Lyra's POV
The training field stretched before me like an open wound, raw dirt churned to powder by dozens of boots, wooden posts splintered from repeated strikes, and a faint haze of dust hanging in the cold morning air. Wolves and humans alike filled the space, their movements a synchronised chaos of sparring, running drills, and shifting between forms. The sound was a steady rhythm, thuds of fists hitting pads, the scrape of claws on earth, the barked commands of trainers echoing across the field.
It smelled of sweat, iron, and pine sap. Alive. Dangerous.
I tightened the cloak around my shoulders, the morning wind cutting straight through the thin fabric. Beside me, Elista walked with her usual controlled stride, but I noticed the flicker of apprehension in her eyes. She might have b
