Lyra's POV
Kael moved without hesitation, positioning himself between me and the sound, his back pressed close to mine as the howls circled somewhere in the dark, closer now than they had been a moment before, layering over each other until it was impossible to count how many voiced made up the chorus.
“Stay behind me” he said.
“I can fight” I said
“Lyra…”
Careful, Astra warned, she was quiet and quick. Whoever they are, they can't see the full extent of what you are, not yet.
I held myself still, though every instinct told m to move, shaped drifted between the trees at the edge of my vision, never quite solid, never close enough to strike.
They weren't attacking, they were watching in a patient way that felt worse than any open threat could have, as though we were being measure
