The dawn came gray and bitterly cold. The wind carried with it a bite, as though warning Lucian and the warriors of the harsh road ahead. They gathered at the border gates, armored and cloaked, their wolves restless beneath their skin.
Lucian stood at the front, his tall frame steady, his eyes sharp with purpose. He turned to his men.
“This mission is more than an alliance—it is a test. Alpha Damian expects nothing less than loyalty even if it's sealed in blood. We cannot fail him. And we will not.”
The warriors answered with a unified growl of assent before shifting into their wolves, their paws thundering against the frosted earth as they disappeared into the northern wilds.
The further they traveled, the harsher the landscape became. Forests thinned into rocky hills, and the air gre
