The forest thinned as they rode, giving way to jagged cliffs and wind‑carved stone. The air grew colder, sharper, carrying the metallic scent of distant storms. Kaela urged her horse forward, jaw tight, eyes scanning every ridge and shadow.
Arion followed close behind, silent but alert. He could feel the shift in her — the rigid posture, the clipped movements, the way she kept glancing over her shoulder. She wasn't afraid.
She was preparing.
The Wildlands stretched before them — a vast, untamed expanse where few dared to travel. It was the fastest route to the Rift… and the most dangerous.
Kaela dismounted at the edge of a ravine, studying the terrain. "We'll cross here."
Arion joined her. "It's steep."
"Good," she said. "Varek's men won't follow easily."
Arion hesitated. "Kaela… about earlier—"
"Not now," she cut in. "We move first. Talk later."
He nodded, swallowing the words he wanted to say.
They led their horses down the narrow path carved into the cliffside. Loose stones skittered beneath their boots, tumbling into the abyss below. The wind howled, tugging at their cloaks.
Halfway down, Kaela paused.
"Tracks," she murmured.
Arion crouched beside her. "Human?"
"No." She touched the deep claw marks etched into the stone. "Ravagers."
Arion's stomach tightened. "They hunt in packs."
"I know."
"And they don't fear humans."
"I know."
"And they—"
"Arion," she said, voice low. "I know."
He shut his mouth.
They continued downward, tension coiling tighter with every step. The ravine opened into a valley of twisted trees and jagged rocks. The air was thick with the scent of damp earth and something else — something feral.
Kaela drew her sword. "Stay close."
Arion unsheathed his dagger. "I'm not leaving your side."
She didn't respond, but her grip tightened on her weapon.
They moved through the valley, senses sharp. The silence was wrong — too heavy, too expectant. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
A low growl echoed through the rocks.
Kaela froze.
Arion's pulse quickened. "Behind us."
They turned.
A Ravager crouched on a boulder, muscles coiled, eyes glowing amber. Its body was lean and sinewy, covered in dark fur, claws long enough to tear through armor.
Kaela raised her blade. "Just one."
Arion shook his head. "They never hunt alone."
As if summoned by his words, two more emerged from the shadows. Then another. And another.
Five in total.
Kaela exhaled slowly. "We can take them."
Arion stepped closer to her, voice low. "Not without a plan."
"We don't have time for a plan."
The first Ravager lunged.
Kaela met it head‑on, steel flashing. Arion moved beside her, striking with precision. They fought as they had in the Hollow Pass — instinctively, seamlessly, as if their bodies remembered what their minds refused to acknowledge.
But the Ravagers were faster this time.
Smarter.
One circled behind Kaela. Arion saw it first.
"Kaela!"
She spun, blocking the strike, but the force sent her stumbling. Arion caught her arm, steadying her. Their eyes met for a heartbeat — a flash of fear, anger, something deeper.
Then another Ravager attacked.
Arion shoved Kaela aside, taking the blow across his shoulder. He grunted, staggering back.
Kaela's blood ran cold. "Arion!"
"I'm fine," he said through clenched teeth.
He wasn't.
The Ravagers sensed weakness.
They closed in.
Kaela's fury ignited. She moved with brutal precision, cutting down one Ravager, then another. Arion fought beside her, but his movements were slower now, pain dragging at him.
The last Ravager lunged for him.
Kaela intercepted, driving her blade through its chest. The creature collapsed at her feet.
Silence fell.
Kaela turned to Arion, breath ragged. "Let me see."
"It's nothing," he said, pressing a hand to his shoulder.
"Arion," she said sharply. "Let me see."
He relented.
The wound was deep — too deep. Blood soaked through his cloak, dripping down his arm.
Kaela's chest tightened. "You should have stayed behind me."
"I told you," Arion said, voice strained. "I'm not leaving your side."
Her throat tightened. "You're an idiot."
"Probably."
She tore a strip of cloth from her sleeve and pressed it to the wound. Arion hissed in pain.
"Hold still," she murmured.
He watched her — the furrow in her brow, the trembling in her hands, the way she refused to look at him for more than a second.
"Kaela," he said softly. "You saved my life again."
She didn't answer.
She couldn't.
Because the truth was clawing at her chest, raw and terrifying.
She didn't want him to die.
Not anymore.
When she finally met his gaze, something unspoken passed between them — fragile, dangerous, undeniable.
"We need to move," she said, stepping back. "Varek's men will track the Ravagers' bodies."
Arion nodded, wincing. "Lead the way."
Kaela mounted her horse, watching him struggle onto his. She hated how much it hurt to see him in pain.
They rode deeper into the Wildlands, the cliffs rising around them like jagged teeth.
Behind them, the wind carried a distant horn.
Varek's men were close.
Too close.
And the Wildlands were only growing darker.