THE FIRST ASSAULT
The forest had never felt so quiet. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath, carrying only the faint scent of damp earth and distant pine. Lykos and Aria stood together at the center of the clearing, silver light from their merged essence radiating outward, bathing the pack in a calm yet unnatural glow. Every wolf had been trained, every sense heightened, every instinct sharpened. And yet, the shadows were patient. They waited.
Lykos’s wolf growled low, muscles coiled like springs. “Something’s wrong,” he murmured, voice tense. His eyes scanned the treeline, silver pupils reflecting the dim light. “Too quiet… the shadows are here.”
Aria’s silver glow flared, responding instinctively to his alertness. “I feel them too,” she whispered. “They’re… testing. Probing. Not att
