Chapter 39

King Alpha Roman’s POV

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It took half the day for us to reach the edge of Eric’s lands, which are surrounded by thick forests and swamps. I mind link the other pack leaders with their instructions.

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Scatter yourselves around the perimeter, be careful to stay hidden. We must not take action until after the ceremony is complete. Is that clear?

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The Alphas from our pack alliances lead their groups out into the muck of the swamps that surround Eric’s lands, and a small group stays with me, which includes Anna, Odette and her son.

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Quietly, we make our way closer to the pack perimeter and we stumble upon a small stone building. It stands dark in the midst of heavily wooded surroundings. When we approach the front door, it creaks open and Anna is pulled inside, putting us all on high alert. We lunge in behind her and see Aria in the corner of the room and Stefan apologizing to Anna for scaring her.

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Anna and I go straight to Aria. “Are you alright?”

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“Roman, Anna...it's been so long." She says and hugs us both. "Thank you for helping me, I must save my son,” she says tearfully.

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“We will, I promise we will. Have you seen Lucas?” I ask and Stefan nods.

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“He refuses to leave Leo. He is hiding near the training grounds. They have Leo there, chained to the middle of the arena. That’s where they plan to do the ceremony.” Stefan confirms, and I see Aria’s face grimace.

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“He’s hurt, and he will shift tonight. Eric thinks his birthday is tomorrow, so it will come as a surprise to him, but it won’t matter if Leo doesn’t live through it. Where is Elise?” Aria asks and I shake my head.

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“She is safe.” I reply and Aria looks angry.

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“Safe? She should be here. Her place is here!” her whispers get louder. “Leo will not survive the shift without her. What were you thinking?”

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“I won’t risk my daughter’s life!”

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“We are the rulers of these lands. That comes with a price Roman! We risk our lives for the benefit of our people!” I can see how worried she is and deep down I know that she’s right, but I still will not sacrifice my only child and put her in harms way.

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“I will do everything to help him through this,” Anna reaches out for Arias’ hand, “I promise I will.”

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“In 30 minutes the ceremony will begin, we need to get ourselves closer,” Odette and her sons transform into winged creatures and fly out into the night where they will be meeting the warriors from her clan, and the rest of us leave the cottage and carefully head to the training grounds. I can see that a crowd is forming and there is the stench of death that is hanging heavily over the area, getting more vile as we get closer. We are careful to stay hidden, but I hear a rustling to the left of me and nearly shift until I realize it’s Lucas.

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He put’s his finger to his lips and then mind links me.

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Stay quiet. It will begin soon. -Lucas

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How is he? Is Gideon in control? I ask.

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Gideon has given control back to Leo. He’s hurt. He’s lost so much blood and isn’t able to heal himself yet. The minute he assumes Alpha we need to make our move.

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Elise’s POV

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“I thought you said the other packs were going to be here?” Leia asks, all of us keeping our voices low to stay undetected.

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“Well, if we could see them then Eric and his goons would see them too. They’re here, don’t worry.” Jack has us follow behind him and we duck beneath the stands that surround the training grounds. “Good thing Eric isn’t a real Alpha, he would have smelled us by now.”

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“Where are all their guards? This seems too easy.” Tao mutters to Echo, and I agree.

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“Do you see him?” Sammi asks and we all look for Leo. I see a lump in the middle of the training yard and the faintest smell of evergreen and chocolate hits me, but it’s mixed with the sickening smell of iron and I know instantly that he’s bleeding.

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“Someone’s coming!”

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We all freeze and watch as a crowd is forming. I sneak along the perimeter of the stands to get a better look and the others follow, all of us keeping an eye on the growing group forming. There must be several hundred now crowding in a circle, but not a single child in sight. We do see a line of their guards standing beside the wall, and it seems that they have all been sent to guard Leo. Then a large man comes barging through the crowd, several men are following him and he yells out for Stefan.

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I watch as a man, who looks somewhat familiar to me, stand next to Leo and a women drops down to Leo’s side.

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“Who is that?” Tao asks and Sammi gasps.

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“Holy Shit! That’s my Uncle Stef! I haven't seen him in years,” She looks at us in shock. “What on earth is he doing here?”

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“You're uncle helped them find Leo, and the woman is Leo’s mother, Queen Luna Aria.” I say. We all know who she is, but she hasn’t been seen in a long time.

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The crowd settles when Eric raises his hand.

