LOGINAdrian P. O. V_“Adrian Devonsol, second son of the Blood Royals, you are hereby ordered by the high Tribunal of the Lunar Council to hunt down and eliminate the snow wolf Griffin Evergrey.”__“I, Adrian Devonsol, formally accept this decree and pledge to fulfill my duties to the Lunar Council”.__“You shall set out at the rise of the next full moon, and may the light of the lunar cycle guide your path”._“Ugh…” I groaned, slowly opening to a spinning world. _"Am I dead already?"_I drew a long breath, pressing my lips together but it didn't help. _Even if I had never been to the afterlife, I'm pretty sure it wasn't supposed to look like the inside of a damp cave__"But if this isn't the afterlife, then where am I?_I tried to brush a strand of hair from my face, but my hand felt... Stuck. Although, I couldn't see what was around my wrist, I could tell that I was bonded by ropes... Very strong ropes". “What the…?” I pulled, trying to loosen the knots, but the more I tried, the tig
“Eliza, Eliza… wait for me.” I ran across the empty wildflower field, sweat dripping down my face. Eliza ran a few steps ahead, not bothering to glance over her shoulder. I had no idea where I was running to, or why. But still, I went with the flow. From a distance, I could see the ground give way to a sudden drop-off—a clear warning that we had reached the end of our path. “Eliza, slow down! There's a cliff up ahead.” I shouted at the top of my lungs, but instead of listening to me, she picked up speed as if trying to outrun something". _For the first time in my life, my wolf actually… Ignored me?_“As your master, I order you to stop now,” I commanded, but my words fell on deaf ears.I tried to look away… But I couldn't stop myself from watching Eliza run towards the edge. “You stubborn wolf… You're going to get us both killed if you don't listen to me". I felt so powerless, watching my wolf lead us to disaster with no way to stop her.But then again, wasn't I still running i
“Gone… It's… It's gone.” My legs finally gave out, and I collapsed to the ground._It was coming straight for me. I thought for sure it was over for me and had even gone as far as offering my last prayer…but the monster just disappeared_“What is the meaning of all these?” I muttered, ruffling my hair. _Was this some kind of strange magic or maybe even sorcery? But those things didn't really exist in the real world_That could only mean I hallucinated the whole thing… Which wouldn't make sense either, because the injured wolf was still lying right there, groaning in pain. I dragged myself across the floor until I was close enough to feel the struggle in every deep and painful breath it took, as if each one might be the last. _I almost lost my life trying to save it, but still, that wasn't enough… But what else could I do?_There was no way I could get herbs, medication, or anything else to treat its injuries on this frozen mountain. And even if I somehow managed to get them, I sti
Rocks crumbled beneath my feet as I dug my nails between the narrow gaps to keep myself from falling. My breath disappeared into the cold before I could feel it, but I continued pushing myself higher. _How long had I been climbing? Hours? Days? I couldn't tell_I pounded my fist against the rock but felt nothing, which was worse because they had become numb, just like my legs. As if my life was not already miserable enough, the snow grew heavier with each passing second, making it difficult to see where I was going. I stopped at a narrow edge, trying to catch my breath. The top was still far off, and everything around me was a jumble of rocks and icicles._If I don't find shelter soon, I'd either die by freezing or falling off this mountain… To be honest, neither one sounded great._I looked to my right, and all I could see were rocks, more icicles, and a sad reminder that I might be in serious trouble now. “Come on…this can't be it.” I muttered, using every ounce of my strength
The tents were down, Merlyn and Dior were packing up their backpacks, and still arguing over who would carry the heaviest load.“Would you guys quit messing around already? We've still got a long way to go before arriving at border town.” Lori yelled, rolling her eyes slightly as she tugged her arm into mine. “That's rich coming from you, Lori,” Dior scoffed, reluctantly slinging the bag over his shoulder. “Considering you've done nothing but cling to Samantha all morning.""You guys don't know what it feels like to be the only girl in the group." She pouted, blinking innocently. “Sometimes, it's like I'm speaking a different language, and no one even tries to understand me". Merlyn threw his hand over our shoulders, drawing us into a gentle hug. “Come on, Lori, you're making it sound like being with us guys is a bad thing now. And besides, if Samantha has already made up her mind to leave, then there's nothing we can do to change that. Isn't that right, Dennis?"Dennis gruffed, sho
I felt a cold sweat sliding down my cheeks as Merlyn's words echoed through my mind: 'It's what we live for and what we'll die for."I shifted onto my side, trying to make myself feel as comfortable as I could in this spacious tent, but my mind refused to quiet down, making it impossible to sleep.I threw off my blanket and sat up, and before I knew it, I was on my feet, pacing back and forth.“What if they woke up at dawn and realized I wasn't like them? What if they've already figured it out and were just pretending not to know?”I shook my head, pushing the bad thoughts aside. “Maybe I'm just overthinking it.” I forced a smile as I tried to convince myself that everything would be okay within a few hours, but still, I wasn't buying it.“No, I can't stay here anymore,” I thought, quickly glancing outside.The crescent moon was slowly disappearing in the pre-dawn sky, leaving nothing but stars in a fading light. The fire had burned down to heaps of ashes, and all that remained were







