The voice within

The howl echoed through Lyra's dreams.

It wasn't frightening.

It was...

Lonely.

She stood in the middle of an endless silver forest.

Moonlight poured through towering trees whose leaves shimmered like glass. A cool breeze carried the scent of pine and fresh snow.

The forest felt familiar.

As though she had walked these paths before.

"Hello?" she called softly.

No answer.

Only silence.

She took another step.

Then another.

The snow beneath her feet remained untouched, leaving no footprints behind.

A strange uneasiness settled in her chest.

"This isn't real..."

A low growl drifted through the trees.

Lyra stopped.

It wasn't threatening.

If anything...

It sounded protective.

A massive white wolf stepped into the moonlight.

Its fur gleamed like fresh snow beneath the full moon.

Its silver eyes locked onto hers.

Lyra couldn't breathe.

The wolf was enormous.

Larger than any she'd ever imagined.

Yet instead of fear...

She felt peace.

The wolf slowly walked toward her.

It lowered its head.

Not in submission.

In recognition.

Without thinking, Lyra reached out her hand.

Just before her fingers touched its fur

A voice echoed across the forest.

"Wake up."

The wolf instantly lifted its head.

Its ears flattened.

It looked beyond Lyra, toward the darkness between the trees.

Then it growled.

This time...

The sound carried unmistakable warning.

The forest began to shake.

The moonlight dimmed.

Cracks spread across the ground beneath Lyra's feet.

The wolf looked back at her one last time.

Its lips moved.

No sound came.

But she somehow understood.

Run.

Everything shattered.

Lyra sat upright in bed with a gasp.

Her heart hammered against her ribs.

The room was still dark.

The fire had burned low.

She pressed a trembling hand against the back of her neck.

The Royal Moon Crest was warm.

Not burning like before.

Simply...

Warm.

"It was only a dream."

But deep inside...

She knew it wasn't.

A soft knock interrupted her thoughts.

"My Lady?"

Elara.

Lyra quickly wrapped a robe around herself.

"Come in."

The maid entered carrying breakfast.

She immediately noticed Lyra's pale face.

"You didn't sleep."

"I don't think I did."

"You look like you've seen a ghost."

Lyra hesitated.

"I saw..."

She stopped herself.

"No."

"It doesn't matter."

Elara gently placed the tray on the table.

"Sometimes dreams matter more than we realize."

Lyra looked up.

"You believe that?"

"In Blackthorn..."

Elara smiled faintly.

"We've learned never to ignore dreams sent beneath the full moon."

A chill ran down Lyra's spine.

She hadn't mentioned the moon.

At that same moment...

Kael stood in the training yard speaking with Rowan.

"The patrols?"

"Nothing unusual."

"The forest?"

"Quiet."

Too quiet.

Kael didn't like quiet.

Not after everything that had happened.

Jer jogged into the courtyard.

"My Alpha."

"We found something."

Kael turned immediately.

"What?"

Jer held out a folded piece of black cloth.

"It was caught on the outer wall."

Kael examined it.

The fabric was torn.

Burned around the edges.

Embroidered into one corner was the same symbol they had found carved into the corridor.

The Eclipse Pack.

"They were here again," Rowan said.

Kael nodded.

"No."

His eyes narrowed.

"They never left."

The words stayed with Kael long after Jer finished speaking.

"They never left."

A cold silence settled over the war room.

The torn black cloth lay on the table between them, its embroidered symbol almost hidden beneath the flickering lantern light.

Rowan folded his arms.

"If they're still inside Blackthorn..."

"...then someone is sheltering them."

Jer's expression darkened.

"Or someone is feeding them information."

Kael remained silent.

His eyes never left the cloth.

"They knew exactly where Lyra would be."

"They knew the patrol routes."

"They even knew which corridor had the weakest guard rotation."

He finally looked up.

"That isn't luck."

"That's betrayal."

The room fell silent.

After a long moment, Kael gave his orders.

"From this moment forward..."

"Nobody enters the Moon Wing without my permission."

"Double the guards."

"Rotate every patrol every four hours."

"If there's a traitor..."

"They won't know our movements anymore."

Rowan nodded.

"It'll be done."

Jer headed for the door before stopping.

"My Alpha..."

