" You feel that?"Garrick's voice was low, tense. The others around him jounced, their faces blench, their bodies tense like strings about to snap. The air itself was charged, thick with something unnatural.Something wrong." She's changing," someone murmured.Nobody dissented.The air was knocked from Tyrrell's lungs. His heart was beating against his caricatures as he goggled at the swirling whirlpool of energy around Layla. It was like nothing he'd ever seen, not when she fought, nor when she healed, nor when she forefelt fractions of the future with those uncanny, knowing eyes.This was different.This was raw.This was dangerous." Layla!" He took a step forward.When he did, the energy around her surged outward, slamming him into the ground and transferring him back ten bases, rolling, heaving as wind was knocked from his lungs." Stay back," she said.Her voice was different now — concentrated, distorted, like further than one person spoke at formerly. The storm around her fli
"Get down!" Tyrrell shouted, grabbing Layla by the arm just as a wave of dark energy shot past them, carving through the ground with an ear-splitting shriek. The blast sent debris flying in all directions, and Tyrrell pulled her out of the way just in time.Layla was breathing shallowly, her chest heaving, as she fought to steady herself. The air was thick with smoke and the stench of burning earth. Her heart thundered in her ears, the familiar surge of power humming through her, yet somehow different this time."Stay close to me," Tyrrell murmured, his tone grim, and full of-something else-something she could not quite put her finger on.Layla nodded, wordless, the weight of it all heavy upon her chest. The pack had been pushed back into a small clearing in the woods-a last-ditch effort to regroup before they were overtaken. She could feel the power of their enemies closing in, the dark magic swirling around them like a storm, much like the one inside her.But this wasn't the same.T
" Layla, do not do this!" Tyrrell yelled, his voice slightly cutting through the roaring wind that swirled around them. The battleground was a mess of shattered grounds and burning sky, the earth itself moaning beneath the weight of the forces colliding.Layla stood at the center of it all, her body glowing with a dangerous, untamed energy. Her hands were gripped at her sides, sparks of dark and light magic creaking around her fingertips. Her breathing was ragged, her casket rising and falling as though the veritably air fought against her." You do not understand," she rumored, though her voice cut through the chaos like a blade through the dark.However, we lose everything," If I stop now."Tyrrell did not vacillate. He stepped closer, ignoring the sharp sting of magic in the air, the way it hovered to push him back." That is not true. We do not lose everything, Layla. You do. And I will not let that be."Behind them, the battleground raged on. The pack was still locked in a hopeless
The campfire, set amidst a clear circle, crepitated and skipped, casting flecks of orange across worn, bloody faces. The night hung motionless, gauzy and yet silent, as though the world itself was holding a collaborative breath as it awaited to see what was in store.Layla sat with her arms wrapped around her knees, gaping into the fire. It did not warm her. Not really. Not after everything." You’re quiet," Tyrrell said, settling beside her.She did n’t look at him." I do n’t know what to say."The fire popped, transferring a spray of embers into the dark. Tyrrell exhaled, rubbing his hands together before resting his elbows on his knees." That’s a first." His voice was light, teasing, but there was an edge to it. A hesitation.Eventually, Layla turned her head to him and met his eyes." I do not feel like myself," she confessed.Tyrrell considered her a moment longer, his expression inscrutable." What do you feel like?She exhaled." Like I should be relieved. Like I should feel somet
The wind carried the scent of damp earth and fading embers as Layla stood at the edge of the ruined battleground. The land was quiet now, stripped of the chaos that had consumed it just days agone . The bodies had been buried, the wounded tended to, but the weight of what had happed still pressed down on her like a gravestone on her casket.A voice broke through the silence.“ You’re not sleeping, are you? ”Layla did n’t turn. She knew Tyrrell’s voice anywhere, low and steady, carrying that familiar blend of concern and frustration.“ Did n’t feel like it, ” she admitted.He stepped up beside her, near enough that his warmth brushed against her skin, but not near enough to touch. He knew better than to crowd her when she was like this.They are upset about you," he said eventually.Layla let out a shriek." Who? The pack?"Tyrrell jounced." Kai. Sienna. Hell, indeed Dorian, and we both know he slightly worries about himself, let alone anyone differently."She felt a flash of amusement
" You are gon na burn a hole through the ground if you keep pacing like that," Tyrrell murmured, arms crossed as he leaned against the half- erected shelter.Layla stoppedmid-step, glancing at him with a raised brow." I am not pacing."Tyrrell scowled." Right. You are just aggressively walking in circles."She raved but did n't argue. rather, she crossed her arms over her casket and turned her aspect to the rest of the camp. The pack was working- some repairing what had been destroyed, others tending to the injured. There was movement far and wide; the scent of lately turned earth and sweat hung thick in the air. It was the scent of reconditioning, of trying to move forward." I should be doing further," she said after a moment.Tyrrell exhaled through his nose, watching her precisely." You’re formerly doing plenitude."Layla shook her head." Does n’t feel like it."" You suppose holding everything on your shoulders is the answer?" His tone was indeed, but she caught the edge of frust
