The snowfall thickened.
Not violently.
Not in a storm's rage.
But in a slow, suffocating curtain—each flake descending like a muted judgment. The light of late afternoon dimmed beneath the weight of grey skies, and the air turned colder in a way that felt less about temperature and more about presence.
As Kel and the hunting party trekked back toward Ashstone's border, the silence grew wrong.
Less like quiet…
More like hiding.
Every footstep pressed into snow without echo.
Every breath felt too loud.
Kel's eyes narrowed.
His curse thrummed faintly beneath his ribs—an unspoken warning, a signal not of pain, but of something noticing them.
He slowed.
The others followed instinctively.
No words exchanged.
Training and instinct guided their bodies into formation.
Torren stepped forward, shield raised.
Jace angled his sword.
Mara hefted her axe, her stance widening.
Lysia and Baird stepped back, staffs already lifted.
Kel closed his fingers around his bow.
His heartbeat did not quicken.
The wind whispered through frost-bitten branches ahead.
Snow shifted—not falling.
Moving.
Something under it.
Torren's jaw set.
"Formation," he muttered.
Kel's voice followed, soft but clear—
"Do not advance."
The snow line ahead bulged.
Then split.
A massive shape emerged through the drifting white.
Four paws sank deep with each step.
Muscles corded beneath thick, coarse fur the color of iron frost—white-grey streaked with black at the ridge of its spine. Snow clung to it like armor.
Its eyes—
Cold, pale bronze.
Old.
Intelligent.
This was not a hunter.
It was the one who sent hunters.
An Alpha Duskwolf.
Easily thrice the size of the others. Longer snout. Heavier chest. Thickened hide like hardened bark. Its breath steamed heavily, not in the short bursts of lesser beasts, but in slow, deliberate tides.
It studied them.
Not starving.
Judging.
Jace exhaled.
"…We're leaving," he whispered.
Mara answered coldly.
"It won't let us."
The beast's head lowered. Its hackles rose.
Kel's bow came up.
The Alpha growled.
The ground trembled faintly from the vibration.
It's not attacking.
It's measuring.
Kel's fingers moved to the quiver.
He nocked an arrow.
His voice was quiet.
"Target eyes first. Then tendons."
Mara glanced at him.
She didn't question.
Jace's sword flared—Aura extending along steel, turning silver blade to pale fire.
Torren's shield glowed with inward-facing runes, his feet anchoring deep.
The mages' staffs gleamed—Lysia's with frostlight, Baird's with rippling green sigils.
Kel drew.
In one slow motion.
Deep breath.
The curse pulsed, displeased—but his will held firm.
The Alpha's muscles tightened.
Its front paws pressed deeper into snow.
Then—
It leapt.
Snow exploded beneath its launch, sending a wave of ice and frost toward them.
Torren braced, shield slamming into the ground.
The force struck like a hammer.
He held.
Jace and Mara dashed outward to flank.
Kel's eyes never blinked.
He released.
Two arrows launched simultaneously, string releasing a clean twang—almost impossible for a human hand to do without specialized training. The first arrow angled slightly lower, the second fractionally higher.
The Alpha twisted mid-air—its reflex sharp—but even with movement, one arrow scraped past its right eye, drawing blood. The second dug into its flank, not deep enough to wound severely, but enough to change landing trajectory.
It crashed sideways rather than straight, snow flying up in a violent spray.
Mara lunged.
Her axe swung down toward its exposed ribs.
The beast twisted fast—
Clang
Her weapon sparked off its hide.
Her eyes widened.
"Damn—!"
Jace struck next, aura-infused sword aiming for its throat.
The Alpha jerked back, countering with a claw swipe so forceful it sent Jace skidding back across ice.
Torren intercepted with shield, the blow cracking through layered enchantments.
Lysia's voice rose—
"Frozen Wake!"
Ice blossomed beneath the beast's hind legs, momentarily locking movement.
Baird followed—
"Tremor Seed!"
A pulse rippled through the snow beneath the Alpha, destabilizing its stance.
Kel's eyes narrowed.
Opportunity.
He drew three arrows this time—not to fire at once, but to pre-stack speed for consecutive shots.
Accelerate.
Ignore pain.
Two seconds window.
The Alpha roared—a deep, reverberating sound that seemed to silence even the wind. Fury and pain flared in its gaze.
Its legs strained against binding ice.
Cracks began to form.
Kel loosed.
Thwip-thwip-thwip
Three arrows flew like extensions of a single intent.
The first struck the left front leg joint.
The second pierced the right hind tendon.
The third—aimed higher—landed at the base of its neck, just above shoulder arc.
The beast lurched.
Its body sagged.
Movement slowed—
"Mara!" Kel called.
She stepped in.
Aura igniting around her axe like red lightning.
She roared and brought it down with all the weight of her body.
This time—
It hit.
Steel sank into flesh.
Blood burst across snow like ink spilled upon silk.
The Alpha howled.
Snow shook from trees.
The beast reared up, rage overriding pain. Its claws swung toward Mara's chest.
Too fast.
She couldn't dodge in time.
Torren threw himself sideways.
His shield caught the blow.
The impact cracked stone beneath his feet.
He gasped.
Kel already had another arrow drawn.
His arms screamed.
His lungs resisted.
The curse surged—
He pushed through.
He loosed.
The arrow hit the beast's eye—
Half a second before Jace's aura-infused sword drove through its exposed throat.
The beast convulsed.
A final snarl.
It fell like a collapsing mountain, snow erupting around it in a burst.
Silence.
Then, slowly…
Steam from blood rose.
The party stayed tense for several breaths.
Watching.
Listening.
Only when the Alpha's twitching fully stilled did shoulders slowly lower.
Torren sank to one knee, catching his breath.
Mara wiped blood from her cheek, eyes sharp.
Jace exhaled long.
"…That thing wasn't supposed to be this far south."
Baird knelt, pressing his hand to the corpse's hide.
"…Mana concentration is… unstable. I think this thing was forced out of its natural range."
Lysia looked at Kel.
Really looked.
"…You shot six arrows," she whispered. "At that speed. Under strain. Without missing vital points."
Kel did not respond to her directly.
He watched the steam rise.
Then he spoke quietly—
"That was not a hunt."
His voice was low.
Steady.
Unwavering.
"That was clean-up."
Jace nodded slowly.
Torren stood.
Mara rolled her neck.
Baird pulled his staff free.
Kel stepped forward, drawing his bow to rest along his arm.
Snow settled on his pale hair and shoulder.
"We return," he said.
No one argued.
They gathered what salvage they could from the Alpha—fur, claws, core. Heavy, valuable.
As they headed toward Ashstone, snow fell more gently now.
The sky remained gray but… lighter.
Jace walked beside Kel.
Quiet.
Then—
"You fight like someone who doesn't expect to live long," he said.
Kel's eyes remained forward.
His answer was soft.
"I fight like someone who intends to survive this day."
A pause.
Then, almost imperceptibly—
Kel added:
"And reach tomorrow."
Jace stared at him for a moment.
Then smiled.
A grim, warrior's smile.
"Fair enough."
They walked.
Back toward walls.
Toward warmth.
Each step leaving a mark in the snow.
Behind them, the steam from slain beasts slowly dispersed.
Ahead…
The path to the north.
Toward Scarder Lake.
Toward cure.
Toward destiny.