Lexi's hesitation lasted barely a second. All it took was another flashback of Icewylves locked in combat with Shadewylves, and she was racing in the opposite direction, curving in front of the labs to enter the plaza. This wasn't going to be a fight she would run from.

The shock at the sight before her sent her staggering to a halt once more.

A crowd, larger than the groups that usually milled around here, had gathered beside the Chroma Pool. Most of them were Flamewylves, but a couple of Toxiwylves and an Airewylf were also lingering nearby, as well as the Seawylf buried right in the midst of the crowd. One Lexi could notice by a mere glance at the pearls that adorned his head, twisting around his ears and jutting upwards to form a crown.

King Dimi. Not only the ruler of the Seawylves, but her best friend's wonderful uncle. Lightning hissed in Lexi's chest, seething with an anger built up over many moons.

Even from across the plaza, Dimi's voice boomed loud and clear. "What did you think, that we'd prop you up all your life?"

There was the thumping sound of a kick, and a responding yelp as the strike met its target.

Creeping closer, Lexi peered between the maze of orange paws, trying to make out the wolf in the centre of their mob. She realised now that this wasn't a fair and simple battle like the ones she'd encountered over the last few days. This felt more like a beating - a group of laughing Flamewylves toying with a wolf who was defenceless to stop them.

Lexi's pace increased as she tried to find a gap in their throng. Whoever their victim was, the desire to help them burned bright in her heart.

"Try begging us for help now," Dimi added with a sneer.

The wolf beside him lifted her head enough for Lexi to briefly catch a glimpse of her. Her presence made sense - she was Ventura, Dimi's partner and a senior member within the Wylfire. "I always knew you were too soft, too weak," she snarled, and fire burst from the tip of her snout, spreading and curling behind her ears, creating a flaming mask. "I kept hoping you'd prove me otherwise. I know now that I was stupid to hope." The final word was punctuated by another yelp.

Pieces slotted together in Lexi's mind. Dashing further around the crowd, she bent down, managing to find a gap. She realised who he was seconds before she saw him.

A familiar wolf was lying on his back, hemmed in by shifting paws. He was bigger than her, but still considerably smaller than most of the wolves prowling around him. His fur shone with a brilliant orange, though it was darkened by Ventura's shadow as she moved over him, her snout almost touching his.

"I expect better from my son, Damon," she hissed.

Her claws whipped out, lightly pressing against his side and slicing down, enough to create a pair of scarlet lines tracing his flank. He whimpered, his eyes wide and glistening, and Lexi made her decision before she even had time to consider it.

"Stop it!" she shouted.

Ventura paused, her claws hovering above Damon's snout. Her eyes shot up, locking onto Lexi, and the rest of the Flamewylves followed suit, until there were nearly a dozen gazes fixed on her golden fur. Swallowing her fear, she jutted her snout up, trying her best to mimic Konrad's confident movements.

"Stop it," she said again, forcing authority into her tone. "Leave him alone."

Opening her snout, Ventura made to object, her fire blazing with her fury, but another voice dived in to stop her. One of the Flamewylves broke from the group, his coral-orange fur slightly more ruffled than usual. "Lexi?" he breathed, pacing cautiously towards her. "We thought you were..."

"Dead?" Lexi finished, an involuntary smile tugging at her snout. "Well, I'm not. Turns out, that Shadewylf you were all set on killing isn't actually a murderous beast."

She wasn't sure whether exhaustion had made her delirious, but she was sure that as she spoke, there wasn't a trace of fear. Not even any to hide. For the first time in a long time, Lexi felt rather smug, and she revelled in it.

These pathetic Flamewylves were the cowards, not her. Whether that was Toivo, or Konrad, or even Storm talking, she wasn't sure, but she knew she believed it now.

"In fact," she continued, her smile widening at their stunned silence, "he's out there right now, fighting against the truly evil Shadewylves. While you prey on a defencless pup..." She gestured to Damon, still on the ground. "... He, along with the Wylfrost, is fighting for his life. That doesn't seem fair to me." Her eyes narrowed, the challenge rippling through her. "What do you think, Sergeant Joeonto?"

Joeonto stared back at her, the most unsure she'd ever seen him. "Well, I-"

"Shouldn't you be helping him? Wouldn't that be a much better way to protect the town?"

For a moment, Joeonto remained silent, his jaw opening and closing like a fish in a Seawylf's fangs. Then, after a glance down at his paws, he nodded. "Of course. It is our duty. Tell us where you have been, Thunderwylf," he ordered, his head held up as he tried to summon some air of authority.

