ent. Nyra turned, her cloak billowing

-shouts of alarm, guttural snarls, the unmistakable sound of bone cracking under claw. When t

ached the sacred perimeter. But

ched over exposed ribs and mangled

a storm of rage. Feral. Lost to

appened

s bitter. "Twis

exile. They were once kin." Aria s

g sil

o.

wood gate, sending splinters of sacred timber into the sky. Council guards rus

hind them, staff glowi

to the Hear

bar

Moon Tree at

ooked

hem here. You h

lan

incarnate. Aria moved like a flame, the moonsto

a swipe from a berserker's claw, rolling beneath its bulk

moned ancestral wolves-phantoms of ancient warriors-to hold the line. They tore into the berserkers with

begun tearing at

ed, surgin

ine. It shrieked and exploded into ash. The statue's light

hook. The Moon Tree's great branches flickered. The silver leaves began to dull. Fr

ing to kill us. They'r

voice

o erase the l

pped her

tonig

n ridge, a howl rose. Dee

ted. Shapes emerged through the smoke. Wolves.

silver, their eyes blazing with starli

epped f

are

all woman with braids woven

lpha of the Fo

s s

That bloodlin

t," Vess

Waiting.

r wolves moved as one, forming a protective barrier of magic and fang. They pushed the berserkers back with fierc

t cost. The Heart Circle was scorched. Dozens were dead. The Moon Tree-cracked, b

said, not turning. "But

was just the beginning

u were born to be?" Aria rose, t

llow pits where healing spells had scorched away the blood. Healers moved qui

on dim in the pool of silvery sap at its base. Her finge

ws, the stars in her cloak flick

weight well," s

l strong," Ar

" Vessa replied. "Strength is not in denying pain. It's in surviving i

ve told us!"

blind into this war!" Nyra's tone was cold. "W

s unpre

voices rose until Vess

and your legacy crumbles,

." She turned to Aria. "

rows kni

only the first wave. The true enemy lurks beyond the

t his gaze. "She is of all our kind. And sh

, Rhys. Let her become more than

wed his head. Aria looked to t

ll

l return.

Vessa

ood moon ris

rk horizon, where stars b

ney had onl