The female blue-eyed snow leopard trotted around in the snow just behind her's and Lucas's house. Not far away stood the empty house of their friends, Sheila and Jeff. It had taken her some time to convince Lucas to leave for a meeting with Jeff at the climbing hall. Sheila was meeting up with her parents and sister for a family day. It gave Azura the opportunity to freely shift between her human and snow leopard form several times over without being spotted.

Despite assuring Lucas she was fine after being stuck in a half shift with the Phoenix, she could still feel her muscles aching. Guilt weighed heavy on her mind too, knowing how she had allowed the Nightmare to get stronger and destroy a whole lot of lives. She couldn't though, couldn't allow the Phoenix to take control. Unlike last time, she had been in a different state and Lucas had guessed right when he had claimed that she wouldn't be able to 'come' back after. Deep in her heart, she knew that if she had allowed the Phoenix to take control it would've erupted into the big fight. It wouldn't be like the time before with just the smaller creatures but it would be against the Queen itself. She had felt the intentions of the Phoenix and it had scared her.

Maybe she was selfish. She had just gotten him back; wanted to get her life back on track as if nothing was wrong. But why?

Azura let herself fall on the ground, front paws facing forward, her chin resting on the ground. She curled her tail around her body and let out a deep breath.

She would die anyway.

She stayed like that for a few moments. Her mind raced while she kept her body still. At times she tried distracting herself by focusing on her body parts. Feeling where her paws touched the ground, flexing her nails in and out. Tracing the long bushy tail from her rear to where the tip rested against her shoulder. It barely helped.

No, if she was to get her mind off the inevitable end, she would have to do something. With a huff, she got back up on all fours and cleaned her muzzle with her right paw. Again her sights fell on the house of her friends. They were going to be parents. They had a future. Well, unless Pleyvale would become the center of the fight. Which was highly likely. She had drawn a straight line from the first fissure past the one of this morning towards Pleyvale. The Nightmare knew where she was, where the Phoenix was. And they had stayed here for so long that their mark was all over the city. The flaming bird within had confirmed it when she was discussing it with Lucas. Her leaving now would not change a thing.

She might not have a long future, but others did. People she cared about. Time to get her ass back together. Azura turned to her house and took off as fast as she could. There was no way she could save the city alone. People needed to know, Ben needed to know even though she held little love for the mayor.

Shaking the last of her muscle aches away, she reached the backdoor and wasted no time shifting back to two feet. Immediately she felt the pull in her arms and legs. It wasn't as painful as it had been, but it still felt like they wanted to move in a different position. The feeling was less when she was shifted in her animal and if possible she would have stayed like that the whole day. Going for a run, stretching her whole body to the max to get that nagging feeling out of her system. All she could now was grit her teeth together, and ignore it.

Her clothes lay on a disorganized pile next to the door. Grabbing her boxer-brief underwear and bra first, she quickly put them on before grabbing her dark jeans and socks. A simple black t-shirt was next followed by an oversized hoody she had gotten from Sheila. Her hair was still a mess but she couldn't care less. Quickly locking the back door, she moved to the front for her shoes and car keys.

"Damnit! Where are they?" Azura tossed the bowl with keys on the ground as she searched for the car keys. It took her a minute to realize they weren't there. "Fuck, Fuck, Fuckity fuck!"

It was still parked at Rose's apartment. Realizing she had walked home last night had her fuming but it was not something she could fix now. She would have to walk. Or run. As she focused on her body for a bit, it would definitely be running. It needed to be worn out. The shoes she had put on would work for that. Locking the door behind her, Azura took a deep breath of crisp fresh air before she took off at full speed.

*

Twenty minutes. Azura didn't give herself a moment's rest as she barged into the city hall panting heavily. Her whole body was aching again, but it was a better and different ache than before. One that she could explain and handle more easily. The receptionist behind the desk jumped up startled by the black-haired woman barging in.

