Lucian's Pov
The echo of my boots against the stone hallway matched the drum of tension in my chest. The closer I got to the meeting hall, the tighter the knot in my stomach became. I understood now why the guards had looked so stiff when they delivered the message about the elders. That flicker of unease in their eyes hadn't just been about the fallen messenger. No, it was the unexpected arrival of the council that had truly unsettled them.
The Council of Elders. Eight in number, handpicked by their regions to represent the wolves across the globe. They weren't alphas, nor lunas. They held no specific territorial claim, no military control. And yet, their influence ran deep—woven into our governance like veins in a leaf.
My ancestors created the council generations ago, inspired by the witches' covens, to ensure the Alpha King never grew into a tyrant. The idea was noble in theory. Power, if left unchecked, corrupts. But that same safeguard bred its own poison over time.
