*The Broken Stones*

 Smoke curled between shattered pillars, carrying the metallic sting of blood. Crystal’s flames flickered weaker around her hands—her breathing ragged, but the battlefield gave her no mercy.

 Ryder’s golden eyes met hers across the battlefield. Then the ground quaked beneath them. A shadow beast lunged, its form blotting out the rising sun. Ryder’s wolf, Aiden, surged to the surface, tearing the creature apart in a spray of smoke and fluid. But even as it fell, ...