Chapter Twenty Four: The Battle
Jace's P.O.V
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RECAP
"Who was that lady to you?" I asked, holding my breath as his face reddened and his knuckles turned white.
A few minutes passed as the air grew tense around us, not a single noise being made except for the chirping of birds just outside of our eyesight.
I assumed I'd struck a nerve and accepted the silence as his answer. I sat back in my seat and stared out the window, watching the flurry of trees rush by in a blur.
I'd gotten so accustomed to the silence that I was startled into a violent jerk when Spencer spoke once again.
"That woman," he began, pausing to take a deep breath and regain the composure he tried so hard to maintai.
"That woman....that woman was my mother."
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"What was that?" I asked, looking over at Tristan in alarm.
"I don't know, sir." He answered, his ears perking up.
We were surrounded by an eerie silence as we listened for the noise again.
"I don't think it's going to ha-" I started, grimacing and grasping my ears as another scream powered through the air.
A series of anguished screams filled the air; scream after scream, plea after plea, the peaceful silence ceased to exist.
I looked out of my office window to see rogue wolves surrounding my pack members. A few of the pack warriors were fending off the savages while others helped gather children.
"Find out what's going on and get all women and children to safety! Anyone who is old enough and willing to fight needs to meet me by the front door! Go!" I yelled, rushing out the door as I gave my orders.
"Yes sir!"
I vaguely heard his reply as I ushered women and children coming up the stairs towards the back of the house.
I made my way towards the front door in mock calm as a few children walked passed me.
"You guys need to be brave for your Alpha now, okay? Follow your parents to the attic and make sure you follow their instructions carefully.
We're going to play a game of hide-n-seek; you guys go hide and when everything's alright, Alpha will come and find you, okay? How does that sound?"
A few of them nodded, grabbing the person nearest to them by their hands and sharing nervous smiles.
"We're big kids now, right?" One of the youngest, Amethyst, asked, her bright purple eyes staring up at me.
"Of course, love. Now go on and hide, I'm counting. One hundred..ninety-nine.."
I pretended to cover my eyes as they ran further up the steps, giggles filling the air.
One of pack moms smiled at me and followed them, sending me a silent plea.
'Come back safe.'
*****
I hurriedly finished my decent and spotted Jared standing in the middle of the foyer with Dean clutched tight in his arms. The poor pup was whining in the direction Jared was looking and squirming around in his arms.
Jared didn't seem to notice as he continued to stand there with terror written across his young features.
"Jared?" I called, marching over to where he still stood.
He fiercely shook his head and lifted his arm to point in front of him. He never once glanced in my direction, his gaze remained transfixed ahead.
I looked over the railing as I got to the last couple of steps, and a growl instantly left my mouth.
A rogue female was crouched in the hallway adjacent to the living room, stalking forward.
"Jared," I began, my tone strong, "slowly back away."
I stretched my arm out towards him, moving so I stood in front of me. I slowly backed away from the rogue, gently pushing Jared and Dean towards the stairs.
I froze as the female began to growl and take two steps forward. Just as he was within reaching distance of the first step, the woman roared and lunged forward.
I carefully pushed Jared farther to the side and caught her by her neck. I expertly pinned her up against the front door and quickly turned back to Jared.
"Jared, I need you to listen to me. Take Dean and go up the stairs towards the back of the house. Tristan will be near the attic door ushering people to safety. You are to stay there until I, my sister, or my fourth in command come to get you. Am I understood?" I demanded, pointing him in the right direction and struggling to keep the woman still.
With a swift nod, he turned on his heels and ran up the stairs. When I was sure he'd made it all the way up, I turned back to face the woman. I received a harsh bite to the neck before I could fully turn around.
I stumbled back and grabbed my neck, applying a small bit of pressure so it could begin the healing process a little faster. I side stepped her as she began to advance, managing to swipe at her legs. I knocked her onto her backside, and quickly subdued her by putting my foot on her throat.
I put almost all of my weight on her neck and removed my hand from my neck. My blood glistened and my lip curled in disgust. I dropped to my knees and climbed on top of her.
I roughly pinned her arms with my legs, while I wrapped both of my hands around her small neck. She began to buck under me, her scarlet colored eyes flashing back to brown for a split second as she morphed back into her human form.
She gargled out one last snarl, continuing to thrash about underneath me as she tried to free herself.
Despite the odds being against her, she continued her useless struggles. Her small fists began to bang against my shoulders, relentlessly pummeling my fresh wound.
With a deafening roar, I quickly twisted my hands towards the left and snapped her neck. I slowly rose to my feet and gazed down at her broken body. The sick feeling of remorse never filled me as I glared down at her naked body.
Monica, the woman that chose to neglect Austin and turn a blind eye to the abuse he'd endured, is dead.
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Austin's P.O.V
Spencer came to a stop as the pack house became visible, low growls rumbling through the still air. Dark gray clouds gathered in the sky, blocking out the beautiful sunrays.
Spencer let out a low growl, causing me to avert my eyes and return my attention to him. My gaze landed on him, but he was looking at something ahead.
I strained against my seatbelt and squinted, willing myself to see far ahead of me. Slowly, my vision cleared and everything sharpened. Movement behind the thin line of trees grabbed my attention.
I focused on the movement and willed my sight to be even clearer.
My heart dropped as I let out a quiet gasp.
Rogues and my fellow pack members were scattered across the desecrated front law. I watched in horror as claws and splatters of blood seemingly flew through the air in slow motion.
