Page 1 of Lord of the Lone Wolf
Chapter 1
Auslin
The mountain wind whistled past Auslin’s ears as Kitsuki’s massive white dragon form descended through the clouds, his powerful wings cutting through the crisp air with practiced grace. From his position secured in the saddle between Kitsuki’s shoulder blades, Auslin gripped the leather straps and leaned forward, scanning the forest canopy below for any sign of their destination.
A clearing opened up among the dense pines, barely large enough for a dragon of Kitsuki’s size to land safely. His powerful wings folded tight against his body in a controlled dive that made Auslin’s stomach lurch.
They had spent days chasing shadows that brought them no closer to finding Maseo. Each dead end felt like another nail in the half-wolf shifter’s coffin.
Auslin slid from the saddle before Kitsuki had fully settled, his boots hitting the ground as his healing magic surged outward in a desperate sweep of the area. But the forest around them held only the quiet auras of small woodland creatures and the whisper of wind through pine branches.
Nothing. No one.
Kitsuki shifted, his enormous form condensing into the familiar figure of the dragon king, and Auslin’s stomach clenched with renewed urgency.
“Why are we stopping?” Auslin asked.
“You must eat,” Kitsuki insisted, his unwavering tone signaling he wouldn’t give in, no matter what his mate said.
“How can I be hungry when I know Maseo is hurt and alone out there?” Auslin demanded, gesturing at the surrounding forest. They had spent three days searching the mountains for the half-wolf shifter without success. Auslin could only pray to the Powers that they found Maseo before it was too late to save him. “It’s bad enough we had to stop in Arenvale to talk to King Macrinus about joining the war.”
“It was unfortunately necessary.” Kitsuki’s blue eyes softened, but his resolve didn’t waver. “However, I allowed you to skip breakfast and lunch, but you are of no use to Maseo if you are too weak to heal him because you refused to take care of yourself.”
Auslin hunched his shoulders, the weight of helplessness settling over him like a lead cloak. “I know you’re right, but how can I rest while he’s in danger?”
“We will find him,” Kitsuki promised.
Auslin wrapped the words around his heart as a shield against despair. “We will.”
“I will return after I hunt for dinner.” Kitsuki pressed a brief kiss to Auslin’s temple, and then he was gone, vanishing with the supernatural speed that still amazed Auslin, even after all their time together.
Alone in the clearing, Auslin closed his eyes and stretched out his senses. He could sense his mate, along with all the woodland creatures surrounding them. But he continued reaching out with his powers, searching for any sign of Maseo.
He pushed further, his magic extending beyond the comfortable range where he could maintain perfect clarity. The effort made his head throb, but he refused to give up. Somewhere out there, Maseo needed them. The protective ring Kitsuki had given the half-wolf shifter had activated three days ago, providing their only clue, which had sent them racing across Talwyn.
Just when the strain threatened to overwhelm him, Auslin felt a tug at the very edge of his consciousness, faint as a dying ember but unmistakably familiar. It flickered with the blue-tinged aura he had been desperate to find, but the light was dim and shot through with threads of something dark and poisonous.
“Maseo,” Auslin whispered, and then he was running.
Branches whipped at his face, and thorns caught at his clothes, but Auslin didn’t slow. His lungs burned and his legs ached, but the fading pulse of Maseo’s life force drove him forward with single-minded determination. Each step brought the aura into sharper focus, and with that clarity came horror.
Broken bones. Internal bleeding. And underneath it all, something toxic eating away at Maseo like acid.
Auslin burst through a stand of young pines and stumbled to a halt, his heart lurching at the sight before him.
Maseo lay crumpled at the base of a massive silverwood oak, his body twisted at angles that spoke of brutal violence. His face was a canvas of purple, black, and sickly yellow bruises, with one eye swollen shut. Blood had dried in his dark hair and stained historn clothes, and when Auslin dropped to his knees beside him, he could hear the rattling wheeze of damaged lungs.
“Oh, Maseo.” The words came out broken as Auslin’s hands hovered over the half-wolf shifter’s battered body, too afraid to touch and risk causing more harm. Their linked auras revealed the full scope of the damage. Ribs cracked and displaced, one leg fractured in several places, and his internal organs bruised or bleeding. Threaded through every wound, a terrible poison burned in Maseo’s system like liquid fire.
Tears blurred Auslin’s vision, but he blinked them back and called out with all the power his voice could carry. “Kitsuki!”
His mate appeared within moments, a dead rabbit hanging forgotten in his hand while his other rested on his sword hilt, ready to defend him.
Kitsuki’s face went pale when he saw Maseo’s condition, and he dropped beside them. He trembled as he reached out to touch the bruises on the half-wolf shifter’s face. “What happened?”
“I’m not sure. I found him like this.” Auslin’s magic was already stirring, lilac light pooling in his palms as his healing instincts took over. “He has multiple broken bones, internal bleeding, and there’s some kind of poison in his system I’ve never encountered before.”
“Is Nasume responsible for this?” The dragon king’s voice was deadly quiet, the calm that preceded storms.
