It had been seven days. Seven days since the last coded message from the south. Seven days since the report of the Syndicate. Since then… silence. The radio in the communications tower sat cold and dormant. The owls returned with no letters. The wind brought no whispers.
Master Durai stood on the highest balcony of the Den, looking south. The mountains were buried in a fresh blizzard, the world painted in white and gray. He gripped the stone railing so hard his knuckles were white.
He was the Stone Wolf. He did not feel fear. But he felt this. This heavy, gnawing cold in his gut.
He wasn't worried about a soldier. He was worried about a boy.
The wind howled, and for a moment, it sounded like a memory.
Flashback: 12 Years Ago. Winter
The same graveyard. The same snow. But the stones were newer.
Master Durai stood over a fresh grave. The marker read: KILLIAN.
Next to him stood a child. A boy of barely five years old. He was wrapped in a cloak that was too big for him. He wasn't crying. He was shaking. His eyes were wide, dark, and terrified. He looked like a gust of wind would blow him off the mountain.
"They are gone," the boy whispered, his voice trembling. "Mother. And now Father."
Durai knelt in the snow. He was terrifying even then, a giant of a man. But he reached out a hand, gentle as a falling leaf, and placed it on the boy's shoulder.
"They are not gone, Eiden," Durai said softly. "They have joined the pack in the sky. They run with the stars now."
"I'm scared," the boy admitted, clutching Durai's leg. "I'm alone. The dark is too big."
Durai looked at the boy. This shivering, frightened child. He saw a broken thing that needed to be held together.
"You are not alone," Durai promised, a vow that felt heavier than the mountain itself. "I will be your shield. I will be your father. And one day... you will be strong enough to face the dark. I promise you, Eiden. You will never be scared again."
Present Day.
Durai blinked, the memory fading into the snow.
"I promised," he whispered to the wind. "And now I have sent you into the dark alone."
"Master?"
Durai turned.
A young guard stood in the doorway. "You called for them?"
"Yes," Durai said, his voice returning to gravel. "Send them in."
A moment later, the heavy doors opened.
Emma walked in first. She wasn't knitting today. Her hands were empty, her face pale and drawn. She looked like she hadn't slept in a week.
Behind her was Noah. The usually cheerful giant looked small. He was twisting his hands, looking at the floor.
"Master," Emma said, bowing low. "Is there... is there news?"
"No," Durai said. "That is the problem."
He walked to the map table.
"Liam is away," Durai said. "He is tracking a Bear Claw movement in the Iron Peaks. I cannot recall him in time. That leaves you."
He looked at Noah.
"You know the Academy. You know the layout. You were there."
Noah nodded. "Yes, Master. I... I can find my way back."
"Good," Durai said. "I am sending you south. You and Emma."
Emma's head snapped up. "South? To... to him?"
"Find him," Durai ordered. "Find out why the radio is silent. Find out if he is... compromised. If he is hurt, bring him home. If he is captured... send word, and we will bring the war to them."
"I am going too."
A voice came from the shadows of the hallway.
Master Sebastian stepped into the light. He was dressed not in his training robes, but in a long, grey travel coat. He carried a pack over his shoulder.
Durai frowned. "Sebastian? You are the Second Master. You cannot leave the Den. With the Bear Claws moving in the north... if they attack while I am alone..."
"You are not alone, old friend," Sebastian said calmly.
He gestured to the window.
Outside, in the courtyard, the "Alliance" was drilling.
Eagle warriors were teaching Wolves how to use bows. Snake assassins were showing Owls how to mix poisons. It was chaotic, it was loud, and it was strong.
"The tribes are here," Sebastian said. "Kael, Malachi, Jiro... they will hold the mountain. They owe us. And they want Evergreen back as much as we do."
Sebastian walked to the table. He placed a hand on the map, right over the location of St. Swithin's. "Besides," Sebastian said, his eyes darkening. "I know that school. If the boy is trapped in there... he needs someone who knows that place well." Durai looked at his oldest friend. He saw the resolve in his eyes. "He is your student," Durai said softly. "He is our son," Sebastian corrected.
Durai nodded once. A sharp, military motion.
"Go," he commanded. "Take the fast pass. Do not stop for storms. Do not stop for rest. Find our Wolf."
Emma grabbed her pack, her eyes burning with a new fire. Noah cracked his knuckles. Sebastian adjusted his coat.
"We will bring him home," Sebastian promised.
They turned and marched out of the War Room, leaving the safety of the mountain for the chaos of the world below.
The Pack was moving.
The train rattled south, leaving the pristine white of the mountains for the gray, industrial soot of the lowlands.
The carriage was empty, save for the three travelers from the Den.
Sebastian sat by the window, watching the landscape change. He looked tired. Not physically—he was as fit as a man half his age—but his eyes carried the weight of ghosts.
Emma sat opposite him, her knitting needles clicking rhythmically. She was making a hat now to match the scarf. Noah was sprawled across two seats, trying to sleep but failing.
"Master," Emma said softly, breaking the silence. "You said you went to this school. St. Swithin's."
