* Arriane *
It took time but we passed through the gates of the Trial Grounds, the noise of the wolves was distracting as we go inside.
Hundreds of wolves. No, more than a hundred of us.
The cold Capital air carried the smell of smoke, steel, wet fur, horses, blood, and power. Endless rows of tents stretched across the frozen fields beyond the fortress walls like another city built from war itself. Massive banners snapped violently in the winter wind above every territory.
Some of them I recognized from old royal gatherings. Others belonged to packs I had only heard about in stories whispered by the servants.
And every single wolf seemed to look at us. At me who is with the Shadow Pack.
I kept my back straight on top of my horse despite the exhaustion creeping into my bones. The ride
