Page 85 of Rising Luna
And these had already shifted. They were at their full power this way. I just had to thank the damn Great Moon that none of them seemed to know how to wield the shadows like Lupe did. Some weren’t even good at using their astral form like Dylan. Lupe said this process worked better with Shadowborns, but too many of these wolves weren’t Shadowborns. Lupe gathered others who weren’t of that subspecies to join her cause.
This was how she planned to take over. It looked like she was just taking over anyone who opposed her and was adding them to her army as pawns. And now I had to kill every single one since there was no damn cure.
They swarmed us. Others joined in the fight from Dylan’s pack, all seeing where the next wave came in to help. Too many of them looked like they were on their last amount of energy to fight. Their movements had become sluggish and almost cost them their lives.
A wolf jumped on my back and rolled him off and snapped down on his front right limb until I heard a crunch. He rolled to his feet and favored the one I had broken, but he didn’t stop there. He lunged the best he could at me, fumbling from his injury and opening him up for my attack. My canines bit down deep into his shoulder, and I ripped it away with a tug. He slowed down, but still tried to attack. It didn’t work as I made my way into ripping him apart until there wasn’t much left.
Anger rolled through me as I continued to make my way through the crowd of wolves, all of us fighting the same fight. It became a rhythm of me fighting off a wolf myself and then helping someone else as the enemy gained the upper hand. I looked over to see my mate trying to evade Lupe’s blows, but Lupe looked like a tornado. Her movements were faster, and it made it harder for Dylan to land anything. If any of these wolves fought like Lupe, we all would be dead.
Hunter! Need you!Silas yelled through the bond and I looked to see two of the feral wolves on top of him. He held them back as best as he could, but their snarling teeth gnashed toward his face, spewing saliva forward. I barreled into one, knocking him off my new pack brother and I tore into him as my rage needed to be sated.
I was so over this shit.
Jackson jumped into my vision and then over me. I turned my head to see him on top of a wolf that was trying to take me on from behind. This was utter madness. We were killing them left and right. The ground was stained red with their blood and piles of enemy combatants lay dead with throats ripped open and drained of their life. Yet somehow there were more hordes of these fresh wolves charging towards with little care for their own lives. Full of hatred and savagery, they kept trying to take us on. It didn’t matter. They will all end the same.
Where the fuck are all these damn wolves coming from?!Jackson snarled in my head.
Another good question. Lupe somehow had this many damn wolves on her side? There were tens of thousands of us in the supernatural world, but I would’ve never guessed thismany of them thought Lupe’s plans were the way this world should be. Clearly, I was the one wrong here since there were at least a few hundred fighting for her.
This was insane. There was a glimmer in the light above, and I looked up to see the moon glowing in this weird way. Panic laced through me as I thought Lupe had gained the power to influence the damn moon. Even worse, I thought the shadows were returning from the darkness I saw shrouding around Lupe.
But that’s not what I saw at all.
The moon glowed and a new light cast down on the battlefield. I could see everything all around me, like a floodlight had been turned on. I could even see all the wolves fighting the others. Blood and bodies were everywhere on the ground. In the treeline's darkness, in the inky black forest that surrounded us, eyes appeared. The glowing eyes of predators all reflected the moonlight on a solid wall of danger and murderous intent.
Great. Even more fucking wolves for us to fight. We are all going to die!
A familiar power wrapped around me, and the bond I forgot about sounded in my chest. I felt a small sense of relief spread through me as more wolves walked out on the battlefield. There weren’t as many as the wave that Lupe brought upon us, but it would be enough. Just enough to change the damn tides and for things to end here and now. The power washed over me, and I felt my bonded brothers stiffen as they walked up to me. Every wolf in the area stopped to look at who was coming onto the field. They were all going to die, but not in the way they thought. This was exactly what we needed.
Is that who I think it is?Silas asked through the bond.
No fucking way that’s who we think it is. He wouldn’t have come here, right?Jackson added.
My wolf was impressively big, as were Jackson and Silas. But this behemoth of a wolf was larger than all three of us. His coat being impossibly black like the night sky and a patch of dark gray on his head almost like a crown... which was fitting given who he was. The monster that had emerged from the forest and now stood in front of us looked to be a creature of myth. A nightmare told in hushed tones by parents to their children when speaking about the dangers of the woods at night. A legend among werewolves, famous for keeping order in the realm.
It was exactly who we thought it was. The Monarch has just entered the fight... and he brought reinforcements.
Chapter Twenty-Nine: Dylan
The light from the moon grew and took over the field. When it touched me, I felt the cuts from Lupe heal and I felt this new energy fill my body and soul. Everything healed from the fight and it felt like I had eaten a filling meal and slept for hours. I felt rejuvenated.
The Great Moon had chosen a side.
Lupe was looking out toward the battlefield and I followed her gaze to see more wolves walking in. Mentally, I groaned because I knew she brought in more to fight. The moment I let the terror take over me, Hunter’s energy filled me through the bond.
Don’t worry, love. This battle is shifting. Those are not wolves for us to fight. My brethren are here.
I cackled as Lupe’s eyes widened with fear. She stared at something, and I looked over to see a monstrous wolf walking from the treeline. It wasn’t hard to know who it was because of the iconic gray patch on his head. The Monarch was here. And he brought some reinforcements along with him.
Lupe’s inattention gave me the opportunity to push her away. There were still others fighting for Lupe coming into the battle, but at least this meant we had more helping us with this. I got to my feet and pulled on the magic to go astral again with the newfound energy. Lupe still had her eyes locked on the king, and I was waiting for her to go forward to him, to fight him instead. At least if she gained the upper hand with him, she could do whatever she did to the others and change the king to one of her minions. That’s what I would have done.
Lupe didn’t look threatened, though. She looked... delighted.
A damn smile spread across her face as she looked out to everyone on the field. I spread out my pack, and my mates huddled together. They looked over at me and I assessed the damage they had taken through the bonds. The energy from the moon seeped into me as a beam of light zeroed in on me. There was tingling across my skin and then deeper. In the plane where I could see the bonds, there was light shimmering around each bond. Some were close to death, many of my pack bleeding from multiple wounds. When this light wrapped around their bond, I saw the damage they had taken from the fight disappear.
I looked up at the moon and the shimmering glow faded, but the bright light remained. The Great Moon had healed us all, and now we had the Monarch’s wolves to fight with us.
But Lupe still looked far too happy for someone who was about to get her ass beat. I watched her scan the field and her smile grew. Something about this felt off, but I didn’t know why she would be happy right now. A second wave of energy surged through my pack and mates. Her new wolves lacked battle experience, but we were all furious. Wolves with rage were not something to contend with, and we were quite filled with rage at the moment.
