Leaving the mountain region, the snow became shallower and the spring more apparent. Although the temperatures were milder, the nights felt colder. The first night, I slept with Cerberus. He had simply lain beside me, allowing me to curl to his side for warmth but not making any effort to return the affection. The second night I gave in to Cyrus's requests and spent the night with him. Although I enjoyed being held in his arms, he couldn't compensate for the distance I felt from my guardian, and it would be unfair to expect him to.

It had been two days since we left the wounded and young, taking only on the individuals fit to fight. We rode the day previously, but now that we were so close to the capital city the lycans slowed their pace to a walk, conserving their strength. I chose to continue the journey on foot while Cerberus trotted near the front of the pack.

"You’re looking listless again," Cyrus said, shaking the arm he had draped around my shoulder. I shot him a small smile.

"Sorry, I'm just a little tired."

The man huffed, frowning. "And I can't even take credit." He shook his head. "Six months ago, I would have never imagined I'd be this anxious for a war."

"Six months ago, I was still in the subways," Jared said from atop Nightmoon. He hadn't been able to walk much since the sores opened on his feet. However, he didn't seem to be bothered by it. In fact, the boy was more cheerful now than he had ever been in the palace.

Alice wiggled on Sunshine's back. "What about me, Dessy? Where was I six months ago?"

I scooped her up, supporting her on my hip. "I don't know. Six months ago was before I met you."

She made a sour face. "Oh, I didn't like six months ago then."

"Neither did I." I frowned at her still scrunched features. "What's the matter?"

"My head hurts."

I swallowed. "Oh." I hugged her close to my chest. "It's okay, it'll be over soon."

I spotted a scout speaking to Cerberus and Graniteback ahead of us. After a nod from the alpha, she came bounding back to us.

"There's been a landslide ahead," Soulflight explained, standing her full height as she spoke. "The hillside collapsed, but the ridge is sturdy granite."

I rubbed the back of Alice's head as I considered what to do. It wasn't unheard of for even solid rock to break loose and fall. However, I was equally hesitant to give up the higher ground.

With the snow melt creating rivers which washed away the soil, the likelihood of another landslide was high, especially under the weight of a thousand lycan's paws.

Another wild lycan bounded up the steep slope, this one a young male coming from the valley below. He skipped past Cerberus and ran straight for me.

"Howens' army approaches from below, three thousand humans."

"Is Balazza or the bear with them?"

A lean female I knew to be named Rabbitrun slid down the loose forest substrate from the height of the ridge. "She and the bear are on the other side with an additional thousand soldiers."

They were trying to trap us. My mind buzzed with thoughts, each weighing a different scenario. The bear itself could severely cripple my forces and the men could hold us long enough for Howens to circle round the ridge. Howens' force of three thousand was more of an even match, but more than enough to allow Balazza to release her monster.

"Are there any men on the ridge?"

Soulflight shook her head. "None I could see or smell."

"And trees, would we have enough cover?"

She hesitated. "Possibly... enough not to be immediately apparent."

"It doesn't matter. We'll walk the ridge. We only need to pass their armies, then we can outrun them."

"But the ridge is already proven unstable," Nightmoon protested. "We have the numbers to take the three thousand."

I shook my head. "Not without heavy loss. I want to conserve our strength until the main forces come."

"We'll appear weak-"

"I am Lady of the Lycan Mountains." I lifted my chin, meeting her eyes and staring her down. "I say we cross the ridge."

Nightmoon held my gaze a full minute before she lowered her head. "Yes, Alpha."

I sighed, closing my eyes. "Don't call me that."

A light force bumped my arm. I glanced behind me, finding Cerberus standing there. He bent a foreleg. "On. We must move quickly."

I stepped over his shoulders, taking Alice with me as I settled myself on his back. Sunshine trotted beside us, looking up to me expectantly.

"Dessy..." The little girl whined, clutching at my jacket. Fear tinted her voice.

"I know Alice, it's going to be okay." I secured her in front of me. "This is the only time I'm going to ask you, please, can you try to be quiet? We need to be quiet now."

