đ Chapter Four: A Dangerous Conversation
The market was clearing, the air thick with the scent of fear and spilled blood, but Raven barely noticed as she stood before Ragnar. His eyes were wide, storm gray and searching, flickering from her blood slick blade to her golden eyes, to the rogues crawling away in the distance. âYou didnât have to do that,â he said quietly, but his voice shook. Raven wiped her blade on her leather pants before sliding it back into its sheath. âThey would have killed you,â she replied, turning to leave. She needed to get away, to put distance between them before the bond pulled her closer, before her wolf did something reckless. But Ragnar followed, his boots crunching on the wet stones. âWhy?â he demanded, grabbing her wrist. The touch was electric, the bond sparking between them so violently that it stole her breath. Her wolf lunged inside her, wanting to shift, to mark him, to claim him. She ripped her wrist free, stepping back, glaring. âDonât touch me.â His jaw clenched, but he didnât back down. âWhat are you?â Raven exhaled slowly, controlling the shake in her hands, willing her claws to stay hidden. âSomeone you should stay far away from.â âI canât,â he shot back, frustration and confusion in his voice. âI donât even know why, but I canât.â She closed her eyes, hating the truth in his words. The mate bond wasnât fair to either of them, but it didnât care about fair. It didnât care about war or rogues or councils waiting for her to slip. She turned, walking toward the treeline beyond the market, hoping he would let her go. But his voice followed her like a shadow. âIâm not afraid of you.â She froze, shoulders stiffening. Slowly, she turned to look at him, her golden eyes cold. âYou should be.â His chest rose and fell, rain dripping from his dark hair, his hands fisting at his sides as he stepped closer. âI saw what you did back there, and maybe I should run, but I canât. I donât want to.â The bond pulsed between them, a living thing that made her wolf pace beneath her skin. âYou donât know what youâre saying,â she whispered. âThen tell me,â he demanded. âTell me what you are, what this is.â For a moment, Raven let herself look at him, really look. The curve of his jaw, the stubborn set of his mouth, the storm in his eyes. He was human, fragile, breakable, yet there was something unyielding in the way he stood before her, refusing to look away. She wanted to lie. She wanted to tell him it was nothing, that he was nothing. That she felt nothing. But the truth was burning her alive. âYouâre my mate,â she said softly, the words tasting like ash on her tongue. Ragnar blinked, confusion and realization crossing his face. âYour⌠what?â Raven looked at him a sad, stoic look on her face before she said "mate, like soulmate in the human world." Raven turned away, running a hand through her wet hair. âIt doesnât matter. You need to leave. You need to forget you ever saw me.â âI canât do that,â he said, taking another step closer. She spun back, anger and fear crashing together inside her. âYou will,â she snarled, her eyes glowing gold, her wolf pushing forward. âBecause if you donât, youâll die.â He flinched but didnât back down. âYou think Iâm afraid to die?â They stood in the rain, lightning crackling far in the distance, the scent of pine and wet earth wrapping around them as the world seemed to hold its breath. Finally, Ragnar spoke, his voice low but firm. âWhat happens if I stay?â Raven swallowed hard, the bond pulling at her, whispering promises she couldnât afford to believe in. âIf you stay,â she whispered, âeverything will change.â The wind shifted, carrying the scent of rogues on the breeze, and Ravenâs head snapped towards the treeline. Her wolf growled low, the hairs on her arms rising. âWe have to move,â she said sharply, grabbing his hand before she could stop herself. He didnât resist, letting her pull him toward the shadows of the forest. Their joined hands burned with the bondâs energy, her wolf howling with satisfaction even as fear coiled in her stomach. This was wrong. It was dangerous. It was everything she wasnât supposed to want. Meanwhile Shadow was purring deep inside happy and content. And yet, as Ragnarâs fingers tightened around hers, she realized it was already too late. "You ok Raven", Luca mindlinked her so Ragnar wouldn't hear. "Yes, I'm fine, I can smell rogues in the breeze I'm taking the human back to our pack".Chapter 50 Inferno and Shadow The night burned. Silver fire blazed from Ravenâs body, scorching a circle around her as Seleneâs shadow-wings unfurled to their full span, swallowing the battlefield in suffocating darkness. The ground split beneath their feet, fire and shadow tearing through the earth in violent pulses, as if the land itself could not withstand the clash of their powers. Selene descended, serpents striking like a storm of spears. Raven met them with her fire, each strike igniting the air in bursts of molten silver. The heat scorched her lungs, her skin cracked and bleeding, but she refused to fall. âYou are not enough,â Selene hissed, her voice layered with ancient venom. Her shadow lashed forward, striking Raven across the chest and sending her skidding through the dirt. Blood sprayed from the wound, sizzling against her flames. Raven staggered to her knees, flames flickering weakly. Shadow snarled inside her mind, her wolf pushing against the pain, refusing to
