I ran as fast as I could, fixing my hair and outfit to make it as battle appropriate as possible. As we had expected, they had arrived from the East. And as I had expected, a full-blown battle had begun, I shifted into my wolf, who was baring her teeth in readiness to begin.
I wasted no time.
Eight months ago, I doubt I could even think about injuring someone, let alone killing them. But now, Orion's words swirled in my head, They stopped being innocent the moment that they got involved. I didn't even feel guilty as I ripped my teeth into the first rogue I encountered. I found some peace in the knowledge that it wasn't a child, a fully grown wolf who would have made the decision to come and fight without the influence of any others.
I could easily see that they were outnumbered, being flanked almost immediately. I battled almost completely alone, holding my own as I attacked the rogues, distinct from their matted fur and gruelling faces. It seemed that I had underestimated my own fighting ability, easily being able to disarm my opponent and leave them openly bleeding on the ground as I defended the pack.
I saw a small wolf, most likely a younger teen that was desperate to join in. From the side, a rogue began barreling towards them. I spared a glance, quickly realising that the wolf had no idea, leaving their side completely blind.
I finished off the rogue I was with before running towards them. The rogue pounced in attack, but instead of crash landing on the wolf and easily killing them with one swift motion, the rogue met me instead. I leapt off my back paws, meeting him in the air as I opened my mouth into his side, tackling him to the floor and finishing him as quickly as possible. He was left completely unable to do anything. I looked at the now shaking wolf that I had just saved and cocked my head back in the direction of the safe buildings. They understood what I was saying immediately, running back off into the buildings. I spared a moment to ensure that they got back in without any issues or attacks before turning back around and diving back into the fight without another second of hesitation.
I could see the fight slowly coming to an end. The warriors that we were fighting against, they didn't seem all too capable, nor strong enough to hold up a proper fight. Out of all those who I could see that were injured or the very few that had died, it was obvious that their side filled up more of the casualties than ours.
I had expected this fight to last a lot longer than it had, only properly fighting for maybe half an hour before a wolf came forward.
It was large, with beady yellow eyes and a tail stuck in between its legs. Almost on motion, every singly rogue in the vicinity dropped to the floor, holding their heads against the floor as their eyes followed who I assumed was their leader.
Was this it? Was it all over?
Orion stepped forward, blood clumping the fur around his mouth and shifted. He wiped the red liquid from his mouth, his eyes feral and skin taught. His hand grabbed onto the wolf's neck and forced him to the floor.
"Shift," He growled, causing an eery silence to fall over the battlefield. I shifted too, walking forward and taking my place at Orion's side, placing the same look of control and intimidation that Orion was currently sporting.
The wolf hesitated for a moment,
"I said, shift," Orion repeated, this time baring his teeth and forcing on the Alpha command.
The wolf put on the slightest fight before falling into the command.
My mouth gaped open as I saw who it was, biting back a gasp of surprise.
Samael Graves.
"Please," He choked, "You have to help me, help us,"
Orion's fist tightened around his neck. Gabriel, who had walked up to us, equally covered in blood took a stance.
"Deal with these wolves, Gabe. Get Colt and Val to help and send Julian to go and get Ivy from the bunks. Send Lia to alert the hospital and get the doctors prepared. I then want all of you to go to the meeting room, we'll be there in about twenty minutes." Gabriel nodded stoically, lowering his head slightly before heading off. I noticed Colton, Val, Lia and Val shifting. I spared them a quick glance before turning back to Samael.
"And Althea and I," He continued, "Will deal with you,"
Interrogation room, Orion linked, before starting to move.
He lifted Samael off the ground, still holding him by the neck as we walked to avoid dragging him on the bloodied grass. I would also assume it was to give him absolutely no means of escape.
I pushed my shoulders back as I entered the interrogation room, trying to look as proud and powerful as possible as Orion through the fallen Alpha into the corner.
"What in the name of the goddess is going on Graves," Orion shouted,
He cowered into the wall, "Please, please just let me explain!"
"Oh, you'll be doing more than just explaining you miserable old man." He growled, "Start talking, now."
Graves leant his head against the wall, "It's all my fault really, everything that's being done, it's gone through me."
"We suspected a traitor," I said, "Though I didn't think it would be you."
His eyes narrowed, "I have my own reasons for my actions, reasons that I doubt I will explain-" Orion looked at him pointedly, tightening his fists as the vein in his neck popped angrily.
He held up his hands, "I may explain, but no that I'm here, practically in a cell, I can very clearly see the error of my ways."
Orion rolled his eyes, "How about instead of wasting both mine and my Luna's time, you can start explaining, and you can start at the beginning."
Graves opened and closed his mouth a few times before sighing and finally beginning to talk. "I've been in cahoots, I suppose, with the rogue leader for around two years."
I tried to keep my shock hidden. Two years?
"However, I have been trying to get on their good side for the better part of ten. Orion, I mean no rudeness to you, but it's obvious that Vindex and their leaders are the most powerful on this continent, I wanted that to be me. I wanted to be the strongest Alpha, my mate the envied she-wolf in the country, my own daughter be the heir to the largest empire. But I couldn't, not when your own father was so strong or so loved. The moment that I met you for the first time, even before the Tournament where I learned to know you properly, I knew that you would be stronger than your father, and do things for your pack that he couldn't even dream about doing. I wasn't stupid enough to realise that a man of such power would only be given a mate who is truly intelligent, truly beautiful and easily envied."
I went slightly red at this comment, though Orion looked unbothered.
"That isn't new information for me Graves," Orion looked at me, "I'm well aware of my Luna's... assets, just as much as I am aware of my own strength." He broke his character for just a moment, sending me a wink and a grin before letting his face drop and turning back to Graves.
