30
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A V R I L
One moment the forest was silent; the next, it erupted into chaos.
Deep down, I had hoped it wouldn’t come to this, though I knew the chances were slim - worse than slim. Blood Rose could have been spared, but whatever suspicions they harbored about the fledgling were enough for their alpha to refuse his release. Even if they only had an inkling of what Ruac truly was, it was already too dangerous. No amount of regret would change what had to be done.
Between them and us, I would always choose my family.
My head instinctively turned toward where Koen was hidden with the rest of his team. Closing my eyes, I slipped the magical bracelet from my wrist, the restraints on my power falling away as a surge of strength coursed through me. We would need everything we had to ensure no one was lost tonight. Casting aside the last shred of hesitation, I sent a single, unyielding command through the pack bond: Attack .
In the blink of an eye, two teams emerged from the shadows to my left and right, forming the first line of attack. Positioned at a safe distance earlier, it had taken them a few seconds to arrive - just enough time for Brent’s scouts to regroup defensively around him.
“We’re under attack!” one of the scouts shouted as she spotted the moving shadows.
An order from their leader quickly followed. “Protect the alpha!”
The scouts who were already in werewolf form jumped in to intercept the surprise attack, only to have their necks snapped like twigs. In the distance, I could see blurs as the rest of my warriors arrived with a deadly precision, materializing out of the darkness like living phantoms. They marched into Blood Rose’s territory, consuming everything in their path.
Brent’s amber eyes widened, his bravado cracking as the first wave of my pack descended on his. It was obvious he had no idea what was going on - what he was up against. As he watched his warriors fall left and right, his gaze eventually darted to me. The terror in his expression contrasted with the collected coldness in mine.
Straightening my posture, I stared straight into his eyes. Relaxing my shoulders, I stopped suppressing my alpha aura. There was no point in hiding it from him anymore. And when realization hit him, his face went pale.
“It’s her! She’s their leader!” Brent barked to his warriors, his composure slipping. “Get her!”
While more sentinels gathered around their alpha to hold back my warriors, the head sentinel turned his attention to me. Already in animal form, he jumped toward me - a huge mistake. Before he could even land, Theo and Elijah had already shifted, catching him mid-air and tearing him apart like a stuffed animal.
The other wolves scrambled to respond, but they were outmatched. My wolves were faster, stronger, and ruthless . Smoke curled around the clearing, shrouding the fight in a thick, choking veil that disoriented the members of Blood Rose. As they fought for their lives, Brent turned to flee.
Coward.
Letting Kea out, I launched myself forward, weaving through the chaos as I pursued him. He darted into the trees, his black coat blending with the smoke, but he couldn’t hide from me. My wolf was swifter, her senses sharper.
“ He’s heading northwest, ” I told my team through the mindlink. “ Hold the others back. Brent is mine. ”
Eliminating the alpha was our primary objective. Once he was taken down, his pack would weaken, making it easier for my warriors to eliminate the rest.
Brent’s paws pounded against the earth, desperation fueling his speed, but Kea was relentless. The chase only exhilarated her, the sharp scent of his fear driving her focus. The forest blurred around us as she locked onto her prey with single-minded determination.
Blinking between shadows, Kea quickly caught up to him near a ravine. With a leap, she knocked him down, using her sheer strength to keep him down, her paw pressing his head against the cold snow. His eyes widened, wild with panic.
Desperate to break free, the alpha thrashed beneath us. His claws raked against Kea’s stomach and hind legs, but she didn’t flinch. Instead, she bore down harder, her talons digging into his skull and turning his snarls into pitiful whimpers.
A part of me wished he’d throw me off, stand up, and put up a good fight. That he wouldn’t go down so easily. That taking his life wouldn’t feel so effortless.
But it did.
In a matter of seconds, Kea crushed his skull like an insignificant nut. His blood splattered across the ground, dying the snow red. As my wolf stepped away from the lifeless corpse, she stumbled at the sight.
I stilled for a moment, the realization of how inferior the creature was compared to me settling deep within. It wasn’t a surprise - Brent wasn’t the first regular wolf I’d defeated without breaking a sweat. But this time, it felt different. I almost felt sorry that he had to become collateral damage, like this was never a fair fight to begin with.
Shaking off the feeling, I refocused on the mission. “Brent is dead,” I sent through the mindlink, my tone firm. “Finish them off.”