.Chapter 49 â The Unveiling The battlefield stilled for the briefest moment, as though the earth itself held its breath. Ravenâs chest heaved, silver fire still smoldering across her skin. Around her, the wolves tightened their battered circle, bloodied but unbroken. Ragnar stood tall despite the crimson streaks across his armor, while Luca crouched low in his wolf form, growl rumbling from deep within his chest. They had survived Seleneâs onslaught. But only barely. And then the air shifted. The shadows that had been writhing at Seleneâs feet began to crawl up her body, clinging to her like living armor. Her charred flesh knit itself back together with a sickening hiss, her wounds closing as black scales spread over her skin. The serpents atop her head shrieked in chorus, their forms lengthening, splitting, until they writhed like a crown of hydra. âWhat is she doing?â one wolf whispered, his voice trembling. Seleneâs smile widened, too sharp, too inhuman. Her eyes glowed b
Chapter 48 â Shattered Lines The clearing had become a graveyard of flame and shadow. Every breath Raven took filled her lungs with smoke and blood, the heat of her own fire scorching her skin as much as her enemies. She and Selene clashed again and again, each strike rattling the earth beneath them, silver flame and venom colliding in bursts of light and darkness. But the war wasnât theirs alone. At the edges of the circle, Ragnarâs blade tore through serpents with relentless precision. His armor was streaked in black blood, his shoulders heaving, but his eyes never left Raven for long. He fought with the desperate fury of a man who knew his queen was inches from being torn apart. âHold the line!â Ragnar roared, his voice carrying over the din. Luca answered with a feral howl, his wolf form a blur of claws and teeth. He ripped through one shadow-serpent, only for two more to coil around his legs, dragging him down. Snarling, he tore free, but not before venom seared across his
Chapter 47 â Fire and SerpentsThe world exploded into chaos.Ravenâs flames blazed across the clearing, cutting through the mist and forcing Seleneâs horde back. The silver fire licked along the ground, weaving through roots and stone, swallowing shadow-beasts whole. The smell of scorched flesh filled the air, but still the creatures pressed forward, driven by Seleneâs command.Ragnarâs blade rose and fell beside her, each strike cutting a path through the writhing serpents. Lucaâs howl rang out above the din, rallying the wolves as they surged tighter, pressing Seleneâs army into the noose Raven had drawn around them.And still at the heart of it all Selene stood untouched.Her eyes glowed like twin suns of molten amber. Her serpentine crown hissed, each snake striking at the air, their venom sizzling where it hit Ravenâs fire. With a slow, deliberate step, she entered the circle of flame Raven had drawn, her aura a tide that bent the shadows toward her.âYou think your tricks w
Chapter 46 â The Forest AwakensThe forest was silent before dawn.Too silent.Mist curled low across the ground, shrouding the world in a pale veil. Raven stood at the ridge, eyes sharp, every nerve taut as a bowstring. Behind her, the wolves waited in silence, their breaths steaming in the cold air, their hearts beating a steady rhythm she could feel in her bones.Her traps were set. The snares hidden beneath pine needles. Pits disguised beneath loose earth. Jagged stakes driven into the ground where the mist was thickest. Every inch of the forest now thrummed with her mark, a hunting ground turned into a killing field.âDo you hear it?â she whispered.Ragnar stepped up beside her, his gaze fixed on the mist. âFootsteps.âAnd then the sound came clearer, the steady, heavy rhythm of an army moving as one. The scrape of claws on stone. The hiss of serpentine breaths.Seleneâs army.The shadows emerged first, slithering forms with glowing eyes, their bodies spilling like oil int
Chapter 45 â The Bait is SetThe moon was high when Raven called the remnants of her forces together.The clearing they chose was ringed with ancient oaks, their branches arching like watchful sentinels. Wolves shifted back into human form, bloodied and bruised, some swaying on their feet from exhaustion, but none dared sit. Their Queen had summoned them, and not a single one would risk appearing weak before her.Raven stood at the heart of them, the silver flame of her power faintly visible beneath her skin. She didnât try to hide it anymore. She wanted them to see. Wanted them to know what walked among them.Her gaze swept over each face, young, scarred, hardened. Once, these wolves had looked at her with doubt, even resentment. Now, their eyes burned with something different. Expectation. Fear, yes. But faith, too.âWe bled tonight,â Raven began, her voice carrying through the hush. âWe fought against shadows that never tire, never reason. And still⌠we stand.âA ripple of l