The chase was over before it truly began. Nze's breath came in ragged gasps as the leopards closed in around him, cutting him off at every turn. Their eyes gleamed with predatory satisfaction, their low growls filling the air like the prelude to a storm. Kai stepped forward, his hands in his pockets, his head tilted at an almost comical angle as he regarded Nze.

"It's nothing personal, friend," Kai said, his voice calm, conversational, as though they were sharing drinks rather than standing on the edge of violence. "Maybe in another life, we'd have been buds. But in this one?" He gestured casually to the leopards circling Nze. "Well, you're breakfast."

Nze stumbled back, his hands trembling as he raised them in a futile gesture of surrender. "Please," he whispered, his voice breaking. "Please don't do this."

Kai's face softened, almost pitying. "Oh, buddy," he said, shaking his head. "You should've stayed away."

And then they pounced.

The leopards moved as one—a blur of claws and fangs. Nze screamed, a sound that tore through the forest like a bird caught in a storm. But it wasn't just his scream that broke the quiet—it was Bee's.

Far away, Bee collapsed to the forest floor, her hands clawing at her throat as if she were choking on the air itself. Her body convulsed, her breath coming in short, jagged bursts. Her eyes widened in panic as invisible pain seared through her chest, her ribs, her very soul.

Arthur knelt beside her, his expression shifting from anger to something that almost resembled fear. "Bumbles!" he barked, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her. "Bumbles, what's happening?"

Her answer came between gasps, her voice barely audible but filled with despair. "I—I imprinted him."

Arthur froze, the weight of her words hitting him like a blow. He stared at her, his anger melting into something darker, more resigned. "You silly, foolish girl," he muttered, shaking his head. "Do you know what you've done?"

Bee didn't answer. She couldn't. Each strike of the leopards' claws across Nze's flesh ripped through her as if she bore the wounds herself, the pain burning in her chest like fire. Her cries became guttural, animalistic, as though her humanity were being stripped away with every blow.

Arthur's voice cut through the haze of pain. "It's better this way," he said, his tone cold but resolute. "If he dies, the bond is broken. It's him or you, Bumbles. It always was."

His words barely registered. Bee could feel it—the last shred of Nze's life slipping away. When it came, it was like a final, brutal blow to her chest. She gasped, her body stilling as silence fell over the forest.

Nze was gone.

Bee screamed—a sound so raw, so primal, it seemed to shake the very trees around them. She tore herself free from Arthur's grip, her strength fueled by a grief that defied logic, defied physics. Arthur let her go, his hands falling to his sides as he watched her run.

She reached Nze's broken body in moments that felt like hours. His eyes were closed, his face pale, his chest still. The leopards had left him intact, though his body bore the marks of their savagery.

Bee dropped to her knees beside him, pulling him into her arms. His blood stained her clothes, her hands, but she didn't care. "I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice trembling. "I'm so, so sorry."

Her tears fell freely, landing on his still-warm skin. She rocked him in her arms, her apologies tumbling out in a stream of words too broken to make sense. "I didn't mean for this—I didn't mean for any of this. I just wanted—" Her voice cracked. "I just wanted you."

Her cries grew louder, echoing through the forest as the dawn light crept closer. It wasn't just mourning; it was regret, anger, love, and an unbearable weight of loss—all wrapped into a sound that made even the trees seem to shudder.

From a distance, Kai watched with his arms crossed, his usual smirk replaced by something quieter, more thoughtful. "Will she be okay?" he asked.

Arthur stood beside him, his expression unreadable. "She better be," he said, his voice flat. But his eyes lingered on Bee for a moment longer before he turned away.

As they started to leave, a chill swept through the air, cutting through the warmth of the sunrise. Arthur stopped in his tracks, his head snapping toward the mist creeping in through the trees. It wasn't just the mist—it was the silence, the unnatural stillness that made every hair on his neck stand on end.

The first jaguar emerged like a ghost, its golden eyes gleaming in the half-light. Then another, and another. They moved silently, their massive bodies blending into the shadows until it was impossible to tell how many there were. Dozens, maybe more.

Kai cursed under his breath, his stance shifting. "What the hell—?"

And then she appeared. Nyamekye. Her laughter came first, a sound that rippled through the mist like the tolling of a bell. She stepped out of the shadows with a grace that was both mesmerizing and unnerving. Her dark skin seemed to glow faintly in the morning light, her eye like molten gold as they flicked to Arthur and Kai.

"Well, well," she said, her voice dripping with mockery. "What a touching scene. Truly. Almost brought a tear to my eye."

Arthur's jaw tightened. "Nyamekye," he said, his voice steady but laced with caution. "What do you want?"

Her smile widened, revealing sharp, glinting teeth. "Oh, Arthur," she said, her tone as sweet as poison. "You know exactly what I want."

