“That's so kind of you, Alpha Victoria. You are a great friend to Jason. Isn't she a great friend, Tyler?” I use an overly sweet voice and emphasize the word 'friends' and can't help but notice how she didn't appreciate that at all.
“Hey guys, another lot of fighters came in from Russia?” Brian barges in the office and luckily interrupts the awkward stare down between me and Jason's number one fan.
“That's great. How many do we have now?” Tyler quickly asks, eager to move away from the uncomfortable situation.
“We're at almost 200. We should go outside and make the teams and discuss the approach, before we get going.” Brian's smile is infectious and causing the rest of us to grin, because we can feel our chances rising.
“Let's go then. We have a camp to storm and a fight to win.” I decree and start walking out before I stop and turn around, eyeing Victoria. “You might want to change out of those heels if you plan on joining us, Alpha Victoria. It's quite a log trek before we reach the enemy camp.” I turn back around resuming my walk followed by Tyler and Brian who are both snickering, clearly sharing the same opinion as me.
I wished I didn't hear it, but I did. her reply came after we were quite far away from the office, having exited already, but it was practically just another declaration of war. “It's alright, I'm sure Jason wouldn't mind carrying me.” I didn't catch Jason's reply after that, but I know he said something to her, because I started walking faster wanting to get away and not get into a row with Victoria.
The sight in front of the pack house's grounds is indeed impressive. Almost 200 Scouts, trackers and warriors were waiting, in formation, to be divided into teams and receive their orders along with a battle plan. I couldn't help the shudder of excitement than run over me once I saw everyone present here and their determination. I never even thought there were people who could fight for me not expecting anything else in exchange, but the favour to be returned if there was ever any need. I would gladly put my life on the line for each and every one of the people standing here with us today. OK, maybe I would think twice about risking my life for Victoria, but that's another story.
I notice Luke and Ryan are here too and make my way to greet them, just as Jason comes and gets everyone's attention. We listen carefully to how Jason divides the teams and explains exactly what the plan is, just as we discussed it last night. Once we made sure everyone knew what to expect, how to proceed, and what the targets were, we made our way out of Crescent Moon's territory and started the trek towards the remote stretch of land that Marie and her pack had occupied. We were soon joined by an older looking woman, who just materialized out of nowhere, scaring the shit of out Tyler. We were happy to learn she's Ariela, Rudy's friend, but we were also a bit freaked out to know that she had been with us all along, even in front of the pack house. Nobody knew she was there, nobody smelled or felt her. She is one scary and powerful witch and I sure am happy she's on our side. Rudy has some interesting acquaintances, that's for sure.
42 - Irrational
Samantha
We've been walking for a few hours now, and are closing in on the location Marie is camping at.
“Hey, are you alright?” Luke jogs towards me to catch up.
“Yes, I'm fine.” The words come out harsher than I had intended, but he already noticed I am on the edge, so doesn't seem to take it too personally.
“What's that all about?” He askes looking Jason's way, and I roll my eyes seeing him with Victoria latched onto his arm, the same way a tick latches onto a dog's skin. She's been complaining about being cold for the past half hour and that's why I broke away from the group.
“I have no idea, but it's pretty obvious they know each other well. They seem.. close.” I'm sure Luke sensed the bitterness in my voice.
Countless of times I just imagined how much easier everything would have been if Luke and I were mates. In all honesty, I don't really find him physically attractive anymore, because Jason has ruined all men for me, but I do find Luke to be safe. He would be the partner you never have to worry about, the one that would give you the Moon and not ask anything but a smile in return. He would make a great husband and father and I wouldn't have to worry about anything in my life ever again. Like I said, I see Luke as... safe.
“He's an idiot, and if he would rather have that girl over you, it clearly means he's not worth the time of day.”
“Thanks, Luke.” I look him in the eyes and see genuine kindness in there. That's why I can't help the words that came of my mouth next. “When you find your mate, I swear she'll be the luckiest woman.”
