Chapter 60 The Approach of War
Amara’s POV
Drums pounded, breaking the morning.
The sound swept across the valley, heavy and menacing, as if war itself had started to breathe, and every heart in Obsidian Pack shook. As the first rays of dawn turned the horizon blood-red, Rowan and Kian were standing next to me on the outside wall.
Beyond the ridge, smoke curled from the enemy lines. Witches floating on brooms, cursed wolves pacing in line, and an unholy coalition of rogues and fiends united under Lilith's banner were among the shadows that flickered.
My heart pounded. I breathed in the chilly, ash-tasting morning air.
Rowan took hold of my hand. "It's time," he said. He had a steady voice, powerful enough for me, for himself, even stronger than each of us thought we had left.
Kian followed closely. He also wrapped his fingers around mine. "We put an end to this now," he said. His tone conveyed faith, not conceit but steadfast conviction.
"Not tomorrow." As though his remarks before the drumbeats, Rowan's voice cut through them. "Tonight."
A scout ran over and began yelling commands. Soldiers rushed to their posts. A final ward, Mira stood close by, murmuring gently while mothers held youngsters.
I gasped as I watched them all. There was more to this conflict than swords and magic. Everything we had prepared for, feared, and battled to safeguard were souls.
Silver light pooled in the mark on my arm, and I could feel my strength throbbing beneath my skin. This was the culmination of all the training, bleeding, dreaming, and waking I had done.
The drumming reached a crescendo. The outer gates had been reached by the enemy.
Rowan's hand tightened. "They reach the core of our people if they break through the gate."
Kian took a deep breath. "They can't have that."
I stood up straight. The smell of soil and blood was carried by the wind as it blew past the battlements. My breaths became shallower. The air had a charge.
Then—Lilith's words reverberated throughout the field.
Her insult, "You will fall in my shadow, Priestess," rose above all noise. "But you don't die this time. The time has come for your pack to bleed.
There was silence. The drums moved. Now these were drums of war.
This posed no danger now.
It was a pledge.
I moved back inside the pack grounds' inner circle. I was holding my silver, dimly shining lunar blade. I was grounded by the familiar weight. I had assumed that Rowan and Kian would be separated by this weapon. I held it myself instead.
On either side of me, they just dropped into position. They stood clear, silent, and prepared despite the ongoing tension between them, which was like two rivers merging to form the sea.
“Amara,” said Rowand initially. "You don't have to stand by yourself."
I nodded as I gave him a look. "I'm not by myself."
Kian moved quickly by me. This fight is carried by all of us. Together.
Then I lifted my blade. It shimmered in the dim light of dawn.
Rowan was on my left; he was silent, worn out from fighting, and proud. Kian, on my right, is stern, steady, and kind. I stood between the Priestess, the key, and the decision.
The enemy lines moved. Curses were released by witches. Wolves growled. A howl tore through hearts as it rolled over the battlefield.
I lifted the blade above my head and took a big breath. My mark throbbed. It awakened the spirits that lived inside me.
"They arrive," I remarked.
There was silence in our group. Once more, the war horns rang. The gates exploded open, followed by screaming and clattering steel.
Our soldiers charged forth. Witches' spells illuminated the sky like coals floating downward as the first wave of cursed monsters threw back.
I remained steadfast. In my hands, the lunar blade felt like moonlight. I tasted strength. I sensed obligation to the land, affection for them, and commitment to the pack.
Raising his dagger on a witch who was lunging, Kian yelled. Rowan jumped oppositely, saving a child who was trapped beneath falling beams. They didn't hold out on me. They survived. They engaged in combat.
I observed. My battle started, but it was against the magic stumbling in my head rather than the first witch or wolf. Lilith's chuckle reverberated.
However, I lifted the blade and used its edge to channel moonlight. Darkness was pierced by a burst of silver fire that drove out twisted shapes and protected our barriers.
My voice cut through the confusion. "This concludes tonight. Else we all perish.
As the battlefield erupted into a fight, lightning cracked, the red moon emerged from the clouds above, and Lilith's laughter resounded distantly but clearly, promising carnage.