Beyond The Blue

d the world's scars, or merely hide them until the next storm arrives? In the struggle between sea and l

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uld sense the war that was soon to be fought. The Blood Moon, enormous and red, dangled precariously on the horizon, casting the tempestuous sea below in its supernatural light.

s body poised as for an attack. Merbel did not need to turn around to understand what was happening. The Deep Wolves had arrived, along with Edrik Thor

bond, now was something far more powerful, something that pulsed along the beat of the rhythms of the tides themselves. They had struggled side by side, p

But promise me one thing." His eyes softened, his look reflecting the silvery light of the moon. "Promise me that you

something that would annihilate all she had ever loved? But when she looked into his eyes, the weight of their shar

e," she w

es fixed on the oncoming danger. Merbel observed him disappearing, her heart heavy wit

feuds and forgotten rivalries. And leading them was Edrik Thornjaw, commander of this horde, his massive body cutting through shadows like a avatar of

on't belong in this human world anymore. Return to th

n the face, she felt the weight of the decision crushing her chest. She looked back at Anacobal, steadfas

am both of these worlds. And if this is something you will deem to be a criminal act, I'll serve the cons

ith hers. "We shall not run. We shall not hide. It is o

familiar tug of the moon's summons deep within her bones. The wolf, the tide, the sea-all rushed through her, blending with the power that ha

unding, she sensed the shift-her body stretching, senses expanding, her very essence transforming. The wolf that lay hidden w

eness. Fur burst along her arms and legs, and her previous human form now looked like the moon-wolf of legend-glowing, powerful, and savage. But she was n

ement and recognition. "Merbel," he whispered, h

ne, and the wolves descended on them in a blur of fury and power. Merbel was no longer human-she was a force of nature, a sto

mming into his magic as he spoke the sea's power into the fight against them. To

ir love that had come up from the flames of their worlds. They did not fight with words but spoke with one another through a silent understanding and shared might. Anacobal's

curse that had bound their worlds together. He had once been a guardian of the sea, but now he was a warden of it, a remnant of times

t of the moon, her power building to a peak. She was no longer that afraid child who had run from her herit

down to the ground, his once unmovable form crashing below her. She raised her paw, ready to deliver the

The ancient law of the Deep Wolves-law that had kept her people to the waves for centuri

face. "I spare you," she whispered, her voice burdened with

up slowly, his shoulders hunched under the weight of defeat. The wolves that had followed

was released, and the tempest raging overhead seemed to recede, as if the very powers of nature had recognized her

f, Merbel stood firm, her wolf form shining in the poor ligh

his voice breaking the sil

victory. "We did it," she spoke softly, for she had understoo

alling upon both of them

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