She did, more or less. As briefly as she could, she tracked her journey, starting right from Toivo's ceremony. Telling the story was made tricky by her caution not to mention the Twilytra - she only referred to some loners they'd met who had helped them out - but she managed it, filling in the details they left behind as best she could. The Flamewylves' eyes widened as she described their battle with Jaser, and their rescue within Nefaris Cave.

Some stared with disbelief. But Joeonto knew her better than that. It was one of the things he'd snarled at her about in the past: her inability to lie.

Once she'd finished, he gestured to the rest of the Wylfire. "Thank you, Thunderwylf. We'll take this from here." With a flick of his tail, he was disappearing around the corner, bending towards the Wylfire headquarters.

The others hurried to follow. Ventura shot her son one last glare before joining Joeonto, though her conjured flames now diminished to wisps of smoke. Lexi caught a few uncertain glances cast her way as the wolves dispersed.

It was only then that she noticed the sparks of lightning that had formed. They laced her entire forepaws, flashing with pale gold and creeping out to lash at the earth before her. She quickly retracted them before she could do anything more with the power.

The other wolves that had been subtely watching from other parts of the plaza slipped away too, leaving just her, Damon and Dimi alone. Lexi let her lightning flash out one last time to skip a full circle around her snout before pulling it back in.

"Don't you have preparations to make too, King Dimi?" she asked. "If the Shadewylves are becoming active, the Seawylf royalty will need a plan too, right?"

But Dimi only glared back. "You don't know what you're doing, Lexi," he growled. The way her name clashed against his tongue made her wince. "Your friend has never been quite right. You might think he's trustworthy now, but you mark my words, it won't be long until he betrays you." He glanced down at Damon. "They always let you down."

Yet Lexi only shook her head. She was done doubting whether or not Toivo was good or evil. He was her best friend. Nothing changed that. Especially not the fact that he was now captured, far away and deep within the darkest cave in Sylvera. "He won't," she told him fiercely. "He'll never let me down. He's a hero."

Dimi scoffed. "We'll see about that." He flicked his tail towards Damon. "You three will make a good team. The Shadewylf, the scientist playing hero and the cowardly weakling."

"This is no joke!" Desperation crept into Lexi's tone. "King Dimi, my best friend, along with several other noble and good wolves, is currently in the claws of Shadewylf beasts. I don't know if any of them will even still be alive tomorrow. All I'm asking is for you to help me save them."

Slowly, Dimi shook his head. Mirth still danced in his eyes. "I can't help you. The Wylfire shouldn't, but they will." He turned away. "Go back to your parents, Lexi. You've no place in battle and politics."

By the time she'd prepared an answer, he was already gone.

Bowing her head, she fought back the tears that threatened to emerge, trying to find the confidence that had cloaked her earlier. Everything would be fine. The Wylfire had been shamed into helping, at least for now. She could still save Toivo. It didn't matter what Dimi thought.

"You know, when you left, I said if you didn't die I'd kill you myself."

Her head shot up, eyes darting towards the familiar voice. Her sorrow vanished at the sight of another golden wolf, her eyes alight with green fire.

"So I guess I'll have to kill you now," she continued with a shrug, tilting her head casually to the side. Their staring match only lasted a moment before they both burst into a giggling fit.

"Others have tried, Storm," Lexi replied through her laughter. "I doubt you'll do any better."

"Oh, I beg to differ." Storm giggled for a few more seconds before gaining control, her amusement fading in an instant. "Seriously, Lexi. Never do that to me again."

"So you'd rather have come with me and probably died?" Lexi retaliated. After all that had happened, she was glad that she'd run from Storm, even now. Though the extra set of claws might have helped, it also would have been another friend to drag her down in worry. Enough of her energy had been expended trying to protect Toivo.

But Storm sighed, stubborn as ever. "Yes, Lexi. I'd much rather that than hanging around here, thinking you dead, nearly killing myself with worry anyway." Her smile appeared briefly. "Who says I would have died, anyway? I'd have just zapped all the bad guys." Lightning leaped from the tips of her ears, twirling and dancing as it slid down her snout.

Under normal circumstances, Lexi might have flinched at the display. Storm's recklessness with her power had always made her uneasy. But nothing was normal about what she'd been through, and so all she could do was grin. "I'll bring you next time. I promise."

"Deal." Storm's tail flicked and twirled behind her, more lightning crackling at its tip. "Though I bet you're hoping there isn't a next time, not after all you talked about."

Nodding slowly, Lexi glanced in the direction of the trees. "But there has to be. I have to go save Toivo. I can't stay here and pretend everything's fine, not anymore."

