The Prince Who Fell From the Sky Read Online Free PDF

had ever seen together in one place—lay around the exterior of the stone structure. Some wrestled with one another. Some slept. A few watched her impassively as she and Gall passed them.
    There was no turning back now. To gather her courage she reminded herself that the reward could be immeasurable if she played it right. But if she incurred the Ogeema’s wrath, she would have to hope her and Gall’s deaths would be swift. She knew they would not be so lucky.
    “Look up,” Gall whispered to her.
    The exterior of the den was covered in ivy and vines. A few exposed portions showed that the structure was built in the Skinless’s fashion of stacked stones. From the roof of the den rose an immense spire, taller even than the surrounding trees. At the top Rend spied a solitary wolf poking his head through the tangle of ivy.
    “How do they get up there?” Gall gasped.
    Before she could reply, the wolf high in the tower howled. His call was instantly answered by the wolves surrounding the den. Even the guards leading them stopped to add to the tremendous sound. Gall sank to the ground, terror paralyzing him. Rend listened as barks and howls echoed from the surrounding woods. Wolves innumerable cried out the Ogeema’s name, warning any who heard their chorus that they would die upon a thousand teeth if they entered their domain.
    Rend had heard this call before, but only carried faintly on the wind. As terrifying as it was, she knew it was purely ceremonial. None who heard the call would consider taking up against the Ogeema’s army.
    As the last of the chorus died away, the guards led Rend and Gall into the den. Rend was surprised not only by the enormity of the space but also by its dimness. She had been in caves—many where she had birthed litters—but they were tight and comfortable. Never this cavernous! She had also been inside the Skinless’s ruins, but they were mostly open to the sky. The Ogeema’s hall was the most perfectly intact Skinless structure she had ever entered.
    Along both sides of the long space were faintly glowing panels of every imaginable color. Some were broken, and through them Rend could see the wall of ivy that covered the outside of the den. The hall was deeply shadowed, and nowhere more so than the far end where they were being led.
    The guards stopped just before they reached an area where the floor was higher. Atop the rise, immense wolves—much bigger than the guards and any of the wolves outside—lounged about, a few lifting their ears or heads as the guards approached. A scattering of rolling pups snapped at one another in playful bundles.
    Behind the wolves lay an alcove of utter darkness. Rend could hear breathing coming from the darkness, and while she could not see the wolf inside, she knew it was the Ogeema.
    The guards backed away, all except their leader. “My general,” he said.
    The wolves on the rise turned to the dark alcove. The pups ceased their games. Rend heard a strained sound slip from Gall’s throat, and she feared her mate might make a suicidal dash for escape. She gave him a quick nip on the top of his nose.
    A voice spoke from the dark. “What season is it, guard?”
    “My Ogeema?” the guard asked.
    The Ogeema’s voice was not the guttural snaps typical of a wolf. The words were whispered, but the power in that barely present voice unnerved Rend to her core.
    “The season. I asked what season it is in the Forest.”
    The guard hesitated a moment before saying, “Near High Summer, my Ogeema.”
    A pair of eyes appeared in the shadows. One was golden and the other was a pale sky-silver. Rend thought for a moment the Ogeema might be blind in the pale eye, for she had heard the Ogeema was deeply battle-scarred from his rise to power in the pack. But as she looked closer she saw the dark pupil in the center and realized his eyes were simply two different colors.
    “It isn’t yet Summer’s End?” the Ogeema breathed.
    “No, my Ogeema.” The guard