THE FIRST AWAKENING
The forest breathed.
Not wind—not animals—but something vast and deliberate, inhaling through roots and stone. The silver eyes in the darkness multiplied, blinking open one by one, until the treeline glimmered like a fallen constellation.
Kael stepped forward, placing himself squarely between Nara and the shadows. His wolf stirred beneath his skin, claws itching, teeth aching to tear into whatever dared approach.
“Stay behind me,” he said quietly.
Nara shook her head, planting her feet beside him. “Not this time.”
The ground shuddered again.
Trees bowed outward as something enormous pushed through the undergrowth. Branches snapped like bones. Leaves ignited briefly with silver flame before turning to ash.
Then it emerged.
It was wolf-shaped—but wrong.
Too tall
