MasukFaye’s POV I stood on the northern field with our daughter strapped securely to my chest, the pack formed in a desperate battle line behind me. The morning sun rose pale and cold, casting long shadows across the open ground. The Lunaris echo pulsed steadily inside the baby and me, giving me the strength to stand tall and command despite the wounds that still ached across my body. My legs no longer shook. My voice would carry. The war had become a single massive clash. Thorn’s thousands-strong shadow army charged across the field toward us, a black tide of armored wolves and twisted cursed beasts, their violet eyes glowing with hunger. Jacob led the front charge, blade flashing as he cut through the first wave. Riven and Lira fought at his sides like storms of steel. Elara stood beside me, the cracked moonstone held high in both hands. I raised my voice so every wolf in the line could hear me. “Hold the line! The echo is our shield! Do not break! Fight for your pack! Fight for y
Jacob’s POV Dawn broke over the smoking ruins of our camp like a cruel joke. The first pale light touched the horizon, revealing the full extent of the damage. Tents lay in charred heaps. Barricades were splintered and scattered. The ground was soaked with blood—ours and the enemy’s—mixed with gray ash from the wolves the echo had burned. Bodies of fallen pack members were being carried to the mourning fire. The air smelled of smoke, blood, and defeat. I stood in the middle of it all, blade still in my hand, blood drying on my arms and ribs. My side throbbed from the wound I had taken destroying the hidden rift. My throat burned from Thorn’s grip. Every breath hurt, but I refused to let it show. The giant portal was closed. We had survived the night. But Thorn’s promised “true army” was coming, and the pack was barely holding together. My thoughts were grim and tactical. We had bought ourselves a few hours, but the pack was exhausted, wounded, and outnumbered. If we waited for T
Jacob’s POV I gasped for air as Thorn released my throat. The shadow grip had left burning marks around my neck, but there was no time to feel the pain. The tent was collapsing around us. Canvas burned at the edges. Shadow chains whipped through the air. The giant portal above still tried to reopen, pouring fresh waves of shadow wolves into the camp. The entire territory had turned into a battlefield of fire and darkness. Howls and screams echoed from every direction. My pack was bleeding out, but the Lunaris echo was our only hope. I recovered in an instant and threw myself back into the fight. My blade moved on pure instinct, cutting through a shadow chain that tried to wrap around my leg. “Protect the Luna and the child!” I roared to the surviving warriors. “Close every rift! Do not let them reach the tent!” Riven fought at my left, his blade a heavy blur. “They keep coming! The portal is fighting to reopen!” Lira spun on my right, twin blades flashing as she severed two
Faye’s POV The collapsing central tent had become a nightmare of fire, blood, and shadow. Thorn’s massive fist was wrapped around Jacob’s throat, lifting him off the ground. Jacob’s face twisted in pain as he struggled, legs kicking helplessly. Shadow chains lashed wildly through the air, wrapping around tent poles and dragging loyal guards screaming toward the giant portal above. More shadow wolves poured in through every tear in the canvas, their violet eyes glowing with hunger. The ground shook with each new impact. The war outside had turned the entire camp into a slaughterhouse. I stood in the middle of it all with our daughter clutched tight against my chest. The Lunaris echo blazed at its absolute limit inside both of us, giving me a final burst of strength. My legs no longer shook. My voice came out clear and fierce despite the exhaustion tearing at my body. Elara fought beside me, moonstone flickering in her hands. Lira stood at the entrance, blades spinning as she tried
Jacob’s pov “Jacob!” Faye shouted from behind me. “The echo is ready!” Elara stood beside her, moonstone glowing faintly. “Channel it through me! We push him back together!” I slashed at another shadow chain that tried to wrap around my leg. “Do it! Burn these chains!” Faye lifted our daughter higher. The Lunaris echo surged. Silver light burst from the baby and flowed into Elara’s moonstone. The combined power created bright flashes that burned the nearest shadow chains into nothing. Thorn staggered back one step, hissing in pain as the silver light scorched his dark armor. “You think your light can stop me?” Thorn snarled. “I carry Nyra’s full power now. I am the shadow!” He raised both hands. More chains erupted from the ground, lashing toward Faye and the baby. I dove forward, cutting two of them in mid-air. The broken ends whipped away, but the effort left me open. Thorn’s fist slammed into my ribs. I felt something crack, but I refused to fall. “Stay behind me!” I
Jacob’s POV I stood at the front of the collapsing central tent, blade slick with blood, chest burning with every breath. Thorn’s giant portal still hung above us like an open wound in the sky, pouring wave after wave of shadow wolves and cursed beasts into the heart of our camp. Fires raged unchecked. Tents burned or lay in shreds. The ground was soaked with blood. The pack fought in small, desperate pockets, blades clashing against shadow armor, howls mixing with screams. We were losing ground fast. My thoughts were locked on one thing only: protect Faye and the baby at all costs. Nothing else mattered. Not the camp. Not my own life. If Thorn reached them, everything we had fought for would be gone. I roared to the remaining warriors around me. “Push them back! The dome must hold! Do not let a single shadow wolf inside this tent!” Riven fought at my left flank, his blade moving in heavy, brutal arcs. “There are too many! The portal keeps feeding them!” Lira held the right
Faye pov The cheers still rang in my ears, vibrating through my bones, with the pack’s voices shaking the very ground beneath my paws. I stood over Thorn in half-wolf form, and silver fur matted with blood. My side throbbed with a fiery ache, a constant reminder of the blade Kael had driven into m
Chapter 41: Faye pov The first light of dawn cut through the tent, but it brought no comfort. I woke up with a start, the burn inside me pulsing harder than ever. It was a constant, angry fire, moving with every beat of my heart. My body felt cold, and weak from blood loss, but the curse inside
Faye povJacob helped me into the tent. My legs felt weak, like they could give out at any moment. Blood still leaked from the cut on my side. The bandage Lara had placed there earlier was already soaked. Every step sent pain through me. Sharp and burning. I ignored it. I needed to see my baby. I n
Faye POV Jacob helped me walk back to the tent as my side hurt with every step that I took. Blood soaked through my dress and ran down my leg. The pain I felt made my vision blur. But I kept moving as I needed to see the baby. I needed to hold her. Jacob’s arm stayed strong around me. He didn’t co







