AYLA'S POV
The silence was the first thing that shattered me.
It wasn't the silence of night, or even the hush of the dead. This was a silence that breathed, pressed, and echoed like it had weight. A silence that knew my name.
Ash curled against my lips as I tried to breathe, but there was no air here, only smoke that clung to my throat like a lover who wouldn't let go. I clawed at it, dragging breath from nothing, my chest burning, my wolf snarling inside me.
Then I saw her.
The First Luna.
Her silver wolf stood on the ridge of a world made of bones and shadow, fur shimmering with runes that burned and faded as if written by fireflies across her skin. Her eyes—my eyes—fixed on me, and when she opened her mouth, her voice was my mother's.
"You should not have taken the oath, Ayla."