There was a slight hitch in my breathing as I witnessed the carnage unfolding before me.
There were more than enough people lying across the lawn, either dead, barely alive, or severely injured. Blood was seeping from gaping wounds, soaking into the soil and giving the earth a burgundy hue.
Large strips of flesh with fur still attached lay in ribbons over the red tinted grass, almost as if it were streamers decorated with faux fur.
The once beautiful plain was tarnished by blood and gore.
It looked like a true battlefield.
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"Okay, Austin, I need you to listen to me carefully. We are going to jump out of the car at the same time. I am going to change and you're going to hop on my back." Spencer instructed, glancing at me as he pulled over and took his seatbelt off.
As if sensing that I would protest, he spoke again before I could utter a single word.
"You're not strong enough to fight yet. This needs to happen quickly, understand?"
I fought the urge to argue with him, too many people were getting hurt, there's no point in wasting precious time.
"I-I underst-stand." I whispered, slowly slipping out of my seatbelt.
"Alright, on three. 1....2....3!" He yelled, throwing his door open and jumping over the hood of the car.
He shifted in mid-air and lowered himself to his stomach. I quickly climbed out of the car, kicked the door shut, and slid onto his back.
'That wasn't exactly at the same time, but oh well,' I thought, wrapping my arms tightly around his neck.
He sniffled and stood up, swishing his tail at me to signal he was about to take off. In response, I grasped him tighter and held my head down.
With one last huff, he crouched down and began the short sprint across the lawn. We got closer to the door as a rogue tried to tackle me off his back.
With a sickening cry, I went flying off of his back, landing in the blood of a fallen wolf as Spencer went down with him.
I held my breath as Spencer fought the rogue down, completely forgetting my surroundings. Though I didn't have any romantic feelings for Spencer anymore, I didn't want him to get hurt let alone killed.
I was so immersed in the fight that I didn't notice the rogue sneaking up on my left side. It wasn't until the rogue let out a low growl that I registered the danger I was in.
My eyes widened as my mouth let loose a hoarse shriek. Spencer faltered in his concentration to turn to access the situation, resulting in the other rogue jumping at his throat.
"S-Spencer!" I yelled, falling onto my back as the rogue stalked towards me.
'Just....h-hold on!' He mind-linked me, struggling to claw at the beast above him.
The rogue challenged me to fight back with a snarl, stopping a few feet away from me. I hung my head in fear, trying to look for any way to escape.
Being surrounded by trees, bushes, and rogue wolves didn't do me any sort of kindness. The front door to the pack house was just beyond my reach, yet it was blocked by a black haired rogue fighting off my own pack member.
The feral wolf snarled and haunched down, preparing to pounce on me. I let out another loud shriek as I tried to cover my face with one arm.
My eyes sewed themselves shut, but could do nothing to block out the cries of war engulfing my senses. I vaguely heard Spencer scuffling with his rogue, grunting and scratching at ruined flesh and matted fur.
I could feel my rogue pounce on me, standing over me with it's hot and slimey breath fanning across my cheeks. I felt the rogue's head come inches before my throat, letting out a hungry 'harrumph' as it came closer and closer.
As I lay there, close to death, I accepted my fate. I decided then to forgive all those who wronged me, whether they deserved my forgiveness or not.
I accepted that I would never see Jared, Dean, or Jace ever again. My breathing faltered as I felt sharp fans brush against the apple of my neck, teasing be with their deadly desires.
Just before they pierced my skin, I felt a huge weight get pushed off of me. The wind blowing my hair forwards and ruffling my clothes.
The war noises seemed to stop as they seemed to access something that had just happened.
I slowly opened my eyes, shocked to see that everyone had stopped fighting and were now gawking at something in front of me.
My gaze shifted towards my front, my heart nearly stopping at what I saw. The rogue that had just about killed me, was having a stand off with a painstakingly familiar wolf.
The wolf had thrown the rogue off of me and was now posted in a protective stance between me and the mad wolf. Before I passed out, I whispered one word.
"J-Jace."
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I scrunched my eyebrows as I tried to open my eyes, fighting back the feeling of fatigue and grogginess.
My eyelids slowly fluttered as they tried to adjust to the sudden light. I let out a quiet groan as I tried to sit up, only now realizing there was a force preventing me from sitting up.
"Wh-what....?" I grumbled, shocked to feel an immense pain rip through my torso.
The door opened and someone tiptoed in, setting a sloshing bowl of something next to me.
"Hey, glad to see your finally awake." Spencer greeted, dipping a wash cloth into the bowl of water and wiping at my forehead.
"Wh-where's....J-Jace?" I croaked, trying to get up one more.
"Don't move, you lost a lot of blood. Apparently, you'd been cut before we got to the pack house and I hadn't noticed. The shock from almost having your throat ripped out caused you to pass out." He said, ignoring my question.
"S-Spencer, where's J-Jace?" I pushed.
"You've been asleep for a couple days, Jared was worried." He continued.
His eyes pleaded with me to just let it go, but something told me I shouldn't.
"Spencer!" I yelled, causing him to lock his jaw and take in a sharp breath.
"Austin....please." He pleaded, avoiding my gaze.
"Where is he?" I asked, using the headboard and the wall next to me to sit up as best as I could.
"He...." He began, "please try to stay calm, everything will be fine. We've come so close."
"Just tell me where he is....please." I whined, worry spiking in my heart.
"He's been kidnapped."
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