Chapter 16: Whispers in the Ash
The Ironfang fortress never truly slept. Even under the thin, ashen moonlight, shadows moved along the battlements—silent sentries with eyes that glimmered faintly red, their movements as precise as the gears of a trap waiting to spring.
Kairo stood at the narrow slit of a window in his assigned chamber, watching the glow of the watchfires. The fortress sat on a knife-edge plateau, surrounded by sheer cliffs on three sides. The only entrance was the Wolf’s Stair, a steep, winding path carved into the rock, guarded by spears and snarling wolves. Escape would be as hard as an assault.
Behind him, the room was quiet except for the faint scrape of leather as Kaelen checked his weapons. Lysandra sat cross-legged on the floor, turning a thin bronze amulet over