"You're avoiding me."Tyrrell's voice was calm, but Layla could hear the edge beneath it.She didn't look up from where she was kneeling, her fingers tracing patterns in the dirt. "I'm not avoiding you," she muttered.Tyrrell scoffed. "Oh? So the fact that you've been conveniently 'busy' every time I try to talk to you is just a coincidence?"Layla blew out a soft breath, standing and dusting the dirt from her palms as she did. She knew this was coming-had known for days. Tyrrell had been watching her too closely, catching every time she slipped away, every time she deflected.He wasn't wrong.She was avoiding him. Avoiding this."There's too much to do," she said instead, brushing past him. "The pack needs-""Stop."She froze.Tyrrell didn't order her around. He gave her her space, her time. Now, his tone didn't take any argument.She turned back to him more slowly. He had crossed his arms over his chest, and his jaw was set. The golden eyes were not angry but determined."I know you
" You heard it too, did not you?"Layla strained, still not facing Tyrrell, her back to him as she faced the edge of the settlement. The moon had cast its silver glow upon treetops, and further out, the veritably faint rustling of leaves was a pledge that something- or someone- was well beyond the safe borders of their lands." Yeah," she rumored.Tyrrell stepped up beside her, arms crossed, his golden eyes surveying the darkness. He was tense, his posture rigid with the kind of alertness that came from times of surviving pitfalls too multitudinous to count." It was not one of ours," he said. Not a question. A fact.Layla jounced." No. The scent is different. Foreign."Tyrrell swore under his breath." Great. Just what we demanded. further trouble when we have not indeed finished drawing up from the last war."Layla eventually looked at him. His jaw was tight, a muscle ticking in the side of his face. He abominated this-- the constant battles, the noway - ending need to fight for surv
"You should've stopped me."Layla's voice pierced the silence of the war room, as sharp as the blade she had just driven into the wooden table. The candlelight danced, casting long shadows across the stone walls, but neither she nor Tyrrell paid it any mind.Tyrrell stood across from her, arms folded, his expression unreadable. "Stopped you from what? Saving what's left of us?"Layla huffed out an angry laugh as she ran her hand through her hair. "No, for making the damned decision in the first place-for sending Samira on that mission, for allowing myself to dream we had something of a possibility to win in this."Tyrrell's jaw clenched. "She knew the risk.""Don't." Layla pointed a shaking finger at Tyrrell. "Don't even dare act as if that does make it easy.Tyrrell let out a slow breath, the weight of the night bearing down on him. "You think I don't feel it? You think I don't hear her screaming in my head every time I close my damn eyes?"Layla's fists clenched. "Then why do you ke
"You sure about this?"Tyrrell looked up from his blade, running a cloth over its edge one last time. Elias was across from him, arms crossed, brows furrowed. The flickering torchlight in the room lent gravity to the tension between them."We don't have a choice," Tyrrell muttered, sliding the dagger into his belt.Elias let out a slow breath, shaking his head. "We always have a choice."Not this time."Layla stood at the far side of the war room, staring down at the map stretched across the wood table. The enemy's supply lines ran deep-carefully planned, well-guarded. Cutting them off wouldn't just weaken their hold on the siege. It could turn the tide completely.But it had to be done right.Layla dug her fingers into the surface of the table, her mind racing. "Infiltration won't be the hard part," she said finally. "It's getting back out."Tyrrell smirked. "Good thing I like a challenge."Elias wasn't amused. "This isn't a game."Layla raised her head, her gaze sharp. "That's enoug
" They are out there."Layla did not need Tyrrell to tell her that. She could feel it- the weight in the air, thick with expectation. The enemy forces had moved like murk in the night, girding the fort with ruthless perfection. Now they were staying, watching, tensing the mesh.She stood at the edge of the stone wall, surveying the treeline beyond the open field. The torches lining their defenses flitted, their light slightly pushing back the darkness." How numerous?" she asked, voice low.Tyrrell exhaled through his nose, his expression grim." further than we can count from over then. They have cut off every possible escape route. We are boxed in."A muscle in her jaw ticked." No reinforcements?"Tyrrell shook his head." Nothing. No dispatches getting in or out. They have got runners watching every path. The alternate anyone tries to break through, they'll be torn piecemeal."Layla's fingers coiled into fists. This was not just a siege. This was a slow, deliberate suffocation.A fig
