Chapter 5: Bloodline and Black Ash
A crimson haze drifted low across Black Ash Vale as dawn peeled back the darkness. The morning air buzzed with energy—raw, ancient, electric. A storm was awakening, not in the skies, but in the blood.
Kael stood barefoot near the Lawstone, the sharp obsidian ground warm beneath his feet. Around him, members of the Crimson Howl clutched their chests, breathing heavily as if something inside them was stirring.
The Chaos Bloodline had begun its first stage of awakening.
Seth dropped to one knee, sweat pouring down his face. "It's like something's crawling under my skin," he growled.
"It's more than that," murmured Flam, his usual smirk gone. "I feel... watched. As if the blood itself remembers what we forgot."
Kael opened the system in his mind.
System Update:
Chaos Bloodline Stage 1: Partial Awakening
Pack-wide Effects:
— Resistance +2%
— Night Vision Enhanced
— Blood Sensitivity: Activated (Detect hostile intent within 5 meters)
— Instinct Awakening Threshold Unlocked
Note: The bloodline will strengthen with pack growth, challenges, and rituals. Shared by all members of the Crimson Howl.
Kael's hands trembled. This wasn't his power alone—it belonged to all of them. A gift, and a burden.
"Alpha!" a voice shouted from the ridge.
A scout limped into view, his leg bloodied. "We found a camp at the eastern cliffs. Not rogues. They wear sigils of the Hollow Shade."
Kael stiffened.
The Hollow Shade Pack.
One of the mid-tier packs that once eyed Crimson Howl lands with envy. Opportunistic. Cruel. And known for striking when their enemies were weakest.
"They've set up a stone ward," the scout continued. "Looks ritualistic. They might be summoning something—or someone."
System Alert:
External Threat Detected: Hollow Shade Invaders
Mission Unlocked: First Pack Defense
Objectives:
— Investigate the enemy warding camp
— Repel the intruders
Optional: Capture one alive for interrogation
Reward: Pack Resource Drop + Chaos Bloodline Progression
Failure: Territory Loss + Bloodline Regression Risk
Kael looked around. Warriors straightened. The younger wolves growled, instincts prickling.
"We just formed our laws," Kael muttered. "Now we defend them."
Seth cracked his neck. "About time."
Kael drew his father's blade, the edge humming.
"Prepare yourselves," he called. "We move at moonfall."
Howls rang through the valley—not of fear, but of purpose.
For the first time since the Black Moon, the Crimson Howl wasn't just surviving.
It was ready to fight.