"I wanted so much Orion, you have to understand that, but more than anything, I wanted Peace. And for that, I needed the rogues. And so I put my plan in place, changing the score in the tournament and changing numbers to give them an army. I was so confident that it would work, and I was right. The rogue leader, he finally acknowledged my presence, and you can imagine my surprise when I found out that he wanted the exact same thing as me. Peace and compassion, amongst us all,"
I snorted a likely story.
"When the tournament began earlier this year, I had gone to one of our regular meetings. Every since we had begun our relationship, he always double-checked that I knew what I was doing with the scores. I assumed that it's what he wanted to talk about, but instead, he talked about you. He wanted to know every little detail about you Orion, I suspect since you were the main obstacle in his plans. Then he mentioned something that I found quite strange, 'Should he find his mate, I want to know. And I want every detail you can possibly get.'"
I shared a look of concern with Orion. He had been so sure that this whole thing wouldn't turn into a war, but the more that Graves spoke, the more unsure I became.
"I'm afraid to tell you this Orion, but your poker face is awful. I knew almost immediately that you had found your mate, though I had some issue in figuring out just who she was. Althea my darling, you did such a good job keeping out of the spotlight. Though I am afraid it was Orion who gave away your identity. He was so obvious, the way he stared at you while you weren't looking."
At this, I could see the back of Orion's neck turning red.
"I told the leader, but mention it may be difficult for me to learn anything about you since you weren't from my pack nor were you admitting the status of your relationship, meaning I couldn't force you into becoming an Intended. So the rogue, he took matters into his own hand and sent his right-hand man, who was currently attending the tournament to find out information in my place."
My face paled,
"I'm not sure if you remember him, but his name was Crew. He was supposed to be the next Gamma of the Artium pack, though now he has taken over his role in the rogue pack fully as their Beta."
I had told Crew so much about my family, about my parents,
"He was the one that led the attack on your parents. Though I do apologise, we meant to kill both of them at once, let it be a little less painful."
I bit back a gasp, it was my fault. I was the one who had told Crew all that information. I had trusted him, I thought I could trust him but here we are.
"After the tournament ended, the rogues felt as if they were finally ready for to attack. Meaning they finally needed me for more than just a traitor in Pax's offices. They want me to lead this fight so I could be away from my own pack, to make Pax their headquarters as they set in motion the attacks to take over the other packs."
I gave Orion a look,
"So, you're here as an excuse for your pack not to fight back, but rather be taken over easily?" I questioned.
Graves hung his head, "It was the only way."
I could see Orion's eyes glaze over, most likely mind linking someone to tell the other Alpha's.
When he finally looked back fully, Orion opened his mouth. "All I want to know is his name and his weakness. Answer me that and we'll be done here, I've already gotten enough information from you."
Graves hesitated, "Kage. His name is Kage. He was no last name, though he isn't referred to by Alpha or any title. Only his name. And his weakness? I would assume his weakness is the same as yours Orion. His mate, Gracie. I've met her a few times, and while she may not be the smartest she-wolf, I doubt you have ever met one as kind or supportive as she is. Kage is a strong man, he refuses to show weakness or any emotion at all. But I see his eyes when he looks at her, and the way that he diligently tries to shelter her from any danger possible. He loves her more than I can possibly describe."
My heart tightened in guilt.
Orion sighed, "Thank you, for the information."
Graves smiled brightly, "You're quite welcome, now where will I be staying?"
"What do you mean?" Orion asked, his expression slightly bewildered.
Graves faltered, "I just assumed that since I have given you all this information, I would be under your protection, under your care? You must know what I can do for you."
Orion rolled his eyes, "I have gotten every droplet of information out of you that I possibly could have."
He tried to stand up, using the wall as a brace, "Are you going to kill me?"
"Of course not," Orion shook his head with a laugh, "I'll send you straight back into the woods. I do believe Kage will deal with you properly."
Samael's face dropped, "He'll kill me!"
"I do imagine so, yes."
"Please, please, you can't let him kill me! I have so much more information, so much more to tell you-"
"If you had more information Graves, I can almost guarantee that you would have already told me." Orion interrupted. "Though rest assured that though I may have issues with you, I have none with your mate and daughter. I will offer them my own protection and ensure that your daughter receives the training and knowledge to become the Leader that I know she will.
Graves fell to the ground, "He'll kill me."
Something dawned on him, and he started fumbling around. He pulled out a clip from his hair and popped open a hidden container, pulling out a small pill.
I recognised it immediately.
"I would rather kill myself than let him know what I've told you." He whispered before opening his mouth and dropping the pill down his throat.
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Hey besties, how was the chapter?
So, I'm pretty sure that we all saw that coming but yes. Now, I know I've said this before, but you guys are going to be mad at me for this ending. It's not going to be what you want, the epilogue doesn't feature them in the future with kids and a family. So I'm asking you guys now to prepare yourself. Everything is resolved, it's not a bad or sad ending, it just won't be what you want.
Anywhoozles, ToB is seriously coming to an end writing-wise, which is making me super excited. I'm writing up the final battle chapter, whic means everything is just going to blurt out afterwards and it will be done before I know it. I swear, all I want to do is talk about ToB, I wanna talk about it, I want to hint at things and leave people on the edge. Just the idea of being able to share this story with you guys I'm so excited. I kinda feel like, metaphor wise, it's like childirth? You know like when you push out the child and the shoulders and head are the hardest and then afterwards it just all comes out? Yeah.
That was kind of a weird analogy I'm sorry.
Remember to vote and comment!
See you in the next chapter,
Eryn