The Moon did not rise that night.
It hovered.
Low on the horizon, swollen and pale, its light diffused as if filtered through something unseen. Wolves across every territory felt it. The absence of command. The lack of pressure. The terrifying freedom of silence where obedience had once lived.
Valentine stood at the highest balcony of the sanctuary, stone cool beneath her palms, eyes fixed on the sky.
“It is waiting,” she said.
Eryx joined her, his expression grim. “So is everything else.”
Below them, the sanctuary had changed. Not structurally, but in intent. Corridors that once curved defensively now opened outward. Sigils loosened, no longer sealing, but mapping. The sanctuary was no longer hiding.
It was positioning.
“They will come tonight,” Eryx continued. “The Council has st
