The night cracked open with a howl.
Shapes darted between the trees—low, fast, and wrong. Not natural beasts. Not like the ones Aryan had trained to understand. These moved like shadows given claws.
"Formation! Tighten the line!" Sergeant Bhairav barked, voice cutting through the chaos.
Aryan's Vanara snarled, crouching into a ready stance. Its muscles tensed under him, waiting for his signal.
"Wait," Aryan whispered. "Let them come."
From the brush, a beast lunged—a black wolf-like creature with red eyes and twisted limbs, bones jutting from its back like jagged spears. It didn't look alive. It looked… broken.
Unbound.
Aryan kicked forward, the Vanara leaping into the air. Mid-flight, Aryan drew his sword and slashed downward. The beast shrieked, falling limp to the dirt as the Vanara landed gracefully behind it.
Another came. Then three.
"Behind you!" Vaidehi's voice rang out. Her crane darted forward, wings glowing with faint blue light. A sharp gust of wind sliced through the dark, knocking one beast off its feet before it reached Aryan.
"Thanks!" he called out.
She gave him a brief nod before turning to heal a fallen soldier nearby, light pouring from her hands into a glowing mark on his chest.
Meanwhile, Kael let out a roar of his own as he and Brukk barreled into a cluster of beasts. Dirt flew, stones cracked, and limbs flew.
Devran stayed near the back, murmuring words over a glowing scroll. A field of mist appeared around the squad, making it harder for beasts to spot them.
Still, they kept coming.
One of the beasts nearly got Aryan from the side, but his Vanara twisted mid-step, grabbing the creature's leg and snapping it like a twig.
He could feel the bond between them strengthening. For the first time, it wasn't just a connection of magic. It was understanding. Trust.
But then…
A second wave of beasts approached—larger, faster, and more violent. And in the center, stood one with twisted armor and a mark carved into its forehead — a spiral of bone and ash.
Aryan's breath caught.
"That's not a wild beast," Bhairav growled. "That's been branded."
"Branded by Unbinders?" Devran asked, fear leaking into his voice.
"No doubt."
The corrupted beast raised its head and let out a strange, echoing cry. The other beasts stilled. For a moment, the whole forest froze.
Then they charged.