Dawn broke black.
The snow melted beneath shadow-fire. The trees split, rivers boiled, the earth itself shuddered beneath the march of Ronan's army. Wolves twisted by shadow, hunters corrupted, beasts remade into monsters—all surged in endless tide.
And at their head—Ronan.
He no longer resembled wolf or man. His copper hair burned with black fire, his amber eyes pits of endless shadow. Runes blazed across his body, smoke coiled around him like wings. He was no longer Ronan.
He was Lord of Shadow.
"You cannot stop me," his voice thundered, shaking the mountains. "Every flame she casts feeds me. Every time she burns, I grow stronger. She is mine, and through her, the world will kneel."
Kael's wolf howled, his body massive, his green eyes burning. "She is mine. Always."
The armies clashed.