Dominic growled low. The sound echoed down the ridge, vibrating in the bones of those behind him. “We’re close.”
He could taste the corruption on the wind.
“Form up,”he ordered.
The wolves obeyed instantly, dark shapes tightening around him, dark and white ghosts taking up positions behind. Together they began to creep forward, silent save for the crunch of snow underfoot and the low growl of the wind.
His chest gave a sharp, stabbing ache, stealing his breath. He ignored it. He had to.
Arthur stopped beside him, his wolf eyes reflecting silver. “They’re in there.”
“Yes.”
“You can still turn back, you know.”
Dominic’s tail lashed, “You first.”
Arthur’s laugh came like a soft crack of thunder. “Very well. Let’s die like fools, then.”
Dominic didn’t answer. He stepped forward into the wind and sent the command, “Advance. Quietly.”
The packs moved as one.
Their paws met stone, slick and frozen. The mouth of the cave swallowed them whole. Inside, sound changed, the world went hollow, every drip of melting ice amplified into a heartbeat. The air was wet, thick with decay. It smelled of rust and old fear.
Dominic’s black shape led the way, his head low, ears forward, every muscle ready. His eyes adjusted quickly to the gloom. The tunnel walls pressed close, slick with ice, scratched by claws.
The ache in his chest pulsed again, harder this time. The bond between him and Layla sparked faintly, like static. Her scent was far away, ink, herbs, and salt, but still lodged in his mind.
“Focus,”he muttered to himself.
Arthur’s thoughts brushed against his. “Something on your mind, Volkhov?”
“Nothing that concerns you.”
“I doubt it.”
Dominic didn’t reply. The tunnel opened suddenly into a vast hollow chamber. Pale light filtered down through cracks in the roof, painting everything in ghost colors. A skeleton slumped miserably against the wall, bones stripped clean and scattered. The smell hit like a blow.
The wolves fanned out, silent, alert. Arthur padded to a stop beside Dominic, muzzle wrinkling.“Human,”he said.
Dominic’s growl reverberated in his chest,“We need to end this.”
He stepped forward, claws scraping against stone, and sent the signal through the packs.“Form a line. If they attack, fall back to the ridge. Arthur, hold the rear.”
Arthur nodded once.“Agreed.”
For a heartbeat, the cave was utterly still.
Then a sound rose, faint at first, then swelling until it filled the chamber. A low, wet hiss that made the fur along Dominic’s spine stand on end. It came from the tunnels ahead. From the dark.
“Positions!”Dominic barked.
Dozens of glowing eyes appeared in the gloom.
The first hybrid launched out of the shadows.
It was enormous, a wolf twisted wrong, its limbs too long, its jaw split with fangs that didn’t fit. It hit one of the Nordan wolves with a shriek, claws raking deep. The air filled with snarls and screams.
