The wind howled across the Frostfen Mountains, cold enough to bite through fur and bone. Snow whipped through the air like shards of glass as Elizabeth climbed the narrow path, Solbrand strapped to her back, her wolf stirring just beneath her skin.
She wasn’t alone.
Lucian trudged beside her, his breath misting in the frozen air, eyes narrowed. Behind them came Saelith and two handpicked scouts from the Flameguard. All were silent, their focus sharp. Something unnatural had been spotted here a flicker of golden fire and blackened wolves that never returned to their packs.
A chill worse than the storm crawled along Elizabeth’s spine.
“Do you feel that?” she murmured.
Lucian nodded. “The air's wrong. Heavy.”
The trees thinned as they reached the summit, revealing a clearing cracked wit
