Chapter 3 Chapitre 3

The Shattered Shadows were not a place to venture into easily, and Raven knew it the moment she saw the outline of the land in the fading glow of dusk. The trees, twisted and black, seemed to lean toward her like ghosts, their branches brushing the sky in a macabre dance. The breeze was heavy, and the air, saturated with mystery, chilled her skin. The forest itself seemed a place of perpetual waiting, a place where life and death coexisted without ever mixing.

She had stopped for a moment, her eyes staring uncertainly at the horizon. She wasn't sure what she was waiting for. Perhaps a sign, or perhaps the terror of what awaited her inside. This wasn't her home anymore. It wasn't even her world anymore. She was just a stranger in an unfamiliar territory.

The wolves of the Shattered Shadows had seen her coming from afar, and their gazes were full of distrust and curiosity. Some watched her from afar, hidden in the shadows, others came closer, smelling her scent. Their presence weighed on her like an invisible pressure. She had no choice. She had nowhere to go. This fallen pack, led by a renegade Alpha, was all she had.

One of them, older, with hair as white as sea foam, finally approached her. His dark eyes scrutinized her without emotion.

"You're a long way from home," he said, his voice as cold as the forest breeze.

Raven nodded, avoiding his gaze. She didn't have the strength to lie. "I have nowhere to go," she whispered.

A dry laugh, almost a growl, escaped the man's lips. "You're here now, and you'd better get used to it. We don't like you, but if you want to survive, you'd better adapt."

She clenched her fists. This pack, broken and fallen, was not friendly, but she had no choice but to accept their welcome. Even if she knew her place among them would be precarious. Even if she was only a burden to them, a burden they might accept temporarily. After all, a broken pack could not afford to be too selective.

She was led to a small clearing in the center of the camp, a hidden and almost secret place, where wooden huts were scattered in the darkness. The buildings were rudimentary, but Raven quickly realized that there was something almost... primitive about this place. Every corner seemed imbued with pain and loneliness, and Raven, herself broken, paradoxically felt a little at home.

But that was not what concerned her most.

The silence that fell when she entered this camp soon became heavy. The wolves looked at her, some with hostility, others with a kind of unhealthy fascination. She was alone here. She could not survive without their help, but she knew that acceptance was never a given. She would have to earn their respect, and even then, perhaps not.

As she walked towards a small hut in the centre, a noise rang out in the darkness. A low growl, followed by a shout. It was immediately more frightening than she had imagined.

She turned her head to see a massive figure looming at the entrance to the camp. The shadow grew larger, imposing, a presence that dominated the space like a force of nature. It was not one of the wolves in the pack, but a singular individual. An Alpha, impressively built, dressed in black, his eyes as dark as the shadows surrounding him. His movements were slow, measured, but each gesture seemed charged with restrained power. His gaze immediately fixed on Raven, as if he had just discovered her for the first time.

Raven, instinctively, froze. She knew who it was. Kael. The fallen Alpha. The man whose reputation made the bravest shudder, whose stories had become terrifying legends. Kael, the one no one wanted to cross in the Forest of Broken Shadows.

He stared at her, not saying a word, but his eyes didn't leave her. Raven felt her heart race, a cold sweat breaking out on her skin. She tried not to give in to fear. She had to stay calm. But Kael's mere presence was enough to unsettle her. He wasn't like the others. He gave off an aura of cruelty and loneliness, an underlying violence that he didn't even try to mask.

"So you're the one I was told about," he finally said, his voice low and gravelly, a whisper that seemed to come from far away.

Raven tried to answer, but her throat was dry. "I... I'm..."

He interrupted her with a simple wave of his hand, a menacing elegance in his movements. "You don't have to explain anything. I already see who you are." He took a step forward, his gaze still piercing. "You're here now, but that doesn't mean you're welcome. Never forget that."

She nodded, the words catching in her throat. Every fiber of her being screamed for her to escape, but she couldn't. She was trapped in this world, trapped in the pack. Kael turned abruptly on his heel and walked away without another word. His eyes were still on her, and Raven knew he was watching her.

She let out a barely audible sigh of relief. She turned away to head back to her assigned hut, but a strange feeling passed through her. Something inexplicable. Perhaps a premonition. A warning.

The tension in the air that night was palpable, a tension that seemed to stretch to the limits of what was bearable. Raven knew she hadn't yet seen everything this pack had in store for her. She had no idea how much her life would be turned upside down.

She had barely lain down in her makeshift bed when a heartbreaking scream echoed through the forest, tearing the silence apart. A scream of pain, followed by several muffled noises, like detonations of fire. Raven stood up abruptly, her heart pounding. The danger was there, closer than ever.

She didn't have time to think. Wolves were howling in the night, the sound of claws on the ground, raised voices mingling with the howls. The attack had just begun.

Raven rushed outside, taking in the chaotic scene before her. Dark shapes moved quickly, attacking the pack members with indescribable savagery. Human figures slithered among the wolves, brandishing knives and improvised weapons.

She searched for Kael, her heart pounding. If the pack was going to be torn to pieces, she would need him. Kael, the fallen Alpha, the only one who seemed to have the authority and power to save them.

And that was when she saw him. Kael stood in the center of the camp, his body shrouded in shadow, a wounded wolf at his feet. He slashed at the air with controlled violence, his dark eyes gleaming with silent rage. The attackers had gathered around him, but none of them seemed to dare approach him.

Raven rushed towards him, but before she could take a step, a scream rang out from beside her. A black shape was bearing down on her, its claws ready to tear her apart. She froze, petrified with fear.

Kael then emerged from the shadows, his movements terrifyingly fast. With a punch, he sent the assailant flying, before grabbing Raven by the arm and pulling her away from the attack. He pinned her against a tree, his gaze as intense as the moonlight.

"Don't move," he said in a low, authoritative voice.

She nodded, her body shaking with terror and cold.

Kael protected her. But what price to pay for that?