Lyra didn't remember the journey.
Only flashes — the cold clatter of chains around her wrists, the low murmurs of guards, and the constant, maddening ache of the bond mark still burning against her neck.
When she finally opened her eyes again, the world had changed.
Stone spires rose into a red-silver sky, like claws tearing through the clouds. Massive obsidian gates groaned as they swung open, revealing the shadowed kingdom behind them. Wolves in armor patrolled high ledges. Banners bearing a black wolf head on crimson silk whipped in the wind.
Nightfang.
The enemy kingdom. A place she'd only heard of in whispered warnings as a child.
Now she was its prisoner.
"Walk," the guard behind her barked, jerking the chain that linked her hands.
She stumbled forward.
Her ceremonial robe was torn. Her hair tangled. Dirt and dried blood streaked her skin. She must've looked pathetic.
No — worse. She must've looked owned.
A crowd had gathered inside the courtyard. Nobles, warriors, students. Their eyes followed her like wolves scenting fresh prey. Murmurs rose.
"Is that the girl?"
"She's the one he marked?"
"She's barely a wolf."
"She's nothing."
A snarl erupted across the courtyard — not from Lyra, but from Kael.
He stepped out from behind a guard post, his cloak billowing behind him, his expression as cold as ever. The court fell silent at once.
"She is not nothing," he growled. "She is mine."
The words echoed across the stone, heavier than iron.
Kael's eyes locked with hers.
Lyra glared back, chin high despite the bruises, the humiliation, the pain. She wanted to claw the bond from her skin. She wanted to run until her legs gave out. But her pride — what was left of it — wouldn't let her fall in front of these strangers.
Especially not in front of him.
He gave a subtle nod. "Take her to the eastern wing. Chain her. Feed her. She'll report to Lupis Academy at dawn."
"Lupis Academy?" she croaked, stumbling as the guards dragged her toward the stairs. "You're sending me to a school?"
Kael walked beside her, hands clasped behind his back. "You're not strong enough to survive here. That academy will make you strong. Or it will kill you."
She laughed bitterly. "So those are my options?"
"No." His eyes flicked to hers. "Your only option is obedience."
She bit back a curse.
The corridors of the fortress were ancient and vast. Arched windows let in blood-red sunlight filtered through enchanted glass. Portraits of grim-faced ancestors stared down at her as she passed, their eyes burning with the same gold fire as Kael's.
Eventually, the guards threw her into a circular chamber lined with stone and shadows. The room was empty except for a basin of water, a pile of fresh clothes, and a bed of rough furs.
As the chains were unhooked and the door slammed shut behind her, Lyra slumped against the wall, every muscle trembling.
She was alone.
She was caged.
And she was bound to the one wolf who should've been her enemy.
Later that night…
She sat by the window, knees drawn to her chest, staring out at the moonlit cliffs.
Her bond mark still throbbed — not as painfully now, but constantly. Like it was alive. Like it was watching.
A noise behind her made her spin.
Kael.
He stood in the doorway, arms folded. He didn't enter. Just... stared.
"Why are you here?" she asked flatly.
"I wanted to see if you'd tried to escape."
"Would you have let me?"
"No."
Silence stretched between them like a drawn bow.
Then he took a slow step forward, and the air shifted.
Tightened.
He stopped just in front of her, his gaze falling to the bond mark. His nostrils flared slightly.
"You're reacting to the bond," he said quietly. "It's syncing faster than I expected."
"I don't care," she snapped. "I don't want it."
"You think I do?"
He said it with such icy calm, she almost flinched.
Then suddenly — he moved.
One hand braced against the wall beside her head, pinning her in place. His other hand hovered just above her skin, not touching, but close enough to feel the heat radiating between them.
His eyes darkened. "You're dangerous, Lyra."
"To you?" she breathed.
"To me," he echoed. "And to yourself."
He leaned in, his nose almost brushing her neck — just above the bond. She gasped.
"Your scent… it's changing," he murmured. "You're not just a defect. There's something buried in you. Something that hasn't awakened yet."
Then, as quickly as he'd closed in, he pulled away.
"Tomorrow, you begin your training," he said coldly. "Fail, and I won't protect you from my court again."
He turned and walked out without another word.
Leaving Lyra alone — breathless, furious, and more afraid of herself than ever before.
The silence that followed Kael's departure was suffocating.
Lyra sat frozen, her back pressed against the cold stone wall, her chest rising and falling in uneven breaths. Every nerve in her body felt exposed, raw. She could still feel the heat of him — the way he hadn't touched her, and yet she'd felt everything.
Her pride burned worse than the mark.
Why is he affecting me like this?
She clenched her fists. It's just the bond. It's not real. It's not mine.
She dragged herself to the small basin and splashed water on her face, but it didn't help. The girl staring back at her in the reflection wasn't the same one who had stood in the Moonblood Trials just nights ago. That girl had hope.
This one had shackles.
Her fingers ghosted over the bite at her neck. The skin was healing unnaturally fast — a sure sign of the bond working through her blood. And worse, she could feel him.
Even with him gone, something inside her thrummed — like a string pulled tight between two souls. It pulsed faintly when he was near. It burned when he was too far. And right now, it was... quiet.
But not gone.
She dressed in the plain dark clothing left for her and lay on the bed of furs, eyes open, heart racing. Sleep refused to come.
She dreamed anyway.
Flashes.
Teeth. Fire. Howling winds.
A wolf with gold-tipped fur standing over her, eyes ancient and full of war.
A voice whispering her name from beneath the earth — "You are not what they think."
She woke with a jolt, breath ragged, skin damp with sweat. Her hand shot to her throat — the bond mark pulsed once beneath her fingers. Alive.
A knock shattered the silence.
The door creaked open, revealing a tall woman dressed in Lupis Academy armor — black leather trimmed in crimson. Her silver eyes were sharp, her voice sharper.
"Get up, girl. Time to face your new world."
Lyra blinked at the morning light flooding through the hall behind her. She hadn't realized dawn had come. The woman stepped inside and threw something to the ground — a long cloak marked with the sigil of the academy: a clawed moon.
"You're expected in the arena. If you fall behind, I won't wait."
The woman turned and walked off without another word.
Lyra stood slowly, the weight of her new reality pressing down on her like iron chains.
Nightfang.
Lupis Academy.
Kael.
This place wanted to break her.
She clenched her jaw.
Let them try.