Going Rouge

ough the night, shaking the

re. The scent of rot and death t

haos e

rs dragged away the fallen, faces twisted in quiet horror. Selene

estured to Garrick, whose body

y. Stood in the trees, watching as he and the others hunted benea

his wife Cynthia's twin pups, ha

in these tents - wolf, human, mor

't leave t

he might not be a warrior, but

it wasn'

going to die, Sele

her, and its certainty sent horror cu

spond, but Selene didn't

d painting the earth, desperate hands clinging to life.

howl

ky in two, sha

id-step, ice craw

need to s

n through the

eil wa

o her like a blade

uld be a

, Selene. You

ed through her

ould feel her snarling, clawing, furious at the very idea.

other pa

waited. And now

part of her only surfaced when she went too long without feeding. It l

asn't hunger that

warni

her way int

ded in a pud

rned as she too

of the infection - lay in one of the carts pulling in the dead. Their bodi

n't shift

ldn't be

their chants weaving through the chaos as they tried to contain the infection. But Selen

enzied camp. Warriors barked orders, healers fou

r voice over the screams and clash of metal.

e lis

time. The ground beneath Selene's feet tr

ves wer

would be no on

the healers, who were hauling the wounded into carts bound for safety. Some survivors were barely c

Pack. Fear thickened the air like smoke, but no one fled. They all k

ll, the

Pack if necessary. But the other part of her - the part with no

't unde

he only thing that made sense - run. Survi

halves of her soul. She had spent years balancing both

in the air snapped

Wounds marred her skin, but they were already closing - proof she hadn't

e rest of you - get ready. They're here. They've slaugh

d seemed

he size of Alpha Byron - the largest werewo

. Its claws tore through flesh before anyone could react, sending a healer sprawling, throat

narls of their attackers. The scent of blood

efore a body slammed into her, k

, tearing her skin and

unced where she had been. Its claws shr

her, chao

ore they could crawl away, bodies convulsing in their final moments. Another healer raised a dagger, but th

ations sparking against thick pelts. Some of the wolves stumbled, snarling in pain

self to her feet,

e air more times than she could count, but this wa

, deeper, more menac

ouldn't

er like claws tearing through flesh. The battlefield around her blu

in the Pack bond she could no longer feel. The sudden, gaping absence

so raw it was inhumane. Her legs buckled, but she f

ere he

onstrous wolf form st

at his paws. His black fur, slick with gore, shone in the moonlig

e tensed. Slowly, he lowered Byron's

w filled the air as his massive wolf

tless - graceful, even - as

gave way

ed from raw power. The moonlight cast cruel shadows across his sharp featur

His eyes darkened, curiosity flickering beneath the cruelty. S

izat

gnit

ybr

d to hers, shar

n - he