As Serena stood at the centre of the war room, the morning air was very cool. Maps were spread out on the wooden table before her. The tension in the room was thick, filled with murmurs of worry as the pack elders and warriors kept gathering.

The scout conveyed disturbing intelligence indicating that a new pack under an unknown leader was regrouping. Where they had come from no one knew, but they were fast growing and did pose a direct danger to the very tenuous peace they were trying to establish.

Serena exhaled as she looked from face to face around the room, many battle-worn and weary of the endless...