Chapter 4 The Echoes of Blades

The moon was a sickle of silver in a storm-choked sky, its light casting a ghostly shimmer over the jagged cliffs that cradled Whispervale. Below the sanctuary, the wind screamed like a wounded beast through the canyons, as if the earth itself sensed what was coming. Change. War. Blood.

Kaela stood at the edge of a cliff high above the valley floor, her arms crossed against the cold. The mark beneath her collarbone pulsed, not with pain but warning. A rhythm that didn't belong to her heartbeat-a drumbeat from the past echoing into the now.

Behind her, the sanctuary was not asleep. Not anymore.

Tension had sunk into its bones.

Whispers drifted through the stone corridors, shadows moved where none should be. Someone had betrayed them. Someone inside. And if the traitor wasn't unmasked soon, Kaela feared Whispervale would fall before it ever had the chance to rise again.

She heard his footsteps before he spoke.

"You can't sleep either?"

Kaela turned to find Riven approaching, his silhouette dark and solid against the moonlight. His shirt was half-unlaced, his hair wind-tangled, and his eyes-those fierce, ember-lit eyes-were troubled.

"No," Kaela said, her voice a whisper barely louder than the wind. "Too many thoughts. Too many ghosts."

Riven stopped beside her and looked out over the valley. "There's something moving in the south. A scout saw a Silverfang patrol near the border pass."

Kaela stiffened. "So soon?"

"They're testing our defenses. Darian knows we're here. He just doesn't know how strong we are."

Kaela laughed, but it was a bitter sound. "I'm not even sure how strong I am."

Riven turned toward her, his hand brushing hers gently. "Stronger than you believe. And not just because of your bloodline."

His touch lingered-warm, grounding.

Kaela looked up at him. "And what if the traitor is someone close to us?"

His expression darkened. "Then they'll answer for it."

She saw the truth in his eyes. There would be no mercy.

But something in her ached at that. Because trust, once broken, poisoned everything it touched.

---

The next morning, the Guardians gathered in the Moon Hall-a vast chamber carved with silver-veined stone that shimmered like water. The three elders stood at the head of the circle, with the others arrayed in a crescent behind them. The air was tense, charged with magic and mistrust.

Kaela and Riven stood near the front, beside Seris, who remained as unreadable as ever.

"Someone within our walls has made contact with Darian's war-mages," the eldest Guardian, a white-furred she-wolf named Morrienne, announced. "A messenger hawk bearing a Silverfang crest was intercepted last night."

A low growl rumbled through the assembly.

"We must act swiftly," Morrienne continued. "If the traitor remains among us, every secret we share, every move we plan, may already be known."

Eyes shifted. Accusations flickered in silences too long. And Kaela felt them land-on her.

Because she was the outsider. The new blood. The unknown.

Morrienne raised a clawed hand. "We will invoke the Rite of Truth. Each wolf will stand before the Moonglass Flame and speak the Oath of Loyalty. The flame reveals lies. And those who betray the Bloodmarked will burn."

Gasps rippled through the room.

Kaela's blood ran cold. The Moonglass Flame was no legend. It was an ancient fire enchanted to reflect truth and falsehood with lethal clarity. It did not tolerate deception.

"Let the rite begin at moonrise," Morrienne said. "Dismissed."

As the crowd dispersed, Kaela turned to Riven. "Do you think it'll work?"

He hesitated. "The flame burns lies, yes. But sometimes... the truth can still be twisted."

---

That night, Kaela found herself alone in the meditation chamber, seated in front of a shallow basin filled with still water. Moonlight poured in through the circular skylight above, bathing the room in pale light. She had come to clear her thoughts, but peace was elusive.

The traitor haunted every corridor, every glance.

And then she heard it.

A soft sound. Not footsteps-scratching. Paper.

She rose silently, following the sound through a side passage. The walls narrowed, slanting inward, leading to a small archive room rarely used.

Inside, the fire had been extinguished, but moonlight spilled across the stone floor-revealing Seris.

He stood hunched over a scroll, whispering into a small, obsidian mirror in his palm.

Kaela's heart slammed against her ribs.

She took a step closer. Then another.

Until she could hear the words.

"...She's almost ready. The mark is awakening faster than expected. But she trusts me. I'll deliver her."

Kaela gasped. The sound was barely audible-but Seris heard it.

He spun around, the mirror vanishing into his cloak. For a heartbeat, they stared at each other in frozen silence.

Then he lunged.

Kaela dove sideways, rolling across the floor. His claws slashed through empty air.

"You were him," she hissed, scrambling to her feet. "You betrayed us!"

"You don't understand," Seris snarled. "You're just a pawn. A cursed heir to a broken line. I'm ending this war before it starts."

"You're starting it!" she shouted, dodging another strike.

He came at her again, faster this time, but Kaela was ready. Her mark flared with silver light. Power surged through her limbs, and she ducked beneath his blow, then drove her shoulder into his ribs.

He stumbled. She grabbed a metal rod from a nearby shelf and swung.

It struck his temple with a sickening crack. Seris dropped to the floor, unconscious.

Kaela stood over him, shaking. Her breath came in gasps. The mark still glowed on her skin, pulsing with fury.

She ran.

---

By the time she reached the Moon Hall, the rite had already begun. The Guardians stood around the Moonglass Flame-a column of white fire that flickered with unnatural intensity.

Kaela burst into the chamber, her clothes torn, face streaked with blood.

"It's Seris!" she cried. "He's the traitor!"

Gasps erupted.

Morrienne stepped forward. "Explain yourself."

Kaela did, voice steady despite the storm inside her. She told them everything-what she'd seen, what she'd heard, the obsidian mirror.

When she finished, the chamber was deathly quiet.

Riven stepped forward. "She's telling the truth. I believe her."

Others nodded. The Guardians conferred in murmurs.

Then two sentinels dragged Seris into the chamber, bound and still dazed. The mark on his chest-the Bloodmarked symbol-glowed faintly.

He met Kaela's eyes. "You don't know what you've done."

"I know exactly what I've done," she replied coldly. "I stopped you."

Morrienne turned to the flame. "Let the Moonglass judge him."

They dragged Seris forward. He stared into the fire, and for a moment, the room held its breath.

Then the flame turned black.

A howl erupted as Seris screamed, the fire licking up his arms, searing away the illusion of loyalty.

When it was over, he lay on the ground, his eyes wide and glassy.

Burned, but alive.

Barely.

Morrienne nodded grimly. "He'll be imprisoned. Stripped of rank. And we will prepare for war."

Kaela felt no triumph. Only exhaustion.

She left the hall without a word.

---

That night, Kaela found Riven in the watchtower overlooking the valley.

He turned as she entered, his expression softening.

"You saved us all," he said.

"I just did what I had to," she replied. "But I don't feel like a hero."

Riven came closer. "You're more than that. You're our hope."

Kaela looked into his eyes, the tension between them sparking again.

She stepped closer. "We might not have much time."

"We don't," he said softly.

Then she kissed him.

It wasn't gentle or slow-it was fierce, desperate, a promise made in the shadow of fire and war.

When they broke apart, their foreheads touched.

"I'm with you," Riven whispered. "To the end."

Kaela nodded. "Then let's make sure there's a beginning after it."

Outside, the moon reached its peak.

And in the far distance, beneath the mountains, the Silverfangs began to march.