Chapter 25
Necessary Sacrifice
Alexa
“Lucifer, the Lord of Darkness, or whatever other name he goes by. We call him Lucifer,” Marlon explains with the same calm expression. “We believe he kidnapped our queen, along with one of His Majesty’s sacred heirlooms, and brought them into this world.”
“He kidnapped the Dragon Queen?” I ask. “How’s that even possible? He had to possess Alastair just to manifest here, and that only happened last week.”
“The Dragon World and our world don’t move through time at the same pace,” Mr. Moris explains calmly. “Something that happened long ago in the Dragon World may have occurred here a week ago.”
“Our wizard received a vision,” Marlon continues.
“He saw Lucifer using the power of the heirloom and the Dragon Queen, who serves as its key bearer, to create a crack in his prison. Fragments of his energy then seeped through that crack into this world. But the magic performed by a powerful Alpha wolf shifter is especially effective at pulling more of that energy through, allowing him to gather an army. When Mr. Moris contacted us, I was sent here as an envoy.”
“And you know all that from a wizard’s vision?” Jack asks slowly, disbelief written all over his face.
Marlon simply nods, unfazed by Jack’s skepticism.
“And Lucifer’s building himself an army?” Jack asks again, making sure he heard correctly.
“He is.” Marlon folds his hands together. “Every prophecy speaks of the same ending. The Lord of Darkness gathers his legions from across all worlds and marches against the Gods.”
Silence settles over the room. No one speaks. We’re all trying to process everything we’ve just heard. It’s almost too much to absorb.
“Did you know any of this?” I ask Mythril.
“Stories about the Lord of Darkness fighting the Moon Goddess have existed for centuries,” Mythril says uneasily. “But they were always treated as a prophecy. Legends. I never thought the dragons were dealing with Lucifer himself.” Her anxiety bleeds into me, tightening my chest.
“I get it.” Harlow finally breaks the silence. “So your goal is to capture Lucifer while he’s in this world and interrogate him?”
“Exactly.” Marlon nods once.
“Well, whatever your reasons are, at least you’re volunteerin’ to help.” Julius crosses his arms. “One dragon warrior’s worth more than a whole bunch of werewolves. Sure beats a werewolf who spent half his time sayin’ no.” He throws a pointed glare at Mr. Moris.
“For the record, I was prepared for war,” Mr. Moris says with a scowl.
“Really?” Harlow raises an eyebrow. “Because last time I checked, you said you weren’t interested in helping us.”
“There are roughly a hundred rogues standing outside, including me and Jo.” Mr. Moris leans back in his chair. “Does that satisfy you, Your Majesty?”
“Aw, shut the hell up.” Harlow laughs and punches his shoulder. “Your Majesty, my ass.” He shakes his head and chuckles. “Goddess, I’m never getting used to that title.”
“Would y’all quit foolin’ around?” Julius groans. “We’re in the middle of a war.”
I can’t stop the giggle that escapes me.
“We’re in the middle of a war,” Jack repeats in an exaggerated voice, rolling his eyes dramatically.
“This is ridiculous.” Julius pushes himself out of his chair and stalks toward the window.
The room erupts into laughter. Even Marlon lets out a quiet chuckle. How can we not?
This is the first time I’ve ever met a dragon warrior from another world. They have their own civilization, their own ancient monarchy, and apparently enough royal titles to make everyone in the room uncomfortable.
Still, I can’t deny that those titles make sense. Harlow is the Lycan King now. And I’m his Luna. Together, we carry the responsibility of defeating Alastair, at least in this world. We’ve already made our choice. There is no turning back now. Even if Alastair kills us tonight, we won’t run.
* * *
“What’d you see?” Harlow asks.
His brow furrows as he fixes his gaze on me. Not just Harlow. Nearly all of our lead warriors are staring at me, curiosity burning in their eyes.
Beneath the light of the moon, I had performed a ritual to observe the situation from a safe distance beyond the borders of Alastair’s territory.
Tomorrow is the night we attack, and I insist on carrying out the ritual despite everyone’s concerns.
Harlow keeps his arms firmly around me, cradling my motionless body while Mythril’s spirit travels across the boundaries of Silver Moon.
I blink and sit upright as feeling slowly returns to my limbs. Control over my body comes back first, then my voice. A frown pulls at my face as I recall what I saw beyond the border.
I swallow and press a hand against my throat. A bitter taste lingers in my mouth, an unpleasant aftereffect of the soul journey.
“We’re outnumbered.” My voice comes out hoarse. “They’ve got guards posted in layers. Armed soldiers everywhere.”
