AYLA'S POV
The Mountain Breathes, the air in the cavern changed as we left the guardian's corpse behind.
The smell of rot faded into the crisp bite of ancient stone and cold silver. The walls glimmered faintly with veins of frost, catching the light from my fire in ghostly streaks. Every drip of water echoed, and every sound of our paws on stone felt too loud, as if the mountain itself was listening.
Kael's black wolf stayed close to my silver one, his fur brushing mine, the bond pulsing warm and solid. "You feel that? he said, his voice a low rumble in my mind."
"Yes," I answered, my ears twitching. "The mountain feels… alive."
"No," he corrected, golden eyes scanning the narrowing tunnel. "It feels like it's breathing."
Behind us, Rylan muttered under his breath. "I hate this place. The walls are wrong. They're too smooth in some spots, like something moved through here recently."
