Lavender turned her attention to the second attacker, who lunged at her with a snarl. She dodged, and the wolf’s claws grazed her furred arm. Pain shot through her, but she didn’t let it slow her down. She reached out, her grip pressing against the wolf’s side. The wolf yelped, stumbling back before retreating into the darkness.
As the battle raged on, Lavender continued to move through the chaos, healing the wounded and shielding the vulnerable. She found herself fighting alongside Beta Flint, whose ferocity rivaled even Cedar's. Together, they successfully reversed the situation, forcing the Bloodfang wolves to retreat incrementally.
Finally, as dawn began to break, the Bloodfang pack retreated, their numbers decimated. The battlefield was littered with the injured and the fallen, the ground stained with blood. The surviving warriors collapsed in exhaustion, their breaths ragged.
The pack members emerged cautiously from the safe rooms. They gathered around the injured, their voices low as they assessed the damage. Lavender wasted no time, her hands glowing as she moved from one warrior to the next, closing wounds and easing pain.
The gratitude in their eyes was humbling. “Thank you, Luna,” one warrior murmured. “You saved us.”
Lavender shook her head. “I only did what I could. Rest now. You’ve earned it.”
As she finished healing the last of the injured, Cedar approached her. His wolf form had shifted back, and he was covered in scratches and bruises. But it wasn’t his injuries that caught her attention. It was the look in his eyes—a mix of admiration and regret.
“Lavender,” he began.
She held up a hand, cutting him off. “Don’t. This isn’t the time for apologies.”
Cedar’s gaze flicked to Flint, who stood nearby, his arms crossed. “How did you know?” Cedar asked him.
Flint’s expression was unreadable as he replied, “Luna Lavender warned me. She discovered the threat and made sure I was prepared.”
The pack members around them murmured their thanks to Flint, their admiration clear. Cedar’s shoulders sagged slightly, the weight of his failure pressing down on him.
Lavender turned to Flint. “Thank you for listening. You saved them. All of them.”
He nodded. “You’re the one who saw the danger. You’re the one who deserves their gratitude.”