The battlefield stretched beyond imagination.
Riven had seen armies before.
He had fought soldiers.
Mercenaries.
Hunters.
Elite warriors.
He had witnessed sieges.
Skirmishes.
Massacres.
I loved this chapter I think it was chapter
106
But this...
This was different.
This was war.
Real war.
The kind spoken about in history books.
The kind that reshaped continents.
The kind that buried entire generations beneath blood-soaked soil.
Riven sat atop his mount at the front lines of the Third Order and stared across the plains.
The horizon itself had disappeared.
Not because of distance.
But because millions of soldiers occupied it.
To the west stood the armies of the Second Order.
A crimson ocean of warriors stretching farther than sight could follow.
Blood banners snapped beneath the Blood Moon.
Siege beasts pawed at the earth.
War drums thundered across the plains.
Every beat felt like a second heartbeat.
A promise of violence.
To the east stood the Fourth Order.
Silver banners.
Perfect formations.
Rows upon rows of disciplined soldiers standing in absolute synchronization.
The Lunar Vanguard occupied the center.
Their silver armor reflected the crimson moonlight.
Creating the illusion of a sea of blood-stained stars.
Between them...
The Third Order.
Outnumbered.
Surrounded.
Waiting.
For the first time since becoming a werewolf...
Riven felt something dangerously close to fear.
Not fear for himself.
Fear for everyone around him.
Nyss.
Astra.
Roran.
Soren.
Marlis.
Eryx.
Lira.
Thousands of soldiers behind him.
All of them could die here.
The realization sat heavily in his chest.
The battlefield suddenly felt much larger.
And he felt very small.
Beside him, Eryx noticed immediately.
"Overwhelming, isn't it?"
Riven didn't deny it.
"...Yeah."
Eryx's gaze remained forward.
"My first war felt the same."
Riven looked at him.
"You?"
A faint smile appeared.
"For about five minutes."
That earned a small laugh.
A very small one.
Then silence returned.
The battlefield waited.
The world held its breath.
Far away.
Beyond the borders of the Four Orders.
Beyond the Blood Moon.
Beyond the coming slaughter.
The First Order watched.
The capital of the First stood like a monument carved from arrogance itself.
Massive obsidian towers pierced the heavens.
Golden runes glowed along black stone walls.
Everything about the city proclaimed dominance.
Strength.
Authority.
Perfection.
At its center sat the throne of Origin.
And upon it...
Aurelion Kharos.
The Alpha of the First.
The King of Kings.
The strongest werewolf alive.
He sat lazily upon his throne.
One arm resting against the armrest.
One leg draped carelessly over the other.
Bored.
Almost disappointed.
As if the entire world had failed to entertain him.
The throne room remained silent.
No one dared disturb him.
Until the doors opened.
A woman entered.
Tall.
Scarred.
Powerful.
Thryssa Wildbane.
Acting First Lieutenant.
Former Second Lieutenant of the First Order.
One of the strongest warriors alive.
She knelt immediately.
"My Liege."
Aurelion didn't move.
"Mm."
"The war has begun."
Silence.
"The Blood Moon conflict has officially started.
A pause.
"The carnage is about to begin."
The throne room became completely still.
Not a single soul moved.
Not a single breath sounded.
Then...
Aurelion smiled.
A genuine smile.
The kind that immediately terrified everyone present.
Because Aurelion Kharos rarely smiled.
And when he did...
Something catastrophic usually followed.
His aura exploded.
The entire palace shook.
Blood lustful pressure flooded the throne room.
Columns cracked.
Windows shattered.
The floor groaned beneath impossible weight.
Thryssa immediately dropped lower.
Her breathing became difficult.
Every instinct she possessed screamed at her to flee.
To kneel.
To submit.
Aurelion's smile widened.
Then
He vanished.
Thryssa blinked.
The throne was empty.
A sudden breeze brushed past her.
Then a voice came from behind.
"So it's finally starting."
Thryssa froze.
