Jungkook and Jaci hurriedly followed Aydan down to the front of the house. Taehyung and Sunny were standing to either side of a large window, using the heavy drapes to hide themselves.
"It's a bloodbath down there," ground out Taehyung.
Jungkook and Jaci found their own window, looking out at the members of Zephyr's pack being decimated without hesitation on the part of the Hunters. Jaci gripped Jungkook's arm. She felt nauseated at what she saw below.
Jungkook sensed her unease and his hand found it's way over to hers, covering it with his own. "It's okay. I won't make you fight, nor will I let anyone else make you fight."
Jaci shook her head, tears rolling down her cheeks. "I won't hide. Our brothers and sisters are down there fighting. How can I ever call myself a true werewolf and not fight for our kind when they need it the most?"
"Master wanted us to let the pack take the brunt of the fight. They knew what they were getting into," said Aydan quietly as he watched the fight with narrowed eyes.
Jungkook sighed and stared out the window. "I won't standby much longer."
"Oh, so you have a death wish?" said Zephyr, meandering up behind the trio of wolves.
Jungkook's eyes flashed as his head jerked around to face Zephyr. "No more than those wolves do," he said.
Zephyr's eyebrows lifted and then lowered. "You would be surprised."
"I can't watch this any more," said Jungkook. He hurried over to the front door, gripping the handle. A cold hand suddenly landed in his hand causing him to look up and into the cold red eyes of his longtime friend.
"I won't let you sacrifice yourself for them. Zephyr is their Alpha. If anyone goes out there it should be him, not you."
It had been a long while since Taehyung had used this particular tone of voice on Jungkook and it gave him serious pause.
"I can't let them die, Hyung. They shouldn't be considered to be expendable."
"I agree. But Zephyr talked to us before you two lovebirds got out of bed. Those wolves are different, Jungkook." Taehyung glanced at Zephyr, silently asking him to explain.
Zephyr sighed softly and sat down on the bottom step of the large staircase. He leaned his elbows on his knees and stared at the floor.
"Those wolves out there are technically part of my pack, but they aren't part of my pack. They're part of my pack to simply say they have a home somewhere. But they are wolves who have lost everything to the Society. Their mates, their pups, their original packs. Most of them out there were pack Alphas at one time. The Society Hunters took away everything that meant something to them and they just never recovered. I gave them a place to lay their head, but I couldn't give them a place to lay their broken minds and devastated hearts. They choose to be in my guard because they know they will be the first ones to face the Hunters should we have to engage with them. We dignify and honor them by letting them die the way they chose. I would never just allow my pack to go up against a brick wall, Jungkook. I'm not that heartless."
Loud thumps were heard against the door and shouts and growls were becoming increasingly louder. Jungkook lo9d between the door and the pensive Alpha on the stairs. The way Zephyr described the wolves out fighting was the same way Jungkook would describe Hoseok at one point in time. Would he have let Hoseok do what those wolves were doing? Would he have fought to keep his pack brother around or let him find his vengeance?
Jungkook felt torn, and ever bang on the heavy wooden door brought more pain to his chest. Jaci stood next to him, trembling and yet when she looked at him with eyes that mirrored his grief, he knew that Zephyr was in the right.
Being a werewolf wasn't always pretty. It wasn't glamorous. It is a life of knowing you are one of the most feared beings on the planet, and knowing that every shadow could contain someone who hates you enough to try and kill you in the most painful way possible. When push comes to shove in the werewolf community, you have every right to find the revenge you seek. No one has the right to tell you that you can't hurt the ones who hurt you or your pack.
Jungkook's head dropped to his chest and he nodded slowly. "I can't help but agree. I wish it wasn't this way, though."
Zephyr nodded and stood. "Me too. However, we must respect their wishes. Their lives will be honored in our pack and memorialized as we have done with others."
Jaci felt like normal conversations amidst the chaos just on the other side of the front door felt macabre and weird. But somehow it gave her peace for the time being. It allowed her mind to think about Zephyr's words about the memorializing, and her curiosity drove her to ask him about the wolves on the bedposts.
"The wolves on the bedposts, were they like those outside?"
Zephyr pulled his pistol from his hip holster and checked the available rounds before answering her question. "Yes, they were."
Jaci's eyes opened wide and she looked back at the door then to Zephyr. From the blank look on his face, she sensed he didn't want to elaborate any further on the topic. She made a mental note to ask later, though.
A crossbow bolt slammed into the front door and it's end pierced into the wood. Aydan clicked his tongue and finished hoisting his own crossbow off of a hook nearby. His hip pouch held a hefty supply of ammunition and he stood awaiting his orders.
Taehyung and Sunny had weapons of their own in their hands. Taehyung held two long swords, while Sunny had two pistols, one in each hand. Her hips were decked out with magazine clips and she looked fierce.
