Dire Bound

A week later, the former Strategos Alpha, Aldrich, teaches Meryn and Henrey (the only two commoner Rawbonds) Bonded knowledge. They discuss the different roles of their packs and how Stark’s mother, Siegrid Therion, is the Sovereign Alpha, who can communicate with all wolves in all packs. Since the Sovereign Alpha is typically chosen through family inheritance, Stark is next in line to inherit the title. Aldrich explains why the king isn’t Bonded: It’s a means to keep a balance of power between humans and direwolves.

Meryn is skeptical about much of what she learns. When she and Henrey leave, they discuss how Meryn became Bonded, and she tells him about the Nabbers. Despite being a commoner, Henrey never heard of the Nabbers in his native home, Blumenfall. His city is nearest to the front, so Meryn thought the Nabbers would be most prevalent there. Meryn goes to her next class, where Stark is the instructor. He trains the students to use swords, and Meryn does poorly, especially while riding Anassa. After Stark lands a particularly harsh blow and notes the bruises on her body, she spits in his face and is surprised when he doesn’t react. Instead, he calls out Anassa for not healing her.