"Hey! You can't just-"

Azura shushed her with a simple hand gesture as she strode past her towards Ben's office. It was situated a bit to the back but she had been there before and knew exactly where to go. The only thing she didn't know was if the mayor was present, and there was one way to find out.

She stood before another heavy oak door. The windows to the office had been blinded so she had not been able to glance inside. Her heart had calmed down a little after her run but looks-wise, she knew she looked like a hot mess. Wiping away some sweat from her forehead with the sleeve of the hoodie she took a deep breath and pushed against the door.

Three pairs of stunned green eyes fell on her as she entered and threw the door shut behind her. Ben was the first to move past his surprise followed soon by Oliver and Nathan. Azura scanned all three men, her eyes resting longer on the biggest of the three. He was sitting on a chair, a crutch resting beside him. His jaw had tensed up, his hand tightening around the armrest. He still looked rather pale, his face still a bit sunken in, obviously still recovering from the heavy fight that had put him into a coma.

It was him who gave her a quick nod as to acknowledge her presence before he seemed to relax and lean back into his chair. Azuara was taken aback a little by his lack of anger. She had damaged him. Permanently. Had his life between her teeth quite literally and here he was; giving her a nod as if they were normal acquaintances. Yes, he had tensed up the moment she entered but it most likely had to do with how she had entered instead of her.

"Azura. What a... surprise." Ben drew her attention away from Nathan. "I thought you were out of town?" The mayor got up and eyed her from top to bottom. "You came in a rush I see? Your hoodie is inside out."

A bewildered stare was the only answer she could give before looking down at the piece of clothing she was wearing. How she had not noticed sooner was a mystery to her but then again, her mind had been pretty occupied. Grumbling, she took it off only to turn it back the right way. As she was about to toss it over her head again, Oliver spoke up.

"It ain't just the hoodie. Your shirt as well." He gave her a genuinely warm smile, the only one in the room present who radiated some warmth and friendliness.

"For fuck's sake." She mumbled to herself.

Without giving it another thought, the t-shirt came off too. There was a time she would not expose herself to people like this. Standing in her bra, her skin, her scars out in the open. There had been a day where only a few doctors knew how bad they were. She couldn't care less now. The prying eyes didn't bother her anymore. They could see everything for all she cared. Everyone carried scars. Some visible to the naked eye, others hidden underneath the skin embedded in the brain. Scars could define you as a person, could rule your life. Scared of what people might think of you once they knew. Afraid to be seen as ugly or a weirdo. An outcast. But in truth, exposing your scars to another said more about them than they did about yourself.

It had taken her too long to find that out. In fact, it had only been after she had shown Lucas the first time that she had started to come to terms with them. Of all three of them, Nathan seemed the least deterred by them. He had been maimed himself, by her nonetheless. It was an understatement between them. A cold one but one nevertheless. Silent respect.

Flipping the t-shirt back to normal, she put it on again followed by the hoodie. The differences between the men staring at her were remarkable. Oliver just looked amused, Nathan was indifferent but couldn't completely hide his curiosity as to why she was here. Ben just looked at her with disdain. He was judging her by appearance; obviously did not appreciate her bursting in like that, and would rather see her gone.

"Why are you here, Azura?" He asked again after she had not answered his first questions.

"Already losing your patience?" His tone had her on edge straight away. She wanted to provoke him and had to hold herself back. Her snarky reply was something that left her lips before she could think about it though.

"You're the one that came here, interrupted my meeting. Why are you here? Did that Killian put you up to this?" Ben had gotten up from behind his desk so they were eye to eye.

"Killian?" She couldn't hide the surprise in her voice. Yes, she had advised him to make contact with Ben but she had not expected him to do it this fast. "No, I'm not here because of him. What did he want?"

