--- The mornings after battle were always the hardest. The stronghold had begun to hum with life again—walls patched, gates reforged, wolves taking their watch with renewed vigilance. But beneath the steady rhythm of rebuilding ran an undercurrent of unease. Every wolf had seen the red streaks bleeding across the moon the night before. Every wolf knew what it meant. The Red Moon was coming. And with it, trials none of them could predict. --- The Call of the Bond Aria woke with her heart racing, her body slick with sweat. Dreams had dragged her into silver fields where wolves made of fire and shadow tore each other apart. At the center stood Kael, his eyes blazing, his form wavering between man and beast. When she reached for him, the shadows pulled her under. She sat upright, clut

