Page 60 of The Hyena’s Guardian

Silence followed. Then Theron spoke for the first time since entering the chamber. “The mountain is failing.”

Every operative in the room stiffened slightly at the sound of his voice. The roughness in it still sounded unnatural enough to unsettle people automatically, but the words themselves remained controlled despite the strain beneath them.

Vale folded her arms. “And you would know that because?”

Theron held her gaze. “Because I was the last guardian keeping it contained.”

That answer did not improve the atmosphere.

Matt pinched the bridge of his nose. “See, this is what I mean. Every answer somehow creates three additional problems.”

Then another tremor rolled violently through the chamber. This one knocked loose several chunks of stone from the ceiling while the floodlights flickered hard enough to plunge portions of the room into momentary darkness. Somewhere deep below them, the roar echoed again.

The sound silenced every argument instantly. Several operatives instinctively looked toward the tunnels behind them with visible unease.

Theron turned toward the deeper corridors at once, every line of his body tightening. “He wakes faster now.”

Vale’s gaze sharpened. “Who wakes?”

For the first time since entering the chamber, genuine hesitation crossed Theron’s expression.

Matt answered for him. “The First King.”

Silence crashed through the room. One of the wolves actually laughed once beneath his breath. “That’s impossible.”

Theron looked toward him. “No,” he said softly. “It is not.”

The chamber fell still again after that. Matt could practically feel morale deteriorating in real time.

Baptiste stepped forward carefully, eyes shifting between Matt and Theron. “You trust him.” It was not phrased as a question.

Matt hesitated only briefly. “Yes.”

Saying it aloud made the certainty of it impossible to ignore. The moment the word left his mouth, Theron went completely still beside him. Matt felt something deeper than surprise move through the bond, something dangerously close to hope. Baptiste noticed that too.

Baptiste studied them more carefully as understanding settled across his face. “Oh,” he said quietly.

Matt’s eyebrows climbed. “I do not like the tone of that oh.”

“You have bonded.”

Every operative in the chamber looked alarmed again. Matt blinked once. “Great. Fantastic. Apparently we’re announcing things now.”

Vale looked between them sharply. “Explain.”

Theron looked away, and Matt suddenly understood exactly how badly he expected this to go.

The realization hit harder than Matt wanted it to. “The bond is stabilizing him,” Matt said before Theron could answer. “The corruption has a harder time holding on when we’re connected.”

He motioned toward the tunnels behind them.

One of the wolves went still. “That’s impossible. Bonds are instinct.”

“No,” Theron said. “That is what remained after history forgot.”

The chamber fell silent again. Then Baptiste looked toward Matt carefully. “And this bond formed naturally?”

Matt opened his mouth, paused, then sighed. “Honestly? I feel like naturally stopped applying to my life several hours ago.”