The Blackthorn fortress was carved of stone and cruelty, its walls high, its halls echoing with whispers of power. Torches flickered along the council chamber, shadows dancing like restless spirits across the stone pillars.At the head of the long table sat Alaric Blackthorn, his hands clenched tight, his fury barely contained. His failure to kill two fugitives had turned into an insult a stain upon his authority. And for men like Alaric, insults were more dangerous than open war.ALARIC’S WRATH“Two,” Alaric growled, his voice low but seething. “Two half-starved runaways. Against hounds, soldiers, and Carrick himself. And still, they live.”No one dared meet his eyes. He rose suddenly, his cloak billowing, his hands slamming the table with a thunderous crack.“Do you understand what this means? If peasants believe even for a moment that the Blackthorn grip can be escaped, then rebellion festers!”The chamber fell silent. Lord Severin leaned back in his chair, his sharp features half-

The forest seemed endless, a sea of mist, roots, and hidden dangers. Eden and Elias moved cautiously, their bodies battered but their spirits alight. Every step forward was a declaration: they were no longer prey they were becoming a force, But even the strongest need allies.A MYSTERIOUS SIGNALEden paused at a stream, listening to the rush of water over stones. A soft whistle echoed through the trees a signal, faint and deliberate. She held up a hand to Elias. “Someone’s here.”From the shadows emerged a man, slight and wiry, dressed in patched leathers, carrying a bow slung across his back. His movements were fluid, silent.“You two,” he said, eyes sharp. “You’re the ones burning the Blackthorn patrols.”Elias stepped forward, wary. “Who are you?”The man smiled faintly. “A friend. My name is Cael And I’ve been watching them the Blackthorns for years. You’re not the only ones who want to see them fall.”CAEL’S OFFERThey found a small clearing and spoke in hushed tones. Cael descri

The forest lay quiet after the storm of their first strike. The rain had washed away most traces of blood, leaving behind broken wagons, scattered supplies, and the lingering scent of fear but not all traces were gone.Carrick knelt by the churned mud where a Blackthorn guard had fallen, his gloved fingers brushing a footprint half-hidden by water. His eyes narrowed, sharp and calculating.“They move like ghosts,” one soldier muttered.Carrick’s lips curled into a cold smile. “Ghosts leave shadows. And shadows can be followed.”SETTING THE BAITBack at the Blackthorn fortress, Alaric roared with fury, demanding answers, demanding blood. But Carrick remained calm, a predator waiting for the right moment.“We will not chase them blindly,” Carrick said, voice steady, eyes burning with quiet conviction. “No we make them come to us.”He spread a new map across the table. A caravan route, heavily marked. “We send a convoy, Not supplies bait, Just enough guards to look vulnerable. They’ll st

The river mist clung to Graybrook as dawn broke, pale light spilling across the village. The people were awake before the sun, tension coiling in the air. Bows were strung, pitch-soaked cloth wrapped around arrowheads, crude spears gripped in calloused hands.Today, they would strike not as frightened villagers, but as rebels. Eden stood at the head of them, her hand resting lightly on the hilt of her blade.She looked at the faces gathered: young boys with jaws clenched in forced courage, women with steady gazes that hid trembling hearts, men who bore the marks of labor turned to war. They weren’t soldiers, But they were ready.THE PLANElias unfurled a rough map on a wooden crate. “The convoy passes this road every third day,” he explained. “They’ll be carrying grain, weapons, and if rumor is true gold for Blackthorn coffers. If we cut them off here, at the bend, the trees give us cover.”Cael nodded, tapping the map. “We block the road with felled logs. They’ll be trapped in the b

The letter weighed heavier than any blade. Eden had faced death more times than she could count, yet Carrick’s words sliced deeper than steel. “I know who you are, I know what you were.”She burned the parchment to ash before anyone else could see it but the words clung like smoke to her mind.RESTLESS NIGHTSSleep fled her that night, She stood watch at the edge of camp, eyes scanning the trees, ears tuned to every whisper of wind. But it wasn’t enemies she feared It was the villagers.Every laugh, every trusting glance, every whispered “Eden will lead us” all of it threatened to collapse the moment Carrick revealed the truth.She closed her eyes, her fists tightening. If they knew would they still follow me?A VOICE IN THE DARK“Can’t sleep?” Elias appeared, quiet but steady, as he always was. He carried no torch, yet he moved as if the night itself welcomed him.Eden forced her voice calm. “Too much to think about.”“You carry the weight of all of them,” he said, nodding toward the