Page 65 of Pack Captive

It was so odd to move like a single unit. I didn't even consciously think about joining him; I simply found myself at his side, channeling the power and lighting up the pack.

We raced towards the Claws, who were feeding Ryden information. He passed it on to us as they spoke.

There's at least twenty more out there, he said, leaping over a fallen log and crashing through a stream, sending sparkling water flying.He was planning on a large strike tonight.

I felt the Warriors' rising excitement. Their thoughts were coming through loudly, especially since they involved me: they finally had a real chance.

After going so long without a Caller to come on patrol, Fenris's spies would have no idea what hit them.

I felt a flicker of shame over how hard I'd resisted joining their pack. To them, this night was a real victory, not just a slap in Fenris's face but an actual thorn in his side.

They'd all known that without a Caller, the end was soon.

Their combined thoughts gave me a burst of energy and determination. The power flowing through me reacted to my emotional state, and the Warriors lit up, streaking through the darkness like stars.

We poured down a rocky hill, then we were in a large clearing.

It was more of a meadow, the grass waving in the darkness.

And in that darkness were the shadow wolves.

Their red eyes gleamed, bloody pinpricks of light that rose from the grass and stared back at us with pure hatred.

My breath caught as terror coursed through me. I knew I was relatively safe with the pack on my side, but for a moment I was transported back in time, to another forest, with other Warriors.

On that night, there had only been a handful of shadow wolves, but together they'd torn my pack to shreds. I'd dug many graves over the following days and had barely made it out alive myself.

Ryden's thoughts were private, echoing only in my head.

This is not that night, he said gently but firmly.We won't be burying our own today.

I shook my head the tiniest bit, shaking away the memories like flies.

I hated to admit that he made me feel better.

You're not a failure, he added, then his thoughts went out to the entire pack.Kill them all. Leave nothing behind.

The pack was arrayed behind Ryden, a solid wall of teeth, claws, and snarling, staring back at the shadow wolves with pure bloodlust.

They crashed forward, trampling the grass. The shadow wolves launched themselves at us, their howls more like screams of pain.

It was pure chaos.

I lost Ryden in the tumult, the sounds of spattering blood and vicious snarls surrounding me, and found myself face to face with another shadow wolf.

It was crouched under a thin tree, its eyes fixed on the Caller marks on my leg.

A thread of disquiet trailed through me when I remembered the wolf in the wastelands.

Like this one, it hadn't come at me directly with violence. Instead, they both looked like they were considering something.

This one steeled itself, and finally lunged at me.

My runes blazed as I caught its foreleg in my teeth, biting down hard. A sharp line of pain raced over my shoulder, and I felt the heat of fresh blood running down my leg and soaking my fur.

It seemed distant as I growled, rolling through the dirt and getting back to my feet. With the light of my runes, I could see every detail, the veins in the wolf's eyes, the slight deformity of its head, as though its jaws were too big.

It lunged again, using its greater size to knock me aside and dig its teeth into the nape of my neck.

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