The gray wolf circled Karnath in a slow, deliberate arc, each step heavy with unspoken threat. Its hackles were raised, fangs bared, breath steaming in the cold air. Karnath only chuckled, sounding low, disbelieving and almost amused.
"A wolf," he drawled, "Is that how it is?"
He tilted his head, eyes narrowing with bored cruelty.
"You really think you can win against me? The pillar?" His smile thinned into something razor-sharp. "Now you're really starting to piss me off. I've changed my mind. Challenge accepted."
Cora instinctively stepped back as the demon's body began to contort. Bones cracked, followed by the wet grind of muscles reshaping. His limbs elongated, his spine arched, and shadows poured from his skin like black smoke. Within a moment, a massive black wolf crouched where Karnath had stood, its form dripping with dark mist.
He snarled as his eyes gleamed with violent malice, sounding deep, guttural and loud enough to rattle trees. But Leonardo didn't flinch.
