The talons were clearly visible for everyone to see.
The sharp claws protruded through the metal door like blades.
Alex and the others instinctively took several steps backward.
The atmosphere inside the warehouse instantly became tense.
"Shit... we've been found," Isla said in panic.
His eyes remained fixed on the door.
Then he suddenly pointed at Alex.
"It's your fault!"
Alex didn't even look at him.
He stood in front of the others with his back facing them.
His full attention remained on the warehouse gate.
"If you hadn't made such a big deal about leaving through the exit, we wouldn't be in this mess!" Isla continued.
His voice rose with every word.
Meanwhile, Alex didn't respond.
Not a single glance.
Not a single reaction.
His focus never left the door.
Instead, he asked a different question.
"Clifford... can you create what you did before again?"
"I am already on that," Clifford replied.
His hands were glowing brightly.
The light around his palms continued growing stronger.
However, unlike before, he didn't release the energy.
Not yet.
"But I have some bad news," Clifford said.
Several heads turned toward him.
"The beast on the other side has a lot of energy."
His expression became grim.
"I can sense its power."
Those words immediately made everyone's faces darken.
If Clifford was worried, then the situation was probably worse than they thought.
"Hey... why are you talking to him like he's your boss?" Lennox called out.
Even now, he couldn't help noticing it.
Clang!
Suddenly, the sound of tortured metal echoed throughout the warehouse.
Everyone immediately snapped their attention back to the door.
The large warehouse gate shuddered violently.
The talons sticking through the metal began to move.
At first, some thought the claws were being pulled back.
They were wrong.
The talons didn't move outward.
Instead, they moved downward.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
Screeeeech!
The sound made several people grit their teeth.
As the claws descended, they sliced through the thick metal gate with frightening ease.
The steel offered almost no resistance.
It was like watching sharp knives cut through paper.
A long tear appeared across the warehouse door as the talons continued carving their way downward.
Clang...!!!
The claws continued moving downward until they reached the bottom of the metal gate.
Then everything went quiet.
For a brief moment, no one moved.
No one spoke.
The silence inside the warehouse felt heavy.
Almost suffocating.
"Have you gone?" Isla asked.
His voice was low.
Uncertain.
"Not..." Clifford responded.
His glowing hands remained raised.
His eyes never left the ruined entrance.
"He's charging in!"
Jimmy suddenly shouted.
Bang!
The warning came at exactly the right moment.
A massive body burst through the opening.
Metal bent.
Debris exploded inward.
The creature slammed through the damaged gate with terrifying force.
It didn't stop there.
The momentum carried it straight across the warehouse.
Boom!
The body crashed into the far wall.
Concrete cracked under the impact.
Dust and fragments scattered across the floor.
Fortunately, the Wyndhams had already rushed out of the way.
Otherwise, someone would have been crushed.
The moment the creature entered, Clifford acted.
His glowing hand snapped forward.
An energy-draining thread shot toward the intruder.
The technique connected almost instantly.
The moment it did, Clifford's expression changed.
He could feel it.
The creature possessed an enormous amount of energy.
Far more than the werewolves they had encountered earlier.
As the dust slowly settled, the intruder became visible.
It was a gray-furred werewolf.
Its body was massive and muscular.
Just like the werewolf form Zephyr had used before, this one possessed two additional arms hanging beneath its primary pair.
All four arms looked powerful enough to tear through steel.
The werewolf slowly pulled itself free from the damaged wall.
Chunks of concrete fell from its fur.
Its chest rose and fell steadily.
Not a single sign of injury could be seen.
Then it turned.
Its glowing eyes swept across the warehouse.
One by one, it looked at everyone present.
Then it stopped.
Its gaze locked onto Clifford.
The creature immediately sensed the source of the energy thread.
For a brief second, neither side moved.
Then the werewolf acted.
Its body blurred forward.
At the same time, one of its extra arms stretched toward Clifford.
Boom!
An air blast slammed into the werewolf and sent it rolling across the floor.
The creature tumbled several times before digging its claws into the ground.
"Come on! We have to overwhelm it now!" Zephyr shouted.
The Wyndhams immediately moved.
Everyone rushed forward at once.
Jimmy was the first to charge.
He lowered his body and surged ahead like a goat preparing to smash through an obstacle.
The werewolf had only just managed to stop itself when Jimmy arrived.
Bang!
Jimmy crashed into it head-on.
The impact launched the werewolf backward.
It flew through the air toward the wall.
However, it didn't crash into it.
Instead, the creature twisted its body several times mid-air and landed against the wall like a giant lizard.
Its claws dug into the surface, keeping it attached.
"Arhh!"
Isla and Lennox rushed in next.
The two attacked from different angles.
Lennox jumped high into the air.
His body rose above the werewolf as he prepared to hammer it straight into the ground.
However, the werewolf reacted instantly.
While clinging to the wall, one of its extra arms shot out.
The limb stretched forward like a whip.
Its sharp claws cut through the air as they aimed directly at Lennox in mid-air.
Bang!
Before the attack could connect, something slammed into the arm and knocked it aside.
The claws missed their target.
The werewolf's arm jerked away from the impact.
A solid projectile had been launched from behind.