She knew darn well what he wanted. She had even encouraged him to do it. To get the two cat species together, eliminate the cliff between them. But it was fast. The time she had spent there it was clear Killian and Zahair still had a lot of things to sort out back in Scire after taking over from Marric. The man had left behind a scarred community with a big divide amongst the people.

"Wanted to share knowledge and information." Ben paused, adding to the dramatic effect he was intended to create. "He said something about bringing the blue- and green-eyed together. I turned him down. If there is one thing we've learned from the past is that blue-eyes can never be trusted."

Azura clenched her eyes shut and imagined the numbers one to ten in her mind as she started counting them. Remarkably, the Phoenix remained calm inside her. The rough morning probably had its effect on it too.

"Killian is like a brother to me! I trust him with my life. He wants the best for his community and actually also for yours. You hold on so strong to your own prejudices you can't see past those! Change isn't always a bad thing. But you are only scared of it! What you want is for you guys to become human, denying your animal inside! It ain't natural!"

She was doing her best to contain her anger but it wasn't working a hundred percent. She knew but did not want to stop completely. With Ben, showing strength and anger was the way to go, she hoped.

"You know what, Ben? It doesn't even matter." She bit at him. "Very soon Pleyvale won't be here anymore. I won't be here anymore, all the citizens won't bere here anymore and even you won't be here anymore."

The mayor stood before her, fists clenched but she saw the doubt in his eyes. He was confused, startled and the nervous glances he threw at his two confidants confirmed it for her. They stayed quiet, not wanting to interfere and Azura was glad they had the common sense to do so. Marric bruskly turned around, walked to his desk, and slammed his hand down on the surface.

"DO. NOT. CHALLENGE. ME!"

The two men flinched at his outburst but Azura stood her ground. She was sorta expecting it as she had indeed let some of her power seep through. Marric's explanation of the types of souls popped into her head again. He had been an old soul, took nothing from anyone, and had challenged her, an ancient soul for power. Now Ben was doing the same thing. He felt threatened but in his case, he had no idea why. Azura didn't have to guess what kind of soul he was.

"If you would just talk to Killian and Zahair, you would know where that anger comes from." She let her guard down on purpose but made sure he saw she was not overpowered by him. "You would know why you feel so strongly about fighting me whenever I show some power. If you just had the right mindset, you could learn so much about our heritage and where we come from. Blue- en green-eyed shifter may be different but we're also so much alike. And you have a chance to finally close that gap."

She sighed and turned around. His gaze burned in her back as she took a few steps towards the door. She had the upper hand now with him still being consumed by his anger but hers was still close to the surface too. If they stayed on this topic, it would go wrong so once again she tried shifting the topic back to why she originally came here for.

"You need to get a plan to evacuate the city. There's a big fight coming between the Phoenix and something I call the Nightmare. That thing will come to Pleyvale and while I'll do my best to not let it destroy this city, I can't guarantee it. If you do nothing, Pleyvale and its inhabitants will die and it's on you."

"What?! What are you on about?!" Ben straightened his tie as he remained standing near his desk.

"You asked me why I came here. Well, I just told you." She bit back. "the city is in danger and I came to warn you. The Phoenix is here for a reason, to fight something which can destroy the world. In the old times, the two were like giants, fighting their battles every couple of hundred years, not minding much about the inhabitants of the world. But the world has changed. There's no denying us anymore. The Nightmare feeds of us. Our lifeforce makes it stronger."

Ben was silent for a moment while he eyed her like a hawk. The other two men had almost disappeared into the wall as they were silent observers.

"And why exactly is that 'Nightmare' thing coming here?" Ben sneered. Gathering from the way he spoke, she figured he knew why.

"Because of me. The Phoenix." She stated calmly, knowing what was to come.

"So you are the cause of all this. Then leave! Fight your battles somewhere else! It would make my life so much easier."

"It won't make a difference if I leave! Don't you think that's what I had thought of too?" Her blood was starting to boil again. The ignorance of the man was something she couldn't just put behind her.

