THE RISE OF AN OMEGA-Chapter 64: Taken by the Darkness

Kira’s POV

"Is everyone alright? Is everyone alright?"

"Hey, Ryker." I managed to say as I tried to remove the stones and tiny rocks that covered my body.

Ryker ran over and helped me up.

"What about the others?" I asked as he pulled me to my feet.

"I don’t know. No one is answering," he replied, his voice laced with worry.

"It’s too late for you to worry. They can’t be too far now," I said, trying to calm him down. He was still the Alpha of the pack, so I understood why he was so concerned. Ryker was a good man, a leader with a strong heart. There was no doubt he cared about his packmates.

"It’s possible they remained up while we fell," he suggested. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

I shook my head. "No, I don’t think so," I replied, pacing back and forth, trying to think. "I remember seeing all of us fall into this pit, so they have to be here somewhere."

A sudden sound broke through our conversation—a cough.

We both froze.

"I heard it," Ryker said, his eyes darting toward the sound.

Without hesitation, we ran toward the direction of the cough. As we got closer, we saw her—Emilia.

She lay on the ground, her body almost entirely buried beneath rocks and soil. Only her face remained uncovered.

"Emilia! Are you okay?" I called out.

She moved her head side to side, signaling that she wasn’t.

"We have to get these rocks off her," Ryker said urgently.

Together, we started lifting the stones one by one, working as fast as we could until the last rock was removed.

I placed my hand on her leg. "Can you move your legs?"

"No, I can’t," Emilia whispered, frustration evident in her voice.

"You have to try, Emilia," Ryker urged.

She sighed. "I am trying. I’ll try some more."

Ryker and I carefully lifted her, but her legs wobbled violently, unable to support her weight. We had no choice but to lower her back down, resting her against the rough wall of the pit.

"You’ll be fine," I assured her, patting her shoulder.

She forced a small smile before glancing around. "Where are the others?"

Ryker and I exchanged uncertain looks.

"We don’t know," I admitted.

"What do you mean you don’t know?" Her voice wavered. "We all fell together!"

"We just... don’t know where they are, Emilia," I said, trying to keep her calm.

Ryker shifted beside me. "You’re the doctor. How long will it take for your body to heal itself?"

Emilia let out a shaky breath. "The fact that I can’t even stand means it’s going to take hours, Ryker."

"Hours?" We both exclaimed in unison.

"Yes. Hours," she repeated, her tone calm but exhausted.

"We don’t have that much time," Ryker muttered. "We have to find the others."

"I know that," Emilia murmured, lowering her head. "You both can go without me. I’ll only slow you down."

"No," I said firmly. "We are not leaving you behind. No one gets left behind."

"But Kira—"

"We can’t leave anyone behind," Ryker cut in. "And we definitely can’t leave you here alone. We don’t know what might be lurking in this place, and you’re defenseless like this."

Emilia bit her lip, her shoulders trembling. A sob escaped her, and I stepped closer, rubbing her shoulder in comfort.

"I’m sorry," she muttered.

"Sorry? For what?" I asked, confused.

"For slowing us down."

I shook my head. "Come on, Emilia. You’re not slowing us down." I took a deep breath. "Besides, Marcus, Isabella, and Clara are strong wolves. They can take care of themselves."

"We don’t know that," she argued. "Not in a place as unpredictable as this. We can’t afford to let our guard down."

"I know, Emilia. But I also know that they’re strong. Right now, we need to focus on getting through this—together."

"But Kira—"

"No buts, Emilia." I held her gaze. "No buts. Now, just focus on healing. Nothing else."

Ryker and I decided to look around for a bit. The underground space—or whatever this place was—was barely visible. A dim, eerie light illuminated the area, though I couldn’t tell where it came from. It wasn’t much; we could only see about three steps ahead.

We wandered off cautiously, searching for anything useful, but we found nothing. Frustrated, we turned back toward where we had left Emilia.

But when we got there, we froze.

She was gone.

Our greatest shock yet hit us like a wave. Emilia was no longer where we had left her.

"Emilia!" I called out. "Emilia!"

Ryker joined me, shouting her name into the silence. But there was no answer. No sound at all.

"Where could she have gone?" I asked, my voice trembling.

Ryker’s expression darkened. "Maybe the real question is—what took her?"

Something caught my eye—a small scrap of fabric lying on the ground. I stepped closer, my heart pounding as I picked it up.

Ryker moved beside me, his jaw tightening. "That’s from Emilia’s clothes."

