Chapter 4
Seren
Something hunted me.
Close to the border with Pendara, the forest grew wild and unyielding. The terrain, rugged and tangled with dense undergrowth, formed a natural border between the Viori and Lirien—one we kept that way on purpose.
But the forest didn’t just belong to us. Ancient predators had roamed these woods long before the Viori arrived. Most had retreated deeper when we claimed the land, but here, near the border, their territory remained.
Whatever stalked me now was one of them.
The fire I’d built to cook a rabbit crackled faintly, its warmth fleeting against the chilly morning air. I kicked dirt over the embers, extinguishing the glow. The birds had fallen silent, the ever-present hum of crickets gone.
In the forest, silence was a bad omen.
I packed quickly, marking my place in my spell book with a leaf. Love spells and curses—useless. My mother had sworn they were important, but I wouldn’t waste time reading them twice. My memory retained anything I’d read, whether I wanted to or not.
The unseen presence crept closer, the seconds stretching taut with dread. My grip tightened on the dagger at my side as I stepped away from the thick pine I’d sheltered under for the night.
I scanned the woods, muscles coiled, ready to run. The colorful leaves sparkled with rime beneath the pale sunlight, fleeting beauty in a world that didn’t allow for stillness. Not here. Not now.
I’d been tracking Madoc for a week, his trail growing colder with each step.
I hadn’t expected him and my father to separate when I’d tried to follow.
Madoc had been easier to track, but all signs of him had vanished near the fortress of Cairn Hold in Pendara.
Now I was too close to the border, too exposed, and too alone.
No sign of him. No sign he’d return this way.
Maybe it was time to stop waiting.
Maybe it’s time to give up.
The thought came unbidden, shame curling in its wake. My food stores had dwindled, and though I could hunt, water was harder to find this far out. I needed to move—to get closer to Viori territory, where I’d be safer. Where this hunter might think twice before stalking me.
But if I moved, I might miss Madoc.
The forest went still again, the unnatural hush pressing in. The hunter was close enough that I could almost hear its breath.
The frost crunched softly underfoot, and I winced. No sound escaped this oppressive quiet, not with something lurking so near.
I wasn’t easy prey. It would learn that soon enough.
Mid-step, I froze, the hair on the back of my neck prickling.
Crouched ahead in the frost-covered undergrowth—a man.
I gripped my dagger’s hilt, instinctively dropping into a defensive stance.
His broad shoulders hunched, his attention fixed on something in the distance.
The remnants of a tattered shirt clung to his muscular frame, stained dark with blood.
Dirt streaked his arms, but the faint gleam of a tattoo beneath a sheathed sword on his back caught the light—crimson and black winding down the back of his neck, the unmistakable symbol of Pendara.
Curpiss.
I couldn’t see the full mark, but I knew its shape.
Father bore it too.
A Sealed Pendaran soldier. What in the gods’ name is he doing here?
The thought barely formed before he moved.
He surged to his feet in a blur of motion, turned, and then barreled toward me. I stumbled back, lifting my dagger, but before I could react, his arms were around me, his momentum slamming us both to the ground.
The impact drove the breath from my lungs. His forearms cushioned the worst of the fall, but his weight crushed me, pinning my dagger uselessly at my side. I thrashed, snarling, but his strength was overwhelming, his grip unyielding.
“Get off of me!” I hissed, twisting against him.
His hand clamped my mouth—large, rough, callused at the ridges where his fingers met his palm, the kind that had seen years of training. The arm around my torso held me taut. A sheen of coarse blond hair, streaked with blood and mud, covered his hardened, well-muscled forearm.
His deep voice was low, urgent.
“Keep still,” he said, the command sharp and clipped. “If you want to live.”
My pulse thundered in my ears, but his words gave me pause. I stilled, my senses sharpening. That’s when I heard it—the low, guttural growl that sent ice down my spine.
He pointed and I followed his gaze.
What in Nyxva?
An enormous wolf-like creature emerged from the shadows, its hulking form blending with the forest as though made of darkness itself.
A vuk.
Silver eyes gleaming, fangs bared, globs of saliva dripping from its maw. A ridge of sharp spines jutted along its back like a dragon, rising with each step, but thick black fur had concealed it against the tree line. The air thickened around it, oppressive and cold.
The man’s grip tightened. “Don’t move.”
As if I didn’t know that already. But the predator wasn’t looking at him, it was looking at me. The silver eyes locked onto mine, a deep growl rumbling from its throat. My muscles tensed, every instinct screaming to fight, to run.
