All Chapters of Chrome and Claws : Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

Chapter 29 Raven woke with the weight of last night still pressing at the base of her skull.She remembered Malrik’s impossible woundlessness, Reed’s confession and the fear that had come to live in her veins. She sought Malrik.She found him where ash met stone, he had taken to rising before the rest of the compound, she’d noticed his silhouette when she climbed the last step and stood before him, the air felt different, as if an unseen current ran between them.“You didn’t sleep,” she said.Malrik looked older in the gray light, the lines at his eyes sharper as he folded his hands atop his cloak. “Some nights the world does not allow rest,” he answered. His voice held no triumph, only the steadiness of one who had watched centuries pass. “You have questions.”Raven swallowed. “You speak in riddles. You heal, you speak of gods, and you leave me with more questions than answers. You’re a Draikos, what does that mean? Why do you know me better than I know myself?”He watched her unb

Chapter 31 The great hall of the Moon Rider stronghold was alive with the murmur of voices, but Raven felt as if she stood alone, suspended in a void where every pair of eyes bore down upon her.The halo-moon crown had been set upon her head, as she could hear them; elders with lines carved deep into their faces, warriors with scarred hands folded against their arms, and young wolves who had grown up idolizing Axel’s strength now questioned the woman beside him. The Moon Riders had never had a Luna like her: not only foreign, not only unexpected, but a wolf with blood whose origins none could name.Raven forced her back straight and lifted her chin and her wolf paced in the recesses of her mind, growling under the scrutiny.“Do you feel it?” Axel’s voice came low beside her, steady as granite. His hand brushed hers where they stood at the dais. “The weight of their eyes?”“Yes,” she whispered, her lips barely moving. “It feels like chains.”He leaned closer, his breath brushing her

Chapter 33 The night after the Bloodlit Trial was heavy with silence. Raven felt the weight of their eyes wherever she walked, some bowed in respect, others avoided her gaze entirely. They had seen her wolf and had felt the divine surge in her howl. For many, that power was awe-inspiring. For others,it was terrifying and dangerous.Lyandra’s Draikos was the one who twisted that seed into poison.The sister of Malrik, she was beautiful in the sharp way of venomous things.Raven's hair cascaded down her back, eyes like green shards of glass. Since the moment she had stepped into the Riders’ camp, she had watched Raven with a thin smile that never touched her eyes.Now, Lyandra whispered in corners. She moved between warriors, leaning close, her voice honey and steel.“Did you see her eyes in the circle? No wolf's eyes burn like that.”“She’s dangerous, she could lose control, and what then? Who will protect your pups?”“And what of Axel? Do you think a true Alpha would bind himself t

Chapter 35The flames had not yet cooled from the trial’s announcement before unease spread like sickness through the Moon Riders. Wolves whispered in the halls, old loyalties cracking, trust breaking beneath suspicion.And in the silence of dawn, shadows pressed closer against the pack’s borders.The first sign of trouble came not in sound, but in stillness.Sentinel wolves patrolled the northern ridge, their paws crunching frost under the early light.One lifted his head, ears pricking, nostrils flaring. The wind shifted and brought with it a scent that seared like lightning.Silver.The sentinel barely had time to howl before the arrow pierced his throat. His body collapsed with a muffled thud, blood steaming in the cold air.From the trees emerged figures cloaked in grey leather, their weapons gleaming unnaturally bright. The hunters had returned but this time, they did not come with simple blades.Silverfire burned on their spears and arrows, the metal laced with an alchemy that

Chapter 37 The morning after felt deceptively calm. The forest hummed with life, dew glistened across leaves, and the world seemed almost untouched by the storms that raged in the Riders’ pack.But Raven knew better, beneath the silence, threads of conspiracy tightened like snares.When she and Axel returned, the Riders were waiting. Murmurs spread as the Alpha and Luna walked through the hall, side by side, shoulders brushing in quiet defiance.Some wolves bowed their heads while others narrowed their eyes, their whispers sharp as blades. “The cursed Luna.”“ The human-blooded hybrid.”“The weakness that will undo us.”Raven ignored them, though the words cut deep. Axel’s hand brushed hers briefly as a reminder that she wasn’t walking alone.Inside the war room, the elders circled the stone table, their faces drawn with tension. Maps lay spread before them, ink smeared with urgency.Axel’s Beta spoke first. “Another clan fell last night, the hunters are moving faster. And the Serpe