Chapter 709: THE BABY IS COMING

The ruby screamed.

Not with sound.

With light.

The moment Aiden crossed whatever invisible boundary guarded the outer tunnels, the stone on the pedestal flared so violently that the chamber was flooded in red.

The glow spiked sharp and erratic, shadows jerking wildly along the walls as if the stone itself were trying to tear free of its restraints.

I cried out, more in shock than pain, my hands flying to the floor to steady myself.

“No,” Maelis hissed, spinning toward the pedestal. “No hold steady.”

The ruby pulsed again, brighter, faster.

Hungry.

It wasn’t reaching for me.

It was reaching for him.

I felt it then, sudden and horrifyingly clear.

“Oh,” I whispered. “I think it knows him.”

Maelis’s head snapped toward me. “What did you say?”

“The stone,” I said, my voice trembling as another surge rippled through the chamber. “It recognizes him. Like… like it remembers him hands.”

The ruby flared again, crimson light surging outward in jagged waves.

The air thickened, pressing against my skin until it felt hard to breathe. Every instinct in my body screamed danger.

“He wielded a piece of it.” Maelis said grimly. “Even a shard is enough to bind a resonance.”

“He didn’t just touch it,” I said, realization blooming cold and sharp in my chest. “He fed it. He used it.”

The ruby answered with a violent spike of light, as if pleased to be understood.

Force.

Hunger.

Domination.

It wanted him.

It wanted what he had become.

Another roar shook the cavern, closer now, the sound of wings beating against the air, of stone grinding under immense weight.

Dust rained from the ceiling as the chamber trembled.

And through it all, the ruby throbbed faster.

My emerald reacted too.

But differently.

The green glow at my throat deepened, spreading warmth instead of heat, a steady presence that wrapped around my ribs, my spine, my womb. It didn’t surge or spike. It anchored.

It steadied me.

I felt it settle around my baby like a shield.

Protective.

Preserving.

Choice.

The contrast was so stark it made my stomach twist.

Maelis glanced at my necklace, her eyes widening slightly as the emerald’s glow strengthened, forming a soft halo around my upper body.

“I don’t like this.” I said with worry

Another pulse slammed through the chamber.

And then the pain hit.

Real pain.

White hot and blinding, tearing through my lower body with a force that ripped the breath from my lungs.

I screamed.

My back arched violently as a contraction seized me, sharp and merciless, unlike anything I had felt before. It wasn’t a warning ache or a distant pressure.

This was here.

Now.

I clutched my belly instinctively, fingers digging into fabric as another wave crashed through me.

“Oh gods,” I sobbed. “Maelis….

The emerald flared brighter, its warmth intensifying as if responding to my distress, but it couldn’t stop what had begun.

Something wet and terrifyingly real spread between my thighs.

“No,” I whispered in panic. “No, no, no…

Maelis was at my side instantly, dropping to her knees, her hands hovering but not touching.

“Breathe,” she commanded softly, firmly. “Look at me, Jasmine. Breathe.”

I tried.

Another contraction ripped through me, stronger than the last, stealing my voice entirely. I cried out, my vision blurring as tears streamed down my face.

“The baby,” I gasped when it eased slightly. “He’s… he’s coming.”

Maelis’s expression hardened with urgency.

“Already?” she muttered. “Damn it.”

The ruby pulsed again, wild and erratic now, its light stuttering as if the stone itself were destabilizing.

“He’s too close,” I whimpered. “My father… he’s too close. It’s triggering everything.”

Maelis glanced toward the entrance, jaw tight.

“The ruby is reacting to his corruption,” she said. “And your body is responding to the surge. The magic is pushing you forward whether you’re ready or not.”

Another contraction hit.

I screamed again, the sound echoing off the cavern walls, raw and unrestrained. My whole body shook, muscles locking as pain tore through my pelvis and belly.

“I can’t…..” I sobbed. “I can’t do this yet.”

“You can,” Maelis said firmly, gripping my shoulders. “You are doing it.”

I shook my head, terror clawing up my throat.

“It hurts,” I cried. “It hurts too much.”

“I know,” she said softly. “I know.”

The emerald burned hot against my skin now, not painful, but intense, its glow wrapping tighter around me, around the baby.

felt something else then too, deep inside me.

My wolf.

Not bursting free.

Not raging.

Bracing.

It pressed inward instead of out, a powerful presence settling low in my body, instinctive and focused.

Protect.

Another contraction surged.

I screamed, my nails biting into my palms.

“Maelis,” I gasped. “I don’t think I can stop this.”

She looked me straight in the eyes, her voice steady despite the chaos around us.

“Then we don’t stop it,” she said. “We guide it.”

The ruby flared again, a violent spike that sent a shockwave through the chamber. The emerald answered immediately, its glow surging outward, stabilizing the air, dampening the ruby’s wildness just enough to keep the chamber from collapsing.

The stones were fighting.

Through me.

“I can feel him,” I sobbed. “He’s so close.”

“I know,” Maelis said. “Listen to me. Your wolf doesn’t need to be fully unleashed. It just needs to open.”

Another roar echoed outside, closer than ever now.

“Hold on,” Maelis urged. “Just a little longer.”

I clung to her words, to the steady warmth of the emerald, to the protective pressure of my wolf curling around my womb.

My body shook with another contraction, stronger, longer, stealing everything from me but pain and instinct.

“I’m scared,” I whispered when it finally eased, my voice barely audible. “I don’t want him to take my son.”

Maelis leaned in close, her forehead touching mine.

“He won’t,” she said fiercely. “Not while you’re here. Not while you choose.”

The ruby pulsed again, furious now, its light flaring in jagged bursts as if sensing it was losing control.

The emerald burned steady.

Grounded.

Unyielding.

Another contraction surged, and I cried out again, louder this time, my body bowing under the force of it.

“I can not have this baby not now.” I pleaded.

She seemed to be in thought for a split second then said. “I can try a magic trick. It will hold the baby for now.”

Without invitation she placed a hand on my tummy and I felt the gnaw of pain slowly begin to melt.

The contractions still present were now easier to handle.

“Open the portal before the contractions get worse.” She advised

But I could smell my father already in the room