The packhouse thrummed with a tense undercurrent of activity, its cedar walls absorbing the late afternoon light that filtered through the tall, narrow windows, casting long shadows across the great hall like fingers of doubt reaching for the heart of the pack. Built from the sturdy logs of Emberfall's ancient pines, the structure exuded a rugged warmth, its surfaces polished smooth by generations of hands, etched with carvings of lunar cycles, howling wolves, and intertwined vines symbolizing unity—a irony that now felt mocking amid the fractures. The great hall, the pack's communal core, spanned the length of the building, with high-beamed ceilings from which iron lanterns hung on chains, their flames flickering in glass enclosures and emitting a soft, amber glow that danced on the scarred oak tables below. These tables, long and communal, were cluttered with the remnants of hurried preparations: rolled maps depicting the lunar temple's suspected location, bundles of herbs for poult
Last Updated : 2025-08-07 Read more