K O E N
Once all hell broke loose, my sole focus became keeping up with the Ashen Wolves. Without their power-suppressing bracelets, they were a force to be reckoned with. It had already been hard enough training to match their skills for the trials, but this? This was on a whole other level.
Col’s muscles burned as he pushed our body to the limit, sprinting forward with the widest gait he could manage, trying to match the speed of the shadow-stepping beasts. Thankfully, my team didn’t advance as quickly as the others, since we were mostly supporters. Theo’s team, to our left, and Elijah’s team, to our right, were the primary attacking fronts.
I didn’t get to experience as much action, but honestly, I was fine with that. Even though I could understand Avril’s reasons, it still didn’t sit well with me to take innocent lives. This was her battle - as her partner, I would aid her in any way that I could, but I lacked the purpose to justify a thirst for blood.
As we advanced into Blood Rose’s territory, the battle became more chaotic. The teams dispersed more as they chased off enemies who they couldn’t let escape with life - no one must survive , Avril had instructed. Most of the members of my team moved to assist the wolves on the beta’s team as they warded off a bigger wave of soldiers. Falling behind, readied himself to follow them when the sound of a whimper made him turn his head in the other direction.
Through my wolf’s eyes, I watched Waylon’s beast fall to the ground a few feet away from us. Soon after, six shifters surrounded him, two of them pouncing on him at the same time. Luckily, he was nimble enough to disappear into the shadows they cast, reappearing behind one of the warriors and promptly closing his jaws around the adversary’s neck. Yet, in the next moment, the others were on him again.
Scanning the area to understand why he was alone, I spotted Elijah a little further ahead with the rest of the wolves he was leading, all focused on their own battle. They must not have realized that Waylon was in trouble. By now, the warriors on my team were too far away to notice him. And without a pack bond, I couldn’t mindlink any of them to come back.
Only I could help Waylon.
“Bittersweet, isn’t it?” Col groaned. “Do you think these warriors are enough to cause him trouble?” he wondered maliciously.
“Col!” I scolded. Yes, I despised Waylon, but in the end, he was Avril’s family, and I’d sworn to fight by their side. “You want to hold onto your pride? Nothing would piss Waylon off more than having his ass saved by us.”
A wolfish smile played on his lips. “You make a good point.”
Hesitating no more, Col advanced silently, staying as close to the ground as possible to blend in with the snow. The Blood Rose wolves were fixated on Waylon, but their ears were perked and their eyes shifted from side to side attentively, as if expecting more enemies to come. And just as Elijah had predicted, none of them anticipated an attack from below.
When we were close enough, my wolf leapt straight at the throat of one of the warriors. The precise sneak attack allowed a quick kill, and soon the group’s force was divided as they tried to deal with both Col and Waylon. As soon as he realized what was going on, the Ashen Wolf’s brows furrowed in a mix of surprise and confusion before he started fighting by my side. Together, we easily took care of the warriors.
As we caught a brief instant of peace, Waylon’s beast stared at Col - first, in bewilderment. Then, in silent gratitude. My wolf nodded in response before we both parted ways to return to our own teams.
Just as Col did, I caught a pair of eyes on us. Joe, who was on Theo’s team, was looking directly at me. It seemed they had been able to defeat the wave of enemies, and judging by the look on his face, he had witnessed my actions.
I caught myself trying to discern the emotions in his expression when a chorus of cries cut through the night. Sensing the grief in their mournful melody, I immediately knew - Brent had been killed.
From that moment on, it was an easy win for Azure Smoke.
The warriors all gathered at the heart of the territory, awaiting further commands. As I tried to distract myself from the blood in my paws and the heaviness in my heart, I scoured through the destruction for Avril. I found Kea watching the corpses, mostly expressionless, except for a tint of sadness in her eyes. She didn’t look proud or majestic, but rather thoughtful.
As if sensing my gaze, her head snapped toward me. With a quick flick of her muzzle, she signaled for me to follow, and I obeyed without hesitation. Still in wolf form, we moved through the debris, weaving toward what seemed to be the dungeons.
We passed two empty cells before finally finding what we were searching for, and my heart sank. Up until that point, I had been against Avril’s violent ways.
But everything changed when I saw with my own eyes what Blood Rose had done to the fledgling.