The rhythm of the Citadel was relentless, driven by the needs of the ailing pack and the silent demands of the Alpha. By day, Elara worked tirelessly in the Guardian Chamber, scrubbing wounds, boiling water, and applying her slow, effective human medicine. Her success was a silent triumph: more wolves stabilized, fewer succumbing to the creeping green rot. Elias remained her shadow, shifting seamlessly between his human and Beta-wolf forms, his respect for her skill growing daily, tempering his initial skepticism.
By night, the ritual was the same: the cold passage to Kael's private chambers, the enforced intimacy of contact, and the profound, electric drain as her body purified his elemental core.
On the third night, Elara woke before Kael. She lay in the soft furs at the foot of the enormous ice-carved bed, listening to the deep, steady breathing of the Alpha above her. Kael was still asleep, sprawled in a position of complete, untroubled power. Even in slumber, his elemental cold saturated the air, a natural extension of his protective aura.
She was exhausted, but her mind, no longer clouded by raw fear, began to piece together the inconsistencies.
During the day, Kael maintained the illusion of control, speaking of localized outbreaks and contained skirmishes. But Elara knew the truth from the volume of the afflicted. The Guardian Chamber was permanently full, requiring constant triage. The number of returning patrols, weakened or corrupted, suggested a losing battle on the borders—a hemorrhage of warriors the Alpha refused to acknowledge.
Later that morning, as Elara was carefully splinting a warrior's leg (a common injury, oddly suggesting retreat under fire, not successful defense), Elias approached her.
"The Shadow Corruption is worsening near the Riverlands border, Conduit," Elias murmured, helping her gather sterile linen. "We lost two vital supply runs this morning. The Alpha is… stretched."
"Stretched is an understatement, Elias," Elara replied, glancing at the wolf woman she was treating. "This is a systemic epidemic, not a few infected skirmishers. Where is Kael getting replacement warriors? The birth rate here couldn't possibly keep up with the losses I see."
Elias lowered his head, a gesture of deference and distress. "The Alpha has increased the patrols and doubled the guard. He refuses to show weakness to the other territories. Control is everything."
"Control kills when you need communication," Elara muttered, frustrated by the military rigidity.
Just as she finished securing the splint, the ground shuddered slightly. The vast ice hall's doors burst open, and a wave of concentrated cold power announced Kael's return. He was fully armored, his dark gray furs frosted, his expression a mask of granite fury.
"Conduit! You come with me. Now," Kael commanded, his voice echoing with urgency. He didn't wait for her, simply striding toward the main entrance, his speed forcing her to abandon her tools and hurry after him.
Elias quickly threw a thick, embroidered cloak over Elara's shoulders. "The High Council Hall. Be silent, Conduit. This is a political meeting. Deadly territory."
Kael led her not toward the exterior doors, but down a spiraling ice staircase deep into the heart of the Citadel. They emerged into the High Council Hall—an immense cavern dominated by a round table of black obsidian.
Seated around the table were Kael's most trusted Lieutenants, all stern-faced and powerful. But the focus was on the three figures standing opposite Kael: a delegation from the neighboring Earth Bear Tribe.
The Lead Bear, a massive man whose presence radiated the dense, unyielding power of stone and soil, stood defiant. "The trade routes are sealed, Alpha Kael. Your Shadow Taint spreads like poison. Your claim that the Corruption is contained is a lie, proven by the constant stream of weakened warriors retreating from your lands."
Kael slammed his hand onto the obsidian table. The impact sent a tremor through the room, and frost instantly coated the Bear delegate's arm. "You dare accuse my Pack of treachery? We guard the Northern Wall! If the Scourge breaches here, it is your lands that drown in the taint!"
"And yet, you refuse aid! You isolate your tribe!" the Bear retorted. "We offer Earth magic containment wards, but you forbid us entry. You hide something, Alpha. Something deadly."
It was then that the Bear delegate finally noticed Elara, standing silently behind Kael's massive shoulder, clutching the heavy cloak around her. The human, who smelled inexplicably pure amidst the stench of war and ice.
"And what is that?" the Bear demanded, pointing a thick, scarred finger at Elara. "Is that your secret weapon? Your hidden shame? She is human! No magic at all! You rely on a mortal?"
Kael stepped partially in front of Elara, shielding her from the Bear's accusatory stare, his protective fury now fully engaged. "She is a specialist healer. She is the Cure to the contagion you fear. And she is my Claim. You will not speak her name or question my methods again. The Northern Wall holds because of her purity. Leave my territory now, before I decide your visit constitutes a declaration of war."
The Bear delegate, recognizing the lethal intent in Kael's eyes, quickly retreated. The delegation was escorted out with grim efficiency.
As the doors closed, Kael turned back to Elara. His face was thunderous, his entire body rigid with contained rage. He was focused on the betrayal of the Earth Bears, not on Elara's shock.
Elara finally understood the depth of the crisis Kael was concealing. The Shadow Corruption was threatening to isolate the Ice Pack entirely, forcing them into a solitary, unwinnable war. And Kael's absolute, self-imposed isolation and pride were accelerating their demise.
He's not just fighting a plague, Elara realized, looking at the proud, terrified Alpha. He's fighting an entire world that fears him, and he's using me to justify the gamble.
"They are cutting us off," Elara said quietly, stating the political reality. "You cannot win an epidemic, let alone a war, with closed borders. You need allies. You need more than just my hands, Kael. You need my strategy."
Kael looked down at her, the severity of his duty reflected in his glacial eyes. He had only claimed her as a Cure, but he was slowly realizing he might need her human mind far more than her simple touch.