I can barely keep my legs steady. Each step feels heavier than the last, but I cannot fall. Not yet.

  The Green Stalker looms before me, its wretched vines twisting and writhing, reaching for what is left of my family. My breath is ragged. My body screams for rest. But none of that matters now.

  Behind me, my only son fights with everything he has, snapping at the Dusk Stalkers that block our escape. And ahead, my youngest—my last pup—disappears into the entrance, safe… for now.

  She is only alive because of him.

  I step back. My muscles ache, my vision blurs, and then—warmth. The weight of my son pressing against my back. We are cornered, and we both know it.

  “…I’m sorry,” I murmur, my voice a whisper lost in the chaos. "I failed you all. I am… such a failure of a mother."

  My son does not hesitate. "It's not your fault, Mama." His voice is steady, strong. "Thanks to you, the pup lives."

  But it is my fault.

  I let my mate die. I let my daughters die. No mother should watch her daughters perish before her. That alone proves what a failure I am.

  It is settled, there is no way around it. If the pup is to have a future, someone must hold the Green Stalker. Someone must hold back the Dusk Stalkers.

  It must be us.

  I exhale, shaking the thoughts away. There is no time for regret. I glance forward, catching one last glimpse of her—my little pup, my last child. She is looking back, tears in her eyes, frozen.

  I force myself to smile. Not the weary, broken smile of a mother who has lost everything—but a gentle one. The kind I would give when they curled up beside me as newborns, safe and warm.

  "Live on, pup."

  Then I turn, and I charge back at the Green Stalker.

  I barely manage to dodge as the Green Stalker’s spiked vine lashes out again, carving through the air with deadly precision. My body is sluggish, exhaustion weighing me down like chains, but I force myself to move.

  I cast a mirage—a simple light manipulation spell—to throw it off. The shimmering illusion flickers to life, a copy of myself darting to the side.

  It doesn’t even hesitate.

  The Green Stalker ignores the illusion entirely and strikes where I actually am. I throw myself to the ground, barely avoiding a thorned limb that would've torn me apart.

  Shit.

  Of course it wouldn’t fall for that. It doesn’t have eyes. It never had eyes. How could I forget something so obvious? The exhaustion is messing with my head, dulling my thoughts.

  I force myself up, panting. At least I didn’t waste my mana earlier. That’s the only silver lining in this mess.

  But I can’t keep dodging forever.

  I channel my mana, shaping it into wind spears. It’s a significant drain, but I have no choice. The spears tear through the air, striking true—yet the result is underwhelming. The Green Stalker staggers, shallow punctures marking its body, but nothing lethal.

  Still, it’s an opening.

  I push forward, leaping over its thrashing limb, aiming for what any predator would instinctively go for—the neck. My jaws clamp down, muscles straining as I rip through fibrous flesh. I land, panting, and watch its head slump forward.

  But I don’t celebrate.

  That… was too easy.

  And sure enough, the Green Stalker twitches, its body shifting unnaturally. A deception. Of course. The neck was never a weakness. A creature like this, with no true organs, no bones, no blood—it wouldn’t die just because I tore off something that looked vital.

  I should’ve expected this.

  I step back, lowering myself into a stance, forcing my exhaustion aside. My only son is still fighting behind me. My youngest daughter is still running ahead. I don’t have time to waste on mistakes.

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  I must finish this. Or, at the very least, stall it long enough for them to live.

  The Green Stalker shifts, its torn head sealing shut as if my attack never happened. From its back, a mass of sharp, writhing vines emerges, twisting like living spears.

  So, it’s finally taking me seriously.

  Good. That means I did something right.

  I steady my breath, planting my paws firmly on the ?ground. No more half-measures. No more wasting time. If this thing is going to fight at full strength, then so will I.

  I channel everything—every last bit of mana, every ounce of strength left in my body. The air around me hums with power, and a glowing circle begins to take shape in front of my snout.

  This has to count.

  Abyssal Howl. My trump card.

  The moment the vines lash toward me—

  AWOOOOOOOOOOOO!

  A piercing, bone-shaking vibration erupts from deep within me. The very air trembles. The cave walls shudder. I see it—the Green Stalker’s vines, thrashing violently as the force of my howl cuts through them, splintering, chipping away, unraveling.

  I don't hold back. I can’t hold back. Every last ounce of mana, every shred of strength, I pour into this one, final attack.

  My vision blurs. My legs tremble. But I don't stop. Not yet.

  Not until this thing is nothing but dust.

  And then I stopped..

