Chapter 23 Chapter 23

Chapter 23 Chapter 23
Chapter 23
I gripped Alaric’s hand tightly as we burst out of the crumbling sanctum wall together, the golden sparks of our mate bond flaring brighter with every step. The cool night air hit my face like a shock after days inside the glowing crystal halls. Trees surrounded us, ancient and shadowed under a nearly full moon. The ground vibrated beneath my bare feet from the thunder of approaching wolves. Hundreds of them.
“Stay close to me,” Alaric growled, his voice rough and exhausted but filled with fierce protectiveness. Blood streaked his bare chest and arms from the fighting he had already done to reach me. He shifted partially, claws extending from his fingers while keeping his human shape so he could hold my hand. “Graham’s forces are closing in fast. Corin and a small team are holding a path back toward Nightcrest territory, but it is narrow.”
I nodded, my heart pounding with a mix of terror and relief. After all the training, I finally felt ready to stand beside him instead of hiding. Caden’s essence stirred faintly in my chest, but I slammed the mental wall shut just like Morgana taught me. Acknowledge the guilt. Ignore it. The whispers died down immediately. I could do this.
We ran through the forest, Alaric leading the way with the surety of someone who had been tracking me for days. Behind us, I heard Morgana’s voice calling my name once, sharp with warning, but I did not look back. The sanctum’s breach was already sealing itself with shimmering moonlight. Whatever happened next, I had chosen Alaric and the war waiting outside.
The first Silverfang wolves burst from the trees ahead of us. Five of them, snarling and massive. Alaric released my hand and shifted fully in a blur of black fur and golden sparks. His wolf was even more imposing than I remembered, pale green eyes blazing with rage as he slammed into the nearest attacker. Bones crunched. A pained yelp cut through the night.
I did not stand idle. I reached for my power the way Morgana had drilled into me. Golden light bloomed in my palms, steady and controlled. I wove a thin moonlight shield in front of two of Nightcrest wolves who appeared from the side to join us. One Silverfang warrior crashed against my barrier and bounced off, stunned. I followed it with a burst of healing energy toward Alaric’s flank where fresh blood flowed from a silver blade cut. The wound knit closed without me feeling any of his pain. Training had worked.
“Behind you!” Alaric’s voice echoed in my mind through the strengthened mate bond.
I spun and threw up another shield just as a grey wolf lunged for my throat. My power held firm. The wolf’s jaws snapped against invisible moonlight and it recoiled with a whimper. Confidence surged through me. I was not the weak outcast anymore. I pushed forward, sending controlled waves of energy that healed minor wounds on our allies while weakening the Silverfang attackers just enough to slow them without fully consuming their essences.
Alaric fought like a force of nature beside me. Every time he took a hit, I was there to mend it. Our movements synced through the bond in a way that felt almost predestined. Golden light danced around his black fur whenever my power brushed him. For brief moments amid the chaos, it felt like we were unstoppable together.
“We need to break through their line!” Alaric shouted after shifting back to human form briefly to speak. “Corin is waiting at the river crossing. If we reach it, we can lose the main force in the rapids.”
I nodded, breathing hard. My muscles burned from the constant use of power, but my mind stayed clear. No uncontrolled surges. No guilt feeding Caden’s voice. Morgana’s lessons were holding.
We pushed onward, fighting in bursts. More Nightcrest warriors joined us as we moved, their eyes widening when they saw me fighting effectively at Alaric’s side. Some still carried suspicion from before, but others nodded with new respect when I healed a deep gash on one warrior’s leg mid-stride. The war had changed things. Or at least it was starting to.
During a short lull as we crossed a small clearing, Alaric pulled me against him for a fierce, desperate kiss. His hands cupped my face, thumbs brushing over my scar with a tenderness that made my chest ache. “I thought I lost you,” he murmured against my lips. “When you disappeared with that woman… the bond went hazy. I tore apart half the neutral lands looking for you.”
