Like molten breath rather than water, the silver torrent rushed past me. I felt as though my bones would explode from the way it burned through my skin and filled every vein. Before my scream could reach my throat, it was torn away.
The world then erupted.
I was no longer falling when the throne's wide maw suddenly closed behind me. I was standing on something that wasn't made of stone or earth. Under my feet, it throbbed like living flesh. It was as if the ground itself had engulfed me in its veins of silver, which glowed brighter with each heartbeat.
All around me, the chained wolves had broken free. Their stone bodies cracked apart, revealing living wolves made of fire and shadow, silver eyes burning like lanterns. They didn’t chant this time. They didn’t bow. They circled me like p
