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Chapter Twenty Four
Chapter Twenty Four
Morning light broke over Stormborn like a promise.
It streaked across the tents and training grounds, warming the frostbitten soil beneath our feet. The scent of ash and pine lingered in the air, a reminder that war was not far behind. But today, for the first time since I arrived here, it didn’t feel like a place I was hiding in
It felt like home.
Ayla was tucked safely into a cradle of furs in the main tent, watched over by Nia and an older healer named Marwen. Her moonmark hadn’t flared again since the Trial, but I could feel its hum whenever I got close. Like the bond between us had deepened, threading something ancient into our blood.
Keiran was already out with the warriors, overseeing sparring matches and battle formations. His command presence was effortless–he was power in motion, decisive and sharp. But when his gaze met mine across the field, something softer passed between us. Not words. Just recognition.
He knew I wouldn’t run anymore.
I stepped onto the central platform, where G stood waiting. The weight of what was about to happen hadn’t fully settled in my
bones. Not yet. But it would.}
Garrick gave me a nod as I approached. His arm was still wrapped in a thick bandage from the ambush that nearly cost him his life, but he stood tall.
Around us, warriors gathered. Wolves of every background–scars, tattoos, worn armor and hardened stares. They came because they believed in something more than survival now.
They came because Stormclaw still stood.
“I’ve called you here,” Garrick began, his voice steady and commanding, “not as your Alpha–but as your brother, your comrade, your equal, We have fought long enough for scraps. We’ve bled for kings who saw us as disposable. But not her.”
He turned to face me fully, his good hand resting on my shoulder.
“Selene Stormclaw. You returned to us broken, but you rose. You’ve carried pain like armor and still held compassion. You faced the moon’s Trial and passed. You are the mother of the child prophesied in our bloodlines. But more than all that, you have led.”
My throat tightened, but I said nothing.
Garrick stepped back and raised his voice. “From this moment forward, I name you Alpha Regent of Stormborn. Until I’m fully healed- and even after–you will lead beside me. We answer to the same blood now. The old Stormclaw line lives through you.“W
There was silence.
And then, a howl.
It started with Keiran. Low and fierce.
Then Garrick.
Then dozens of voices joined, until the sound split the sky–warriors, witches, rogues, all calling out in unison. Not just in loyalty.
In defiance.
We’re still here.
My chest burned with something I hadn’t allowed myself to feel since I fled Stormveil.
Pride.
I raised my chin and let the howls echo around me. Let them know the daughter of Stormclaw had returned. Not as a Luna. Not as a victim.
As a leader.
Later, I stood at the training grounds, watching two young wolves spar under Alina’s eye. Garrick sat nearby, barking out critiques when needed, but he was mostly letting me take the reins.
It felt strange. Right, but strange.
“Eyes up,” I snapped to a boy who kept dropping his guard. “Anticipate, don’t react.”
He straightened. Nodded. Lunged again.”
From the comer of my vision, I saw Keiran approach. He didn’t interrupt, just stood beside me, arms crossed as he watched the training unfold.
“You’re a natural,” he said after a beat.
“I’m learning,” I replied. “Fast.”
“You don’t have time to learn slow.”
“No,” I said, my gaze locked on the fighters. “I don’t.”
“Reinforcements arrived from Iron Hollow,” he said. “A dozen able–bodied wolves. Their Alpha sends regards. He said he’ll follow wherever the Stormclaw banner flies.”
That pulled my attention. I turned to him, brows raised. “Iron Hollow refused to aid us last winter.“8
“They changed their mind.”
“No one changes their mind like that, not without a reason.“\
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No one changes their mina like that, not without a reason. W
“They saw the mark,” Keiran said simply. “They heard about the Trial. About Ayla. About you.” He looked at me, something burning low in his voice. “You’re becoming what they can rally around.“}
“That was never the plan.”
“Plans change.”
More packs trickled in over the next few hours–Scorchpine, Redfell, even two scouts from Frosthaven. Each bore stories of strange disappearances, of whispers in the woods, of fear spreading faster than fire. But they also brought hope.}]
They came to fight beside me.}
By nightfall, the war tent was brimming with activity. Maps spread across the table, lines marked in charcoal, sigils drawn in blood–ink.
Garrick, Keiran, Alina, and I stood over them.
“We strike first,” I said, tracing the region where the Veilborn had last been spotted. “We can’t let them keep picking us off. We draw them out. Make them see we’re not prey.”
Garrick nodded. “Agreed. We bait them–force them to show their hand.“>
“We’ll need witches,” Alina added. “Their rituals are old. We can’t face that without magic of our own.“}
“I’ll send word to Hollowshade,” Keiran said. “They’ll come.“}
I glanced down at the Stormclaw crest etched into the map–two wolves circling a broken crown.
I remembered my mother’s voice. My father’s laughter. The way Stormveil once felt before betrayal stole everything.
I would not let the Veilborn take this from us.
Not again.”
I looked up, meeting each of their gazes.}
“This time,” I said, “we choose the battlefield.”
And I would make sure they remembered the name Selene Stormclaw for generations.
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