Chapter 12 Twelve
CHAPTER TWELVE
Sara’s POV
“Sara. Stay behind me no matter what happens.”
Xenon didn’t raise his voice. He didn’t have to. The weight in his tone was enough to root me in place. The air around us was sharp, almost painful, as warriors formed two tight lines near the open northern gate.
I stepped directly behind him, close enough that the heat from his back pushed against the cold wind coming off the trees.
Ryker moved to Xenon’s left. Adrian to his right. Both of them watched the tree line with rigid attention.
I followed their gaze.
The Creed stood in a half circle beyond the border. Their wolves were bigger than the average rogue—broad shoulders, heavy paws, dark fur that made them blend with the shadows. They didn’t move. They didn’t growl. They didn’t pace.
They just watched.
It felt calculated.
Xenon lowered his stance, ready to shift if necessary. “They are not here to fight,” he said quietly.
Ryker frowned. “Then why come in force.”
“To test us,” Xenon replied. “To test me.”
One of the Creed wolves stepped forward. Not shifting. Not speaking. His eyes locked on me.
My pulse jumped.
Xenon noticed immediately. He moved one step to block their view, his body stiffening with a warning so clear it didn’t need a sound.
The rogue wolf lowered his head in a slow, deliberate motion.
Xenon’s voice hardened. “Do not respond to them.”
“I’m not,” I whispered.
“Good.”
A second rogue stepped forward, carrying something in his mouth. A cloth. Dark. Heavy. He dropped it at the border and retreated.
Adrian hissed under his breath. “What is that.”
“No one touches it,” Xenon said. “Not until I say so.”
A tense minute passed. The rogues didn’t move again.
Xenon finally stepped closer to the border, stopping inches before crossing it. “You came here for a reason,” he called out. “Say it.”
Nothing.
Not a shift.
Not a gesture.
Not a step.
Just silence.
Xenon’s wolf surfaced again. His breathing changed, deeper, harsher, but controlled. He was fighting his instincts with effort.
“Cowards,” Ryker muttered.
Still nothing from the Creed.
Xenon’s eyes narrowed. “Adrian. Get the cloth.”
Adrian moved forward, cautious but steady. He picked it up with the tip of his blade and held it out. Xenon took it and unfolded it.
The world around us seemed to stiffen.
On the cloth was a simple marking. A blood-red symbol I had never seen before. Circular. Sharp. Almost like a sun with uneven rays.
Kael arrived behind us. “Alpha, that is a summons mark.”
Xenon stiffened. “Explain.”
“It means they are demanding she present herself.”
My stomach twisted painfully.
Xenon crumpled the cloth in his hand. “They are out of their mind if they think that is happening.”
Kael nodded. “They believe she has awakened something. Or will. Summons marks are used only when they think their claim is justified.”
“I do not belong to them,” I said quietly.
“No,” Xenon answered. “You do not.”
The rogue wolves shifted slightly. Not enough to be threatening. Enough to show they were waiting for a reaction.
Xenon looked at Ryker. “We are not giving them anything today. Hold the line.”
Ryker nodded. “Yes, Alpha.”
Xenon stepped back, pulling me with him by the wrist. His grip was tight, focused more on keeping me close than on controlling me.
“Adrian,” he said. “Signal the horn.”
Adrian lifted the battle horn, blew it once, long and low. The sound spread through the forest.
The Creed reacted.
Not by attacking.
They all lifted their heads in the same slow motion.
Then they turned and vanished into the trees one by one. No rush. No panic. Just complete confidence that they had made their point.
Xenon didn’t relax until the last shadow disappeared.
He didn’t shift. He didn’t pace. He just stood still for a long moment, breathing through clenched teeth.
Ryker approached him. “They are testing boundaries.”
“No,” Xenon said. “They are stalling.”
“For what,” I asked.
He looked at me, and the answer in his eyes made my skin crawl.
“For the thing they believe is waking inside you.”
I felt cold. “There is nothing waking inside me.”
Xenon stepped closer. “There is something they want. Something they think you carry. And until we understand what that is, they will not stop.”
“Alpha,” Adrian said from behind. “We need to regroup inside. The warriors are on edge.”
Xenon nodded once. “Pull them back. No one leaves the gates unaccompanied.”
Ryker gestured the warriors back. The lines broke formation and returned to their posts.
Xenon didn’t move until every soldier was behind the gate.
Then he turned to me.
“You are coming with me.”
I swallowed. “Where.”
“To the one place in this territory the Creed cannot see,” he said. “And to the one person who might know what this bloodline is.”
“Who,” I asked.
He hesitated.
“Kael,” he answered. “And you are not leaving my side until we get answers.”
Xenon took my wrist again, his fingers warm and steady, and led me back through the gates.
The battle hadn’t begun.
But the war had.