She nodded against my chest. "I'll try..."

"I'll give her back after," I whispered to the tan captivebred. "I need to keep her quiet." Sunshine nodded, but followed close on Cerberus's heels.

The top of the ridge was hardly wide enough for a single line of lycans to pass through the trees. On either side of us the slope was a steep wash of brown, at the bottom a plane of foliage and fallen debris. The men which traveled across it stood out like specks of blood on the forest floor.

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Both sides were clear to see, no doubt we would be easily spotted if they thought to look closely. The lycans padded silently along the rocky terrain. Alice trembled in my arms, but kept her mouth clamped shut as she pressed her face to my chest.

It wasn't long before we were directly between the armies. Balazza was easy enough to spot, riding just ahead of the cart which held the pacing bear. It rocked and shook with the animal's shifting weight, making it difficult for the horses to pull through the soft mud.

On the other side the force of men was larger. It took me a few moments of consideration to spot Howens, present in the middle of his forces. Despite being the same color as the other soldiers, his uniform was somehow more vibrant. It was only upon closer inspection could I see the shattered patterns of deep orange and highlights of pale yellow, giving him the appearance of flickering flame. He had let his hair grow out, wavy blond locks now reached his shoulders. A hand rested on the pommel of the sword strapped to his side. His head turned as he scanned the landscape, but had yet to glance up to the ridge.

I felt Alice's trembling ease and breathed a sigh of relief. This one had passed fairly quickly. I motioned for Sunshine to come closer so I could return the toddler to him. The tan lycan hurriedly doubled his pace, fur pressed to my leg as he used a wide outcropping to get beside us.

I wrapped my arms around the girl, preparing to lift her. A muffled crack and scrape sounded below our feet. The rocks gave way, sending the captivebred falling with an avalanche of rocks.

"Sunshine!"

Cerberus twisted around, grabbing the smaller male's leather harness. He heaved the lycan up to studier ground. However, it was too late. Any chance we had of avoiding notice was lost with Alice's scream.

Howens was looking right at us.

Shouted orders echoed in the valley opposite. Chains rattled as the bear roared at the frenzy of excitement around it. Balazza had noticed us too. The lycans leapt back from that side, scrambling away from the red and orange darts flying our way.

More scrapes and cracks from the rocks in protest to the added weight. My legion scattered as best they could from a tipping tree. The massive plant tumbled down the steep slope with the rocks which gave way beneath it.

We had to get down, before the entire ridge collapsed. I had to chose, Howens or Balazza.

I glanced at the giant bear. Howens was the better choice.

"Down right!" I shouted. My lycans followed the order immediately, leaping from the ridge to slide down the side. Cerberus sat back on his hind legs as we joined them. The Asken army retreated to make room for our arrival.

I pulled Alice from my chest, placing her on Sunshine's back. The tan lycan immediately drew back into the body of my legion. That matter taken care of I glared up at the man I had come to face.

"Howens." It was all the greeting I could manage. Blood boiled in my veins.

"Good afternoon, Desire," the lord said in a sickenly polite tone. "Seems you've done well for yourself. I've heard tell Preene's King fell for the little trick you tried to play on the late Perimone."

I scowled. "And who told you this?"

"An informant of course." He shrugged. "It was about a month ago if I remember correctly."

"That's impossible!" I growled. "The mountain pass was snowed in."

The smirk that crossed his face made me want to stab him right then. "Believe it or not, I know those mountains much better than your dogs."

Several snarls sounded behind me. I scowled at the man. "I wouldn't insult them, if I were you."

Howens shrugged again. "It was merely a statement of fact. Humans are smarter than lycans. Despite what you seem to believe, we are too creative to be conquered by such a beastal race." He paused. "Speaking of which, I brought you a present."

With a practiced flurrish of his hand, he pulled a short tube from his pocket and raised it to his mouth. A dart flew from its core, sticking Cerberus in the shoulder.