Luke smiles at me and give me a playful side hug. My eves instinctively went to Jason, and he is anything but happy about Luke hugging me. Serves his right, he's been joined at the hip with Victoria all day. I wouldn't be surprised if I see them fighting in tandem. Man, the Moon Goddess must have either messed up the mate bonds, or she's having a kick out of our misery.
I see the witch pop up again next to Jason. I swear that shit scares the crap out of me every time, as cool and handy as it may be. After exchanging a few words with Ariela, Jason tells everyone to stop walking.
“That's as close as we can get without alerting them to our presence. Is anyone too tired or unwell?” I was half expecting Victoria to say something, but I guess she also knows when to drop the spoiled little girl act and be serious. Not receiving any positive answers, Jason continues. “ Good. I say we attack now. You all know what you have to do. My team and I will go after Alpha Marie Gaston, the Baileys and those that keep close to her. That doesn't mean that if anyone else gets the chance, they shouldn't annihilate the threat. I want the young witch alive, though. I cannot stress enough that we are not to harm children. Understood?”
Every leader of each team confirmed that they understood the orders Jason laid out.
“Everyone, get in position.”
As the other fighters accompanying us take their place next to their teams and move in position, I make my way towards the group that is my team. I'm with Jason, Tyler, Brian, Luke, Ryan and Victoria. Yay me, it's not awkward at all.
“Look on the bright side.” Tyler nudges me gently and I tore my glare from Victoria, looking at him with scrunched brows. “You can use her as a human shield.”
“Ty, you're too mean.” I giggle
“Say what you want, but look at it this way. If she goes missing, we can say she was killed in battle, a true hero and all that. Nobody would question it.” He shrugs and I almost burst out laughing at his plan.
“Stop, before I actually consider it.” We both let out laughs, getting unwanted attention and a scolding glare from Jason. Now I really am considering it.
Our group was the only one getting helped by Ariela. She was using a lot of her power to make us invisible and help us sneak deep inside Marie's camp. By invisible I mean more like undetectable. Together with her, there was 8 of us, so the best that she could do without totally getting drained of her powers, was to conceal our strong scents and our powerful auras. We didn't complain, seeing it as a great advantage. And it seems to have done the trick, in view of the fact that we are currently inside a cave after successfully evading all wolves from Sang Noir.
Normally, we wouldn't have given this small opening at the base of the mountain a second glance, but Ariela insisted she feels a witch's power coming from within there. Once more, Marie surprised us all by being smart and inconspicuous about her make shift pack house, or headquarters. We didn't really know what to expect going in there, either in terms of size, structure or... number of wolves we'll have to fight. The only thing we know for sure right now is that there're only one way in, which is also the only way out.
Jason and Luke were the first in the cave and after we got the signal to join them, I noticed 5 dead bodies on the floor. I tried really hard not to let my heartbeat increase or my face to show how affected I am.
It seemed like we have been walking for a good 5 minutes inside the tunnels that make the cave. It
all looks man made, though, so I don't think this is just a cave, I have a feeling it's an entire underground compound. I am proven right when all of a sudden an alarm goes of, followed by red flashing lights.
“Seriously? What is this 'Prison Break'?” Tyler asks visibly unimpressed by Marie's security measures.
As if on cue, a few seemingly random rocks move to the side, revealing rooms and hallways behind them, from where Sang Noir members started to pour out and attack us, all in the blink of an eye.
“I mean really? The blaring alarm AND the red lights?” Tyler spits out while dodging the attack of an enemy wolf. He likes to fight in human form for as long as possible. “Is this supposed to have some weird psychological effect and scare us?” He looks my way as he said that and also snaps the neck of that wolf, all while looking annoyed and not really breaking a sweat.
I just shake my head at Tyler's comments, not risking to break my focus and get into that discussion with him.
