The night was cool and quiet, the heady aroma of the Silverwood drifting on the gentle evening breeze. Kaelar stood at the edge of the settlement, his golden eyes locked on the young Shadowmane cub that sat outside of the forest line. Valkra held an unnatural stillness. It was not the stillness of a frightened cub, but that of a predator who had learned patience. One who had learned to wait. Her sleek, dark fur melted into the night nearly camouflaging her from view, only her piercing golden eyes reflected the glow of the distant torches.

  Kaelar exhaled through his nose. The Duskhari and Shadowmanes had always shared a bond, an understanding between the Animari hunters of the wilds and the panthers who moved like ghosts through the natural terrain. Their ancestors had learned to fight beside one another. Something they had passed down through generations with more and more of the Duskhari learning to partner with the intelligent creatures. They had hunted together, had shared the burden of protecting their kin, and yet, this cub had chosen Xavier. Kaelar needed to know why. He stepped forward, his movement deliberate, measured. Valkra’s ears flicked, but she did not turn. She had known he was coming; he had not bothered to mask his steps out of respect.

  "Tell me somethin’, little huntress…" Kaelar said, his voice low, steady. "How is it ya came ta de Silverwood?"

  Valkra’s tail curled slightly, but she did not answer with anything else. Kaelar crouched down, resting his forearm on his knee. His tail swayed slow and thoughtful behind him.

  "Shadowmanes don’ belong here," he continued. "Not in dese woods. Yet here ya are."

  For a long moment, Valkra made no move, then, her gaze shifted, not to him, but toward the thick tree line, toward the path she had taken to reach this place.

  Kaelar understood. In a way long developed between the two species he could read her motions. His voice softened. "Yer mama."

  Valkra stayed silent, but her tail flicked once, sharp and deliberate.

  Kaelar’s jaw tightened. "Who took her?"

  The cub’s ears flattened slightly. Then, her tail lashed. A quiet huff of breath escaped her nose, anger, memory, loss.

  Kaelar exhaled slow the subtle motions of the cub’s tail and ears told him all he needed to know. "Shardfangs." His voice held no uncertainty.

  Valkra did not move, but her golden eyes burned with confirmation. Kaelar had hunted those beasts before, larger, stronger, more cunning than any normal wolf. Their scales were like knives, their silence more dangerous than their fangs. They were not beasts that killed for need. They killed for the joy of it. And once they had marked something, they did not stop. His golden eyes flicked toward the faint scars along Valkra’s flank.

  "She fought ‘em." He queried.

  Valkra’s ears flicked slightly, but she did not break her stillness.

  Kaelar let out a breath through his nose. "’Course she did. Das what a mama do." She had not gone down easily. Shadowmanes were as unyielding as the wolves that had hunted them. But one against a pack? Kaelar clenched a fist against his knee. "She gave ya time ta run, didn’t she?"

  A slow blink was the only movement from the cub. Kaelar exhaled, shaking his head.

  "She knew what she was doin’." His voice was quieter now. "Knew ya was worth savin’."

  He could picture it. The wolves closing in, their glowing eyes flashing in the dark. The panther, wounded but unyielding, standing her ground as her cub fled into the unknown. A final roar of defiance. A last stand. Valkra had run. Not because she was weak, but because she was smart. And then…

  Kaelar’s gaze lifted, watching the way the cub’s ears flicked toward the settlement, toward Xavier’s quarters. A slow realization settled over him. "But ya didn’t just run, did ya?"

  Valkra’s golden eyes finally met his.

  Kaelar snorted. "Non, little shadow, they found you, didn’t they? Ye may think it was chance, mayhap even fate, but I tell ye, hunters like us? We call to those meant to walk beside us. An’ they answered, yeah? They came when the night was thick with blood an’ fangs, when yer mother made her stand. They fought, not as hunters, non, but as kin who saw what must not be lost."

  Xavier and Ella. The two who had found the Shardfangs that took her mother. The two who had fought beside her. The ones who had finished what she couldn’t.

  He gave a slow nod, his tone softer now. "Ye walk with ‘em now, Valkra, but make no mistake, it weren’t just their choice. It was yers too."

  Valkra’s tail curled slightly, slow and deliberate. Kaelar let out a deep breath, then straightened, arms crossing over his chest. His golden gaze locked onto hers, steady, unshaken.

  "Aight, listen up, little huntress. Since ya made yer choice, I’m gon’ give ya a charge."

  Valkra’s ears twitched forward.

  "He don’ got de instincts ya got. He don’ see de world like ya do. But he’s walkin’ a path dat’s gon’ need him ta be more den he is now." Kaelar exhaled slowly. "Ya been watchin’ him. Now, watch over him."

  A long moment passed. Then, Valkra lifted her head and gave a slow, deliberate nod.