The plane exploded in a flurry of chaos. Lycans pounced upon horses, dragging riders from their saddles to rip them to pieces. The ground troops raised spears, trying to defend against the furious canines.

I yanked the dart from Cerberus's pelt. The tip was stained red. I threw it away in favor of holding onto his fur as he leapt into battle.

Powerful muscles rippled and flexed under my thighs. With a few swipes the albino lycan cleared a circle around us. The pause gave me time to yank off my gloves. Now bare hands, I pulled my dagger from its sheath.

Spear heads fell away, their shafts snapped by the force of the lycan's paws. His snarl vibrated through him as he lunged forward, disemboweling a man with his long claws. Soldiers rushed in from behind. My dagger's blade slid across my palm. I hooked my legs around the lycan's waist, bending back and lashing out at anyone unfortunate enough to be within reach. The men stumbled back as my poisonous blood soaked into bare skin.

Cerberus reached back to pull me upright as he dropped to all fours. He leapt over his fallen adversaries, charging those who stood behind them. Another dart whizzed through the air. It missed, burying itself in the arm of a dead man. The second hit Cerberus in the thigh. I kicked it away.

We were deep in a group of soldiers. Not far away I spotted Shirah, now dismounted and spinning in a flurry of small arms. She was accompanied by several of the wild scouts. Behind us the captivebreds were holding a firm line against the advancing troops. I was surprised to find Jared among their number. He looked like a zombie with much of his rotting flesh exposed. Somehow he had discarded his shirt and was using my technique of stunning the soldiers with his skin as Nightmoon ran him up and down their ranks.

Everywhere I looked there were men clad in the uniforms of Askance. I sliced my palm again, drawing enough blood to turn my fist into a deadly weapon. I used my blade in conjunction with my natural toxicity to defend my partners back as we moved from regiment to regiment, slaughtering a path through our enemies. Darts flew around us. I knocked them loose as when they hit.

Then an opening appeared, a break in the defensive forces surrounding the commanding officers. In our sights was a clear path to Howens, sitting smugly upon his steed. Cerberus bounded forward. Yet the lord didn't move, he simply stayed there, a self satisfied smirk upon his face.

I felt the stiffness in Cerberus's limbs a fraction of a second before the next dart hit. I felt him falter, the way his claws dragged along the soft dirt and his own momentum ran himself over. I was thrown from the falling lycan. Instinct yanked my hands over my head as his massive weight crashed over me, knocking the breath from my lungs. My face was shielded by my forearms as I continued to roll.

The sky was gray wash. Somehow, picturing it blue suddenly seemed like an unrealistic dream. It was always gray, with rain, with snow, sometimes because it had no other color to be, not in the world I lived in.

My head screamed out. I grit my teeth against the pain. A brownish figure entered my hazy field of vision. A black figure slid off it, running to my side and helping me sit up. There was too much commotion, too much noise going on around me. Now it was my ribs which screeched.

Cyrus leapt to his feet, swinging his saber wide. Without his support I fell forward. My whole chest fought every breath I took. I coughed. My mind momentarily blurred.

"Desire, are you okay?" I was being pulled to my feet. I clutched Cyrus's arm.

"Cerberus..."

"Um..."

My gaze wandered out. Strangely, we weren't surrounded, as I would expect. My eyes found my albino companion, lifted by a company of six men. The draft skittered as they hoisted the lycan on it's back. The animal seemed to struggle under his weight.

"Cerberus...?"

Then it hit me. They were taking him! Howens couldn't capture Cerberus! I couldn't let him!

"Cerberus!"

My every muscle and every joint was a needle of pain as I broke free of Cyrus's grasp, running toward the sedated lycan. I didn't care. I couldn't let them harm him. The man quickly caught me, arms wrapping tight around my body as I struggled against him.

"Cerberus!"

The panicked adrenaline began to fade from my veins, leaving my limbs weak. I still fought with all the strength I had left, even as darkness encroached on the corners of my vision. My thoughts faded into a confused blur.

"Cerberus..."