The morning sun filtered through the trees, casting dappled shadows on the ground as Alex walked through the camp, his mind preoccupied with the challenges ahead. The air was filled with the sounds of preparation—wolves talking in low tones, the clinking of weapons being packed away, and the rustling of tents being dismantled. The atmosphere was charged with a mix of anticipation and uncertainty, as the packs prepared to return to their territories, now bound by a fragile alliance.
Alex's conversation with the rogues the previous day had gone better than he'd expected, but he knew that integrating them into the pack would take time and careful management. Trust, as he had told Marcus and Sara, was something that had to be earned. And for the rogues, it was a foreign concept after years of living on the fringes.