Mag-log inThe lead hunter's body lay crumpled at the edge of the clearing, his red eyes still open, staring at a sky he would never see again. Kael stood over him, breathing hard, his sword dripping blood onto the forest floor. His shoulder throbbed where the hunter's blade had cut him, and his legs felt weak, unsteady, as if they might give out at any moment.
The lead hunter's body lay crumpled at the edge of the clearing, his red eyes still open, staring at a sky he would never see again. Kael stood over him, breathing hard, his sword dripping blood onto the forest floor. His shoulder throbbed where the hunter's blade had cut him, and his legs felt weak, unsteady, as if they might give out at any moment.Elena was on her knees, the baby still clutched to her chest, her silver eyes wide with shock. "Is he dead?""He's dead.""Are there more?""I don'
The healer's tent at the Silver One's territory was larger than the one Kael had left behind, with clean bandages and fresh water and a bed that actually had blankets. Elena lay on that bed, her face pale, her silver eyes half-closed, the baby still pressed against her chest. The healer had stitched the wound on her arm and applied salves that smelled of herbs and something sharper, something that made Kael's eyes water."She needs rest," the healer said. "The birth was hard on her. The wound made it worse.""She'll recover?""I don't know. The wound was deep. And she lost a lot of blood."
Kael's blood ran cold when he saw the empty tent.Elena's bed was still rumpled, her blankets thrown back as if she had left in a hurry. Her few belongings were scattered on the floor—a comb, a mirror, a small wooden carving that might have been a wolf or a dog. The tent flap was open, swaying in the cold morning breeze, and the guards who had been posted outside were gone.Two of them, wolves Kael trusted, wolves who had sworn to protect Elena with their lives.Their bodies lay twenty feet from the tent, throats slit, eyes staring at the gray sky.
Harald had been in the healers' tent for three days, and Kael had visited him every morning. The wolf was recovering slowly, his body fighting off the corruption that had been eating at his veins, but his mind was still clouded, still trapped in the memories of what Seraphine had done to him. Kael was patient, asking questions, listening to answers, piecing together the fragments of information Harald offered."The corruption spreads through the blood," Harald said on the third day. "Seraphine's hunters don't just kill wolves. They capture them. Turn them. Make them into soldiers.""How?""I don't know the
The second day of the siege was worse than the first.Kael had hoped that the enemy's retreat at midnight would buy them time, perhaps even discourage further attacks. But Seraphine's forces regrouped quickly, driven by a hunger that transcended fear or fatigue. They returned at dawn, more numerous than before, their eyes burning with the same sickly light that marked them as corrupted.Kael stood on the wall, watching them emerge from the forest, his heart heavy with dread. He had lost wolves yesterday—good wolves, wolves he had grown up with, wolves who had trusted him to lead them. Today, he would lose more.
The days after the attack were a blur of preparation and fear. Kael moved through the settlement like a wolf possessed, directing the construction of fortifications, organizing supply lines, assigning warriors to defensive positions. He slept in snatches, ate when he remembered, and prayed to the moon when the weight of what was coming pressed down on his chest.Torvin tried to get him to rest. "You're no good to anyone if you collapse.""I'll rest when the siege is over.""And if it never ends?"