"Wow." Leaning forward, Storm squinted at her. "What happened to just keeping your head down and looking out for your family?"

Lexi laughed softly. "A lot of things happened. I suppose I've realised that the world is changing, and fast." She shrugged. "We've all got to change with it. Pretending everything's fine, creating a false peace, only means you won't be ready for the war to come."

Turning away, Storm snorted. "You're starting to sound like a Mystwylf. But a good one," she added hurriedly, with a smirk. "Not a stuffy one like Afzal."

A faint smile tugged at Lexi's snout. "It probably just comes from someone I met."

Before either of them could say any more, the sound of claws scraping stone grasped their attention. Damon was on his stomach now, trying to climb to his paws. Rushing over, Lexi lent him a paw, and with a sharp tug she pulled him upright. Somehow, in her relief to see Storm again, she'd managed to forget that he was here.

"Sorry," she mumbled, meeting his eyes. "Are you alright?" They'd barely exchanged a few words in the past, but she remembered how his eyes used to dance with flame, as if he were displaying his strength even in his gaze. He'd look at her like dirt, every part of him speaking of how little he thought of her science and her weakness. He didn't need to speak for her to feel the stab of his mocking jibes. But now his eyes were dulled, glowing only with a faint amber, like sparks trying to fight their way through a cloud of suffocating ash.

"No," he answered. She waited for him to say more, but he only averted his gaze, staring at the smoothed stone of the plaza. When she tried to catch his eye again, he shifted away.

Looking up, Lexi exchanged glances with Storm. Even though she said nothing, Storm's view was clear in her glare. This is just what he deserves.

But Lexi shook her head, her responding gaze firm. No-one deserves to be treated like that.

All this time, Thirty-Four had seemed like the only victim. His aunt and uncle had acted even more coldly than his parents. If they'd looked at her like dirt, the glances meant for him were more as if he were some straggling weed - a living plant, with the capabilities to be perfect, yet still never up to standard. He was acceptable, but unnecessary.

But perhaps he hadn't been the only one. As Lexi replayed the scene in her mind, she wondered whether Damon was recieving similar treatment, at least within the closed doors of their own home.

Until now. Something had changed.

Turning back to Damon, Lexi lifted her head and nudged the side of his snout, trying to draw his head up. "What happened?" she asked softly.

He didn't reply.

"You can talk to us," she told him, ducking her head to try to meet his eyes. He wouldn't look up. "I promise, whatever happened..."

"Go away, scrap," he growled, the words barely audible but sizzling with anger. Lexi flinched backwards automatically as the fire flashed in his eyes again. But the empty ash settled again before he could even fully shoot her the flame-filled glare.

"No," she said firmly. Once again, silence ruled.

After only a few moments of Lexi searching for a way to grasp his gaze, the crackle of lightning brought her head up. Storm was stood on Damon's other side; her snout decorated with twisting strikes, her eyes blazing with the same electric energy. She tilted her head to the side, something deadly narrowing her gaze. Lexi couldn't help but step away.

"Let me get this straight," Storm said, the words slow and controlled - always a dangerous sign. "For moons you treat us like utter dirt, acting all high and mighty. Now, the tables have turned, and you're the dirt." She spat the final word, and Damon flinched. But she wasn't done. "Yet, for some unknown reason, Lexi decides that you're somehow still worth it and tries to help. Because she's a good, kind-hearted soul - words foreign to you, I know."

Lexi found herself stunned, rooted to the spot. Sure, Storm often displayed her irritation. Many a day at the lab had been filled with one of her rants. But never had she ever acted like this. This wasn't just subdued bitterness. This was pure, heated rage, far fiercer than even the lightning that weaved amongst her fur.

"Yet you have the audacity to call her a scrap?" Storm continued, shaking her head. "I think you'll find you're the scrap here, Damon. Go on, then. Either go sort out your problem yourself, or stay here and accept the help you really don't deserve. Tell us your little sob story." She shrugged. "I might even feel an ounce of sympathy for you."

Her words crackled in the air along with her lightning. Gaze settling on Damon, Lexi saw the way his shoulders slumped at her words, his ears almost flat against his head. He was deeply ashamed, even if Storm couldn't see it. The insult had been more of a defence mechanism. All the anger had done was drive the claws already scraping his heart even deeper.

Perhaps she was reading too much into things, as always. But Lexi knew guilt when she saw it.

Eventually, just as Storm's lightning began to subside, Damon's head snapped up. He stared straight into Storm's eyes, and though Lexi couldn't see his expression, his ears had risen in challenge.