“I am sorry,” I whispered, pressing my forehead to his. “She said she was my aunt. She trained me, Alaric. I have better control now. I can help. I will not be a burden to Nightcrest anymore.”
His green eyes searched mine, filled with love and exhaustion. “You were never a burden. But we need you. Marcus is holding the main border, but Graham is throwing everything at us. He wants Caden’s essence back at any cost.”
Another wave of howls cut off our moment. We broke apart and ran again. The trees thinned as we approached the river. I could hear the roar of water ahead. Corin’s familiar grey wolf appeared on the far bank, fighting alongside three others to hold the crossing.
We were almost there when disaster struck.
A large Silverfang patrol crashed into our flank from the left. Their beta, a scarred brute I vaguely remembered from my old pack, led the charge with a dozen warriors. They had silver nets and blades that gleamed wickedly under the moonlight. One net flew toward Alaric. He dodged most of it but a corner caught his shoulder, burning deep into his flesh.
I cried out and rushed forward, pouring healing energy into the wound even as I threw up shields around us. The beta’s eyes locked on me with pure hatred. “There she is! The soul-eater! Graham wants her alive!”
Alaric snarled in pain but kept fighting. I maintained the wall around Caden’s essence while splitting my focus between healing him and defending our small group. My power stretched thin but held. I even managed to send a focused burst of moonlight that knocked two Silverfang wolves off their feet.
But the beta was smarter than the others. He feinted toward Alaric and then lunged straight for me with unnatural speed. His claws raked across my arm before I could fully shield. Hot blood spilled down my skin. The pain nearly broke my concentration.
Alaric roared and tackled the beta away from me, the two of them rolling violently toward the riverbank. I healed my own wound quickly, the process smoother than ever before, and tried to push through to help him.
That was when I felt it.
A strange pull, different from the mate bond. Silver and cold. It came from deeper in the trees behind us. Morgana. She was watching. I could sense her power hovering at the edge of the fight, not helping, not attacking, just… observing. The doubt I had felt earlier bloomed stronger for a moment before I shoved it down. She had trained me. She had given me the tools I needed. This was not the time.
“Nova!” Alaric’s voice snapped me back. He had the beta pinned, but more Silverfang wolves were pouring in. Corin howled urgently from the river crossing. We were running out of time.
I gathered everything I had learned in the sanctum and unleashed a wide dome of silver-gold light around our group. It was not perfect, but it bought us precious seconds. Wolves slammed against it from all sides. I held it as long as I could, legs shaking with the effort, while Alaric and the others fought to clear a final path.
We broke through.
Alaric grabbed my hand again and we sprinted toward the river with the surviving Nightcrest warriors. The water was fast and dangerous, but it was our best chance to lose the main Silverfang force.
As we plunged into the cold rapids, the mate bond blazing between us, I glanced back one last time. A tall figure stood silhouetted on a distant ridge, silver eyes glowing. Morgana. She did not follow. She simply watched as we disappeared into the churning water.
The current dragged us downstream. Alaric’s strong arm wrapped around my waist, keeping me afloat as we fought toward the opposite shore. My muscles screamed and my power reserves felt dangerously low, but we had made it out.
For now.
We dragged ourselves onto Nightcrest land hours later, soaked, exhausted, and bloodied. Corin and the others regrouped around us, their faces grim. News from the main border was bad. Graham had committed more forces. Casualties were mounting.
Alaric pulled me close as we caught our breath in a temporary camp. “We rest here briefly, then push to the main lines. Marcus needs us.”
I leaned into him, grateful for his warmth, but my mind kept drifting back to Morgana’s silent watching form. She had trained me well. She had helped me control Caden’s essence. Yet something about her presence during the battle left an uneasy feeling I could not quite shake.
Before I could voice it, a scout burst into the camp, breathing hard.
“Alpha Marcus sent word. Graham is offering a temporary parley at dawn. He says he will pull back his forces if we deliver Nova to him. He claims she belongs to Silverfang by blood right.”
Alaric’s grip tightened around me. My blood ran cold.
The war had followed us home.