Someone had taken her. And they had done it so quietly, so swiftly, that we hadn’t heard a single sound.

"We left her alone for just a moment," I whispered, my throat tightening. A tear slipped down my cheek. "We shouldn’t have left her alone."

"Kira, calm down," Ryker said, his voice steady but firm.

"Calm down?" I snapped, turning to him. "She’s gone, Ryker! What if she’s—what if she’s already—"

"Stop," he interrupted. "It’s not like she’s dead."

"We can’t be sure of that!" My voice broke.

"And what makes you so sure she is?" He met my gaze, unwavering.

I looked around wildly, my hands shaking. "Because she’s nowhere to be found!"

"Kira," Ryker said, gripping my shoulders. "You need to calm down."

But how could I? Emilia was missing. And whatever had taken her... could still be nearby.

"You’re losing it. You can’t afford to lose yourself, Kira."

Ryker’s voice was steady, firm.

"You are the heart of this operation. Without you, the darkness wins. You need to get your head back in the game. You can’t let this weaken your resolve."

He was right. I was losing it.

Emilia was my first and closest friend in Ryker’s pack. The thought of losing her was driving me mad. The mere possibility that she might already be dead was like a knife twisting inside me. How was I supposed to go on, knowing that one of my own had died?

I stood there, lost in thought. Soon, it felt like I wasn’t even in this space anymore. I was drifting—far away, sinking into an abyss.

Then Ryker’s hands were on my shoulders, shaking me back to reality.

"Come on, Kira. You can’t be lost right now. Come back to us. Come back to me."

It was like my mind was being pulled through space and time. And suddenly, I was back.

"I’m sorry, Ryker," I whispered, my knees buckling as I fell to the ground.

"There’s nothing to be sorry about, my dear," he said gently. "You need to stand now. Let’s find a way back to the others."

He helped me to my feet, and together, we moved forward, unsure of where we were going. We just kept moving—until we reached a dead end.

"There’s no way out of here, Ryker," I lamented.

"No," he muttered, shaking his head. "There has to be a way. Whatever took Emilia must have come and gone through somewhere."

He began searching the walls of the cave-like space, running his hands along the rough stone.

"What are you doing, Ryker?" I asked, exhausted.

"Looking for a way to get us out of this shithole," he said, determination in his voice.

"There is no way out," I whispered. My breath hitched. "We’re trapped here forever. The Elders warned us about the Undead... We should have been more careful. We should have—"

"Hey, hey, hey." Ryker turned to me, placing his palms gently on my cheeks. "It’s okay. We’ll find a way."

I swallowed hard and looked around. "No, Ryker. Look—there’s no opening. We’re trapped. This is where we die."

Tears streamed down my face. My chest ached with guilt.

"I’m sorry," I choked out. "I led us to our deaths. Nothing good ever comes from anything I’m involved in."

Ryker’s grip on me tightened.

"No, Kira. Don’t do that to yourself." His voice was low but fierce. "You can’t do that to yourself. You are strong. Brave. Smart. You led us to victory in our battle against Asher. You’ve protected me countless times from the hands of these dark entities. You have done nothing but fight for us."

He paused, his gaze searching mine.

"You have such a mind..." His voice softened.

I shook my head. "I’m sorry, Ryker... but I can’t do this anymore."

"I know Emilia’s disappearance has shaken you," Ryker said softly, "but I can still feel that she’s alive."

My eyes widened. "How do you know that?"

"I’m an Alpha, Kira. She’s a member of my pack."

I had heard stories about the deep, almost supernatural connection between Alphas and their pack members, but I had never witnessed it firsthand. A part of me wanted to believe him, but another part—one drowning in fear and doubt—felt like he was just saying this to keep me from spiraling further.

I searched his face. "Are you sure?" I asked again, needing to be certain he wasn’t just trying to comfort me.

Ryker met my gaze and took my hand. "I swear, Kira. I wouldn’t lie to you about this." His grip tightened. "It’s how I also know that Marcus and the others are still alive. I can feel them."

I sucked in a shaky breath. Just then, something stirred deep in my chest—a sensation I couldn’t quite place.

The air around us shifted. It wasn’t a physical heat, but a sudden, suffocating pressure. My skin prickled with unease, and instinct screamed at me that something was near.

My eyes darted around the cave, scanning every shadow, every crevice.

Something was watching us.

Something was lurking.

I swallowed hard. "Ryker..." I whispered. "I—I don’t feel right."

His expression darkened. "Neither do I."

A shiver ran down my spine.

Something was coming.