"Didn't you hear me, Azura! I need you to leave. To be frank, you've been nothing but a pain in the ass ever since you came here!"

He never got a chance to continue as Azura lunged forward. Anger clouded her mind as she grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pressed the mayor onto his desk. He was almost completely on his back, only one elbow was supporting him. The other had wiped some things from the antique top. Papers lay scattered at her feet but she couldn't care less. She had half expected Nathan and Oliver to do grab her and drag her away but the men did nothing.

"Pleyvale is my home! What don't you get about that?! I've got my friends and partner living here and I will do whatever it takes to defend them!" She had lowered her face to hang just mere centimeters above his as she almosts spit the words out of her mouth.

Right as she wanted to give him a piece of his own ignorant ass the door opened.

"Dad?! What's going on?"

The teenage male voice instantaneously dragged her back from her rage high. Azura released the chokehold she had on Ben and stumbled a few steps back before turning to the door and seeing an almost exact copy of the mayor just many years younger.

An unruly mop of hair on his head, the same dark green eyes, and the hooked nose. The resemblance was uncanny. The boy could not be older than fifteen. A little on the chubby side but not extremely so.

Ben scraped his throat as he got to his feet again and straightened his tie. "Mitchel, you're not supposed to be here."

"Well, I came just at the right time!" the boy said as he glared at Azura shortly before turning his attention to Oliver and Nathan. "Why didn't you guys do anything?!"

Nathan just shrugged, grabbed his crutch, and held it up. "Been there, done that, and lost. Plus she had some interesting things to say which I bet you heard."

"Mitchel, this is none of your business so go to your room and I'll explain later." Ben interfered.

He was commanding his own son but the teen didn't listen. Instead, Mitchell turned to Azura, knowing he had been caught listening in by Nathan.

"What you said was true? Pleyvale is going to be attacked?" He was shifting his weight from one foot to another

Azura had placed herself against a wall, hands flat against it as she had steadied herself throughout the entire time. Her breathing had calmed down a little and she had finally managed to focus a bit more. That's when she'd noticed the TV hanging next to Oliver.

"Turn the TV on. Find a news channel." the man obliged and Azura hoped that by now the attack of this morning had been discovered.

*there's still a lot of guessing going on as to what exactly happened in the town of Gransvik," Oliver had found the channel in an instant. "From what we can tell is that all people have died a strange death. The police are not saying anything yet but by the images we have received, it seems like the people never stood a chance.

The reporter on screen disappeared and drone shots of the town appeared. It looked like a normal town yet there was a blackness surrounding it. Every tree was dead, all the grass had turned brown and in a wide circle around the town, it was all death and decay. From one point, a lot of black lines could be seen in the landscape. The paths the creatures had taken. All of them were silent in the room as they watched the images on the screen

"what about the people? Is there any clue on how they died?" the news anchor asked.

"no. It's one big mystery. There are claims the skin of the victims has darkened and dried out completely. It's as if they have all shriveled up in an instant."

Oliver turned the TV off, his face a bit paler than what it used to be. Mitchel stared at it with his mouth hanging open. Slowly the boy turned to his father, fear in his eyes visible for everyone to see.

"Dad, That's what's going to happen here?" he asked with a shaky voice.

"No!"

"Yes."

Ben and Azura answered at the same time. The Mayor shot her an angry glance and spoke before she got the chance to.

"As long as Azura leaves, nothing of the sort will happen."

"Dont be a fool, Ben!" The woman threw her hands up in desperation and marched towards the door. Turning back to all four men in the room, she spoke to all of them in general. "It's exactly what will happen here. With our without my presence. Without, I can make it short and simple. You guys are fucked. With, I intend to fight and defeat that thing before it can even launch an attack on here. I will fight that thing that did it and try to kill it, but this city needs to be prepared for the worst. You know where to find me if you wish to talk."

With that, she exited the room before her anger could best her again.