Bee didn't hear her.

Arthur's voice cut through the clearing, sharp and defiant even amidst the chaos. "What else could you possibly want, Nyamekye? You've already driven us out of Oakwood—our home. What's left for you to take?"

Nyamekye stepped forward, her movements slow and deliberate, like a cat playing with its prey. Her jaguars prowled around her, their golden eyes fixed on the leopards. The air between them was thick with tension, the kind that hummed with the promise of bloodshed. She smiled, her teeth gleaming. "Oh, Arthur," she said, her tone honey-sweet but laced with venom. "I don't just want Oakwood. I need your loyalty. Bend the knee, little brother. Swear fealty to me as your queen—or die."

Arthur's laugh was humorless, sharp as a blade. "I'll take my chances," he said.

And just like that, the tension snapped. Arthur's troop shifted in unison, their forms blurring into sleek, powerful leopards. The jaguars answered with snarls that echoed through the trees. Then, chaos.

Claws clashed with claws. Teeth met fur. The forest floor became a battlefield, a mess of thrashing bodies and guttural roars. Arthur, now in his sleek gray leopard form, moved like a storm through the melee, tearing a jaguar in half before leaping to his sister's side.

But Bee didn't move. She knelt on the blood-soaked ground, cradling Nze's lifeless body in her arms. The sounds of the battle faded into the background, drowned out by the sound of her own sobs. She pressed her forehead to Nze's cold cheek, her tears tracing paths down her face and onto his.

Nyamekye approached slowly, her bare feet silent on the forest floor. The battle raged on behind her, but she paid it no mind. Her golden eye gleamed with amusement as she stopped a few steps away from Bee, tilting her head like a curious predator.

"Such devotion," Nyamekye purred, her voice dripping with mockery. "It's almost touching, really. But tell me, girl, how long do you plan to sit there and cry over a corpse?"

Bee heard her. She heard every word. But she didn't respond. She didn't even lift her head. Her tears continued to fall, her grief as raw and relentless as the pain that had torn through her earlier.

Nyamekye crouched, bringing herself to eye level with Bee. "He's gone," she said, her tone soft now, almost gentle. "And no amount of tears will bring him back."

Still, Bee didn't respond.

Nyamekye leaned closer, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "But I could."

That got Bee's attention. She looked up slowly, her red-rimmed eyes meeting Nyamekye's gaze. There was no trust in them, only wariness and a flicker of something darker—hope, perhaps, or desperation.

Nyamekye smiled, sensing the shift. "I have witches," she said. "Powerful ones. They could bring him back. All it would take is a word from me."

Bee's throat tightened. She wanted to believe it was a lie, a cruel taunt meant to break her further. But what if it wasn't? What if there was a chance—a sliver of hope? Her fingers tightened around Nze's lifeless form.

Nyamekye's smile widened. "Of course," she said, her voice light and teasing, "there is a price. You bend the knee to me. You join my army. Do that, and I'll give him back to you."

"What other choice do you have?" Nyamekye added, her words cutting through Bee's silence like a blade.

Bee stared at her, her heart pounding in her chest. She knew better than to trust Nyamekye. But Arthur's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Leave my family alone!" Arthur roared, his leopard form bounding between them. His fur bristled, his teeth bared as he faced Nyamekye.

Nyamekye didn't flinch. Instead, she rose gracefully to her feet, brushing nonexistent dust from her dress. "Oh, Arthur," she said, her voice dripping with false sympathy. "Don't be so dramatic. She is my family too. I'm her aunt, after all."

Arthur snarled, his voice low and dangerous. "You lost that privilege when you turned your back on our father years ago."

Nyamekye's expression hardened, her smile fading. She turned her gaze back to Bee. "My offer still stands," she said.

Bee didn't respond immediately. She looked down at Nze, her tears blurring her vision. She could feel Arthur's eyes on her, feel the weight of his disapproval. But she also felt the weight of Nze's lifeless body in her arms, and that was heavier than anything else.

Finally, she nodded. "Fine," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "But if you're lying—"

Arthur's growl cut her off. He turned to face her, his golden eyes blazing with anger and betrayal. But before he could speak, Nyamekye moved.

Even in her human form, she was a force of nature. She attacked Arthur with a ferocity that defied explanation, her movements a blur of speed and strength. She beat him down, her blows landing with precision and power until Arthur lay unconscious on the ground.

Bee's heart twisted, but she didn't flinch. She met Nyamekye's gaze with a defiance she didn't know she still possessed. "You better not be lying," she said, her voice steady despite the storm inside her.

Nyamekye smirked, satisfied. "You'll see soon enough."

Bee rose to her feet, cradling Nze's body as she followed Nyamekye into the mist. Behind her, the sounds of battle faded into silence, leaving only the echoes of what had been lost.

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧ ✩₊˚

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