness of the forest.

The humans were soon on their feet, shaking in the cold air from exhaustion, cold and fear. As soon as everyone was up, they huddled closer to Thorn when his head shot up, as if hearing something, just at the time the dark shadow darted back out the depths of the woods.

---Thorn's POV---

The rush of something cool pouring through me along with an unintelligible shout ringing in my head woke me up with a start. My mind still shivered from the force of the voice, though it seemed I was the only one who had heard it.

I instantly knew that something dangerous was coming closer; the blue light that woke me up was now flying towards the Northeast, darting back and forth between the edge of the forest and me while its shadow was nowhere to be found.

Pushing the tiredness to the back of my mind, I reached out and gently shook both Blake and Lyra, who both groaned softly before their eyes shot open, instantly finding my own. I placed a finger on their lips, indicating to be quiet before I looked at the others and stood up.

They got what I meant and quickly rushed to do the same, sneaking through the forest as I went to the group of adults closest to me. Henry woke with a start and nearly shouted out when I grasped his arm and shook him to wake him up. My hand instantly flew out to muffle his shocked gasp as his eyes found my own, the light from them reflecting in his own.

"Trouble. Quiet and wake the others." I whispered softly before going to the next group. It wasn't until long that everyone was awake, shivering in freight as they grouped around me, waiting for me to tell them what to do in order to survive.

Another unearthly and high-pitched scream resounded through my head, making it snap up just as the dark shadow shot out of the woods, drawing my attention. It was weird to explain, since I couldn't hear any words in the scream, nor understood the tongue the shade spoke in but I knew instantly what was roaming the woods.

My mood darkened instantly before I snapped lowly, "Follow me. Quickly!" The blue light flared up before it shot away through the woods, illuminating the forest floor it zipped over while I could hear the humans stumble behind me.

"Thorn, what in God's name-" Henry started angrily when he tripped over a trunk but was cut off by an ominous howl deeper in the woods, freezing everyone on the spot while I cursed under my breath.

"Werewolves." Someone cursed under their breath while everyone listened to the silence that followed the howl.

"Worse. Lycans." I said sharply, ignoring the feint whimpers from several of them before urging the group forwards. "Keep moving! They might find the camp soon." Everyone shivered again before they literally ran for their lives. The blue light enhanced everyone's features, the fear fixed on their faces as they darted blindly through the woods, nearly trampling each other.

I stopped running when the blue light circled me before shooting up in the sky, making me curse loudly before I ran to the nearest tree and pushed one of the kids up. "Get up! Go, quickly!"

Blake and Lyra helped the other kids scramble up the trees, pushing them higher as the adults fought to get up first, making me sneer in disgust and anger for their behavior. Even when faced with danger, they still had to be selfish and tried to save their own hides while they left the weak to fend for themselves.

Everyone was soon in the trees, clinging on for dear life while I skillfully jumped up a tree and scaled it, keeping Lyra and Blake close to me while praying that Noah would keep silent in the following minutes.

"Quiet!" I hushed, my eyes darting towards the shade as it moved frantically to the thicker part of the woods, hovering there. My heart thudded violently in my chest while I nibbled on my lip nervously, feeling my body tense up as something else finally stirred in the shadows.

The thudding of paws filled the clearing before several huge wolves stormed through the branches, growling and snarling as they darted past our location. My nails dug in the bark to stop myself from cursing out loud at the sight of the enormous werewolves, as the stopped and sniffed the air before turning around when several branches broke.

My eyes locked onto a pair of Lycans as they ran on all fours before they jumped up mid run and skidded to a halt on their hind legs, snarling softly. If you wondered what the difference was, werewolves look exactly like a normal wolf would, except they're bigger, stronger and way more intelligent.

The Lycans however were a different race, yet they were considered royalty under the werewolves for as far as I knew. They were more driven by their wolf, the urges of the animal just scraping beneath the surface while they were more...well, more.

They could run on either two or four, both with amazing speeds and they were even more intelligent than the werewolves. My eyes darted to the humans, who seemed like they would never let the trees go, their fingers digging into the wood whilst several of them were biting down on a piece of fabric to stop from screaming in fear.

Several of the women had silent tears running down their faces while they hid their children against their chest, as if that could keep them safe if we were spotted. I knew we wouldn't though, at least not for now; the blue light was still hovering at my eyelevel, staying silently in one spot, as if urging me not to move.

The wolves beneath our feet shifted, as well as one of the Lycans as shreds of fur and skin fell off, exposing a well build Afro-American male as he folded his arms in front of his chest.

