Chapter1
My heartbeats are heavy with grief. A furious sorrow threatens to destroy me.
Crimson rain has soaked the white ash at my feet, turning the ground to blood. Droplets cling to my silver hair, mingling with the tears streaking down my cheeks.
The Vandawolf lies dying at my feet.
The unruly strands of his dark-gray hair fall across his face, mingling with his sweat. His eyes are closed, concealing the permanently-amber iris of his left eye that reflects his wolfish soul, while the tip of his single, sharp canine tooth is visible between his lips.
Blood bubbles up around the tooth, slipping down his chin.
His strong legs are folded beneath him, his broad chest tipped to his left so that he’s facing me. The crossbow bolt that tore through his right shoulder protrudes from his torso while its tip is angled back into the ash beneath him, propping him up.
His inky-black armor is mangled, bone-deep gashes visible between the broken plates.
Seconds ago, his breathing was ragged.
Now he’s so quiet, I fear he will soon stop breathing altogether.
I stand between him and the humans who betrayed him.
High up on the ramparts of the wall that protects the human city from the wasteland surrounding it, metalworkers and carpenters gleam down at me. Their leaders have proclaimed their victory.
Nero, the leader of the metalworkers’ guild, and Vincent, the leader of the carpenters’ guild, raise their hands to their men in triumph.
Braddock, my former guard, laughs down at me. “Throw down your tools, Asha!” he cries, his ruddy face flushed with victory. “We’ll treat you with mercy. I promise!”
His laughter sickens me, but some of my rage is turned inward.
I created the deadly weapons they used against the Vandawolf.
With my own hands, I fashioned the giant crossbow from which they fired the bolt that impales his chest; I forged the harpoon, the net, and the weighted chains, each powerful enough to fire in a flash and take down a monster within seconds. All of which are now aimed at me.
I have a choice to make and only moments to make it: Destroy the humans or save the Vandawolf.
I’ve vowed to do both, but one must come first.
No matter which path I choose, it will cost me dearly.
I grit my teeth and set my intentions.
Whatever the consequences, no matter the pain my choice brings me, I will not allow the Vandawolf to die.
Raising my hands and spreading my fingers, not once taking my eyes off the men on the ramparts, I take a slow step back, quietly positioning myself in line with the Vandawolf’s head.
I lower myself to my knees, as if I intend to surrender, my hands remaining upraised.
“Your tools!” Nero shouts, the men controlling the weapons relaxing a little. “Remove them.”
My hammer rests in the belt at my waist. I have two black medallions, one currently curved around my right bicep with the other wrapped neatly around my left palm.
Each medallion is a band of titanium alloy an inch wide and five inches long. Each must be struck with the hammer to awaken its power. Once awakened, the medallions can be turned into any weapon of my choosing.
My medallions are already awake.
I am most dangerous with a medallion pressed to my left palm. In this state, I can transform living matter. It’s a skill I discovered by accident.
I’ve turned monsters to dust and to stone—but only when I was close enough to touch their skin.