"A long time ago," Sebastian said, not looking away from the window. "In another life."
"What was it like?" Noah asked, sitting up. "Was it always a fortress? Did it always have... bunkers?"
Sebastian chuckled, a dry sound. "No. When I was there, it was just... a school. Old brick. Drafty halls. Bad food. It was a place for the sons of politicians and bankers to learn Latin and how to tie a tie. It was boring. It was safe."
He turned to look at them.
"I graduated in 1919. Just as the world was changing. Just as the school was changing."
"Changing how?" Emma asked.
"A new owner," Sebastian said. "A mysterious benefactor bought the land just before I left. He cleared out the old board of directors. He brought in his own construction crews. We heard rumors... massive excavations. Walls being reinforced. But I left before I saw what it became."
"Why did you leave?" Noah asked. "If you were a rich student... why join the Wolves?"
Sebastian's face softened. He reached into his coat and pulled out a pocket watch. Inside was a small, faded picture of a man who looked like him.
"My uncle," Sebastian said. "He was the black sheep of the family. While my father was banking, my uncle was a spy. A Wolf. He died in the Great War, protecting a village that didn't even know his name. When I found out... the 'civilized' world of the academy felt... fake. I wanted to be real. So, I climbed the mountain."
Emma stopped knitting. "Is that where you met Evergreen?"
"No," Sebastian whispered. "I was a raw recruit. Useless. And she had already... as the Eagles like to put it… Abandoned the mountains. All I heard about her, was that she was The Goddess of War."
He leaned back, his eyes distant.
"But he didn't abandon us. There was a man with her. A soldier. He wasn't a Wolf, but he moved like one. He was terrifying. He trained us when the Masters were too injured. He taught me how to use a knife. He taught me that hesitation is death."
"Who was he?" Noah asked.
"We just called him The General, "Sebastian said. "He was in love with her. You could see it in the way he missed her after her departure. Like she was the sun, and he was afraid she would burn out."
Sebastian shook his head.
"When Evergreen vanished... he broke into pieces. But stayed with us for a few years, wanted to bring us to the light of the world. But, Durai wanted to preserve Evergreen's legacy and that was the time Durai and the General had an argument."
Closing his eyes, he continued" Durai always belived Evergreen would come back. So, he made an oath to bring back Evergreen no matter what. And well, we all followed him. And the rest was history."
"And Eiden?" Emma asked quietly. "Did you train him too?" Sebastian smiled. A genuine, warm smile. "Eiden," he mused. "He is a prodigy. But I remember him when he arrived." "Master Durai said he was scared," Noah said. "He was terrified," Sebastian corrected. "He was five years old. He wouldn't speak. He wouldn't eat. He would hide under the tables in the mess hall. He was so small; I thought the wind would carry him away." Sebastian looked at Emma. "One night, I found him in the armory. He was holding a knife that was bigger than his arm. He was trying to sharpen it." "Why?" Emma asked. "I asked him that," Sebastian said. "I asked, 'Boy, who are you planning to fight?' And this tiny, shaking child looked me in the eye and said, 'The monsters that took my mom.'" Sebastian sighed. "That was the moment I knew. He wasn't weak. He was just... waiting. He turned that fear into fuel. He burned it to make himself strong. But deep down... he is still that boy under the table. He is still just trying to protect the people he loves from the monsters."
Emma wiped a tear from her eye. "That's why he saved us countless times." "Yes," Sebastian said. "Eiden doesn't know how to quit. It is his greatest strength. And it will likely be his death."
The train whistle blew, a lonely sound cutting through the gray afternoon. "We are close," Sebastian said, standing up and buttoning his coat. "St. Swithin's. My old prison." He looked at Noah and Emma. "We are not here to fight a war. We are here to find Eiden that's it. We find Eiden. We find out what he knows. And we get out. Understood?" "Yes, Master," they said in unison.
"Oh," Sebastian added, checking his pockets. "And we have to contact an old friend. Robert." "Sir Robert?" Noah asked. "The one you told eiden to meet?" "Yes, Noah" Sebastian said. "A biologist. He likes beetles more than people."
The train began to slow. Through the window, the looming, fortress-like silhouette of St. Swithin's Academy rose from the mist. Sebastian looked at it. He frowned. "That wall..." he whispered. "That wasn't there." He saw the guard towers. The reinforced gates. "This isn't a school," Sebastian murmured, a cold feeling settling in his stomach. "This has actually become a prison."
Sebastian stood in the phone booth outside the station, the receiver pressed to his ear. He had called the school's faculty line, expecting a quick exchange. Instead, Robert had sounded strange. Cold.
"Not here," Robert had whispered. "The walls have ears. Meet me at 'The Rusty Spoon.' It's a diner on the edge of town. Come alone. Or... bring your 'cubs' if you must."
Half an hour later, Sebastian, Emma, and Noah sat in a booth at the back of a greasy, dim diner. The air smelled of fried onions and stale coffee. "Why are we here?" Noah whispered, picking at a chipped table. "Why not go straight to the school?" "Because," Sebastian said, staring at the door. "It looks like something has happened in the school. Robert wouldn't move a meeting unless he was afraid."
