"No," she admitted. "But I can stop you from making a mistake that will get everyone here killed. These wolves followed you because they thought you'd protect them. Not throw them into a slaughter."

I wanted to argue, but something in her words stopped me. I looked out the window at the training grounds, at the wolves sparring and laughing and building something that resembled hope.

"Then what do you suggest?" I asked quietly.

"We keep building. Keep training. We hit smaller targets, ...