Jungkook looked at Taehyung, "You're seriously bringing knives to a gunfight?"
Taehyung smirked and revolved the weapons through the air, filling the great foyer with the whistling noises of cold steel. "Old training dies hard. I'm better with these."
Aydan walked up and gave Jaci a handgun, silently asking if she could handle such a weapon. With trembling hands she took it and looked it over. Living in Oklahoma, it wasn't that she wasn't familiar with guns, it's just that she had never used one to protect people she loved. Game hunting was one thing where missed shots really didn't matter in the grand scheme of things. Missed shots when protecting a loved one had literal grave consequences.
"Can you shoot?" asked Aydan softly.
Jaci nodded and closed her eyes in an attempt to steel her nerves.
"All bullets and other ammo is laced with poison that will kill Hunters in a matter of seconds. Even a nick will drop them like flies." Zephyr's voice grew more raspy as he spoke.
Jungkook frowned. "How come you never used this before?"
The Alpha shook his head heavily. "Never knew it existed."
"And you learned this from...?"
"Someone who should have shared it long ago," he growled. "Stay in human form unless you absolutely can't. As wolves we lose half our defense against these monsters. Opposable thumbs are quite handy for this."
The door began to splinter and Taehyung rushed back to his hide by the window. "The pack is nearly gone. Enough chit chat. It's our turn very soon."
"Let them come to us," muttered Zephyr, facing the door head on. "The bottleneck will help us."
Jungkook sent Jaci to the top of the staircase and Aydan followed, both taking up spots behind large stone pillars.
"You should join them," said Zephyr, his voice growing louder as the door began to collapse into pieces. "You can't handle hand-to-hand combat right now."
"Watch me," retorted Jungkook, his body already shifting. "You just watch my back."
Just as the door fell in, the large form of Jungkook's wolf was crouched and ready to pounce.
***
Hoseok and Jimin stood in front of Jiho's apartment door, or what was left of Jiho's apartment door.
"You sure this is where she lives?" asked Jimin carefully.
"I smell her."
"All I smell is death," said Jimin, carefully stepping over the broken down door and into the apartment.
The pair stood in the destroyed apartment, their eyes scanning from floor to ceiling and seeing nothing but blood and destruction. Claw marks littered the walls and the softer furniture was shredded. In the middle of the floor, completely dismembered, was Jiho's body, the words "Traitorous Half Breed" were carved into her forehead.
"Another wolf was here," said Jimin, his eyes shifting around the room.
Hoseok stared angrily at the pieces of the body dropped into a pile. The head was to the side, as if kicked there like a ball. "It was him."
"Who?"
"Zephyr. He did this. Pick out his scent and I need you to follow it. When I find that bastard I will tear him limb from limb and see how he likes it."
Hoseok looked around the apartment and sifted through a few of the remaining unopened drawers in Jiho's bedroom. Lifting out a silver box, he opened it to find a rather large vial marked with the skull and crossbones, disclosing the substance inside was deadly. He held it up to the light and looked at it curiously, then slid it into his pocket and left the room.
***
Hunters poured into the castle's front entrance, fearlessly charging at any supernatural they saw.
Aydan didn't give them time to swing a weapon. Repeatedly, he shot bolt after bolt through multiple Hunter foreheads, dropping them where they stood. But his speed was no match for the rate at which they poured through the door. It was as if the entire Society came to the fight.
Sunny shot and dodged shots as she took out Hunters at point blank range. As she killed, she yanked bolts from fallen Hunters and threw them back up to Aydan.
Taehyung was busy slicing and dicing his way through every Hunter that came across his path. "If they tasted better, I would be tempted to stop for a snack," he was heard grumbling as he cut through the chest of a Hunter. He grinned as the flesh melted away from the cut, leaving the Hunter screaming and writhing in his own rancid juices.
"I'll need a bottle of this to go," Taehyung shouted at Zephyr.
Zephyr slung an off-balance Hunter straight into Taehyung's waiting swords. "I'll get Aydan in it after this mess is finished."
Taehyung grinned darkly and continued cutting down the enemy.
Jungkook was closer to Sunny, watching her back as she watched his. "Don't take away all of my fun," he growled.
"I would never be so selfish," she said, shooting one Hunter in the neck and throwing one to the side for her wolf friend.
"You all are j-j-jokes and g-g-giggles now, but just wait. There will be more," gurgled a Hunter caught under Jungkook's massive paws.
"Then we will kill them too," growled Jungkook, saliva dripping onto the Hunter's pale face.
The great black wolf reared back and pounced with all of his might on the Hunter's chest, crushing it instantly. "Thanks for the tip," he muttered to the corpse.
