Shadow -Bound

ere, the scent of cold stone and pine Kaelen's Alpha essence was sharp, layered with the faint meta

held a purpose.Lyra stood beside his heavy, polished desk,

geological map of the Sunstone Peak mounted on t

's a search grid," Lyra stated, layi

to the real location. The message states:

the cryptic text, then the diagram showing

and the adjoining archives. This is the only place in the entire fortress that is not warded against ex

y objects that symbolize the original pact betwe

nd if they are 'truths,' they won't be in the ancient, public r

l lock," Kaelen confirmed,

sequence, to trigger the final opening mechanism. And since my uncle, Veridian, has been hunting the Vault's

have to inventory your entire suite, Alpha, right now. I need t

into the wall. "Start with the obvious. We have maybe twenty-four hours before Veridian mo

ed like a shadow, her hands instinctively seeking out hollow spaces, loose joints, and objects placed just slightly off the perfect alignment.She started with t

a simple triptych of cedar wood, unadorn

ng to decipher an obscure inscription on his mantelpiece. "Hidden, personal, a

"The Founders' Triptych. It symbolizes the Triple Oath-

heavy and locked, but her skills were inn

ing mechanism.The drawers yielded a weapon a dagger with a beautifully crafted

efully. "The wear suggests it's been used freque

es it to mark his oath to the Sunstone. It requires the sac

g. "My father died holding this, sho

ight of his loneliness was palpable in this office.She moved to the most suspicious object in the room: a large, unlit bronze lantern on the cent

anchored. Lyra closed her eyes, not projecting her light, but using her hyper-developed Reflected Senses the rog

. The massive bronze cylinder gave a deep thunk and the outer shell slid up, revealing an inner core: a simple, unadorne

led pedestal. "Used by the first Elder, before the Rot. They

to be the most dangerous-the private archive section of Kaelen's office, sealed behind a heavy, reinfor

dence. I can only assume the remaining four Truths are relate

only non-strategic item in the room.It was a picture of a younger Kaelen, maybe sixteen, flanked by two figures: his father, the previous Alpha, and a beau

ered, approaching the p

, Luna. She left the Pack when I

ra pressed. "Why is

aelen admitted, his voice hardening. "She was deemed a heretic an

m. Lyra, using her precision and attention to detail, found the remaining truths:Truth Five: The Sunstone Ledger. Hidden in a hollowed out legal scroll, a small ledger detailing the

e Alpha must never love what is weak. Kaelen identified it as the Truth of Solitude-the burden of an Alpha.Truth Seven: The False Scroll. Finally, Lyra not

holding it up, "it feels

test the first Binding a piece of the mountain that rejects all Wolf Light. It ensures that the weapon in

Blade, the Shaman's Tools, the Torn Photo, the Ledger, the Un

avier than any gold she had ever stolen. "Now, we nee

and sorrow of his Pack's history, were suddenly alight with fierce in

The price is access, Lyra. The Path is the Price means we have to use these seven t

insert them into the spire's supporting structure. And the spire is

e path we need is directly through the most public, most guarded part

he Shadow Rot amplifier growing weaker your interference worked, but Veridian will notice the dro