LOGINPOV: KaelThe voice rolled through the Heart Chamber with such overwhelming force that the mountain itself seemed to recoil from its presence. Ancient pillars groaned beneath the crushing pressure, while rivers of silver light flowing through the cavern darkened around their edges, as though even the blessing of the Moon Goddess struggled against the power awakening beneath the shattered seal.Every instinct within me erupted at once.My wolf threw itself against the walls of my mind with a fury I had never experienced before. Every hair along my arms stood on end, while the bond connecting me to Liora blazed hotter than it ever had, urging us closer together as though our combined strength offered the only protection against whatever had spoken from the darkness.Ardyn's grip tightened around his sword.For the first time since meeting the legendary king, I saw genuine concern shadow his expression.His calm had vanished.His confidence remained, yet something far older than fear res
POV: LioraThe journey through the buried city ended at the edge of a cliff that overlooked the deepest place beneath the First Kingdom, and the sight waiting beyond stole every remaining breath from my lungs.The Heart Chamber spread beneath us like the center of another world. Its ceiling disappeared into darkness, while rivers of silver light flowed through enormous cracks in the stone like veins carrying life through the mountain. Countless pillars circled the vast chamber, each carved with ancient wolves kneeling before the Moon Goddess. Suspended high above the center floated an enormous crystal unlike anything I had ever imagined. The Moonstone glowed with breathtaking beauty, its surface shifting between silver, blue, and white as streams of pure energy spiraled around it like living stars.Beneath that magnificent light stood another throne.Unlike the throne we had discovered above, this one radiated an entirely different presence. Black stone rose from the earth in twisted
POV: KaelThe world seemed to lose its balance the moment the ancient warrior removed his helm.Every story I had heard as a child suddenly became real.Every legend whispered around winter fires.Every tale dismissed by scholars who believed time had buried the truth forever.They all stood before us in flesh and blood.Ardyn.The first king.The warrior who forged peace among rival packs.The Alpha whose name had survived thousands of years after his kingdom vanished from history.For several heartbeats, silence ruled the ruined city beneath the mountain.Even the distant tremors seemed to pause as though the mountain itself recognized its first ruler.The silver-haired king studied us with calm, unreadable eyes. Time had carved wisdom into every line of his face, while countless battles had left their mark across the scars visible above his armor. Blood stained the edges of his silver breastplate, and several deep cracks ran across the ancient metal, revealing fresh wounds that sho
POV: LioraMatthias’s voice lingered through the corridor long after the words faded, wrapping around the ancient passage like smoke drifting through ruins.A cold feeling settled deep within my chest.Every instinct I possessed reacted immediately.Danger, hatred and violence.The bond connecting me to Kael tightened as his wolf responded to the same threat. Power moved through him like a gathering storm, controlled yet fierce enough to tear apart mountains if given a reason.The corridor stretched endlessly ahead of us.Silver flames burned along the walls, illuminating carvings older than any kingdom still standing. Images covered every surface. Ancient battles. Moon-blessed rulers. Great cities that once dominated the continent. Massive beasts bowing before crowned wolves.History surrounded us.History and warnings.The deeper we walked, the more the mountain seemed alive.The stone pulsed faintly beneath our feet.A steady rhythm.Almost like a heartbeat.I tightened my grip on
POV: KaelThe silence that followed the ancient command carried a weight heavier than any battlefield I had ever crossed.Every warrior inside the Hall of Kings stood motionless as the glowing passage stretched open before us. Silver fire burned along the walls of the newly revealed corridor, casting shifting shadows across stone carved by hands that had turned to dust thousands of years ago. The path seemed alive somehow, breathing with ancient power that resonated through the mountain itself.The chosen heirs must walk alone.Those words still echoed through the chamber.Nobody argued with the decree.Nobody attempted to challenge it.Every wolf present had witnessed enough during the past few days to understand one truth.Ancient magic followed rules older than kingdoms.Rules that cared little for mortal opinions.Thomas broke the silence first.His expression carried the same mixture of concern and irritation he often displayed whenever destiny complicated his life."I feel deepl
POV: LioraThe chamber fell into a silence so profound that even the distant tremors shaking the mountain seemed muted for several heartbeats.Every face in the Hall of Kings was turned toward me.Warriors.Ancient rulers.Allies who had fought beside me through battles, betrayals, and impossible odds.Their expressions ranged from disbelief to concern, yet the emotion that unsettled me most was the pity I glimpsed in several eyes.Pity.As though they suddenly understood a burden I had yet to fully grasp myself.The Blade of Ardyn remained warm within my hands. Silver fire danced across its surface, casting shifting patterns along the stone floor. Each pulse of light seemed connected to the mark behind my shoulder, creating a rhythm that echoed through my entire body.The fragment lives inside you.Seraphine’s words continued reverberating through my mind.Every memory from the past few months suddenly appeared different.The strange visions.The bond awakening faster than anyone exp
POV: LioraThe mountain did not sleep.Even in darkness, the ancient city breathed around us.I could hear it in the distant crack of steel against steel far below the lower terraces, in the echo of hurried footsteps through stone corridors older than most kingdoms, in the low chanting of priests s
POV: LioraThe world disappeared in silver light.One moment I stood inside the throne chamber with Kael beside me, the mountain shaking beneath our feet while Matthias drew power from the ancient seal. The next, the stone floor vanished entirely, ripped away beneath a flood of memory so overwhelmi
POV: KaelThe moment we stepped fully into the circle, the world stopped pretending this was still a battlefield.The sound collapsed inward.Not vanished, but pulled tight, as if everything beyond the edge of the forming seal had been forced into silence. I could still see movement at the edges of
POV: LioraI woke to the scent of cedar smoke and crushed wolfsbane.For a moment I did not know where I was.Pain drifted through me first, dull and heavy, before memory returned in jagged fragments. The courtyard. Matthias. Bram’s betrayal. The arrow. Kael’s arms around me. His voice breaking in







