Shadow Bands

XLII. Equinox Pt.2

Kaelen didn't hesitate. He took his blade and, with practiced precision, began working at the root of the vein, knowing that every moment spent here put Lyra further at risk. Yarma swiftly gathered the blueprints and helped him chip away a large, irregularly shaped chunk of the glowing stone.

Tulk, standing guard, watched the drainage hole. "We have enough. The demons will return to their patrol soon, drawn by the warmth."

Minutes later, they were back in the dark, cold canals. They scaled the rubble, slipped back through the drainage pipe, and emerged onto the cliffside path behind the ruins. The wind howled, whipping the clouds into a frenzy.

Kaelen transformed, his grey-black fur bristling against the salty air. They ran at top speed, descending the mountain path in their Lycan forms, using the cover of the turbulent weather. They crossed the waterfall hidden in the Tundra of The Nine—a desolate, scarred landscape—and kept moving.

Then, the icy dread hit Kaelen's gut.

He slammed his forepaw onto the icy ground, halting Tulk and Yarma immediately. His ears flattened against his skull, filtering the roar of the wind. He caught it—a faint, yet distinct, scent carried on the frigid air: a familiar rage.

"Stop!" Kaelen let out a low, dangerous growl. "They expected us. But it's not the patrols."

Yarma whined softly, her muzzle darting in all directions. "I don't smell anything, Kaelen. Only salt and old death."

"It is one man. But that one man is worth a small army." Kaelen fixed his gaze on the northern edge of the tundra, where the ruined Lycran walls met the horizon. A black silhouette was slowly detaching itself from the ruins, moving toward them with lethal patience. "Draven is here."

Tulk roared in defiance, dropping the pack holding the Nighlstone and unsheathing his mace. "Then we fight him. We will not abandon the stone!"

Kaelen shouldered Tulk back with immense force. "No! We split. You and Yarma take the stone. Now." He grabbed the pack and shoved it into Tulk's chest. "You revert to human form. Use the old merchant roads. He is here for me, not the stone. I will buy you the hours you need."

"But Lyra needs you! And we need the stone delivered safely!"

"Allies surround Lyra. The stone and the blueprints must get to Helen immediately. That is the only mission now." Kaelen drew his twinblade, the metal reflecting the faint glow of the distant city behind Draven. "Go! Tell Lyra I will follow. Now!"

Kaelen transformed fully, a massive, powerful Lycan ready for death. He faced the advancing shadow alone. Draven was now close enough for Kaelen to clearly see the cold, calculating hate in his eyes.

"Wolf. So predictable." Draven spoke. His voice, though quiet, cut through the wind like shattered glass. "You returned for your trinket." He gave a mocking smile. "It's a pity. Your foolish female friend won't have the time to use it."

Kaelen lunged, twinblade aimed for Draven's throat. "You lie!"

Draven met the attack with a sickening clang of shadow-forged metal.

"I don't. Your little diplomatic dance at Nolguul? Over. The Grand Prexy has mobilized the North Army. They will crush her alliance and secure the Nighlstone for themselves. Lyra is already fighting a war she doesn't know she's in."

The duel exploded across the scarred ground, fueled by the immediate, devastating knowledge that Lyra was in mortal danger. Kaelen was no longer fighting to complete a mission, but to survive long enough to warn Lyra.

"You said you cared for her!" Kaelen snarled.

"I do," Draven said. His voice softened as if he remembered something. "In her conquest for peace, she must realize that it doesn't want her."