moonfire and thorn

Chapter 4 – The Raven’s Summons

The storm finally broke at dawn, leaving the castle draped in a heavy silver mist. Elara hadn’t slept. She’d spent the night pacing her chambers, the echo of Kael Thorn’s voice still whispering along her skin like a phantom caress.

When the first light touched the horizon, she opened the balcony doors, letting in the damp, cold air. The scent of wet stone and pine filled her lungs, grounding her—until she saw it.

A raven, black as a moonless midnight, perched on the railing. Its eyes glowed faintly silver, unnerving in the pale light. No ordinary bird.

It c****d its head and extended one leg. A scroll of deep red parchment was tied there with a thin strip of black leather.

Elara hesitated, then untied the scroll. The bird didn’t move, didn’t blink, as though it was watching to see what she would do next.

The seal was pressed into black wax — the thorn-wrapped sword again. She broke it and unrolled the parchment.

Princess, the letter began in a hand sharp and deliberate. You have been summoned. Come to the Shadowlands before the next moon wanes. If you do not, I will come for you. And I will not come alone.

No flourish. No title. No polite formality. Just a statement — a promise.

The raven croaked once, then took off, vanishing into the mist like a shadow dissolving in water.

Elara stood there, the letter clutched in her hands, her heart pounding. She could almost hear his voice in the words, feel the weight of him behind them.

Later, in the council chamber, she read the letter aloud. Her father’s face turned to stone. “We will refuse. He has no claim—”

“He has the power to take one,” she interrupted softly. “If I go willingly, perhaps there will be no bloodshed.”

Her father slammed his fist against the table. “You would walk into the wolf’s den?”

Elara met his gaze steadily, though inside, her pulse was a drumbeat of fear and something far more dangerous. “Better I face the wolf than let him hunt my people.”

The council erupted in protests, but her mind was already made. The blood moon had risen. The chains were tightening. And somewhere beyond the mist, the wolf was waiting.