one boot set upon a fractured stone that jutted over the gaping chasm now carved through the heart of the land like an ancient wound torn open anew. Beneath him, the earth trembled with

one born of shadow. The presence of the place gripped him, not like a hand, but like

Their red eyes burned with unnatural clarity, like they bore witness to a prophecy unfolding, one wingbeat at a time. Each caw was a scream of warning or hunger-Magnus couldn't tell. His body ached from battle, his claws still stained with blood from the earlier clash again

kness, but from the oppressive energy crawling out of the pit. "Something's wrong," Jakob said, voice rasping as if the air itself resisted breath. "Veyne's tr

e knew, yet every line pierced his thoughts with ancient intent. Jakob's words did strike something within him, though. Veyne was no coward. No traitor. But trust was a blade dulled by time and blood. Korr had once been

runes below. They were linked, the curse and the Citadel. That truth pressed into him like a blade against his ribs. He could no longer delay. Whatever hunted the edges of the woods, what

ed by the whirling wind. "No one enters. If Veyne returns, bind h

the pupils narrowed to a predator's slit. There would be no argument. Only obedience. Jakob nodded grimly and stepped b

ns dove suddenly, a cyclone of black wings descending into the chasm's depths.

wallowed