The bell above the door chimed.
A man walked in. He wore a tweed jacket with patches on the elbows and looked like he hadn't slept in a week. His hair was graying and messy, his eyes behind thick glasses were bloodshot.
It was Sir Robert. He spotted them. He didn't smile. He didn't wave. He walked straight to the booth and stood over Sebastian. "You," Robert said. His voice wasn't friendly. It was thick with years of unsaid words. Sebastian stood up, offering his hand. "Robert. It has been—" Robert didn't take the hand. He looked at it with disdain. "Twenty years," Robert finished. "Twenty years since you left in the middle of the night. Since you chose your 'Pack' over your life. Over your friends." Emma and Noah exchanged a worried glance. This wasn't the warm reunion they expected. "I did what I had to do," Sebastian said quietly, lowering his hand. "I betrayed you, Robert. I know. I left you to deal with them alone. But I am back now. Because of the boy."
Robert's face crumbled. The anger drained out of him, leaving only exhaustion. He slid into the booth next to Noah, who scooted over respectfully. "The boy," Robert sighed, taking off his glasses and rubbing his eyes. "Eiden." "He is my student," Sebastian said. "He was my best student," Robert countered softly. "He was... brilliant. Terrifying, yes. Violent of course. But brilliant. He sat in my class and he actually listened. He saw the world differently. I... I adored that kid."
"Where is he?" Emma asked, her voice high and tight. "Is he at the school? Is he in trouble?"
Robert put his glasses back on. He looked at Emma, then at Noah. He looked at their young, hopeful faces. He looked like he was about to be sick.
"He is not at the school," Robert said.
"Then where?" Sebastian demanded.
"Gone," Robert whispered.
"Gone where? Did he run?"
"No," Robert said. "He didn't run."
He took a deep breath.
"The school... it went mad, Sebastian. There were fights. Shootings. The police called it a 'gas leak,' but we knew. Eiden... he fought. He fought everyone. He, the Cronus girl, and a few others... they were kidnapped. Taken to the docks. Put on a ship. Akuma's yacht, the Leviathan."
"A ship?" Noah asked, confused. "Why a ship?"
"We don't know," Robert said. "But there was a storm. A massive storm. The ship returned yesterday morning. Emily Cronus walked off. Her friends walked off."
Robert stopped. He looked at his hands.
"And Eiden?" Emma whispered. The scarf she was knitting fell from her lap to the dirty floor.
"The official report," Robert said, his voice shaking, "is that Eiden fought the kidnappers on the deck. He saved Emily. He saved the others. But... he was shot."
Sebastian went still. Stone still.
"Shot?"
"In the back," Robert said. "He fell over the railing. Into the sea. In the middle of a hurricane."
The silence in the diner was absolute.
Noah made a sound like he had been punched in the gut. He covered his mouth, his face turning green, and he scrambled out of the booth, rushing for the bathroom.
Emma didn't move. She just stared at Robert. Her eyes were wide, but she wasn't blinking. It was as if her brain had simply refused to process the words.
Eiden. Sea. Dead. The words didn't fit together.
Sebastian moved.
It was a blur. He reached across the table and grabbed Robert by the lapels of his tweed jacket. He hauled the teacher halfway across the table, scattering the salt and pepper shakers.
Sebastian's face was inches from Robert's. His eyes were wild, dangerous, the eyes of a Wolf who had just lost a cub.
"You are lying," Sebastian hissed. "He is a Wolf. He is the strongest student I have trained in twenty years. He survived the mountains. He survived the trials. And you are telling me a bunch of goons on a boat took him down? That is not possible!"
"It wasn't the goons, Sebastian!" Robert yelled back, not fighting him. Tears were streaming down the teacher's face. "He saved them! He took the bullets for them! That's who he was! He wasn't invincible... he was just brave!"
Sebastian stared at his friend. He saw the grief in Robert's eyes. It mirrored his own.
He slowly let go of the jacket. Robert fell back into the seat, adjusting his coat.
"He is dead, Sebastian," Robert said, his voice breaking. "The coast guard searched for two days. Nothing. No body. No sign. Just... the ocean."
Robert looked out the window at the gray rain.
"The academy... it has shifted. It's in mourning, but... it's a cold mourning. Emily Cronus has returned, but she is... different. The whole place feels like a graveyard."
Sebastian sat back. He felt old. Older than he had ever felt.
He looked at Emma. She was picking up her knitting needles. She tried to loop the yarn, but her hands were shaking so badly she couldn't find the needle.
"He needs the scarf," she whispered to herself, her voice cracking. "It's cold in the water. He'll be cold."
"Emma," Sebastian said gently.
"He'll be cold," she repeated, and then she broke. She buried her face in the unfinished wool and screamed.
It wasn't a warrior's scream. It was the scream of a girl whose heart had just been ripped out.
Robert looked down, unable to watch.
Sebastian put a hand on her shoulder. He didn't offer false hope. He didn't say "maybe."
He just stared at the table.
We were too late, he thought. We came to save him. And we are only here to bury him. This winter brings despair once again.