“Take another step and I’ll gut her from throat to navel.” Ronin clenched his teeth, sending out a command through the mind link that no one should attempt an attack. He could feel the panic from the wolves around him, unable to ease their fears. He knew what they saw. A mindless beast. Who infiltrated the Helm’s pack. In human form. The council had succeeded in concealing the knowledge of mindless beasts being able to shift. Now it was in the open, and chaos would soon follow. “Let the bride go. Your grievances are with me, Saberlon.” Ronin slowly pushed Liora behind him, and she was surrounded by Lucien, Thaddeus, and Nikolai. The other Alphas shielded their pack members in the same manner, poised to defend them. Saberlon scoffed, “My grievances are with whom I deem them to be.” He pressed the sharp blade closer to Heather’s neck, drawing a thin streak of blood. Derith growled in place, unable to retrieve his bride. Juanzo was equally seething beside him. “So many shocked
Ronin blinked once, nostrils flaring before he launched himself over the table. His claws were just shy of Derith’s throat before he was dragged back by his ankle, the wooden surface splitting open in several places. Those sitting directly at the table shot from their seats to put a safe distance between themselves and Ronin–whose eyes were pitch black.“Calm down cousin,” Lucien kept a firm hand on his shoulder. “We don’t want another dead wolf today.”“Let me go, Lucien. Before you become my dinner.” Ronin seethed.“Oh please. You wouldn’t dare, not even in this state.”“So it is true. You really are a demon wolf.” Odys' eyes widened slightly, which was more reaction than Ronin had seen from the Alpha in years.“Yes. Thanks to Saberlon’s so-called father, who killed your Sovereigns before me. That’s what this is all about. He’s come for revenge because I tore his monster of a father to pieces–after he killed my mother and brother and sister!”“That has nothing to do with me,” Derith
Ronin paced back and forth, raking his hand through his hair, clenching his fist so tight that blood dripped between his knuckles. His first-rank council members surrounded him, with equally frayed nerves. Lucien was gnawing on his last fingernail, Maia was bouncing in place, and Nikolai stood still as a statue, tracking every movement under the pavilion. Caius, Xander, and Thaddeus focused all their energy on preventing him from going after Derith. Growling, Ronin shoved at Caius, “Damnit, she should’ve woken up by now. It’s been half an hour.” “Hey, there’s still 30 minutes left. Be patient. Remember time passes differently in the Soulscape and she is on a very dangerous quest.” He moved with Ronin, using his body to block any view of Derith. “If she dies, Caius… I am going to make Derith wish he was dead.” “Derith is untouchable right now.” Xander blocked his line of sight, crossing his arms, “If you kill him, there will be anarchy. Even if we assassinated him, all fingers wou
Chapter Forty-TwoIt was getting too easy to lie.Liora kept her carefully constructed smile up, nodding and waving until the crowd dispersed and she could go back inside. By then, it was getting closer and closer to the witching hour–and with each minute that passed by, she wanted to crawl out of her skin.For them, the trial progressed for one hour, but for her, it lasted two months. Two months of onslaught, exposed to harsh conditions with her wolf as her only guide and companion. The only way to win was to admit the truth, to accept who she was.Corrupted.Hungry for power.Seduced by the darkness inside her.When Liora finally discovered her sacred name- Adamantia, to say she was surprised would be an understatement. The Goddess deemed her ‘Unbreakable.’It was laughable.She was falling apart inside.All she could think about was flesh.Lupine flesh.Ripping into the crowd and feasting until the black hole inside her was sated.Ronin had wanted to mate but she couldn’t do it. Sh
Dammit- He caught her.'Tell him I'm a shadow and I'll Kill you.' Liora gripped Nikolai’s throat tightly, sending him the mental warning a split second before Ronin descended upon them.He ripped her away from her snack and sent her flying across the room. Air left her lungs as her back slammed into the closet door, breaking the mirror in the center. Shards fell around her where she crouched, littering the sheer gray carpet.“Alpha, this isn’t what you think-”“No?” Ronin slammed Nikolai into the wall adjacent, his claws digging into the Delta’s chest. “I knew that you and Liora were close but I didn’t think you would actually fuck my mate–!”Liora stalked over, pushing Ronin back and getting between them. “Back off Ronin. He’s mine.”Some of the rage drained from Ronin’s expression as if he was now finally starting to understand what was happening. “Liora. Your eyes.”“Hmmn, yes dear. We’re a matching set now.” The corner of her mouth turned up ruefully.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Ronin’s heart thumped so hard he thought his rib cage would break. The horror mixed with excitement was a triple shot of adrenalin as his rationale clashed with his wolf’s eagerness to get control.“If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were the one that let the mindless beasts into the summer solstice party.” Ronin curled his lip, “ 'Cause- why would you want to have two crazy monarchs if you weren’t trying to undermine the Helm?”Dr. Reynolds's jaw dropped, “Alpha, I would never, EVER-”“Relax, Doc.” Caius cut in. “He’s just messing with you. We have shadow guards watching every non-council member who has access to the house. We know you didn’t do it.”The doctor nodded once, glancing at Ronin with a wary expression. “I wouldn’t have suggested if there was another way.”Ronin raked a hand through his hair, “I can’t tell the last time I gave my wolf complete control. What if I let go and I can’t come back? We will have an even worse situation on our hands.”Liora was pretty bad.
Liora fidgeted with the hem of her blouse, gripping Ronin’s hand tightly as the elders busied themselves preparing him to enter the Soulscape. She admitted the last few days were a roller coaster of crazy. Heather dying, Saberlon revealing himself to the Society, her doing the walk of death and Ronin finding out her wolf was corrupted after she had a breakdown. It was a lot, but they were sorting through everything and finding normalcy again, only for Ronin to declare that he wanted to have a tête-à-tête with his wolf.“Relax, Liora. I’m going to be fine.” He gave her a small smile, adjusting his head on the velvet pillow an elder carried for him.“You can’t promise me that.” She shook her head. “I spent one hour in there equated to two months. You want to spend three days, that’s like spending an entire year in hell".”“You were on a specific quest that caused you to experience difficulty. I’m going to talk with my wolf and see if I can get some answers to help us understand and perh
The King bickered back and forth with his advisors while Ronin tried to process that bit of information. He didn’t know what to think or feel about being a reincarnation of an ancient Greek king. Lost in thought, he didn’t notice when Kaon changed the ‘channel’.‘This isn’t our memory exactly,’ Kaon said as they walked through a dark forest. The moon was full and there was music, singing, and soft glowing lights dancing in the distance. ‘This was loaned to me, to help fulfill the purpose of this expedition.’‘W…Where are we?’‘Mount Lykaion.’Ronin was about to ply his wolf with more questions but was halted by a weird shimmering sensation when several figures zipped through his astral body. Turning around, he watched as a boy was pinned down by two of his siblings. He looked no more than 17 years old, struggling against their hold.‘Let go of me!’ He growled as the remaining brothers encircled him. The oldest, and no doubt the ring leader, made a slow tutting sound. ‘Nyctimus. What