The ancient oaks of Moon Shadow Forest stood like silent sentinels in the moonless night, their gnarled branches weaving a canopy so thick it choked out the stars. A damp chill clung to the air, carrying the metallic tang of impending rain and something darker—something that made the fine hairs along Eris''s spine stand at attention. He pressed his back against the rough bark of the oldest tree in the clearing, its surface grooved with generations of claw marks from young wolves testing their strength. Tonight, those marks felt like warnings.


    Eris Moon Shadow''s breath came in shallow puffs of vapor as he curled his fingers into the loamy earth. His silver-gray fur, usually gleaming like polished steel under moonlight, appeared dull and muted in the oppressive darkness. At seventeen winters, he was smaller than most males his age—a fact Alpha never let him forget. But what he lacked in size, he made up in other ways. His ears, large even for their kind, twitched at the distant screech of an owl. His amber eyes, inherited from his mother, could spot a field mouse stirring in the underbrush at fifty paces.


    Father always said these were hunter''s gifts...


    The thought of Kane Moon Shadow sent a fresh wave of pain through Eris''s chest. Three days. Three endless days since the hunting party had returned without their leader. He could still see the way Beta Fenris had avoided his eyes when delivering the news, the way the elders had clustered together near the sacred fire, their whispers carrying the words "ambush" and "no body recovered."


    A gust of wind rattled the branches overhead, showering the forest floor with acorns that struck the ground like tiny hailstones. Eris startled at the sound, his claws extending reflexively. He hated this—hated how jumpy he''d become since his father''s disappearance. Kane Moon Shadow had been the rock upon which their entire pack stood. Without him...


    "Thinking loud enough to scare off the rabbits, Moon Shadow."


    Eris didn''t need to turn to know that voice—rich with amusement, edged with the faintest hint of concern. The scent of wintermint and iron announced Lia Silvershade''s arrival before her shadow fell across him. She moved with the effortless grace of all natural hunters, her silver-tipped tail flicking in lazy arcs behind her. At eighteen winters, Lia stood nearly a head taller than Eris, her lean muscles coiled like springs beneath her pelt.


    "You''re supposed to be at the gathering," Eris muttered, watching as she dropped into a crouch beside him. The ceremonial paints streaked across her muzzle—black for strength, red for blood—told him she''d come straight from the naming ceremony.


    Lia shrugged, the motion causing the bones woven into her braids to clack softly. "Got bored listening to Alpha''s speech about ''pack unity.''" She made air quotes with her claws, the gesture so human it made Eris''s lips twitch toward a smile. "Besides, someone had to make sure you weren''t moping yourself into an early grave."


    "I''m not—"


    "Please." Lia rolled her eyes, the amber depths catching what little light there was. "You''ve got that look. The one that says ''woe is me, my life is—''"


    Her teasing cut off abruptly, both their heads snapping toward the eastern tree line as one. Eris''s nostrils flared, catching the scent a heartbeat before the sound reached him—musk and rotting meat, the telltale stench of Blackfang''s crew.


    "Speak of the devil," Lia murmured, her posture shifting from relaxed to battle-ready in an instant.


    Alpha emerged from the shadows like a nightmare given form. At twenty winters, he was already the largest wolf in their generation, his obsidian pelt swallowing the scant light. The human teeth he''d taken as trophies clacked against his real fangs as he grinned, the sound setting Eris''s teeth on edge.


    This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    "Well, well," Alpha rumbled, his voice like gravel in a tin can. "If it isn''t the orphan and his babysitter."


    Eris felt his lip curl back from his fangs before he could stop it. The movement didn''t go unnoticed—Alpha''s cronies, Hark and Jorn, snickered as they fanned out to either side of their leader.


    "Run along, pups," Alpha said, flexing claws that had been filed to razor points. "Grown-ups are talking."


    Lia didn''t budge. "Last I checked, grown-ups don''t need two lackeys to hold their tails when they pick fights."


    The forest went eerily still. Even the insects seemed to hold their breath. Alpha''s grin didn''t waver, but something dangerous flickered in his yellow eyes.


    "You always did have a mouth on you, Silvershade." He took a deliberate step forward. "Pity your father''s not here to—"


    Eris moved before he could think.


    One moment he was crouched beside Lia, the next he stood between her and Alpha, his claws extended and a snarl ripping from his throat. The reaction was pure instinct—the same instinct that had made him jump between his father and a charging boar when he was ten, the same instinct that had earned him his first scars.


    Alpha blinked, momentarily stunned by the challenge. Then he threw back his head and laughed, the sound echoing through the trees like a death knell.


    "Oh, this is precious," he wheezed, wiping mock tears from his eyes. "The runt thinks he''s a real wolf!"


    The first blow came faster than Eris could track—a backhanded swipe that sent him sprawling into the dirt, his vision swimming with stars. Copper flooded his mouth where his fang had split his lip.


    "Eris!" Lia''s voice sounded far away, muffled as if underwater.


    Alpha loomed over him, blotting out what little sky was visible through the branches. "You know what happens to pups who don''t know their place?"


    The second blow never landed.


    A silver blur intercepted Alpha mid-swing, and suddenly Lia was there, her fangs buried in Alpha''s forearm. He howled, more in surprise than pain, and backhanded her hard enough to send her crashing into a nearby elderberry bush.


    "Bitch!" Alpha snarled, examining the shallow puncture wounds on his arm.


    Eris saw red.


    He launched himself at Alpha with a roar that would have made his father proud, claws slashing wildly. For one glorious moment, he thought he might actually land a hit—then Hark and Jorn were on him, dragging him back by his arms while Alpha advanced, murder in his eyes.


    "Hold him still," Alpha commanded, flexing his claws.


    Eris thrashed against the larger wolves'' grips, his mind racing. This was it. He was going to die here, in the dirt, without ever avenging his father or proving himself to the pack. The realization should have terrified him. Instead, it filled him with a strange calm.


    At least he''d die on his feet.


    Alpha raised his claws—


    A sound unlike anything Eris had ever heard ripped through the forest. It wasn''t a howl, wasn''t a scream—it was something in between, a noise that bypassed the ears entirely and vibrated straight through the bones.


    Every wolf froze.


    The underbrush exploded as Gray Nightclaw—the pack''s most decorated warrior—staggered into the clearing. His normally pristine pelt was matted with blood and something darker, something that glistened unnaturally in the dim light. His eyes...


    Eris''s breath caught.


    Gray''s eyes were wrong. Not the warm amber of their kind, but a sickly, glowing green that pulsed like swamp fire.


    "Run," Gray rasped, his voice barely recognizable. "They''re coming."


    Then the forest came alive.


    Shadows detached themselves from the trees—too many to count, too fast to track. Their eyes burned with that same unnatural green, their movements jerky and wrong, like puppets on tangled strings.


    Alpha''s sneer faltered. "What in the Blood Moon—"


    Gray collapsed, his body convulsing as the green light in his eyes flickered like a dying candle. The shadows kept coming, their breath rattling in chests that shouldn''t have been able to hold air.


    Lia was the first to move. "Eris! Help me with Gray!"


    Eris didn''t hesitate. He wrenched free from Hark and Jorn''s slackened grips and dove for Gray''s other arm, hauling the massive warrior up with a grunt. Alpha and his cronies had already vanished into the trees—typical.


    "Back to camp," Lia panted, adjusting her grip on Gray''s limp form. "Now."


    As they half-dragged, half-carried Gray through the suddenly hostile forest, Eris couldn''t shake the feeling that the shadows were watching.


    Waiting.


    And worst of all...


    Hungry.


    (Chapter End ）