Page 64 of Pack Captive

Yes, Calian thought in response to me. I realized I'd broadcasted my curiosity to the two of them.

I'd never felt this cohesive while running with a pack before. I could always hear my Warriors' thoughts, but they were nowhere near as strong and clear as Ryden and Calian's.

Even the Claws were still clear to me, although they were at least a mile away by now.

Because you were made for us, Ryden told me, drawing closer. His fur brushed mine for a brief moment.When you find the right pack, you are one.

I really need to stop telling you two everything I'm thinking, I told them dryly. With the Vesperan Warriors, I'd needed to push my thoughts towards them. It was like these two just plucked them out of my head.

I heard Calian's mental laugh as clear as a bell.You'll get the hang of it.

We fell silent as we ran towards the rear of the city, circling through the forest as we did it.

Several miles later, I caught what Calian's ultra-sensitive nose had picked up: a whiff of harsh ash on the wind. The scent of something rotten burning.

There's at least five. Calian sounded eager.Probably more waiting on the outskirts of the forest.

Let's give them what they came for. Ryden pushed harder, and I stopped focusing on my surroundings, concentrating entirely on keeping up with him.

The outer wall of Lykos came into view through the trees, and from this side, I could see why the shadow wolves would target this area. It was a definite weak point, the crumbling stones forming a hill leading towards the breach.

As we approached, I caught sight of one of them, a smoky wolf scrambling up the stones. They clattered under its paws, and its eyes flashed fire when it heard us crashing through the trees.

I fell back just a little, focusing on pushing my power into Ryden.

His lunar runes blazed, casting a white glow over the trees as he and Calian streaked towards the wolf.

Teeth flashed, and both the Alpha and Second fell on the shadow wolf, tearing it to pieces. Light blazed out of their runes, their eyes, even their claws.

The shadow wolf didn't stand a chance. They shredded it to pieces, and bits of ash flaked off its corpse and were carried away by the wind.

The Warriors who had run with us had turned towards the forest just outside the wall. I heard the sounds of fighting, branches cracking, high yips and howls.

They need us, I thought sharply.

I needed Ryden to come with me. It was my job to run at his side, so I couldn't just take off for the sake of feeding power to the Warriors.

He didn't need me to tell him twice, though. Ryden left the shadow wolf's body and raced towards the forest, plunging into the fray of wolves with his teeth bared.

I fed more power to them, dancing at the edges of the fight.

I didn't just want to be sidelined. That was what had gotten my own Warriors killed.

This time, I kept the power flowing, but dove in as a shadow wolf plunged out of the shadows, aiming for Calian's flank.

I hit it like a comet, burying my teeth in its side. Fur filled my mouth, but I bit down hard, feeling the give and snap of ribs under my teeth.

Its blood gushed out, filling my mouth with the same sickly bitterness all the shadow wolves possessed.

I resisted the urge to back away and spit, but my mental whine of distress must've been clear to Ryden.

The Alpha loomed up out of the fight, descending on the wolf I'd injured like an unstoppable landslide. He snarled, ripping into the creature and throwing it aside.

The shadow wolf hit the trunk of a tree with a hard crack, and fell to the ground, where he didn't move.

The voices of the Warriors rang through my head, cheering and congratulating on how easy it was to destroy these shadow wolves, when the Claws' voices cut through.

Incoming!One of them yelled, and within seconds Ryden had his pack organized again.

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