Chapter 6: The Ash Cleansing and the Broken Ones
Night cloaked the land, and beneath the twin moons of Umbra and Luce, the Crimson Howl moved.
Kael led the strike team—fifteen strong. They were not veterans. Many were barely above pups, their wolves only recently awakened. But they walked with fire in their eyes and chaos in their blood.
As they approached the eastern ridge, the scent of ash and foreign blood grew thicker. Hollow Shade had desecrated the cliffs. Trees were carved with foreign glyphs. A stone altar stood at the center of a shallow crater, oozing dark mist.
A ritual was already underway.
Kael raised his hand.
"Hold position. Let them finish chanting," he whispered.
Flam narrowed his eyes. "That's madness."
"No... it's a trap," Kael smiled.
Moments later, the mist exploded—on Kael's signal.
A wave of wolves crashed into the intruders, claws and steel tearing through their wards. Seth, his eyes blood-bright, was the first to draw blood. He tore through two Hollow warriors before they could shift, his movements raw but fueled by the chaos surging within him.
Kael leaped into the fray last. The young Alpha's shift was slower—still clumsy—but when his wolf form emerged, larger than most adults', he moved like thunder.
A Hollow shaman raised a curved dagger, trying to complete the chant. Kael pounced, jaws locking around the man's throat and crushing it.
Within minutes, it was done.
Most were dead. One was left breathing.
Kael shifted back, blood steaming on his skin. "You'll speak, or I'll feed your bones to the Bloodstone."
The captive spat.
Kael touched the Lawstone fragment embedded in his necklace.
System Trigger: Interrogation Aid — Truth Fang Activated
The man's eyes widened in horror as Kael's hand burned against his chest.
"They sent us to test the new Alpha," he confessed. "More are coming. They don't think you'll last the moon."
Kael's eyes narrowed. "Then we show them... what rises from ash."
Back at the camp, the wounded were treated, and the fallen given a moonlit howl.
Kael stood before the Lawstone again.
System Update:
Mission Complete: First Pack Defense
Rewards Claimed:
— Resource Drop: Ritual Stones + Wolfbane Extracts
— Chaos Bloodline: 6% → 13%
— Pack Morale Boosted
Pack Rank Progress: 2 (Stabilizing)
That night, the Crimson Howl slept beneath the stars. But Kael didn't sleep.
Because in the distance, beneath a veil of shadows, someone else had been watching the fight.
Eyes glowing. Smiling.
A new player had entered the game.