d finally come. And it di

ved wit

the treeline lik

onized, and terrifying. No growls. No war cries. Just the whisper of steel brush

and weapons gleaming under the sickle-shaped moon.

asn't

incursion.

ard, scanning the dar

lowing like a river of crimson flame. He

ight touch

ch turned

she said

slo

e, was barely more tha

s cold eyes blinked-just once. Aria froze completel

t in presence. Her hair, once a vibrant auburn, was now streaked with silver like lightning bolts across night. H

alive,"

curled. "

said. "At Redfang. Y

he corrected. "You survi

ed, fury rising in his chest. "You turned your

erate. The Bloodborne around her remained s

iny," she said. "You'

hand

o draw his blade befor

deto

his cheek. Around him, warriors roared into action. Steel clashed against steel. Aria spun with pr

d into the fray,

madness of rogues or bandits. They moved like

lashed, kicked. Another came from behind, and he pivoted, dr

illed the air. Sparks flew. Bodies dropped.

mask. A familiar sigil burned into his b

stomach

Queen. His m

blades. Their weapons met in a savage flur

sked m

a cry of w

his second blade without thought. It struck the beast midair, dropping it befo

hen-s

dborne v

es, leaving behind a torn battlef

ving. Blood dripped from his brow,

ther w

ai

walls. The moans of the wounded echoed through the halls.

oung warrior's leg wound while S

wall, watching every

as he approached. His expression was sto

"This wasn't a batt

imly. "She's not

eyes darkened. "She thinks I'll either

en: "She always beli

ped toward him.

ing. The one who unites the bloodlines. The one born from b

d n

said. "Or... that killing you

d through his blood-matted hair

said quietly from across

all t

isn't a dream anymore. It's real. And she's not alone. She has comma

th left him

dom of

behind the pack house, Kael stood shirtles

s sti

menon. One that always came w

ood. His mother whispering them to him, t

ed to do it

r his

ing a warm cloak over his sh

u," she said softly. "She b

at her. "I want

don

lent for

know," he

en let her teach you how. Sh

ally, eyes ti

strike

odded.

at the moon. "A

into something c

't hes