Page 74 of The Hyena’s Guardian

He looked over.

Concern had already sharpened Matt’s expression before he even spoke again. “What is it?”

Theron listened carefully to the vibrations moving through the stone before answering. “He cannot reach us directly. But he knows where we are.”

Silence spread quickly through the formation.

One of the younger wolves near the rear tightened his grip on his rifle. “Can he get to us?”

“Not yet,” Theron said. “But he can feel weakness. Fear. Corruption.” His voice lowered. “If someone opens themselves to him, he answers.”

“That was still a terrible answer,” Matt muttered.

Theron almost apologized. The realization startled him enough that he remained silent instead.

Matt studied him briefly beneath the glow before stepping close enough for warmth to brush through the bond without drawing the others’ notice.

The corruption quieted instantly. Theron hated how much relief that brought him.

The tunnel narrowed sharply ahead before opening into another corridor lined with ancient support arches. Portions of the floor had collapsed entirely in places, revealing massive vertical drops disappearing into darkness below. The farther they descended, the older the prison became.

Older. And stranger.

The carvings along the walls no longer resembled warnings now. They looked almost reverent.

Matt noticed them too. “Please tell me those are not worship symbols.”

Theron’s expression darkened. “They are.”

Matt stared at the carvings. “Of course they are. Apparently imprisonment wasn’t enough. Somebody had to build him a religion.”

Baptiste glanced toward the nearest carvings while adjusting the strap of the anchor against his shoulder. “The First King had followers.”

“Not merely followers,” Theron said. “Devotees.”

The distinction mattered. Matt's voice lowered beside him. “I’m guessing that is significantly more horrifying than it sounds.”

Theron looked toward the symbols spreading across the walls. “The First King did not begin as a monster.”

That drew everyone’s attention. Even Vale slowed farther ahead.

Matt looked toward him carefully. “You’ve mentioned that before.”

Theron nodded once. For several seconds he considered remaining silent. The old instinct to withhold information still lived deeply inside him after centuries spent guarding secrets beneath the mountain.

But Matt was beside him. And the bond carried no fear toward him now. Only trust.

The feeling weakened Theron’s defenses in ways he still did not fully understand. “The First King united the old bloodlines long before the prison existed,” Theron said as they continued descending through the corridor. “He ended wars. Built the underground kingdoms. Created the first bonds between our kind.”

“The anchors,” Matt said softly.

“Yes.”

Another tremor rolled through the mountain.

Theron continued before the silence could settle again. “At first the bonds strengthened people. They stabilized instinct and reduced corruption. Entire generations believed he had saved our kind from destroying itself.”

“But?” Vale asked from farther ahead.