LOGINMorning settled gently over the palace as the kingdom slowly rebuilt. Hammers rang through the courtyards, servants cleared away the last traces of ash, and fresh flowers replaced those crushed during the siege.
Everywhere Orion looked, scars remained—but so did life.He stood beside the tall window of his strategy room, arms folded across his chest as he watched workers rebuilding the western gate. Only a few days had passed since Ashkar's defeat. The wounds across his body were heaMorning settled gently over the palace as the kingdom slowly rebuilt. Hammers rang through the courtyards, servants cleared away the last traces of ash, and fresh flowers replaced those crushed during the siege. Everywhere Orion looked, scars remained—but so did life.He stood beside the tall window of his strategy room, arms folded across his chest as he watched workers rebuilding the western gate. Only a few days had passed since Ashkar's defeat. The wounds across his body were healing well, though the deeper cuts still pulled whenever he moved too quickly. His side remained tightly bandaged beneath his tunic, a reminder that even victory left its mark.A knock sounded at the door."Come in."A young attendant entered, balancing what looked like an impossible stack of scrolls."My Alpha... these require your review."Orion frowned."...All of them?""Yes, my Alpha." The poor attendant looked almost apologetic as he carefully deposited the mount
Morning arrived so quietly that, for the first time in many months, Orion did not wake to the sound of pounding footsteps outside his chamber. No urgency. No messenger waiting beyond the door. Only birdsong drifting through the open windows, carried on a cool spring breeze scented with damp earth and blooming flowers.His eyes opened instinctively. Before he was fully awake, his hand reached toward the empty space beside the bed where his sword usually rested. His fingers brushed polished wood instead. He blinked. The weapon wasn't there. For a brief, confusing moment, his heart lurched. Then memory returned. Ashkar was gone. The war was over.A quiet laugh escaped him before he could stop it. Beside him, Selene stirred beneath the blankets. She opened one sleepy eye."What?"Orion smiled, almost sheepishly."I'd forgotten what silence sounded like."She watched him for a moment before smiling herself. "I don't think you did.""No?""I think you just forgot it could be peaceful."He c
Silence settled over the battlefield with a strange, unfamiliar weight. After hours of clashing steel, collapsing stone, and desperate cries, the quiet felt almost unreal. Smoke drifted lazily through the shattered courtyard, carrying the bitter scent of ash and blood. Broken weapons lay scattered across the ground beside those who would never wield them again. Somewhere in the distance, someone wept quietly. A sword slipped from numb fingers and struck the stone with a hollow clang. One warrior slowly lowered his weapon. Then another. No one spoke. No one seemed to know how.After surviving so much noise, silence had become the more frightening sound. Orion stood motionless in the middle of the ruined courtyard.Ashkar's body lay only a few paces away, still and lifeless beneath the first pale hints of dawn. Around them, the remaining enemy wolves either surrendered quietly or disappeared into the forest beyond the broken western gate. His wolf slowly retreated beneath his skin. The
The battlefield seemed to stop for one impossible heartbeat. Ashkar's final words lingered in the smoke-filled air.She belongs to blood far older than yours.Fire crackled. Steel rang somewhere in the distance. But for a moment, Orion heard none of it. Only those words. Only the threat hidden beneath them. Ashkar stood several paces away, dark blade resting loosely at his side, watching him with an annoyingly calm expression. Then Orion spoke."Enough is enough." It landed harder than a roar. He was done listening. Done allowing this monster to speak about his daughter as though she belonged to anyone else.His wolf surged beneath his skin. Every instinct sharpened. Every protective urge burned hotter than the fires surrounding them.Ashkar smiled, then moved.The attack came so quickly several nearby warriors never even saw it begin. Black steel flashed. Orion met it head-on. The impact exploded through his arms.Ashkar was ruthless, stronger than anyone he had ever faced. Because
The battlefield had become a living nightmare. Fire clawed at the night sky, painting the palace walls in violent shades of crimson and gold. Smoke rolled through the courtyards in choking waves while wolves crashed into one another beneath a moon half-hidden by drifting ash. Steel screamed against steel. Men shouted. Magic crackled through the air. Somewhere, stone gave way with a thunderous roar. The siege had become war."Hold the line!"Orion's command cut cleanly across the battlefield.His massive wolf surged through the smoke like a force of nature, rich brown fur streaked with molten gold beneath the firelight. His jaws closed around an enemy's shoulder before he twisted, sending the attacker sprawling into another wolf. He landed, pivoted, and drove forward again without hesitation.Where Orion fought... the line held. Every warrior who saw him found fresh strength."Don't let them through!"The defenders answered with renewed fury. To Orion's left, Eli and Riven stood should
The palace erupted into motion. The bells had barely finished their first frantic chorus before the courtyards below exploded with movement. Torches flared to life along the walls, their light chasing away the darkness as warriors poured from barracks and guardhouses with weapons already drawn. Commands echoed through the night."Archers to the western wall!""Seal the eastern gate!""Healers to the lower courtyard!"Steel sang as swords left their sheaths. Spears struck stone in hurried rhythm. Horses whinnied from the royal stables, startled awake by the sudden chaos.The peaceful palace that had settled into sleep only moments ago had become something else entirely. A fortress preparing for war.Orion descended the western staircase two steps at a time, fastening the leather guards around his forearms as he moved. Eli met him halfway, already armored, his expression stripped of its usual humor."The western wall has been breached.""How many?""We don't know yet."Riven appeared fr
The palace was quieter now, though not silent. The usual clatter of life; the servants’ hurried footsteps, the murmurs in the corridors, had softened around the new rhythm of the household. Every sound was measured, respectful, as if the palace itself knew something sacred had happened. Selene re
The first light of dawn filtered through the palace windows, soft and golden, brushing across the quiet corridors. Selene’s hand rested on her swollen belly, fingertips tracing the small rise and fall of life inside her. The baby had been restless all night, little kicks and nudges reminding h
The elders felt it before dawn. Selene knew because the palace changed its breathing. What had once been murmurs became pauses. Servants would stop mid-step, guards stiffened as if listening to something only half-heard. The air pressed heavier against her skin, not hostile, but aware. Like th
The wind carried more than leaves that evening. Something in the air had changed, it was undeniable. Selene’s wolf shifted, alert, sensing an energy she couldn't name. She had thought the ceremony, Orion’s claim, and the whispers were the hardest moments she would face. She was wrong. Her body h







