3. THE ESCAPE

THEFAR

20 Years Earlier

The smell of blood filled the royal chamber.

Even after so many battles, I had never seen anything like that night.

My uniform was covered in blood.

Some of it belonged to my enemies.

Some belonged to my brothers.

I tightened my grip around my sword as I stood beside the Queen’s bed.

Then…

I looked at the newborn prince.

At first, I thought the High Priest had made a mistake.

A prophecy?

A child chosen by the Moon?

Those were stories old people told children before bedtime.

But when I saw the glowing silver mark upon the baby’s shoulder…

Every doubt inside me disappeared.

I couldn’t take my eyes off it.

“So…”

“It is true.”

After all these years…

The prophecy had finally come to life.

The room was silent.

No one knew what to say.

Then…

Everything changed.

The palace shook.

The first explosion echoed through the halls.

The screams began.

The war had reached us.

King Kaelor looked at me.

Not as my king.

Not as the ruler of Eclipse.

But as a father.

“Thefar.”

I immediately dropped to one knee.

“My King.”

He gently placed the baby into my arms.

His hands were shaking.

“Protect him.”

I looked down at the little prince.

He was sleeping peacefully.

He had no idea that his world was already falling apart.

I held him close.

“I swear on my life.”

“No…”

Kaelor said quietly.

“Swear on your honor.”

I looked him in the eyes.

“I swear on my honor.”

“I swear before the Moon.”

“I swear before my ancestors.”

“As long as I breathe…”

“No one will harm this child.”

The King smiled.

It was a small smile.

The smile of a man who already knew he would never see another sunrise.

“Thank you…”

Those were the last peaceful words I ever heard from him.

Queen Pesha kissed the baby’s forehead one last time.

“My little Cloud…”

“My brave little Cloud.”

Her tears fell onto his tiny blanket.

For a second…

I almost couldn’t move.

I wanted to stay.

I wanted to fight beside my king.

But duty came first.

I turned toward the hidden passage.

The secret door slowly opened.

I stepped inside.

The stone door closed behind me.

The last thing I heard before it sealed shut…

Was the sound of swords crashing together.

Then silence.

I started running.

The tunnel was cold.

Dark.

Only the sound of my footsteps echoed through the narrow passage.

Cloud suddenly opened his eyes.

He looked at me.

Then…

He smiled.

I almost laughed.

“Little Prince…”

“Do you even know what’s happening?”

He stretched his tiny hand toward my beard.

Then he grabbed it.

“Ouch.”

“You have a strong grip.”

He giggled.

Even while running for our lives…

The little prince found time to play.

I smiled despite everything.

“You already act like a prince.”

“You think everyone belongs to you.”

He laughed again.

For one brief moment…

I forgot the war behind us.

Then I heard it.

Footsteps.

Many footsteps.

Behind us.

“They found the tunnel!”

I picked up my speed.

The ancient tunnel split into three different paths.

I stopped.

The left path led toward the eastern forest.

The right path led to the old river crossing.

The middle tunnel…

No one used it anymore.

Even soldiers feared it.

People believed it was cursed.

I looked behind me.

The footsteps were getting closer.

I sighed.

“Well…”

“I’ve never liked easy roads anyway.”

I turned into the middle tunnel.

The air became colder.

The walls looked older.

Strange symbols covered the stones.

Cloud suddenly stopped laughing.

The silver mark on his shoulder began to glow.

At first…

It was only a faint light.

Then it became brighter.

Soon…

The whole tunnel was shining.

I looked around in amazement.

“So you’re carrying your own lantern now?”

“That’s useful.”

“I wish you had done that five minutes earlier.”

Cloud smiled again.

I shook my head.

“I think you’re laughing at me.”

For some reason…

Being around the prince made fear disappear.

Even in the darkest place…

He somehow brought peace.

We continued walking.

The tunnel became narrower.

Several times I had to squeeze through broken rocks while holding Cloud above my head.

One time…

I slipped.

We both landed in a pool of muddy water.

I quickly checked the prince.