  No...

  No, no, no—this can’t be happening.

  I gave it everything. Every last drop of my strength, my mana, my will—and it just grows back.

  The torn vines writhe, twisting together like sinew knitting over a wound. The stalker’s form, battered and shredded, heals. Regenerating. Reforming. Like my struggle meant nothing.

  I try to move. To stand. To do anything.

  But my legs won’t listen. My body—it’s done.

  I’ve failed.

  I'm done.

  My body feels like it’s crumbling, each movement slower than the last. Every breath is strained, every heartbeat like a drum against my ribcage. I’ve given all I can, and yet—

  The Green Stalker, it's still standing. Healed. Damaged, yes, but far from done.

  It lashes out. The vines strike with incredible force, and before I can even react, I got sent flying, crashing into the ground.

  The world spins as I hit the ground, the sharp sting of pain ringing through me. It’s so heavy, like the weight of everything is pressing down on me. I struggle to get back up, but I can’t. I can barely even lift my head.

  And then... I see him. My son.

  He’s still alive, barely conscious, but he's there—he fought, he fought until the very end. I can see the pride, the exhaustion, the pain.

  He fell to the ground, but every Dusk Stalker around him is dead. He did it.

  I try to move, extend my paw to him, to hold him, to be there. To show him that he did it. That I'm proud of him.

  My voice cracks, but I can barely speak.

  "You did it, son... I’m so proud of you."

  But my heart... oh, my heart is breaking. Because I know—I know I won’t get to tell him again.

  This is it.

  I feel it—my strength completely draining. My legs refuse to move, and the world around me is starting to fade. Everything seems distant now, blurry like a fading memory.

  I fall. And as I fall, I know my son is with me. We’re falling together, as a mother and son. We always stood side by side, and now, at the end, we fall side by side.

  At least my youngest is safe out there. I can only hope she’s far enough to escape all this. I pray that she makes it, that she lives on.

  I can’t help but think of everything I’ve seen, everything I’ve fought for. What a life I had.

  There were moments of joy, of family, of pride. Moments when I felt invincible, when I could protect them all. But now... now, it’s time for me to rest. To let go.

  Maybe it's enough that we tried.

  I can feel the warmth of my mate’s presence in my heart, even though I know he's no longer by my side. I’m coming to you, my love. Soon, we’ll all be together again—our only son, and now me. Our family, reunited.

  I look at him—my son, barely clinging to consciousness. His strength is fading, but I know he fought with everything he had. My brave boy... He never gave up, not even when the odds were against him.

  You’ve been waiting for us, haven’t you? You, my mate—our daughters. I’ve failed you all. I couldn’t protect them. I couldn’t keep our family whole.

  But soon... soon we’ll be together again. It’s all I have left to hold on to as the world around me fades.

  I wish I could see you, feel your warmth one last time. I wish I could tell you I did my best... I’m sorry I couldn’t do more.

  But it’s time. Time to join you. Time to rest.

  We’ll be together again.

  I can feel the weight of my words, the regret sinking deep into my chest.

  Sorry, pup...

  I’m sorry for leaving you alone in all of this. You, the one who never asked for any of this pain, this burden. You were just a pup, with so much to live for... and now you’ll have to face the world without us. Without your family by your side.

  I wish I could have been there for you, to protect you, to guide you. I wish I could have watched you grow and be the wolf I always knew you could be. But I failed...

  I failed you.

  I can’t be there to see you through it, but maybe... maybe, if you remember what we’ve taught you, remember the love we gave you, you’ll find a way. You’re strong, my little one. Stronger than I ever was.

  Take care of yourself. Live on, for us. Don’t let the world crush you. You have so much potential in you.

  And when your time comes, when it’s your turn to join us, we’ll be waiting.

  Goodbye, my sweet pup.

  I’m sorry, but... we’ll always be with you, in your heart. Always.

  The world goes silent, the crushing weight of my regrets still hanging heavy on my heart. The final blow, a surge of agony, severs my connection to everything. The vines of the Green Stalker lash out one last time, and then...

  Darkness.

  No pain. No thoughts. No worries.

  Just... silence.

  I feel myself fading, like the last breath of a wolf in a storm, as everything I've fought for slips from my grasp. But even in this endless void, there's a glimmer. A whisper, so faint, but I hear it, like a distant call. My mate’s voice. My children’s faces.

  I think of you, pup. The last image I hold is of you running, surviving, with the strength we gave you.

  And for the first time in a long while, I feel peace.

  End of Interlude