“What about the other gates?” Mr. Moris asks. “Any chance one of ‘em can be breached?”
I shake my head. “No. Every other entrance is sealed with iron fencing. Somebody smeared a strong-smelling liquid all over it. The only gate still being guarded manually is the front entrance.”
“Wolfsbane,” Julius says. “Anybody with wolf blood who breathes it in or touches it will weaken fast. Paralysis ain’t far behind.”
“Just like what they used in Blood Moon Prison,” Harlow murmurs, his gaze drifting elsewhere.
The memory returns to me. I remember curling up behind those poisoned bars, helpless and weak. If Harlow hadn’t come for me, I might have rotted there forever.
“So how many guards are we talking about?” Jack asks carefully. “Did you get a count?”
My expression darkens. I never counted the exact number, but I don’t need exact numbers to know what I saw. Soldiers occupy nearly every post. Men in black shirts cover the territory like a living shadow.
“Too many,” I admit. “And I couldn’t see inside the Scott family house, either. Some kind of dark magic is blocking my sight. I tried several times to push through it, but every attempt failed.”
My frown deepens. I never expected Alastair’s defenses to be established this quickly. Gabriel is supposed to be there. When we left Silver Moon, he and Lorraine remained behind. Yet during the ritual, I couldn’t sense either of their auras anywhere.
Did Alastair kill them? The thought sends a chill through me. It shouldn’t be possible. Lorraine openly declared she would become Alastair’s Luna, and Gabriel had chosen to stand at his side. So, where are they?
“They might’ve become another sacrifice for Alastair,” Mythril says inside my head. “Just like his uncle.”
“So attackin’ through the front gate is basically suicide.” Julius mutters the conclusion before I can say it myself.
“What say you, Harlow?” Marlon asks.
The Lycan King falls silent. For several long moments, he says nothing. Then he exhales and looks around the circle, meeting the eyes of each warrior gathered here. His gaze stops on me last.
“Do y’all trust me and Alexa?” he asks.
Every man nods. They’re ready to fight. Ready to die if that’s what it takes. None of them wants to sit around waiting for Alastair to strike first. Since last week, they’ve all sworn the same thing. We would take the fight to him. We would end this on our own terms.
“Alright then.” Harlow straightens in his seat. “We move tomorrow. Just like we planned.”
* * *
Harlow extends his hand and helps me climb the last ledge of the cliff. I’m panting, sweat dripping from my temples. My braided hair is damp where it clings to the edges of my face.
We sneak back into Silver Moon through the western cliff. Alastair still seems unaware that this cliff is a labyrinth. Even if he knows, he doesn’t seem to care. The western forest is dark and deserted, without a single soldier standing guard.
“Ain’t this a little too quiet? Shouldn’t he have guards posted here?” I whisper to Harlow.
“Stay sharp,” Harlow says.
He points toward a distant light moving wildly through the darkness.
Strange roars boom across the night, and piercing howls echo without end.
The troops led by Julius have already begun the assault at the front gate.
They’re all hoping their sacrifice will open a path for us to strike straight into the enemy’s heart.
“C’mon.” Harlow pats my shoulder and moves ahead, stepping into the darkness of Silver Moon’s forest. Our destination is the Scott family house, where Alastair lives. We do everything we can to avoid detection.
Just as planned, the enemy soldiers have concentrated their forces at the front gate.
No one is foolish enough to ignore Marlon in his green dragon form wreaking havoc there.
Soldiers rush back and forth while Harlow and I slip through the shadows of trees and the narrow gaps between citizens’ homes.
In the last alley before the Scott family house, a lone guard bearing a Blood Moon sigil on his neck stands near the back entrance. No one else is with him. Judging by the way he’s hunched against the wall, he seems reluctant to join the battle at the front gate.
In a blur of movement, Harlow appears behind him the moment the man turns his back. One arm snakes around his throat. The guard drops unconscious instantly. Harlow gives me a nod, and we continue moving through the shadows.
Outside, the battle grows louder. Explosions rumble through the ground beneath our feet. Then comes the unmistakable crash of iron collapsing.
The main gate of Silver Moon has fallen. Our forces have broken through. Neither of us hesitates any longer. We run toward the house, preparing ourselves for whatever waits inside.
Almost immediately, something feels wrong. The dark aura saturating the house is so thick it makes the air feel heavier with every breath, yet there isn’t a single guard inside. The staircase leading to the second floor is empty as well. No one is watching it.
“Something’s wrong,” I tell Harlow through the mind link.
“Can you feel him upstairs?” Harlow asks.