The Rogue's Luna

“Hold the line,” my voice cut through the mist like a blade. Sharp and controlled. There wasn’t a whisper of fear in it. Because that was how it had to be. It didn’t matter that my lungs felt tight and my instincts screamed. I was their leader. I was their commander. Behind me, the Bloodhowl warriors moved in perfect sync. Well-trained, disciplined, and silent. Armor pressed close to our skin, swords were drawn, and our claws were ready. I scanned the darkness between the trees. We weren’t here for patrol. We were here to kill. “Clear,” Reese whispered, and I nodded. The rogues had pushed too far into the borderlands. Three border villages had reported missing livestock, and one even said that members of their pack had been killed. The message had been clear. This wasn’t an accident. It was a challenge. A challenge I had accepted. And now, we were here to answer. Reese stepped into my line of sight, and he tapped his fingers twice against his thigh. Left. Movement. I raised my hand in response and shifted into a crouch as I slipped between two massive oak trees. The earth smelled like rot and cold iron. Damp moss clung to my boots, and every branch felt like it could snap. It felt like our surroundings would betray me. I hated this part of the forest. The trees were too tall, the canopy too thick. No light reached the forest floor. Everything here felt like it had teeth. Owen fell into step beside me. He was young, but he was good. He had strong instincts, a clean blade, and he was loyal to the bone. I could hear his heart pounding, and while he would never admit it, I could sense his fear. Still, he held his formation. We all did. The scent came a second later. Burned pine, wet blood, and fur. Rogues. Fresh. I raised my fist. “Stop,” I instructed through our shared mind-link. The team halted without sound. I pointed two fingers left. Reese and Kara peeled off silently. Flanking. Owen stayed with me. We moved like ghosts with our blades drawn. The rustle of leaves, the creak of old wood. Somewhere ahead, a crow screamed. And then silence followed. My wolf, Lola, was ready for a fight. But the silence didn’t last. Because then, everything shattered. A blur dropped from the canopy. I ducked, barely dodging the claws aimed at my throat. Kara screamed somewhere behind me. Metal clanged, and snarls filled the air. “AMBUSH!” I spun and slashed, steel meeting fur. Blood sprayed across my arm. Another rogue lunged, and I pivoted, buried my blade in his chest, and twisted. He dropped like a stone. “Form up!” I shouted. But there was no formation left. Reese was on the ground, bleeding. Kara was gone. Owen was fighting two at once. His teeth bared with rage and panic in his eyes. A claw raked across my ribs. I turned, stabbed again, but another hit knocked the breath from my lungs. I stumbled and fell to one knee. My blade slipped from my fingers, vanishing into the brush. A wolf landed on top of me, snapping, snarling, with blood-matted fur and reeking breath. I punched and clawed, but it wasn’t enough. I tried to shift, Lola was bloodthirsty, but nothing happened. Pain exploded in my shoulder as I felt sharp fangs sink into my skin. I screamed. The sound ripped out of me, raw and wild. Someone was beside me again, their blade caught the rogue across the face, which forced them to move off me. I realized it was Reese. But he was bleeding and unsteady on his feet. “Liora,” Reese said softly as he dropped to his knees. “Retreat,” I whispered. I crawled away. I was bleeding heavily, and I crept, slipping on the forest floor. All I could see were the bodies of my warriors. Members of my pack that I had trained with. Laughed with. Loved and cared for. Now, lying dead. The forest swallowed them, and I gave up as I tiredly fell onto my back. There was nothing but silence. Thick and horrible silence. I tried to sit up, but I couldn’t. The pain was unreal, and I squeezed my eyes shut. Something was wrong. It wasn’t just the wounds. It was something else. The cold started to seep in, and it was almost as if I couldn’t even feel my body anymore. The forest seemed to whisper around me, but I couldn’t seem to focus. I tried to listen, to see if anyone was alive, but all I heard was silence. I had no idea how long I lay there, but I had accepted my fate: death. “f**k,” a deep voice muttered, and I opened my eyes. I could hear movement to my left. Or was it my right? “What the actual f**k?” that deep voice was confused and horrified. I tilted my head to the side, but I couldn’t see anything. It was so dark and cold. I listened as he moved around me. Checking the bodies to see if anyone was alive. And then I felt him hover over me. “What?” “Help,” I managed to whisper as I closed my eyes. I could feel him, but then he was gone. “Please…” I could smell him. He was a rogue. Wild and dangerous. Was he here to finish me off? My body tensed and I tried to move, but the pain was overwhelming and I nearly passed out. There was something about him, something strange, but my tired brain wasn’t working correctly. “I don’t know who you are, but the rest are dead,” he said as he returned to my side. I closed my eyes as I willed the tears to go away. This dangerous stranger didn’t need to see me cry. “Help,” I whispered again. There was a part of me that knew I should be afraid. But I wasn’t. I was in far too much pain to care. All I knew was that I didn’t want to die. I waited for him to do or say something, but there was nothing, and I wondered if he had left. But I could hear him breathing. I could still smell him. I could still sense that he was near. And then his hand brushed my forehead. Why? Was he checking to see if I had a fever? A pulse? I didn’t know. He carefully lifted me as if I weighed nothing. Warmth hit my side where his arm wrapped around me. Strong. Solid. Real. I shouldn’t trust this stranger. I shouldn’t feel so comfortable in his arms. My eyes closed before I even realized they were shutting. And then I was gone.