Chapter 412

XENOIS I stood at the head of the conference table, watching Lumina present our offensive strategy to the assembled pack elders and allied alpha representatives, and felt something close to pride war with exhaustion in my chest. She'd been working on this plan for hours—coordinating with intelligence teams, mapping Jerome's known operations, identifying weak points in his coalition structure. Her tactical mind was sharp, methodical, finding patterns and vulnerabilities that others had missed. "The key is simultaneous strikes," Lumina explained, pointing to various markers on the holographic display. "If we hit one location, Jerome pulls resources from others to reinforce. But if we attack everywhere at once, he can't redistribute effectively. His forces become isolated, vulnerable." The pack elders—many of whom had openly opposed progressive reforms just weeks ago—were listening with grudging respect. After yesterday's school attack, after watching non-traditional pack members fight to