Ariela disappeared as quick as we were ambushed. She said she'll go and ask some of the other teams to come to our aid. I hope they can move quickly because there seems to be an endless supply of fighters that are coming at us.
I notice one of the doors that got uncovered by the rocks is now unguarded. Luke sees it too, and since he's the one closest, he goes in. Shit! One of us has to go after him, who knows how many warriors are inside? He is strong, but can withstand only so many wolves attacking him, he's not invincible.
Luke
After killing this reddish wolf, I look around and see that none of my group has shifted into their wolves, which means we are doing well and so far we are physically way stronger than this girl, Marie's army.
I see the opening, I also notice that Sam saw it too. She's busy fighting with two men who keep shifting from wolf to human at impressive speed. She's got Tyler and Brian jumping to help her, so I look again at the opening next to me.
The rational part of my brain is telling me not to go in there alone, because I have no idea what to expect, and no matter how I would love to, I am not invincible or immortal. Nor do I have any plans of dying any time soon. But there's still that other irrational part of me, the one that hoes by pure instinct only, and I truly blame my wolf for this, and that part is urging me to go in there.
The problem is that my irrational part had won that battle, and despite Sam's pleading eyes, I went in all alone and started running through the long corridor looking for... I don't know what or who I am looking for.
My senses are a bit confused right now, just as they were when we went into that bunker to rescue Samantha. I never understood why that happened, not did I have the time to ponder or it. The memory of seeing Sam in there is enough to remind me exactly who I am looking for. Driven by my rage and desire for revenge, I slice through every enemy that tries to fight me, wanting noting more than for my sharp claws to slice the throat of one particular person, the one responsible for all this - Marie.
As part of the thorough preparation for this battle, Jason showed everyone a picture of the infamous Marie Gaston. I had heard Samantha, Jason and even Jennifer describe the young evil mastermind before, but I had never seen a picture of her, until that moment.
As soon as Jason put the picture in front of me, I felt sick, I literally felt my body reacting to the photograph, and I barely kept myself composed and didn't vomit. Luckily none of the guys noticed. It was the weirdest thing ever, and it had nothing to do with the girl's looks. I had just put it on the fact that she made sick with all her gruesome acts, but as soon as I take a left turn and end up face to face with the Devil herself, I understand the real reason behind my body's reaction.
43 - Hate
Luke
As I come face to face with Marie herself, the woman, the menace, the enemy, I hear my wolf proclaiming what I already knew as soon as our eyes met and gazes locked. “Mate!”
Shit!
This cannot be happening! Oh, no, no, no, no, NO!
Just tell me, what were the odds? There are millions of other she wolves out there, heck, there are millions of human, vampires, witches and other creatures. How the fuck do I end up having HER as my mate? What have I done to upset the Moon Goddess to such degree?
Anyone that has ever met me can testify to this. I am one of the fucking good guys out there. I have waited and waited for my mate, well prepared to love her and give her the world. How the hell is all of this fair to me?
I can feel the stupid bond that we have, my wolf recognises her as our mate, but neither me nor him feel the pull towards her in a loving way. If anything, I feel my hatred towards her growing by the second. By the looks of it, the feelings are mutual. Thank Goddess for that.
Not taking her beady eyes off me for even a split second, Marie moves slowly to her left and pulls some sort of lever. That causes another rock to glide. I hear a loud roar, similar to the sound coming from deep within the ground when there's an earthquake. As I glance behind me, I notice that the rock has blocked the way I just came in through, sealing the room and ultimately getting me stuck in here with her.
I raise a brow at her actions, pretty much mocking her for either thinking that she could take me out in a one to one fight, or thinking, that due to our mate bond, I would never hurt her. Her devious smirk confirms it's either of those two scenarios, but she is wrong. Oh, so very wrong.
While I just stood there, not moving an inch, and contemplating the shitty situation I found myself in, my wolf breaks my thoughts by telling me he managed to reach out to Marie's wolf. His voice sounds sad, but somehow resigned also. What comes next is both surprising and not, all at the same time. Marie's own wolf telling us to reject them is huge, unexpected, and the best solution there could be.