Jaci stood behind her pillar, watching Jungkook's every move. The violence he exhibited gave her chills and made her proud. It was a confusing set of feelings. However, her daydreaming would have to end if she was to protect anyone.
Her eyes focused on the melee below, and a Hunter from across the great foyer was aiming his rifle straight at her mate. Without an ounce of hesitation, she raised her pistol and fired, dropping the Hunter where he stood. His rifle clambered to the floor and was picked up by Sunny, who gave Jaci a proud nod before resuming her own fight.
"Good shot," said Aydan, placing a bloody bolt back into the crossbow. He pulled back the bow with ease and placed the hilt to his shoulder. He shot quickly and dropped two Hunters at one time. The bolt served double duty that time, piercing through two skulls instead of one.
"I love a good two for one," he chuckled.
Jaci wasn't quite to the chuckling point. She was still very new to this violent world and she felt wrong about celebrating a death, even if it was a Hunter. Perhaps years in a wolf pack would change her, but for now she didn't relish in taking another life.
"Ahhh!" groaned Aydan, his crossbow clattering to the ground and his hand gripping his side. A large silver bolt protruded from his side, barely stopping blood from pooling on the floor.
Jaci dropped to her knees beside him. "Oh, no," she whispered. "It's silver, Aydan. It's probably poisoned. I need to pull it out!" Her hands danced around the bolt, unsure of what she was doing exactly.
"Don't touch it," he gasped, groaning in pain. He held his arm out to push her away. "You are not immune to this either."
Jaci looked around frantically and saw a tapestry on the wall. She yanked it down to the floor and pushed out her claws so she could shred it into a more manageable piece. "I'm getting it out of you, now."
Aydan's face was pinched in pain from the searing wound. He could almost hear the sizzling of his skin as the bolt sank in lower. It was quite literally eating it's way into his body.
Jaci covered the bolt with a piece of the tapestry, ducking her head as bullets whizzed by and into the wall. She tapped into her wolf senses in an effort to anticipate potential threats.
Gripping the bolt, she secured one foot against Aydan's hip. "Ready? 1...2..." She yanked without saying three, the pain causing Aydan to pass out.
She quickly stuffed his side with the tapestry and then checked her gun. Her clip was half-full. She crawled quickly to one of the stone pillars and stood. Peeking out around it, she saw more Hunters piling into the foyer. Sunny and Jungkook had been backed into a corner and Taehyung was covered in so much blood she wasn't sure he could even see.
Zephyr had given up on his gun and was using brute force to subdue his enemies. His claws were caked in blood and gore. The entire lot of them were clambering over dead bodies to stay upright. Jaci had to do something.
Focusing her aim on the doorway, she began picking off the Hunters who came through it, one by one. Her eyes zeroed in on the enemy, and if you had looked at her, those eyes would have been bright blue.
***
"Hyung, is the entire Society here?" gasped Jimin, looking over the hordes of Hunters that had converged upon Teirkrieger Isness.
"What are they so bent on exterminating?" Hoseok stood at the crest of the nearby hill and stared out over the flooding army of Hunters.
"I caught a whiff of Jungkook just now," growled Jimin. "We need to help."
"We are only two," mumbled Hoseok. "We need reinforcements if we are to be of any real help. For all we know, they could already be dead in there."
"The only death I smell is Hunter death."
"That's good. I see a gardener's shed to the right of the castle walls. Let's sneak down there and see what we can find to use. I might have something that could potentially give us the upper hand."
It seemed the Hunters were laser focused on the castle, because Jimin and Hoseok were able to run to the shed without any interference. Hoseok flung open the musty old door and was more than happy to see the gardener was a rather hardcore hoarder.
He raced over the wall behind a long work bench and grabbed two out of four gas masks off the wall. He threw one to Jimin who caught it deftly but looked confused.
"What are you planning, Hyung?"
"I found a little gift in Jiho's apartment. Hopefully, it will kill our murderous pests and not us."
Jimin looked at Hoseok skeptically. "Hopefully? You aren't sure?"
"How could I be? Just put the mask on." Hoseok grabbed a large bellows from another wall and a few bee smokers from a rather cobwebbed covered corner.
"I'm terrified at the quickness of your planning," said Jimin, his voice muffled through the mask.
Hoseok opened the smokers and then looked around for a moment before he found some old newspaper. Ripping it up, he shoved a wad of it into the bottom of the smoker. He dumped a portion of the vial onto the paper. A book of old matches laid in a rusty old paint can lid so he snatched those and lit the dry edge paper.
"This may or may not work since the paper is a bit wet, but we are just going to do what we can. I'm going out first with the smokers. You follow behind and any Hunter we come across, use those bellows to blow this stuff into their face." Hoseok didn't wait for Jimin to agree with his crazy plan before plunging out into the field and running towards the fight.
AN: Hail, hail, the gang's all here 🎶