---
The night was alive with tension.
From the walls of the stronghold, wolves peered into the forest where the shadows writhed. The Hollow Court no longer lingered unseen. They stood at the borders in full force—figures cloaked in black mist, eyes glowing like dying embers, their very presence bending the air into a suffocating chill.
The howls of Kael’s wolves echoed into the night, met by whispers that crawled like insects through the trees.
War had come.
---
The Night Before Battle
Kael stood on the battlements, silver eyes unblinking as he watched the horizon shift and shudder with shadow. His wolf pressed beneath his skin, claws aching, jaws straining against restraint.
Beside him, Aria’s fire burned faintly at her fingertips, unbidden, restless. She had tried to smother it,
