# Chapter 31

The attack came from three sides simultaneously—coordinated, practiced, deadly.

Arianna barely had time to register the first wave before she was fighting for her life. A gray wolf lunged at her from the left, jaws aimed for her throat. She twisted away, feeling teeth graze her shoulder, and countered with a slash across his flank.

First blood. But there was no time to celebrate small victories.

Another attacker came from her right, this one larger and more experienced. He moved with military precision, feinting high then going low for her legs. Arianna jumped, narrowly avoiding having her foreleg shattered, and landed badly on the uneven ground.

The...