Chapter 67. Challenge

Avery’s POV

The morning air was crisp, carrying the sharp bite of dawn as I made my way toward the mines. A thin layer of mist still clung to the earth, the world around me eerily silent except for the distant chirping of birds.

The land stretched vast before me, once rich with promise, now reduced to abandoned tunnels and collapsed structures. Once, these mines had been a source of prosperity, providing wealth, security, and stability for the Pack. Now, they were nothing but ghosts of our past—forgotten ruins swallowed by time and neglect.

I walked slowly, my boots crunching against the damp earth, my breath misting in the cool air. The deeper I ventured, the heavier the weight of our Pack’s losses settled upon me. It wasn’t just the war that had broken us; it was the aftermath—the slow decay, the absence of hope, the way we all carried our grief like a second skin.

We had lost warriors. We had lost families. We had lost the sense of safety that had o