He wasn’t crying.

Instead…

He was smiling.

I stared at him.

“You enjoy this?”

He kicked his little feet happily.

I laughed.

“I have carried generals into battle.”

“I have protected kings.”

“And today…”

“I’m taking a royal mud bath with a baby.”

Cloud let out another little laugh.

“You’ll definitely tell people about this one day.”

We finally reached the end of the tunnel.

Fresh air greeted us.

I stepped into the forest.

The moon hung high above the trees.

I looked back.

The hidden exit disappeared behind thick vines.

Unless someone knew where to look…

They would never find it.

I whispered,

“Thank you.”

Whether I was thanking the Moon…

Or fate…

I wasn’t sure.

The journey had only begun.

For weeks…

We traveled without stopping.

We avoided villages during the day.

We walked mostly at night.

Sometimes we slept beneath giant trees.

Sometimes inside abandoned caves.

Food became harder to find.

There were days I ate nothing at all.

Whenever I found milk in a small village…

I gave every drop to Cloud.

He always came first.

One cold night…

I wrapped him inside my cloak.

I was freezing.

He was warm.

I smiled.

“So this is what fathers do.”

The thought surprised me.

I wasn’t his father.

But every day…

It felt more and more like I was.

One afternoon, while crossing another village, an old woman looked at me.

She smiled at Cloud.

“What a handsome boy.”

“Is he your son?”

I froze.

For a moment…

I didn’t know what to say.

Then I smiled.

“Yes…”

“He is.”

The words came out naturally.

The old woman laughed.

“He has your eyes.”

I almost laughed too.

“No…”

“He has much better eyes than mine.”

She gave us fresh bread before we left.

I thanked her.

She never knew she had just fed the future king.

Months passed.

Then years.

Cloud grew stronger.

His first steps were taken while chasing a butterfly.

His first word wasn’t “Uncle.”

It wasn’t “Moon.”

It wasn’t even “Food.”

It was…

“Wolf.”

I laughed so hard I nearly fell over.

“Really?”

“After everything I’ve taught you…”

“That’s your first word?”

He pointed into the forest.

“Wolf.”

A real wolf stood watching us from the trees.

It lowered its head toward Cloud before disappearing.

I never forgot that moment.

The animals always seemed drawn to him.

Birds landed near him without fear.

Wild deer allowed him to get close.

Even wolves watched over him from a distance.

The prophecy…

It was already beginning.

As the years passed, I trained him.

How to survive.

How to hunt.

How to fight.

How to stay hidden.

Most importantly…

I taught him one rule.

“Never reveal who you truly are.”

He always complained.

“But why?”

I always answered the same way.

“Because the world is not ready.”

The older he became…

The more questions he asked.

Who were his parents?

Where did he come from?

Why did the villagers call him a foreigner?

Every question stabbed my heart.

I wanted to tell him everything.

Many times…

I almost did.

But it wasn’t time.

Not yet.

One evening, after finishing our meal, I watched him sleeping beside the fire.

He was no longer the tiny baby I had carried through the secret tunnels.

He had become a young man.

Strong.

Kind.

Just like his father.

He smiled even while sleeping.

Probably dreaming about food again.

I chuckled quietly.

“You’re definitely your father’s son.”

Then my smile slowly disappeared.

I looked up at the moon.

“My King…”

“My Queen…”

“I kept my promise.”

“I protected him.”

“But I cannot hide him forever.”

The world was beginning to move again.

Rumors of the royal bloodline had started spreading.

The King’s soldiers were searching farther than ever before.

And today…

Cloud had revealed his wolf form to save a stranger.

He still didn’t understand what that meant.

But I did.

I closed my eyes.

A heavy feeling settled in my chest.

“The little cub…”

“…has finally become a young wolf.”

“And very soon…”

“He will have to walk a path…”

“…that I can no longer walk for him.”

Far away, beneath the same moon…

A black hawk took flight from the Kingdom of Eclipse.

Tied to its leg was a single message.

“We have found a silver wolf.”

The hunt…

Had begun once again.