Year 14,999 BCE – Cycle 6, Month 4
Pre-Dawn — Westfield Keep War Tower
Mist clung to the low hills like a shroud as the Duskford River murmured far below. From the tower's narrow balcony, Aleric West studied the shadowed valley through the slitted visor of his foxfire helm. The pale glow of wardstones shimmered faintly along the bridge — weak, but holding for now.
Behind him, messengers padded in and out, parchment scrolls damp from the night air. General Torrek Duskbane loomed at the map table, one claw tracing a defensive arc.
"They'll hit before sunrise," Torrek said, his voice a low growl.
"They'll hit twice before sunrise," Aleric replied. "The first wave will be noise — wolves testing our strength. The second will be the bite."
Duskford Bridge — Captain Elenya Veyra's Command
Captain Elenya Veyra stood at the bridge's heart, her bow strung and a silver-etched quiver at her hip. Moonlight caught in her hair, turning it to strands of pale fire. Behind her, the Moon Guard shifted restlessly — twenty archers in blackened mail, foxfire charms glowing at their throats.
The mist moved wrong. She saw it first.
"Archers — notch!"
Shapes burst from the fog — low, fast, teeth flashing. The first wave of warewolf raiders slammed into the barricades with bone-jarring force. Arrows flew, streaks of pale-blue light finding gaps between armor plates. One wolf howled as an arrow punched through his helm, collapsing in the churn of the river spray.
Back at the War Tower
"Signal the southern bank — no retreat without my order," Aleric commanded. His eyes narrowed as a second formation appeared in the north: heavier, slower, carrying something long and wrapped in oilskin.
Torrek frowned. "Siege spears. They'll shatter the wardstones in one strike."
Aleric's lips curled in a fox's smile. "Then they'll have to reach the stones first."
The Bridge – Second Wave
The wolves surged again, this time shielded by their own mages. Lightning hissed in the air, crawling over the bridge's wet planks. Elenya darted to the forward line, loosing an arrow tipped with a moonstone shard. It hit a mage square in the chest — his spell imploded in a burst of pale dust.
But the enemy's spear-bearers pushed forward, closing the gap. One slammed a spear into the wardstone; the bridge shuddered, light flaring wildly.
"Hold the line!" Elenya shouted, drawing her last moonstone arrow.
A foxfire signal flared from the southern bank — reinforcements.
Aftermath
By the time the sun rose, the wolves were gone, leaving only bodies, blood, and a cracked wardstone. Aleric stood on the bridge beside Elenya, his boots slick with river spray.
"They wanted us to bleed here," she said quietly.
Aleric's gaze followed the river's path northward. "Then they'll get more than they bargained for."
Far upriver, the mist lingered, hiding the retreating wolves. Among them rode a dark figure in a bone-white mask — watching, measuring.
The war had begun in earnest.