  Kaelar snorted. "Good. Den we got an understandin’." Turning on his heel, he walked back toward the settlement, his voice carrying one last time over his shoulder. "Keep him safe, little huntress."

  Valkra watched him go, then turned her gaze back toward the path Xavier would soon walk. She had already made her choice, and she wasn’t going to fail.

  Valkra was not the only beast Kaelar sought out that evening. He also found where Frostclaw lay. The huge snow leopard sprawl in the hallway outside of the chamber that Lianna had claimed. Kneeling beside the great cat Kaelar stroked the beasts muzzle and was greeted with a deep rumbling purr.

  The two had known each other long enough that no words were needed for this communication, however. Kaelar saw the Iskari twins as adopted children, he was after all the one who had found them as they fled into the woods nearly two decades ago. The sight of the two bedraggled Iskari cubs clinging to the back of a fiercely protective snow leopard was not something to be easily forgotten. The two shared a long look before Frostclaw dipped his muzzle slightly and pressed his forehead to Kaelar’s. He would bring her back safely, her and her companions. Kaelar rose, nodded once more to the leopard and then left the warrens to return to his evening patrol around Rynthavael.

  The morning air carried the scent of damp earth and the lingering crispness of the night, the sky painted in muted hues of violet and deep amber as the first rays of dawn stretched over Rynthavael. Though the village had long settled into its rhythms, the battle the night before had caused a disturbance in the usual routines. However, this morning there was a quiet energy as its people stirred early, gathering in small clusters near the central pathways to witness the departure of Xavier, Ella, and Lianna. Some watched in silent respect, others offered quiet nods, but no one turned away and no one showed overt fear at what was to come, despite the fact that they all knew what this journey meant. Not just for Xavier and his companions, but for Rynthavael itself.

  The Wildlands were shifting. Arenvalis' presence was growing. The future of this place, this home they had built together, depended on what lay ahead. At the village gates, Kaelar stood waiting, arms crossed, his golden eyes unreadable. Though he would not be traveling with them, Kaelar had insisted on accompanying them to the boundary of Rynthavael’s influence.

  "Won’t have ya slippin’ off like ghosts," he had muttered before they had separated for sleep the night before. Though none of them had truly expected anything less from him.

  So, they walked together, through the well-worn paths of the settlement, then deeper, beyond the standing stones that marked the village’s core, beyond the last of the newly reinforced defenses and into the wood line that marked the edges of the village. Here, the Living Labyrinth began. This area of the Silverwood was different now, reshaped by the magic that had been woven into it when the Earth Ley Line had awakened. The trees were taller, their roots intertwined beneath the earth in unseen, deliberate patterns. The undergrowth shifted and swayed in ways that defied the wind, guiding and protecting those who belonged, confounding those who did not.

  For three days the journey was almost carefree, they traveled beneath the shifting canopy of the Living Labyrinth. The security of the spell left the woods feeling welcoming with a familiar and comfortable air around them. Though the wildlands lay in the distance the presence of Rynthavael still clung to the forest here.

  But Xavier knew the moment they stepped beyond its reach, they would be leaving something else behind, too. It was not completely evident when they reached the edge of the settlements influence as the trees slowly shifted to appear and behave more as normal trees the closer, they got to the edge of the spell. Xavier realized the change because he had been reviewing information about the growth of the settlement, he was nearing level two and was excited to see what it brought, when the interface suddenly greyed out and he got a warning message that he was beyond the perimeter.

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  The others realized it at the same moment as well, they could feel the change, the shift in atmosphere. The air had turned sharper, an unease that had not been there before, even when they had traveled to Bramblegate the first time now charged the surroundings. Though Silverwood had always had an ancient and unpredictable feeling, this was different. The trees seemed to stand stiff, their branches almost reminiscent of bracing against some unseen threat or pressure. It was as if the very land, beyond the influence of Rynthavael, was tense and restless.

  Arenvalis’ influence had spread even this far into the Silverwood, not just its military and mercenary presence but something much deeper. The weight of pending war, conquest and something much more sinister pressed against the party.

  Ella rolled her shoulders, the collar she had clasped around her neck back in the village rose and fell with the motion drawing attention to it once again. “Yeah,” she muttered, “definitely not home anymore is it.”

  No one responded, no one felt the need to, they could all feel it. And, they all realized, the road ahead had just begun.

  Kaelar stopped walking and leaned against a tree. His gaze sweeping over the trio, lingering first on Xavier, then Lianna before settling on Ella, who as had become her new normal was grinning back at him.

  "Ain’t too late ta turn back, y’know." He said softly, though he knew they were committed to the journey and the quest of the Elders.

  Ella’s grin widened. "Wouldn’t be fun if we did."

