로그인🐺 KAELEN 🐺 The entire valley was awake. Rogues poured out of their cabins, weapons already in hand. Growls echoed through the settlement as warriors rushed toward the entrance. The valley had been surrounded. My first thought was simple. Varg. Or another feral raid. I shifted my grip on my sword as Ronan, Garrick and several Deltas fell into formation beside me. We crossed the clearing without a word. The moment we reached the border... I stopped. They weren't ferals. They were Dreadhowl warriors. At the front of them stood a familiar black wolf. It shifted and moments later, Vilkras Blackwood stood before us. Our eyes met and the air turned colder. Vilkras slowly looked around the valley, his lip curling with barely concealed disgust. "So..." "This is where the great Kaelen Blackwood has been hiding." I didn't rise to the bait. "State your business." I muttered. A smirk tugged at his lips. "Straight to the point." His gaze shifted past me and I followed it. A small
•THIRD PERSON'S POV• The rogues continued with their murmurs. Lexi kept her head down, the little wolf pup still clinging to her hand. She could feel every stare burning into her skin. The hostility was thick and suffocating. She wouldn't blame them. She was among the people who saw to the end of their kind, even though she didn't fully participate in their hunt down. Kaelen’s jaw tightened. He stopped in the center of the clearing and turned to face the gathered rogues. His voice rang out, calm but commanding. “She is my mate.” The valley fell silent. Then the murmurs exploded. “A human mate?” “Impossible!” “She’s a hunter!” Kaelen’s golden eyes swept over them. “She is under my protection. Anyone who touches her answers to me.” The rogues fell quiet, but the resentment lingered in their eyes. Kaelen took Lexi’s hand and led her away from the crowd, toward his cabin. Ronan appeared, smiling as he took the little wolf pup’s hand. “I’ll take the kid to the oth
• THIRD PERSON'S P.O.V • A deafening roar split the forest. The trees exploded apart as a massive black wolf burst into the clearing, landing between Lexi and the feral wolves with enough force to shake the ground. Leaves and dust billowed into the air. The little wolf pup gasped. Lexi froze. She had seen Kaelen before, but never like this. He towered over every wolf present, his jet-black fur shimmering beneath the early afternoon sun. His golden eyes burned with quiet fury as a deep growl rumbled from his chest. For the very first time...Lexi understood why everyone feared him. Even the feral wolves instinctively took several steps back. Only one remained where he stood. Varg. A slow laugh escaped him. "So..." "The Banished Prince finally arrived." The enormous black wolf ignored him completely. His gaze shifted from Varg...to Lexi. She stood trembling, one hand gripping her dagger while the other shielded the frightened wolf pup behind her. Inside Kaelen's mind, Kai'
•Third Person POV• The entire hunters' compound was frozen. No one spoke. No one moved. Every eye was locked on Lexi. The little wolf pup hid trembling behind her legs. The agent with the wolfsbane dagger slowly lowered his weapon - not because he was afraid, but because Gretonia had silently signaled him to stop. Gretonia had already won. He didn’t need the child anymore. One hunter whispered, voice shaking, “She… has claws.” Another noticed her eyes — the brief flash of red that hadn’t quite faded. Someone else saw her fangs. Then fear spread like wildfire. Hunters began stepping backward. Others drew weapons. Someone shouted, “She’s one of them!” The atmosphere changed instantly. Tomas looked at Lexi. She was standing protectively in front of the child, even as the hunters turned on her. He looked at the hunters — already raising their weapons. He looked at Harlan. Then he stepped in front of Lexi. Everyone was shocked. A hunter asked, voice sharp, “What
•Third Person POV• The approaching footsteps belonged to Tomas. He burst through the trees, eyes wild with panic. The sight that greeted him stopped him cold. Lexi...his sister.. was wrapped in a dark cloak, barely conscious, slumped against the rogue, Kaelen. Tomas’s reaction was explosive. “You!” he roared, lunging forward. “You’re the one who took her!” He grabbed Lexi’s arm and yanked her away from Kaelen, pulling her behind him. With his free hand, he drew his dagger, the blade coated in wolfsbane, and pointed it at the rogue. “Stay away from her, beast!” Lexi was barely conscious, still recovering from the heat. Her body trembled as she tried to speak. “Tomas… wait… it’s not—” Her voice was too weak. The words barely left her lips. More footsteps approached.. the hunters drawn by the noise. Tomas was distracted for a split second. In that moment, Kaelen vanished into the woods like a shadow. Tomas spun around, but the rogue was already gone. He cursed u
• THIRD PERSON'S P.O.V • The silver she-wolf stood frozen beneath the moonlight, her chest rising and falling rapidly. She didn't understand what she had become. Every instinct screamed at her to run. A low growl rumbled deep in her throat as she fixed her eyes on the man standing several feet away. Gretonia remained perfectly calm. His cane rested lightly against the forest floor while several cloaked men stood hidden among the trees behind him. None of them moved. Neither did he. His sharp blue eyes studied the silver wolf with quiet fascination. A faint smile touched his lips. "You've finally awakened." The she-wolf bared her fangs. She took a cautious step backward. Gretonia noticed everything. The way her ears twitched at every sound. The uncertainty in her stance. The fear hidden beneath the aggression. This was her first shift. She was trying to survive. His smile deepened. "The Moon Princess..." He spoke so softly it almost sounded like he was talking to himsel