"If the traitor is someone important?"

Kael's golden eyes hardened.

"Then they'll fall like anyone else."

Elsewhere...

Lyra couldn't stop thinking about the dream.

The white wolf.

The silver forest.

The voice.

It had all felt too real.

She wandered through one of Blackthorn's gardens, hoping the fresh air would clear her thoughts.

Despite the winter, evergreen trees still stood proudly around the stone paths.

Snow rested quietly on their branches.

She stopped beside a frozen fountain.

The water beneath the ice reflected her face.

"You aren't imagining it."

The quiet voice startled her.

She turned.

Aldren.

The old librarian stood beneath one of the trees, leaning on his wooden staff.

"You..."

Lyra smiled.

"I thought the library was underground."

He chuckled softly.

"I don't spend all my time hiding among books."

She walked toward him.

"I've been thinking about what you said."

"The moon remembers?"

He nodded.

"And I had a dream."

His expression became thoughtful.

"Tell me."

She described the silver forest.

The enormous white wolf.

The warning.

She expected him to dismiss it as imagination.

Instead...

He listened without interrupting.

When she finished, he closed his eyes.

"So..."

"It has begun."

Lyra frowned.

"What has?"

"The call."

"I don't understand."

"You aren't meant to."

"Not yet."

She sighed in frustration.

"Everyone keeps saying things like that."

"'Not yet.'"

"'Soon.'"

"'When the time comes.'"

"Why won't anyone simply tell me the truth?"

A shadow crossed Aldren's face.

"Because the truth has claimed too many lives already."

Before Lyra could ask another question, hurried footsteps echoed through the garden.

Rowan approached quickly.

"My Lady."

He bowed briefly before turning to Aldren.

"My apologies."

"The Alpha is looking for her."

Aldren gave a small nod.

"Then don't keep him waiting."

As Lyra walked away with Rowan, she glanced back.

The old librarian had already disappeared among the snow-covered trees.

It was almost as if he had never been there.

Kael stood on the western wall overlooking the endless forest.

His hands rested on the cold stone.

He didn't turn as Lyra approached.

"You wanted to see me?"

"I did."

She stood beside him.

For a while...

Neither of them spoke.

The wind carried the scent of pine across the mountains.

Finally, Kael broke the silence.

"How are you feeling?"

She hesitated.

"Tired."

"But... different."

He looked at her.

"Different how?"

"I don't know."

She placed a hand over her chest.

"It feels like something is..."

She searched for the right word.

"...waiting."

Kael's expression became unreadable.

"You dreamed."

She stared at him.

"How did you know?"

He looked back toward the forest.

"I've seen that look before."

"My father wore it..."

"...before difficult choices."

Lyra frowned.

"So dreams can mean something?"

"They can."

"But they can also deceive."

She nodded slowly.

"I saw a white wolf."

For the first time...

Kael looked genuinely surprised.

Before he could ask anything else

A horn sounded from the northern watchtower.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

Not an attack.

A messenger.

Moments later, a young warrior sprinted onto the wall.

"My Alpha!"

Kael turned.

"What is it?"

The warrior was breathing heavily.

"We found another mark."

"Where?"

"The old tunnels beneath the eastern cliffs."

Kael's eyes narrowed.

"The tunnels were sealed years ago."

"So we believed."

A heavy silence followed.

Kael looked toward Rowan.

"Prepare a team."

"I'm going below."

Lyra stepped forward instinctively.

"I'm coming too."

Kael immediately shook his head.

"No."

"But"

"No."

His voice remained calm.

"But this isn't a request."

She looked disappointed but didn't argue.

Kael softened slightly.

"If those tunnels have been opened..."

"They were opened by someone who doesn't want to be found."

He looked toward the distant mountains.

"And I intend to find them."

As Kael and Rowan hurried away to gather warriors, Lyra remained on the wall.

She watched them disappear into the courtyard below.

Then...

Without warning...

The Royal Moon Crest on the back of her neck flared with heat.

A sharp pain shot through her body.

She gasped, gripping the stone railing for support.

For just a second...

She heard the same lonely howl from her dream.

Only this time...

It wasn't calling from a distant forest.

It was calling from somewhere beneath Blackthorn Keep.