" You should not be then." Layla's voice was a whip of sword, slicing through the night.The firelight danced across her face as she goggled at the figure standing just beyond its light. The people behind her were tense, ready to attack at her word, but she raised a hand, averting them. This was n't an ordinary enemy.The man before her took a slow step forward, his movements deliberate, as if testing the weight of her words. His dark eyes glistered with something undecipherable, something Layla did n’t trust.“ I came to talk, ” he said, voice smooth, calm. Too calm. “ That is, unless you’d rather continue this war alone. ”Besides her, Tyrrell shifted, fingers twitching on his belt to where his gun rested." You anticipate us to believe you came then just to sputter, Cassius?" His voice had a healthy quantum of doubt trickling from it.Cassius scowled and crossed his arms over his casket." What can I say? I am feeling generous tonight.Layla studied him, her instincts at war with her
" Move out, now!" Layla's voice cut through the pressure in the camp, sharp and commanding, like a cutter. Her eyes darted over her pack, surveying the faces of those who had gathered. Every one of them stood ready, but she could feel the unease in the air. There was no turning back now.Eerily silent, the camp fell as they came together, importing the storm above them that hung in the air. Everyone knew what was to be gained and lost. Every wolf, every fighter, understood the risk. But there was no fear. Not yet. Layla refused to let in the fear. Not today." Ready?" she rumoured, her voice low but indeed. She scrutinized around, again coming to rest on the figure that stood beside her- Jace deposited himself at her side, was formerly holding his armament, his eyes sharp and focused." Ready as we'll ever be," Jace said, slightly above a murmur in the still air." They are coming. Got to move out."In one nippy stir, Layla gave the order, and the pack surged forward. The earth sounded
" You ready?" Jace's voice was low, the question carrying an edge to it that had not been there ahead. It was the kind of question you ask when you know the answer is everything.Layla did not say anything right down. She dragged on the strips of her gear, and her fritters squeezed tight around the hilt of the brand hanging at her side. She felt its weight all the weight, really, of everything that had brought them to this point every decision, every fight, every defeat leading up to now. And the storm was about to hit.Just get this over with," she murmured, further to herself than to Jace. But he heard it, and the nod he gave her was slightly distinguishable. He knew what she was allowing, perhaps indeed better than she did.They were standing in the camp, the fire fluttering low, the air thick with tension. A many of the other wolves were scattered around, stropping weapons, agitating strategies in hushed tones. But Layla was not concentrated on them. Her eyes were fixed on the hor
"Where is he?"Layla's voice cut into the thick, heavy silence like a blade that had been whetted by the weight it carried within this war room. The room itself was dark-the only light an occasional flickering from the low-burning fire, dancing in shadows across old stone walls. Hard, cool eyes stared without blinking at a map laid flat before her; crumpled, yet serviceable. Plans were being rehashed, people regrouped, and answers were needed.The injuries to Tyrrell had been grievous, and still convalescing, he would not be much help in times to come anytime sooner. Finally, out of danger but still with dark circles beneath his eyes and shallow jerks of breath with movement, he did little good for Layla, who was running out of time after all-not with the threat of war looming in every direction.One of her most trusted warriors, Jace, spoke up, his voice low but firm. "Dorian's families holed up at their estate, a few miles to the west. But it's heavily guarded. No one's gotten in si
Layla felt her instincts kick in as she and her team moved through the dense forest. The air was heavier than it should be, thick with a silence that unnerved her. Even the leaves rustling sounded like they held their breath. She knew something was off, but she wasn't quite sure what. Yet."Something's off," she muttered, scanning around them.Tyrrell, walking a few paces ahead, didn’t respond right away. He was always the more level-headed of the two. “Keep moving,” he finally said, his voice steady, though his own sharp eyes darted to the treeline. “We’ve been through worse.”Layla nodded, but the knot in her stomach constricted. Every part of her was screaming that they were walking right into a trap-a trap she hadn't seen coming, not this one, not from this ally.But with the first chopper sound wave, her thoughts flashed to Dorian-a wolf, one of their staunchest allies who'd fought with them for months-run through her brain. He's the one brought the intel-insisted this route woul
“You’re sure this is the place” Layla asked, her voice tight with a blend of jitters and determination. She squinched low, her eyes surveying the darkened landscape beyond the trees, where the faintest figure of the enemy's fort impended. The night was still, save for the occasional howl of leaves. The air felt thick, as if it was holding its breath.Tyrrell jounced. His aspect cut through the murk sprucely." The information's good. The rogue wolves we've encountered are from this area. We cannot let them get any further, Layla. We need answers."Layla's jaw tensed, her heart pounding in her chest. also, we take them, she said, her voice firm. We get the answers we need, and we do it presto.Tyrrell's eyes darted to her." Stay focused. We need to move still.She smelled her teeth but said nothing. It had been a long way, and the last thing she wanted was to peril this chance at getting inside enemy home. Every step had been calculated, every moment measured. The enemy's operations wer