Aurelion stood several meters away.
Hands in his pockets.
Looking toward the distant horizon.
She hadn't even seen him move.
Not a step.
Not a blur.
Nothing.
Just gone.
The strongest werewolf in existence laughed quietly.
Then waved dismissively.
"Then this battle..."
His golden eyes gleamed.
"...I must see."
And for the first time in years...
Aurelion Kharos looked interested.
Back on the battlefield.
The tension finally broke.
A lone rider emerged from the enemy lines.
Then another.
One from the Second.
One from the Fourth.
Both rode calmly toward the Third Order.
Thousands of warriors watched.
No one moved.
No one attacked.
Ancient battlefield customs still existed.
Messengers were granted passage.
Even during war.
The riders stopped before Queen Nyxara.
One stepped forward.
A Lunar Vanguard officer.
His voice carried clearly across the plains.
"By decree of Her Majesty Selene Astrae, Alpha of the Fourth Order."
The second messenger raised his voice.
"And by decree of His Majesty Caelum Valen, Alpha of the Second Order."
Silence spread.
The battlefield listened.
The messenger continued.
"To avoid unnecessary bloodshed..."
Riven already disliked where this was going.
The messenger pointed directly toward him.
"Hand over the fugitive Riven Thorn."
A pause.
"And his companions."
The second messenger spoke.
"Along with Princess Nyss Astrae."
The battlefield became deathly silent.
Thousands of eyes turned toward Riven.
Toward Nyss.
Toward the people the war supposedly revolved around.
Riven's hands slowly moved toward his twin blades.
Moonfang.
Nightrend.
His grip tightened.
The messengers waited.
Expecting surrender.
Expecting compromise.
Expecting fear.
Instead
Nyxara laughed.
A single amused sound.
Quiet.
Dangerous.
The messengers frowned.
Then the Queen rose from her mount.
Silver eyes burning.
"The Third protects its own."
Her voice carried effortlessly.
Cold.
Absolute.
"Those under my protection are not bargaining chips."
The pressure around her intensified.
The Blood Moon illuminated her silver hair.
"I do not kneel."
The battlefield trembled.
Thousands of Third Order warriors straightened instinctively.
The Queen's voice thundered across the plains.
"I am Nyxara Veilborne!"
The air itself seemed to shake.
"Alpha of the Third!"
"Keeper of Night!"
"Ruler of the Third Order!"
The declaration echoed for miles.
Then her gaze settled upon the enemy armies.
Every word struck like a blade.
"And this..."
A pause.
"...means war."
Silence.
One heartbeat.
Two.
Then
Eryx moved.
No warning.
No hesitation.
No mercy.
Shadow flashed.
Steel sang.
Two heads fell.
The messengers never even realized they were dead.
Their bodies collapsed from their mounts.
The battlefield froze.
Then Eryx raised his blade.
And roared.
"CHARGE!"
The Third Order erupted.
Thousands of warriors surged forward.
Howls split the sky.
Weapons rose.
The earth shook.
War had begun.
Across the battlefield, Selene Astrae watched calmly.
No surprise.
No anger.
Only inevitability.
A faint smile touched her lips.
Then she raised her hand.
"Destroy them all."
The Fourth Order moved.
Perfect.
Organized.
Lethal.
An entire army advancing as one.
At the same moment
Caelum Valen laughed.
A savage sound.
He rose from his throne atop the war platform.
His crimson aura erupted.
"FINALLY!"
The Second Order charged.
Like an avalanche of blood and violence.
The plains trembled beneath millions of pounding feet.
The distance vanished.
The gap closed.
Faster.
Closer.
Closer.
Then
Impact.
The armies collided.
Steel met steel.
Aura met aura.
Blood met blood.
The sound was deafening.
A wall of violence erupted across the battlefield.
Formation dissolved.
Order vanished.
Chaos was born.
Riven drew both blades.
The battlefield exploded around him.
And the Blood Moon watched from above.