"Fine," he hissed. It was a forced hiss. His throat still sounded tight with emotion. "I took the trials for the Wylfire. And I failed. Badly." Already, his snout was dropping again. "I couldn't even kill a stupid rabbit," he muttered, quieter.

"And that warranted a beating?" Storm's tone was less angry now. Instead, exasperation turned her voice to a sighing growl. At Damon's slight nod, she sighed properly. "Always good to know the Seawylf royalty is in safe paws, right?"

Lexi contributed a sigh of her own. "And the safety of our town."

"I deserved it though," Damon protested, gaze flicking between the two of them. "I should be strong. If I'm not..." He flicked his tail, the gesture half-hearted. "I'm not worth it. I'm of no use to them."

Storm laughed humourlessly. "Luna's claws, you could have given yourself that beating."

Moving forward, Lexi tapped her tail against his flank. "Of course you're worth something. Everyone is."

It had always felt second nature to her to believe that. A wolf didn't need to prove their right to life. It was everyone's right, no matter who or what they were. Her parents had always taught her that, and she'd told Toivo whenever she could, reminding him that not being physically strong didn't mean he wasn't strong inside.

Clearly, Damon's teaching had been a little different. He was backing away before she could stop him. "Not everyone."

She called after him, but he was already running.

Tensing, she prepared to chase after him, but claws yanked her back by her tail. "Don't. Let him go," Storm said from behind. When Lexi shot her a pleading glance, she sighed. "Alright, tell you what, I'll go find him in a bit. You go rest."

Lexi's dubiousness must have shown in her expression, because Storm hurriedly added, "I'll be nice, I promise. Mostly."

She let go, and Lexi turned to face her. The ordeal had sent her shoulders sagging, and not just out of sympathy for Damon. Even the effort to help him seemed to sap energy from every bit of her.

"Yeah, rest sounds good," she said with a slight laugh. But she felt a question forming on her tongue before she could even say goodbye. "Why did you get so angry at him?"

Storm's eyes dropped to the stone as she pawed it, silent. Glaring at her, Lexi tried again. "Come on. What is it?"

As she looked up again, a wry smile curved Storm's snout. A nervous laugh escaped her. "You won't tell?"

"Of course not," Lexi said. "You're making me suspicious now," she added with a frown.

"Alright." Storm paused, avoiding eye contact. "Maybe I find him kind of cute and it annoys me that his personality sucks so much," she blurted, the words almost merging.

Lexi burst out laughing. Maybe it was the tiredness, but the embarrassment on her friend's face seemed like the funniest thing she'd seen in a good while.

"Hey," Storm protested, nudging her. "Now admit you found Thirty-Four cute."

Ducking her head, Lexi hid her surprise, now sharing her friend's expression. "Yeah, yeah I did," she mumbled. Not that it was much of a confession. Storm knew anyway. Tilting her gaze upwards with her snout still lowered, she laughed loudly as they met eyes. "Just wait until you meet Toivo," she added with a grin.

"Oh?" Storm's snout twitched upwards. "The Shadewylf is good-looking now, is he?"

"Very," she admitted, her words running away with her. Exhaustion seemed to be loosening her tongue. She and Storm stared at each other, and suddenly she couldn't stop laughing, the unrequited giggles that had been caged in her chest for days bursting out of her in an uncontrollable explosion.

She probably was delirious. But it felt good, just in that moment, to laugh about something normal.

"When this is all over," Storm proclaimed, as their laughter faded to chuckles, "we'll go on a double date. You, me, Toivo, and the moody Flamewylf."

"You can un-mood-ify Damon," Lexi suggested with a smirk.

"That I will," Storm replied, a special spark in her eye. She flicked her tail towards her lab. "Hey, I know you just got back from almost dying, but I'm killing myself with boredom doing all this paperwork. Fancy helping me survive?"

Lexi almost said yes. The ordinary act of sorting paper and doing maths felt so inviting. But she'd delayed her task enough already, and Storm wasn't the only wolf who'd been worried sick about her.

"Maybe later." She sighed, the laughter vanishing completely, her joy swallowed by the gaping hole of guilt opening in her heart. "Good look with Damon. We'll have that date soon, I promise."

"And you won't go on any spontaneous adventures without me?" Storm narrowed her eyes, her tone joking but gaze deadly serious.

"Not without you." She meant it this time. In all honesty, she hoped there were no other adventures awaiting her. Though she knew the hope was futile.

Turning away, she called a final goodbye back at Storm and started in the direction of the labs, before curving around the back of them. Her paws led her on autopilot along the well-worn path, but that didn't make the journey any less excruciatingly tense.

Dimi had been right about one thing. She had to go back to her parents.