The forest has grown too quiet.

For a brief moment, I think I might be imagining things. But then I listen again. The sound of the tributes' pursuit—their footsteps, their shouts—has stopped. I can't hear anything anymore. I glance over at Xander, his face drawn with exhaustion, but I see the same question in his eyes.

"Did they stop?" he asks, his voice low.

I don't know. I want to believe we've finally lost them, but something gnaws at me. Have we? The feeling that we're not safe is still there, pulsing in my chest, like a second heartbeat.

I glance over my shoulder one last time, squinting into the shadows of the trees. I see nothing. The air feels heavy, as if the forest itself is holding its breath. No movement, no sound—nothing.

I sigh in relief, slumping against a nearby tree. "I think we've lost them. For now, at least."

Xander rubs his eyes, still shaking off the tension. "We need to keep moving, but... we can rest for a minute."

I hesitate, then nod. The exhaustion is catching up to me. The last few hours of running, of fighting the urge to collapse, have taken their toll. My legs feel like lead, my breath is ragged, and my body is covered in a thin layer of sweat. But more than anything, I feel the weight of what just happened—the magic, the earth cracking open under my feet. That storm inside me.

"Emerald?" Xander's voice cuts through my thoughts. "What happened back there? You… you did something. Something with the wind and the earth. What was that?"

I don't know. I still don't understand it, but I can feel it—the power—still swirling within me. It's not something I can ignore.

I touch my fingertips to the bark of the tree beside me, and the energy flares beneath my skin, thrumming against my bones. I close my eyes, listening to the hum, the pulse of it. It's still there.

The air itself seems to lean toward me, like it's waiting, listening, ready to respond. My breath hitches. I can feel the wind again, a soft whisper at the edge of my consciousness. It's like I can reach out and take it, make it bend to my will. But that's just the beginning.

"What if I can do more?" I ask, almost to myself.

Xander doesn't respond at first. But then I catch a glimpse of something in his eyes—something like worry, but also a flicker of curiosity. "More?" he repeats.

I nod slowly. "There's more. I feel it."

I stand, my legs shaking slightly beneath me, and walk a few steps away from Xander. I hold my hands in front of me, palms open. The wind stirs around me, brushing against my skin. But I need more. I need to understand it.

"I can feel the earth, the wind, the air," I murmur. "But I don't know how far this goes."

I reach out, feeling the magic stir inside me, a raw and unrefined force that I can barely control. It's like a fire at the back of my throat. Slowly, I try to focus it. I close my eyes, channeling the energy into my hands, trying to push it outward, willing it to bend.

For a moment, nothing happens. And then…

I feel it. The pressure in the air.

A breeze. Soft at first, then stronger. A gust of wind picks up, swirling around me, tugging at my clothes, pulling at my hair. I concentrate, pushing harder. The wind picks up speed, rustling the trees, howling through the forest. I feel the ground beneath me tremble slightly, but I don't stop.

I need more.

I stretch my hands forward, palm up, reaching for something I can't quite name. The energy floods me, almost like the wind itself is alive. It responds. The trees bend in response to my call. Leaves swirl around me, rising into the air like an unseen force. I try to stop it, to pull it back, but I can feel it building, a storm in the making.

It's too much.

I open my eyes just as the world seems to shift. The wind howls around me, deafening. The trees snap. The earth cracks beneath my feet once again, the ground shifting and groaning like it's alive. I stumble backward, my breath caught in my throat.

"Emerald! Stop!" Xander's voice is panicked now, but I can't hear him over the roar of the wind, the sound of the earth splitting.

I try to focus, try to calm it, but it's like the magic is slipping out of my control. The trees are twisting, the wind picking up faster, stronger. A whirlpool of air spins in front of me, pulling at the branches, the rocks, the dirt. The forest is alive with it, trembling with power.

My heart races. I don't know how to stop it.

"Help me!" I cry out, but my voice is swallowed by the chaos around me.

The earth cracks open again, a jagged fissure appearing beneath my feet. I feel the pull of the wind, like I'm being sucked into the storm I've created. My limbs feel heavy, weak, as if the very air is pushing me down.

Then, in a flash, it's gone.

The wind stops. The trees fall back into place. The earth settles, the ground no longer shaking beneath me. The air is still. Silent. I open my eyes to see the destruction I've caused—the trees are bent, the ground cracked, the air thick with dust. My heart hammers in my chest.

"What the hell did you do?!" Xander shouts, rushing to my side. His eyes are wide with panic and confusion.

"I… I didn't mean to," I gasp, my hands trembling at my sides. "I—I don't know what happened."

Raven's voice cuts through the fog of my mind, sharp and insistent. Focus. You must focus.

I swallow hard, trying to steady my breathing, but it's impossible. The storm of magic inside me is too much, too wild. And I'm starting to realize—this is just the beginning.