Instead, I breathed, forcing my racing heart to steady. Gripping his forearm with one hand, I planted my boot against the trunk of the tree behind me. Then I moved.
With a sharp shove, I kicked off the tree and twisted midair, driving both boots into his head. His grip slackened just enough for me to wrench free, and I rolled clear, my dagger glinting as I rose to face him.
The man staggered upright, blood dripping from a fresh gash on his temple. His expression wavered between frustration and disbelief.
“You’re insane,” he muttered.
“No,” I snapped. “Just not willing to be your shield.”
The vuk growled again, prowling closer, its shadow stretching across the frost-covered ground. Its gaze shifted between us, as though deciding which one of us to kill first. My grip tightened on my dagger, but I knew it wouldn’t be enough.
The man stepped in front of me, his broad back blocking my view of the beast. “Stay behind me,” he ordered.
I bristled and pushed out from behind him. “I don’t take orders from Liriens.”
“Then try not to get yourself killed,” he shot back, drawing the sword strapped to his back. He held it with the ease of someone who knew exactly how to use it.
The vuk lunged.
My pulse spiked, but before I could react, the creature slammed me to the ground. Air fled my lungs as the crushing weight pinned me, claws digging into my shoulders and thighs. The trees above blurred as I struggled for air, a sharp ringing in my ears.
Just as suddenly, I sucked in a ragged breath, the pain of it nearly blacking out my vision.
Saliva dripped onto my neck, searing like acid. Silver eyes bored into mine, pupils black and deep, as if they led to some endless abyss. A faint yellow glowed within them, an unnatural light that sent a chill through my core.
What is that?
I’d never seen eyes like that.
The man’s blade sliced through the air, glancing off the beast’s scaled side with a dull thunk. The creature snarled, unfazed, its fetid breath filling my nose. I thrashed against its hold, but the claws only sank deeper, and I screamed.
Oh gods.
Beneath the black fur, scales armored its body like a dragon’s. They were impossible to kill—not that I’d ever been worried before.
Vuks didn’t attack Viori. Ever.
They were sharply intelligent and respected us as much as we did them.
Maybe it’s not me it’s after.
With a roar, the man barreled into the beast, locking his arms around its thick neck. The impact knocked the vuk off me. I scrambled backward, gasping, my body trembling as I reached for my dagger.
The vuk snapped at the man, its fangs inches from his face, but he didn’t let go.
Wedging his knees beneath its belly, he kept it from pinning him outright.
Blood soaked his tattered shirt, bright streaks spilling from gashes across his chest and arms. Still, he held on, muscles straining against the creature’s immense power.
I couldn’t just stand there.
Gripping my dagger, I lunged. The blade struck the vuk’s side, searching for a weak spot between its scales, but skidded off harmlessly, the impact jarring my arm. Useless.
The Lirien groaned, guttural and raw, as the vuk’s claws raked across his torso again. Desperation surged through me. If he died, I’d be next.
A new plan took shape. While he grappled with the vuk, I darted to its flank, searching for an opening. The beast was locked on its prey, giving me a chance. I aimed for the exposed joint near its hind leg and drove my dagger in with all my strength.
The vuk howled, the sound splitting through the forest. Its massive body twisted, nearly throwing the Lirien off. But he used the distraction. With a shout, he drove his sword upward, the blade piercing the vuk’s chest in a perfect strike.
The creature shuddered, its silver eyes going wide before dulling. The massive body collapsed, the Lirien trapped beneath it.
I dropped my dagger and braced my back against the vuk’s side. My legs burned as I pushed, straining to roll the beast off him. It shifted slightly, enough for me to drag the Lirien free.
His bloodied body sagged against me, his breaths ragged but steady. Relief washed over me, but it was short-lived. Deep gashes marred his neck and shoulders, and the vuk’s black blood coated him from head to toe.
I should leave him here. I should—
No. He saved my life.
Crouching beside him, I pressed a strip of cloth to the gashes on his neck. Blood soaked through immediately, a stark red against my trembling hands. He didn’t stir, his chest rising and falling in shallow, uneven breaths. Alive, but barely.
Killing him now would be cleaner. Smarter. Seth wouldn’t care that this man had saved me or that I owed him a life debt. All Seth would see was a threat—a Pendaran soldier on Viori land.
But I faltered.
Hesitation was costly—I’d learned that lesson the hard way with Esme.
Yet I hesitated anyway.