  Kaelar snorted but said nothing. Instead, he turned back to Xavier.

  "Wildlands ain’t what dey used ta be." His voice was low, steady, carrying the weight of someone who had seen what lay beyond. "De land’s restless. De people too. Ain’t just soldiers pushin’ forward. Somethin’ else stirrin’ in dat dust."

  Xavier nodded. He had felt it too, even before they had begun this journey. Something ominous was growing in the north and it gave a heavy weight to everything it touched.

  Kaelar let out a slow breath, then crouched down to Valkra’s level. The Shadowmane cub sat still, watching him with sharp, knowing eyes.

  "Ya remember what I told ya, little huntress?" His voice was quieter now, just for her.

  Valkra gave a slow, deliberate nod.

  Kaelar’s expression softened, but just a little. "Good." Then, he stood, turning back toward the village. "Ain’t gon’ hold ya up, den. But don’ ya forget, y’all got somethin’ ta come back to."

  Xavier met his gaze, then offered a nod of his own before he cupped his right fist in his left palm and bowed to the Warden. Without another word, Kaelar stepped back the very forest seeming to swallow him and he vanished from view, leaving them to the road ahead.

  With the Warden’s departure the trio conferred for several moments. Lianna’s eyes kept returning to the collar around Ella’s throat, she had spent a lot of time watching the woman over the past several days amazed and horrified at the casualness of her wearing the hated ring of metal. Xavier watched her as she seemed to struggle before he finally spoke.

  “I still say you don’t need to do this Lianna. We can find another way.” He said.

  She pulled out her own collar once again, turning its form over in her hands for several long minutes before she replied. “Thank you Xavier,” her voice was barely more than a whisper. “But, you know as well as I that this is the best way forward. Even if it feels like the worst for me.”

  Suddenly she withdrew the rune for the collar and triggered it, much the same way Ella had done several days before, she tossed the runestone to Xavier and quickly closed the collar around her neck. It snapped in place with a resounding finality to her ears and she winced. As the metal closed into a seamless band dark energy rippled through it and runes along it flickered briefly.

  Something new happened, Xavier received a prompt that had not appeared when Ella had done it. He pondered that a moment before he read the prompt.

  The Drekh’tar has been placed and recognizes your authority. You may now configure restrictions for the Iskari slave Lianna. To finalize restrictions, speak the command: “By my will, you are bound”

  He was then given a series of options that could limit her ability to speak, move, configure punishments, and enforce compliance with specified duties. His face became more horrified and angrier as he read through what the collar could actually do. Ignoring all of those he opted to do as he had promised her and placed no constraints.

  With a look of pity in his eyes he whispered, “By my will, you are bound until I can safely free you once again.”

  The runes on the collar flared once more before settling back to their dull steady state. Lianna seemed to slump, and Ella quickly moved to her side and wrapped an arm around the woman giving her emotional support. “I have you chain sister,” she spoke softly.

  The two women remained like that for several minutes before Lianna gave an audible heaving breath and pushed herself upright once again. It was done, she wore a collar once again even if there were not any constraints at the time. She dug through her pack and pulled out a folded series of papers. When Xavier opened them, he realized they were forgeries of slave documents that had been acquired through Verdantspire’s networks. Ella held out a similar fold of documents. It seemed both realized what would be required, that or Ella had been following Lianna, Xavier wasn’t sure which it actually was. He folded the two sets together and tucked them into a pouch on his belt where he would be able to retrieve them if needed.

  Several more days passed with the tension causing none of them to get very restful sleep when they paused at night. On the morning of the fifth day, they came to the ridge where Xavier and Ella had first overlooked Bramblegate. Valkra bristled and growled and Frostclaw crouched as if anticipation of something attacking, both great cats watched the ruins carefully. The wilderness had been slowly retaking the ruined village, but it was clear that something new was living in the remnants. Something if not specifically hostile, then not friendly at the very least. Rather than running the risk of injury and further delays they opted to swing wide around the destroyed settlement and make straight for the grasslands of the Wildlands.

  As they continued the great trees thinned and ultimately gave way to the open flatter lands and bramble choaked hills that marked the edges of the Wildlands and what Arenvalis was claiming as part of their kingdom. The shifting terrain was immediate as it was clear that beyond the trees there were more patrols, the roads were hard packed and showed evidence of repeated passage of feet, animals, and caravans. The two cats moved to take up positions on either side of Xavier. Lianna had spoken to Frostclaw tried to impart that a slave wouldn’t have a bonded animal so he needed to help with the disguise. Ella and Lianna for their part moved to trail Xavier and his feline cohort, their heads hung slightly to further the disguise in case any eyes were upon them.

  Ella reached up and adjusted her collar slightly, her usual smirk much more subdued. “Feels nothing like the Silverwood,” she muttered.