"I thought you knew where the humans were going? Instead you lost the trail and the chance of finding my best friend's mate!" He snarled in a deep tone as he pinned one of the younger and smaller werewolves down with his glare.

The blond guy whimpered at the venomous tone he was spoken to, overshadowed by the low grumble coming from the Lycan that hadn't shifted yet as it growled and dug its claws deeply in the forest floor.

"I-I don't know how they managed to escape us sire. Their scent disappeared not to far from here b-b-but we'll find them, I swear!" He stuttered, trying his best to appease the larger and older wolves.

"We might need to use a Baiter but even so, they need to find the humans as well. And who says it's the same group that hold's Dereck's Mate? This could be my friend's one and only shot at finding his mate and you royally screwed him over!" The dark male roared while his friend dug its claws deeper, tearing the soil open as it twitched and shivered.

My heart froze when it snarled and lashed out, hitting the base of the tree where Blake, Lyra and I were hiding in. As a reflex, I wrapped my arms around both of them before using my weight to press them against the tree when it shivered precariously but luckily managed to hold its ground.

By now, my heart was thudding in my throat but I counted myself lucky, because I knew the werewolves could've picked up on that if they weren't distracted by the raging Lycan in front of their noses as it kept clawing at the base of the dead tree, sending shiver after shiver up the wood.

I hardly heard the rest of their conversation, though I could detect the anger and venom of the Lycan's tone. My thighs trembled from clutching onto the rough bark, as well as my arms from holding both myself and the three children against the tree before the werewolves shifted back, bowing for the Lycan as it hunched down and shifted, turning into a huge black beast.

The muscles bulged on its back as it snarled once more in the direction of the werewolves before they both darted into the night, quickly followed by the pack of werewolves.

Everyone breathed out a sigh of relief when things grew quiet again while I relaxed and pressed my forehead against the bark, letting out a shivering breath. Droplets of sweat coursed down my temples as the events caught up with me, making me shiver on the spot on how close a call this had been.

-----------

By now a day and half had passed since that near-miss with the Lycans and we had sped away from that place, trying to put as much distance between us and the wolves as possible. The humans were on edge, constantly looking around and whispering to each other but stopped when I turned to look at them.

It was slowly grating away on my nerves, the way they would look at me, as if I had done something to them, other than saving their hides. I couldn't understand why they kept being disgusted with the mere sight of me.

My hand reached up to ruffle through my shock of black hair, feeling irritated and confused. Was I really that bad to stick to? I mean, I don't even know what I am but come on, I'm helping these guys.

The whispers continued as I led them up the hill before stopping as I saw movement in the distance. The group noticed as well and grew silent while I peered through the darkness of early dawn before blinking sharply as someone walked to us.

A woman walked through the forest and waved at us with a smile on her face before she ventured closer, smiling nervously at everyone. There was something about her that I didn't like, especially in the way she simply ran up to us; she might be seemingly on her own but in a time if survival of the fittest, it wasn't a bright move to simply run to the first stranger you met.

I kept in the background as she greeted the humans and smiled warmly at them before starting up a story over her past and how she had lost everyone dear to her and was now traveling to the east.

My lips formed a narrow line when one of the humans in the group invited her over before looking at me. "What do you think Thorn?" The woman turned towards me with a bright smile, but paled slightly when she looked straight in my eyes, something glinting in her own pale brown eyes.

And I instantly knew what was wrong.

"No. She's a Baiter." I stated, pushing Blake and Lyra behind me while keeping one arm protectively over Noah as he slept soundly against my chest. Baiters were hybrids who had chosen the immortal side and helped them by luring humans into their traps, hence their names.

The woman shook her head and motioned to herself, "I'm completely human, I just want a chance at survival like every single one of you! And who says that you aren't a Baiter yourself huh? You simply want a reward for bringing such a large group in!" She accused, pointing a slender finger at me while hiding herself behind Henry and a few of the other males in the group.

Henry turned around, observing me with a disgusted glare as the rest of his small group muttered under their voices. "Well, it had been a close call with the wolves..." the two brothers added with a frown before walking over towards the strange woman, who was biting on her lip while keeping her eyes on me.

"You're dismissed, Thorn." Henry sneered, lifting his head to look down at me, making me clench my fists in anger at being treated like a dog. The other humans slowly grouped around the woman, eying me cautiously as if I was a rabid dog, eager to turn on them.

I simply sighed and backed off, turning around to go in the direction I knew was safe. If they wanted to follow a Baiter, than so be it; I wasn't going to bother with a band of suicidal humans. My heart thumped painfully in my chest though, being rejected yet again. It seemed that I would roam the planet on my own for eternity.