It had arrived at exactly the right moment.
Zephyr turned toward the source and saw Alex holding several solid objects he had picked up from the ground.
Chunks of metal.
Broken debris.
Anything he could throw.
Meanwhile, Lennox continued his attack.
Boom!
He slammed into the wall with tremendous force.
The impact blasted straight through it, leaving a large hole behind.
Unfortunately, he had missed.
The werewolf was fast.
Far faster than expected.
Just before Lennox struck, the creature had leaped out of the way.
As it landed, its muscles tensed.
It was already preparing its next move.
But Isla was charging toward it.
The werewolf reacted immediately.
Its extra arms swung out again, the sharp claws slicing through the air.
However, another projectile arrived.
Then another.
Then another.
Alex had thrown three objects in rapid succession.
Bang!
Bang!
The first two projectiles struck the werewolf's extra arms.
The impacts knocked them off course and ruined the attack.
The claws missed Isla by a narrow margin.
Then the third projectile arrived.
Smack!
It struck the werewolf directly on the cheek.
The beast's head snapped to the side.
Its body staggered slightly from the unexpected hit.
"Arghhh!"
A beast-like roar escaped the werewolf's mouth.
Its eyes immediately turned toward Alex.
For a brief second, its attention shifted.
That moment was all Isla needed.
He had already closed the distance.
Bang!
Isla slammed his hand down onto the werewolf's head with all his strength.
The werewolf's jaw slammed into the ground from the force of the hit.
Cracks spread across the concrete beneath its face.
'The ring can give me the power to gather as much strength as I can, but it looks like what I gathered isn't enough to finish you,' Isla thought.
He wanted to strike again.
To keep hammering the beast into the ground.
Unfortunately, that wasn't possible.
The effect could only be used once.
The werewolf reacted almost immediately.
Its extra arms didn't lash out to attack.
Instead, they planted themselves firmly against the floor.
The next moment—
Boom!
The werewolf launched itself high into the air.
The sudden burst of force threw Isla off its body.
He stumbled backward as the beast shot upward.
The werewolf rose toward the ceiling and grabbed onto one of the thick metal railings that stretched across the warehouse from one end to the other.
Its claws dug deep into the metal.
The railing groaned under its weight.
"Henry, shoot it down!" Zephyr shouted.
Henry reacted immediately.
Several air balls began gathering around his arm.
The pressure in the warehouse started building.
Before Henry could release the attack, another projectile flew through the air.
It had come from Alex.
The object spun rapidly as it crossed the warehouse.
At that moment, the werewolf was still hanging from the metal railing, trying to pull itself higher.
Clang!
The projectile struck the exact spot where the werewolf was holding on.
The metal shook violently.
However, the werewolf didn't let go.
Its grip remained firm.
Instead, its extra arms moved into action.
The additional limbs grabbed onto nearby sections of the railing and helped pull the creature upward.
The beast continued climbing.
At this point, Henry's attack was finally ready.
The air balls around his arm compressed.
Then they shot forward.
Boom!
The air ball struck the spot where the werewolf had been.
However, the creature was already moving.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom...!
Several more air balls blasted toward it in quick succession.
Each attack smashed into the roof, walls, and support beams.
Yet none of them landed.
The werewolf was already running.
It darted across the upper parts of the warehouse with frightening speed.
"Shit... the beast is too agile!" Zephyr cursed.
"Clifford, why isn't it getting tired already?" he shouted.
"I already told you," Clifford replied.
His glowing hands never stopped working.
"It has a lot of energy."
Meanwhile, the sections of the roof that had been bombarded by the air balls started reacting.
Cracks spread across the structure.
The entire warehouse shook violently.
Dust rained from above.
Then pieces of the roof started falling.
Chunks of metal and concrete crashed downward.
Even while the structure was collapsing, the werewolf had already leaped away.
It landed on one of the warehouse walls with all four arms spread wide.
The creature clung there effortlessly.
At the same time, the Wyndhams scattered.
Everyone rushed for cover or moved away from the falling debris.
Not all of the roof gave way.
Some sections held.
Others collapsed completely.
Boom!
Crash!
Metal screamed as more pieces fell.
Eventually, the destruction slowed.
The dust began to settle.
One by one, the Wyndhams emerged from cover.
As they looked around, they quickly noticed something.
The werewolf was no longer attached to the wall.
It now stood atop a pile of fallen debris.
Broken metal and shattered concrete surrounded it.
The beast stood there silently.
Then it took a deep breath.
A very deep breath.
Its chest expanded as the air traveled deep into its lungs.
The movement alone made Alex uneasy.
Then the werewolf raised its head.
It looked upward.
"Howl...!!!"
A loud howl erupted from its mouth.
The sound tore through the warehouse.
It was sharp.
High-pitched.
Powerful.
The Wyndhams immediately grabbed their ears.
Several of them winced in pain.
Alex clenched his ears tightly and struggled to keep his eyes on the lone werewolf.
The howl continued echoing through the area.
Then realization struck him.
'It's... it's trying to call its own kind,' Alex figured out.
His expression immediately darkened.
He understood exactly what that meant.
And right there, in that moment, Alex knew this was very bad news for all of them.