Luana, Marie's wolf, told my wolf that Marie is too far gone, the communication between her and her wolf almost inexistent, and when they do talk they just fight, not sharing the same views or opinions. I feel somewhat relieved, that at least my wolf has a good mate, even if that means they will never get to be together. My heart aches for Samson, my wolf. Me on the other hand, can do it in a heartbeat. I am ready to reject Marie, and I'm sure I can bear anything that comes from the mate bond breaking, physically or emotionally. Surely nothing can be worse than having literal evil incarnate as my fated soul mate, my other half. The biggest problem we're facing is her accepting my rejection. I would bet you that she won't be stupid enough to have our mate bond break, leaving her at her most vulnerable. I might not know her well, but I know enough to figure out that she won't allow anything to weaken her in this crucial stage of her plan. Luckily, that also means she will try not to hurt me. I smirk at that thought, feeling like I have the upper hand.
“Her wolf says she will fight her to take control and force her to accept the rejection. We only have one shot, when I tell you to, you say the words and reject her. In that moment when Marie hears the rejection, hopefully she'll let her guard down even a tiny bit, enough for her wolf to take control and say the words of rejection back.” Samson, my wolf explains the plan to me, and I can't help but think how excruciatingly difficult and selfless and not to mention, sacrificial, this thing must be for both wolf spirits.
Marie and I are still locked in a staring contest, just keeping a close eye on each other, both waiting for the other to make the first move. One could cut the tension in the air with a knife. I think I hate her even more for ruining the experience of finding my mate for me. Surely I am as big as an inconvenience for her as well.
Until Samson gave me the signal, I haven't said a single word to Marie, and neither did she to me. We both know what we are to each other, yet neither of us wants it.
“Do it now!” Samson barks in my mind, and I quickly clear my throat before letting out the words.
“I, Luke Harrison, Alpha of Blood Moon pack, reject you, Marie Gaston, Alpha of Sang Noir pack!” My voice echoes in the empty room, the sound bouncing from the stone walls. I made sure to do my part properly, and not miss any details,
very conscious that I only have one shot at this.
She gives me a surprised look, quirking a brow, as if not really believing I had said those words to her. She can't hide the fact that I've angered her, although she tries hard, and luckily this was the perfect opportunity for her wolf to take over.
I can see them fighting for control, Marie's eyes changing color every split second, her claws extending only to retract just as fast.
Once her eyes settled on staying black, I knew Luana had full control, and I happily braced myself for what's to come once the same words I has said earlier will leave her mouth. For a second I thought it would have helped if I had something to grip onto. I don't get the luxury of having enough time to lean on the well, because I hear my mate speak.
“ I, Marie Gaston, Alpha of Sang Noir pack, accept your rejection, Luke Harrison, Alpha of Blood Moon pack.”
In spite of the fact that she struggles to keep control and make Marie say the words, Luana did good and I felt the bond braking, physical pain like I've never felt before taking over and spreading through my body like fire. I was somewhat prepared for that, I knew I could cope with the pain, but I was not prepared for the mournful howl of my wolf. Samson is feeling this on a different level. Him and Luana had a connection, a true one, and it shows.
I knew that was the only way to stop Marie. We are both Alphas, and that means we will both be left extremely weak and in pain by the broken mate bond. It's not like I could have had another choice. I couldn't love her, not even with the mate bond pulling us together, I can genuinely say I did not feel anything even remotely close to love or affection for that cruel woman. Sure, I was able to feel the bond, the pull, but the most intense thing that I felt when I saw her and realised we were mates, was repulsion. Yes, I felt repulsed by the girl that was so far gone and did all those horrible things. She was beyond redemption, and I knew it, my wolf and even her own wolf, knew it.
Fight For The Highest Wolf Rank Page 21