Aaron, just like Damor, had moved to attack Lucius, but his minions were willing to put themselves in the way. He had taken down three werewolves, one sage, and is currently battling another sage. It was easier said than done because, unlike the first sage he fought, this one seemed stronger, if there was such a thing. His healing abilities were kicking in to repair the damage to the broken bones and ribs, but they were not fast enough for the assault his body was taking. The sage had kicked the golden dagger away, and he was forced to fight with his hands, which wasn’t a fair fight.
“You’re the alpha Aaron from the strongest line?” The sage, who had told him his name before the battle but didn’t care to keep it in mind, spoke. “This is a joke. You do not pose any threat to our alpha.” He spat on the floor.
Aaron laughs, and this made the sage raise a brow. “What is so funny?”
Aaron pulled himself to his feet and asked, “If I pose no threat, why does your so-called alpha want me dead at all costs?”
Aaron launched at him, and before he could return a counter for the attack, Aaron slipped under his hand, picked up the golden dagger, and drove it into his heart.
The enemy had taken down more than half of those that had initially started the war, and now the sages alive were five. At the rate they were going, Aaron was optimistic they would come up on top.
“Not a threat, he said; strongest bloodline, he said.” Aaron spat on the body of the lifeless sage on the ground, reciprocating the action he had taken earlier.
“I have to say I am very impressed by the fight that your pack has put up today; you guys are not to be underestimated.” Lucius said this and clapped his hand.
Aaron straightened, and despite his aching bones, he knew he could still take on Lucius. “Why? Are we making you reconsider your decision to attack us?”
Lucius smiled cockily. “Do not gloat just yet, Aaron; I still have the offer I made earlier on the table. Surrender, and I will let what’s left of your pack leave.”
“My pack still outnumbers yours three to one; I say we will take our chances.”
Lucius chuckled. “I never knew rebellion at the expense of the life of your pack was how the great Aaron Hart operated. When I made this offer to the other Alphas to save their packs, many accepted.”
“They are here on this field. Some of them are in your midst as we speak, and you probably think they are on your side,” Lucius said.
Aaron opened his mouth to reply when he heard a fearful gasp go through those already gathered together, followed by a bitter cry from Sesi. Lucius word dawned on Aaron, and he realised that some of the pack he had opened the doors of the estate to in the last few days were the enemy.
Zera gasped from beside him, and turning around, he found her falling to the ground. His eyes darted, and he found Viktor standing beside her with his golden dagger covered with blood. Everyone gasped and moved away from him. Aaron lost focus and turned to the now-stabbed Zera. Viktor had stabbed her at the side, and though she wasn’t dead, she was bleeding out and in excruciating pain, which he felt.
Aaron raced over to Zera and took her into his arms, losing focus in the fight.
Alpha Kol tried to attack Viktor, but he drove his silver dagger into his heart, and he fell to the ground, dead.
“Father!” Sky cried at the sight of his father losing his life at the hands of Viktor.
He stepped away from the pack and moved to stand beside Lucius.
“Why Viktor?!” Aaron demanded.
“Because you may know him as Alpha Viktor, but the truth is he was never an Alpha. I have always been his alpha. I am Alpha Viktor, but for the last three years, I’ve placed myself in the shadow and let him take the lead. This made many believe he was the alpha of the Crimson Moon Pack when, in fact, I was always the alpha. Convincing you wasn’t hard; you had already believed he was the alpha, which was what we needed.”
“Coward,” Damor growled and attacked from the back, but was stopped by a sage on Lucius’s left-hand side. He threw him on the floor.
“You call it cowardice; I call it doing what it takes.” Lucius answered with a smirk on his face. “You wouldn’t understand that because you never think. You just fight and attack, aiming only to kill, and that will be your downfall.”
Damor rose to his feet, spitting out the blood in his mouth. “If I have to go through you to get to the bastard, then I will.”
Zera spoke up: “The war is still ongoing. We need to keep fighting, Aaron; we have to win no matter what,” she said and pulled herself onto her feet, ignoring the pain and discomfort it caused her.
Aaron’s attention turned to Lucius and his people.
“We will not give in; we will not surrender!” He yelled.
The rest of the pack yelled along with him, going on to make a straight attack.