  Xavier couldn’t disagree. There was something fundamentally wrong with this land. It felt unclean for lack of better terms. He would be happy to finish their quest and get back to the woods.

  Lianna shook her head. “This is worse than I remember but the Blasted Lands feel far more unwelcoming. Hopefully we never have to go to there. Just thinking about them makes my fur crawl.”

  They continued in a northwestern direction following one of the well-trod roads nearing high sun they could see a cluster of buildings in the distance. Xavier adjusted his swords and pace, trying to mimic what he had seen of the mercenaries he had fought in the past. Lianna and Ella made sure their placement was proper for what would be expected of slaves. Their motions were restrained and controlled, not completely subservient but not defiant either. It was in this manner they came up to the wooden barricade placed across the road. Several soldiers stood guard around it, armored and seemingly well-armed, they wore tabards that bore a distinctive crest. Lianna murmured that it was the crest of Arenvalis before they got within earshot of the people. The whole thing screamed military checkpoint, something Xavier hadn’t expected to find in this world but from what the refugees, Wardens and Verdantspire Elders had relayed it was not terribly surprising either. Frostclaw led Valkra off into the grasslands unbidden and the last Xavier could see they pair were skirting the checkpoint, likely to meet them on the far side so as to not raise questions or draw additional attention.

  As they approached one of the guards stepped forward, one hand raised in the universal stop motion as the other hand gripped the hilt of his sword in readiness. “Halt and state your business,” he barked out in a clipped tone.

  Xavier didn’t hesitate to respond. “Bound for Ironhaven, mercenary work.”

  That caught the attention of an nearby officer who was sitting astride a horse in the shade of one of the buildings. He nudged his animal closer to listen and observe what was going on. His eyes flicked across the group examining Xavier at first but coming to settle on Lianna and Ella, his hooded gaze lingering on them for several long moments before he spoke.

  “The slaves?” He inquired, his voice was affectless, assessing Xavier’s response.

  Careful to not tense Xavier held himself as calm as possible. “Mine,” he responded monosyllabically.

  The officer raised a single eyebrow. “Papers?”

  Xavier pulled the documents he had secured in his pouch when the women provided them out and held them up to the officer. The mounted man scanned through them briefly then motioned to Lianna.

  “Step forward,” he commanded.

  Lianna, without hesitation, moved forward. Xavier only caught the momentary tensing of her shoulders due to the fact they had been in such close proximity for the past couple weeks.

  Folding his hands over the pommel of the saddle and leaned forward slightly. “Your name?” His eyes lingered on Lianna’s face as he questioned her.

  She hesitated but for a second then answered. “Lia,” her voice was soft and meek. Far different from what Xavier was used to from the fierce woman.

  The officer hummed to himself a moment. “Obedient, how long has she been yours?”

  Xavier kept his voice neutral and disinterested. “Long enough.” Inwardly he wanted to get away from the inquisitive officer but knew it would call their disguise into question.

  Smirking slightly the officer studied Lianna a few moments longer before turning his attention to Ella. “And this one?”

  Ella cocked her head slightly, her eyes rising to the officer’s knee and a confused look passing over her face. “Same?” She responded in a low mutter.

  It took everything within Xavier to keep from sighing and facepalming at the woman’s actions.

  The officer let his gaze linger on Ella for a little longer than Xavier really thought necessary but ultimately said. “They will do.”

  He passed the documents back to the guard on duty with a motion to hand them back to Xavier. “Welcome to Arenvalis, mercenary. Be of mind, the wildlands are being tamed you will not be ale to get away with what was done in the past.”

  With those parting words he returned his mount to the shaded area he was enjoying before, and the guard raised the barrier allowing the trio to pass. As they moved through the small clutch of buildings a hand brushed against Xavier’s cloak, the subtle move drawing his attention and he felt a small piece of parchment pressed into his palm. He closed his fingers over it instinctively but made no other motion or bothering to look at the individual who passed it to him.

  Xavier’s thoughts about the two felines were correct and several miles beyond the checkpoint the two great cats emerged from the tall grasses of the plains and rejoined the party. They kept a steady pace until the sun started to settle into the horizon. Only then, well beyond the checkpoint, did they set camp.

  Sitting next to the fire Xavier pulled the note from where he had tucked it in his pouch and unfolded it. It was written in a simple script though far different than the usual written ones he had come across so far. His talent for languages quickly identified it as “Arenvalis Rebel Code.” Handing it to Lianna she pursed her lips in thought as she read it then nodded.

  “Watch the ruins, the fire still burns.”

  Neither were entirely sure if it was a warning or an invitation, but both knew for certain now that there was still a resistance hidden within Arenvalis. They were not going to have to do this alone, they just had to find the right people.