LOGINThe air in the private, subterranean training cavern beneath the pack house was thick with dust and the scent of old stone. Selene stood in the center of the reinforced chamber, her boots planted firmly on the cold ground. A few paces away, Damien stood with his arms crossed, his dark eyes tracking her every movement with a mixture of intense focus and tightly coiled anxiety. Korven leaned against a stone pillar near the entrance, his hand resting habitually on the pommel of his
The following morning arrived beneath a blanket of gray clouds that swallowed the sun before it had a chance to rise. A cool mist drifted through the forests surrounding Shadowfang, clinging to the towering pines and limiting visibility beyond the outer walls. Since the attack on Frostclaw, the entire territory had remained on high alert. Patrols rotated more frequently, watchtowers were manned day and night, and messengers continued riding between allied packs carrying updates that seemed to grow more unsettling with every passing hour.By sunrise, nearly every patrol had returned to report.Nearly.Korven stood near the northern gate with a report in one hand, his eyes fixed on the forest beyond the walls. He had counted the patrols twice already, hoping he had simply overlooked a name. He hadn't. One unit was still missing."They should've been back over an hour ago," one of the younger warriors said cautiously.Korven folded the report and slipped it beneath his arm. "Who was lead
Morning broke over Shadowfang beneath a sky filled with heavy clouds, their dark shapes stretching across the mountains like an omen. The warmth that usually accompanied sunrise never came. Instead, a cold wind swept through the territory, carrying with it the uneasy feeling that something had changed overnight.The packhouse had been awake long before dawn. Messengers came and went without pause, stable hands prepared fresh horses, and warriors armed themselves before taking their positions along the walls. Damien's order to strengthen every border had transformed Shadowfang into something resembling a fortress. No one complained. After the report from Frostclaw, every wolf understood that the peace they had enjoyed for the last few months had finally come to an end.Inside the Alpha's office, Damien stood over the map once again
The mood inside Shadowfang changed almost overnight.Although the pack remained busy as ever, there was a noticeable tension in the air that hadn't been there before. Every warrior understood something was coming. Patrols left before sunrise and returned long after nightfall. Watchtowers remained occupied at all hours, while messengers rode between Shadowfang and its allied packs carrying reports that seemed to grow more troubling with each passing day.Damien hadn't spent a full night in his own room for nearly a week.Instead, he could usually be found inside his office with Korven, Garrick and several patrol leaders gathered around a large map spread across the table. Fresh markings covered nearly every border. Rogue sightings had increased dramatically, yet no attacks had occurred. The Witch Queen continued to w
The morning sun bathed Shadowfang in warm golden light, but Selene had long since stopped believing that peaceful mornings meant peaceful days. Ever since the rogue had been captured near the northern border, Damien had transformed the entire pack into a fortress. Patrols rotated twice as often, guards stood watch from every tower, and scouts came and went throughout the day carrying reports from every corner of the territory. The Witch Queen had vanished once again, and somehow her silence was far more unsettling than her threats had ever been.None of that, however, stopped Selene from making her way toward the training grounds.At five months pregnant, most people expected her to spend her days resting.Selene had other ideas.Sh
Her eyes glistened with fresh tears as she struggled to steady her breathing. "The day Elder Myra confirmed it, I wanted to find you immediately." She lowered her gaze, her fingers tightening around each other. "Then the rogue was captured... and everything fell apart."Malric looked away, his jaw tightening. He remembered that day with painful clarity. The interrogation. The rogue's laughter echoing through the holding cell. Liam's name. From that moment onward, nothing in his life had been the same. Every memory of Veyra had become intertwined with the memory of his best friend's death, until he could no longer separate one from the other."I thought..." Veyra whispered, fighting the tears threatening to spill over. "Once you found out about Liam... you'd never want to see me again." She gave a bitter laugh that held no amusement. "So I kept waiting. I kept t
The rest of the afternoon passed in uneasy silence.Although Shadowfang remained as busy as ever, Veyra barely noticed the warriors moving through the courtyard or the distant sounds of training. Her conversation with Malric replayed endlessly in her mind. He had listened. He hadn't forgiven her, but he had listened. Somehow, that made everything even harder. She had been so close to telling him the truth, only for the moment to slip through her fingers once again.She stood alone beneath the same flowering tree long after he had disappeared from sight, her hand resting protectively against her stomach. The child growing inside her had become her greatest source of hope and, at the same time, her greatest fear."You let him go."Veyra turned to find Elder Myra approachin
The morning air was cold enough to sting my lungs when I breathed it in. I stood by the training field, hands shoved into my cloak, trying to ignore the dozen eyes that followed me across the clearing. The world hadn’t been the same since the bond revealed itself. Or maybe it was just me. The
The morning mist clung low to the forest floor, curling around the trunks of ancient trees like silent spectators. The clearing was alive with quiet energy, but it was different this time. The pack moved with careful precision, muscles taut, eyes scanning the edges of the forest. Th
The northern border was too still.Not just silence but stillness.Silence meant peace. Stillness meant something was waiting.Damien could feel it crawling beneath his skin as his patrol advanced through the frost-thick undergrowth. The air was damp with
The scent of blood still lingered in the air.Even after the fires were put out, even after the bodies were buried, the smell clung to the earth sharp, metallic, and unrelenting.Selene stood near the training grounds where the battle had ended hours ago. The soil was torn and black