Well, not completely alone. I realized that when a small hand clutched on mine while Blake growled under his breath. "You're all fools! You're choosing a stranger over someone who has helped you for weeks on end, never asking anything in return!" He snapped over his shoulder before I pulled him with me, turning him around in the process.

"You saw it too, didn't you?" I asked softly as we quickly ventured through the last trees before we arrived at a yellowed grassland, the strands of grass swaying in the wind. Blake nodded and twitched his nose slightly.

"And she smelled just like that Lycan from a few days ago." He added before he leaned down so Lyra could hop on his back, allowing us to progress more swiftly. I nodded, looking down when Noah whimpered softly before he struggled against my sweater. I sighed and pulled him out, patting him on the back as we continued further.

Lyra looked over her shoulder at the forest before shivering slightly. "I have a bad feeling about this." She stated softly, making me grimace as I nodded. The Lycans and wolves would soon get our scent from the group and they would open the hunt sooner or later.

---External POV---

Night fell again and the group of humans stumbled to a halt, suddenly realizing again why they needed Thorn, even though he wasn't a complete human. They all turned at the woman for guidance but instantly paled down when they heard the distinct thudding of paws against the forest floor.

Panic and fear took over and they all scattered in different directions, screaming in fright when huge wolves jumped over them to block their escape route, others being stared down by several monstrous looking Lycans, who easily towered over the largest of the humans.

The black Lycan that had followed them a few days ago stepped forwards, shifting as he stepped up beside the strange woman, who leaned up to kiss him on the cheek, revealing her betrayal to the rest of the group.

"Good job, Leah. Now Dereck can finally have his mate while the rest of the humans can be given the elixir." He stated with a dark smile as his friend appeared as well, scanning the humans before his eye fell on the brothers and smirked widely.

The scene that followed was observed closely in another realm, as a woman glared at the vision projected on the glass wall of her house before she spun around to pin her three sons down with a disappointed glare.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't I punish you three by giving you several realms to look over? Didn't I tell you that every single planet in that realm should be checked accordingly?" she stated, fixing her eyes on her youngest son, who shrugged sheepishly, knowing he was in serious trouble. Why his siblings had been dragged in this, Ashkii didn't know but he knew another punishment would follow soon.

Their mother sighed deeply before turning towards the other sons, who where both older than Ashkii. "Ye'iitsoh, I want you to look over your brother's realms to the best of your abilities." The eldest of the brothers inclined his head respectfully, the long blond hair falling over his face before he vanished into thin air.

Turning towards her second oldest son, she sighed before reaching out to take his hands in her own, smaller ones. "Bidziil, I'm sending you to Earth to set this situation straight again. I don't know why this hadn't been brought to my attention earlier but I'm glad you managed to find out what Ashkii had been hiding."

Bidziil simply smirked slightly, nodding once before he looked at his younger sibling and playfully ruffled through his hair, ignoring the way his brother tried to smack his hands away.

"Sure mother, it'll be dealt with quickly." Bidziil spoke with confidence, a wicked smirk pulling more on his lips before he stretched himself slightly, flexing the bands of muscle on his body before leaning forwards to kiss his mother's cheek.

"Be careful." His mother warned, more concerned for what mischief her son could possible create but all he did was lift an eyebrow and shook his head slightly, his dark brown eyes twinkling with mischief, though they darkened considerably when they ventured back to the wall, where he watched the humans being bound and taken away.

"They won't know what hit them." He reassured his mother before disappearing in a burst of flames, reappearing in the midst of a dark forest which had been scarred by fire. His eyes scanned the premises before sighing when he found no life anywhere near him.

"Ashkii..." He groaned out in annoyance when he observed the scarred remains of the forest before shaking his head to teleport to a different location, just to be greeted with the same haunted nature.

Bidziil turned around when he heard a sound in the distance and sighed before deciding to check it out. Whatever it was, he would find out soon. His annoyance rose up when he realized the humans might've pushed the Earth beyond its limits but the Immortals in this realm had simply watched before they pointed an accusing finger to the weakest race, instead of intervening before things got out of hand.

A snarl erupted behind him and he slowly turned around, aiming a menacing glare at the pack of wolves as they bounded out of the forest, surrounding him as they eyed him cautiously.

He snorted at the pathetic attempt to intimidate him before a crooked smile slipped on his face, causing several of the wolves to back down.

"Let's ask the inhabitants of this planet to see what's going on around here." He smirked to himself before turning his full attention to the wolves, pinning them down with a cool stare.