Damor almost thrust the dagger into the sage’s heart when he hit it off and grabbed Damor. He struggled to set himself free, but the sage holding onto him wouldn’t let him go. His claws grew out, and he almost thrust them into Damor’s chest when he was hit by an invincible force, and he lost his balance and fell to the floor.”
“I’m sorry, but the only one who gets to kill him is me,” Ivan said.
Damor dragged himself to his feet and said, “He’s mine.”
Ivan stepped back and said, “As you wish.” He stretched his hand out and cast a numbing spell on the sage, whom Damor attacked. This gave Damor the opportunity to tackle him to the ground and stab his chest with the golden dagger.
Aaron and Zera attacked sages on their path to Lucius with anger and rage. Aaron wasn’t as strong as he was when he started this battle, and that was because he now shared his strength with Zera in order to keep her alive. Still, they attacked, tapping into their rage instead of their strength.
In no time, Aaron had his claws around Lucius’s neck, and his fist collided with his face. It brought him so much joy to do this, and as much as he wanted to drag out his death and make it as painful as possible, he didn’t want to waste any time on him anymore. Lucius tried a few fights, but he was no match for Aaron, as expected.
“Do it now, Pier.” Lucius yelled with all his mind, and the next second, powdered wolfsbane came pouring out on everyone in the pack.
When the painful haze of the dust cleared, the Legion of Sage was gone.
“Find them!” Aaron roared, and the pack scattered in search of the runaway attackers.
Having been overpowered and seeing defeat coming, Lucius sought to retreat with the few living sages and werewolves, including Viktor.
“Are you going somewhere?” Aaron asked, and looking up ahead, Lucius found him standing before them in the way they should go through.
Lucius sighed. “Fine, you have shown yourself the stronger alpha; be the better man and let me go with what I have.”
“That’s not justice for the many lives that you took or the many that died in this field fighting against you. Do you not believe their deaths deserve to be avenged, Lucius, or should I say, Viktor?”
Ivan sent the numbing spell on those around Lucius except for Lucius himself, and they all dropped to their knees, almost lifeless. Sky attacked Viktor before anyone could stop her, and she ripped his heart out immediately after. He died in an instant.
Lucius saw all that was happening around him and raised his hands. “Aaro-”
Damor tackled him to the ground. “Keep my brother’s name out of your mouth!” He said that and broke both his hands.
He cried out in pain like the coward he was. Damor forced him onto his knees.
Aaron stepped over to where he was kneeling on the ground, and he could hear the unsteadiness of his heartbeat. It was out of fear, but he didn’t feel any pity for him. If anything, he felt anger.
“I ask for pardon.”
“You deserve no pardon.” Aaron said and snapped his neck, and his lifeless body dropped to the ground.
The pack members attacked the two last sages and tackled to the ground. Aaron paid little attention to them because his attention stayed on Zera. He hurried over to her and took her into his arms.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his eyes already scanning over what it could.
She nodded. “It’s slow, but I am healing.” She told him.
“Is everyone okay?” Damor asked, and everyone tried to check themselves and their neighbour, making sure they were okay.
They all scanned their bodies, and he received a chorused “Yeah” from many of them.
Damor moved to find Sesi but paused when he found her kneeling before the lifeless body of Manon, weeping bitterly. He had lost his life in the war. He moved closer to console her in her moment of grief and pain.
Ivan must have seen them because he stepped closer to where they were.
Damor noticed the change in the steps of Ivan, and his gaze lingered on him. “Are you okay?” he asked.
Ivan nodded, only to collapse on the ground the very second. “Ivan!” He raced over to him from Sesi’s side and carried him into his arms.
The panic-filled call alerted the rest of the pack members, and their attention turned to them.
Damor lifted the robe to see, and at the side of Ivan’s rib, he found a deep wound, probably done by one of the sages, claws. He had been bleeding out, and it looked like it had been for a while.
“No, no, Ivan.” He glanced at his brother, realising what it meant and also the words Ivan had told him this morning. He didn’t see it as death; he didn’t want this to be death.
Aaron and Sesi came over to them, kneeling down before Ivan, all their faces filled with regret.
He shook his head and said, “Ivan, you do not get to die; you do not get to die on me. Not yet.” Tears ran down his face.