The world was silent after the sealing, but silence did not mean peace. It was the silence of a battlefield after slaughter, heavy and suffocating, thick with smoke and blood.Kael’s body lay against Selene’s lap, his breathing shallow. She stroked his hair, her hands trembling, as though her touch alone could keep him tethered to this world. Around them, the ground still pulsed faintly with red cracks scars left by the entity’s thrashing. Each vein of fire pulsed like a dying heartbeat, then dimmed until only faint embers remained.The chains had reforged, but the cost lingered in the air.Selene closed her eyes and whispered a healing incantation. Silver light spilled from her palms, wrapping around Kael’s body. His torn flesh knitted together, his shallow breaths steadied, but the deeper wounds the ones carved into his soul remained untouched. She could sense it, the fragments of his mind that had been consumed by the seal.Her throat tightened. He had sacrificed more than blood. M

The battlefield burned with chaos. Wolves clashed beneath the bruised sky, their howls echoing through the Blackthorn forest like the cries of restless spirits. The scent of blood was thick, mingling with pine and earth, soaking into every breath Seraphina took. Her silver wolf darted between shadows, her heart pounding with each strike of claw and snap of jaw.Kael’s massive black wolf tore through enemies like a storm given flesh. His strength was unmatched, his movements terrifyingly precise. Wherever he struck, Bloodfang wolves fell, yet more poured in from the tree line, their red eyes gleaming like coals in the dark.Seraphina lunged at one that tried to flank Kael, slashing its flank open before it could sink its teeth into him. Her wolf snarled, her fur bristling, her chest heaving with adrenaline. She felt Kael’s presence anchoring her through the bond they shared, even though he hadn’t fully accepted it. His rage, his power, his raw need to protect her bled into her veins, m

The river swallowed Seraphina whole.Icy water slammed into her body with the force of a thousand fists, dragging her beneath the surface before she could even gasp. The current was wild, merciless, thrashing her against jagged rocks and pulling her deeper into its cold embrace. For a moment, she felt as if the world had vanished into blackness, her lungs burning as her body fought against the crushing weight of the river.But she refused to panic.Through the chaos, through the choking water and the darkness that clawed at her, Seraphina clung to the bond. That fragile thread that tethered her to Kael glowed faintly inside her chest, pulsing with weak but steady warmth. He was alive. Somewhere in this furious river, he fought to survive.She would not let him drown.Her silver wolf’s instincts surged through her veins, sharpening her senses. Her limbs cut through the water with renewed determination as she forced her body to swim deeper. Every stroke felt like fire in her muscles, bu

The air trembled with the weight of Kael’s awakening. His golden eyes burned like molten fire, cutting through the haze of weakness that had imprisoned him since the river dragged him under. Power seeped from his body in waves, faint at first, then growing stronger with every beat of his heart. The ground itself seemed to shiver in recognition of its Alpha.Seraphina’s chest tightened, relief and fear colliding in a storm inside her. She staggered back toward him, blood dripping from her wounds, her breath ragged. Her silver aura flickered as exhaustion clawed at her bones, but she stood firm. She had kept him alive long enough.Now it was his turn.The crimson eyed wolves growled, circling uneasily as Kael forced himself onto his knees. His body shook violently, his muscles quivering with the effort, but his gaze was unyielding. When his eyes locked on Seraphina, the bond pulsed like lightning, searing through them both.Her wolf whimpered softly in her chest, relief flooding their s

Kael hadn’t slept. He hadn’t eaten. He hadn’t even shifted back since the battle that had left their pack teetering on the edge of collapse. His wolf prowled beneath his skin with a restlessness that bordered on dangerous. The moonlight painted his eyes with a feral gleam, and for the first time since he had taken up the mantle of Alpha, his people saw the cracks forming in their leader’s iron control.The packhouse was tense. Warriors patched up their wounds while healers whispered prayers that their strength would hold out for another night. Children clung to their mothers, wide-eyed and frightened, sensing the storm in the air. No one dared to approach Kael where he stood on the balcony overlooking the training grounds, his broad shoulders rigid, his hands clenched around the railing as though it were the only thing keeping him tethered to sanity.Elara had been gone for hours. Hours that felt like lifetimes. She had insisted on accompanying the search party for the missing scouts,