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“Tonight is our night! We shall take our place as the strongest pack in the world!” He waits for the crowd’s reaction but it seems as though they are all terrified. Only a few shout in excitement. “Did you not hear me? We will rule every inch of every territory, it will all be ours!” This time the crowd joins in with some hesitation.

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“It’s all thanks to this man,” he points to Stefan, and he genuinely looks mortified, “he found the missing link and has brought him back to us.” Eric reaches down and grabs Leo by the hair and lifts him up, and I nearly shout in despair when I see his face and blood-soaked torso. Jack wraps one arm around my waist and another on my mouth to stop me from lunging towards him screaming.

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We all hold our breath as we watch Eric drag Leo to one of the pillars and chain him tightly to it, stretching his arms high above his head and wrapping another length of chain around his legs so that he can’t run if he were by some miracle to get loose.

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“My bride, come stand beside me as we give Leo his rightful place in this pack!” He doesn’t wait for her to join him and he grabs her arm and pulls her beside him.

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“Pack members, it is time to accept your Alpha so that we may finally take what is ours!” He turns to Leo and my heart is racing out of my chest. I pull away from Jack slightly and Lily is in my head screaming for me to save him.

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“I ask the Moon Goddess to accept Leo Heroux, son of Augusta and Aria Heroux , as Alpha of the Southern Raven pack and the rightful king of the southern territories!”

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There are warriors that come up beside Eric and they all shift into monstrous beasts, huge wolves with a frenzied look. The earth begins to shake and the clouds clear in the sky allowing the moon to shine directly down on Leo.

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“He’s going to shift,” Jack says and I can feel Leo’s pain as his body begins to change.

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Leo’s POV

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The moon is hanging high in the sky, its silvery light casting eerie shadows through the crowd of beasts staring at me, their eyes look crazed and part of me feels like this is all just a terrible dream and that I’ll wake up on Frank’s dingy couch and all of this will go away. I tug as hard as I can to get free, barely able to catch my breath.

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I’m desperate to crouch into a ball as my bones begin to shift and crack, a searing pain spreads through my veins like wildfire and my vision is starting to blur. The agony is unbearable.

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Sweat stings my eyes and the sharp smell of iron hits my nose and makes me sick. Frenzied howls are getting louder and louder and voices penetrate my ears. It sounds like thousands of voices, all yelling for me, pleading. I can’t make one out from the next, but they are horrific pleas and screams. It sounds like pure terror and it feels like I’m going to go crazy.

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I can hear myself cry out in agony, but the sound isn’t human. It’s a sound I have never made before, a guttural growl, and it makes my bones chill.

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I stretch my hands out and I can feel them tug and pull, elongating into claws and a tearing sound rips through me. I suddenly drop to the ground, somehow breaking out of the chains that surround me, and I feel like I’m being crushed. I claw at the ground in pain and the crowd feels like it’s closing in on me, all whispering secrets to me that I don’t understand.

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I feel my heart beating and it’s uneven, and the pressure is building so high I feel like I might explode. Darkness is creeping in at the edges of my vision and I know that I am disappearing into nothingness as Gideon is taking over. It terrifies me and I don’t want to let go. I won’t! I know that if I do, I’ll never come back.

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Hold on Leo, stay with me. If you give up, it will be forever, and I do not want to exist without you as my other half.

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Through the haze of pain and fear I hear a voice pierce through all the rest. “Leo, hold on! I’m here! I’m here Leo!” It’s Elise, her voice clear above all the others, and I focus on it, using it as an anchor to pull myself back from the edge of oblivion.

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With a final, desperate effort, I push myself up, my body convulsing as the transformation reaches its peak. I can feel the beast within me, clawing to get out, but I continue to fight it with every ounce of strength I have left.

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Just when I think I can’t hold on any longer, hands grab me and Elise’s face swims into view, her eyes filled with worry and fear.

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“Leo, I'm right here. Focus on me, stay with me!” she says, but her face is pulled away and a horrific beast is yanking her by her hair and holding her as she screams for me.

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I swallow hard and get to my feet and I focus on my mate, trying desperately to block out all the voices in my head. As my vision becomes clearer, I look at the monster’s face who has her and when he makes eye contact with me, he tosses her to one of the beasts beside him and I know he is going to come straight for me. I take a quick look at my body and I continue to fight to stay in the forefront and not relinquish myself completely to Gideon.

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“Why is he shifting?!” Eric shifts back to his human form and approaches me with fury in his eyes.

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“You aren't supposed to shift until tomorrow!” He screams at me. Then, he pulls Elise back into his clutches and a single claw extends from his finger and he presses it up against her neck.

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“No, Eric this ends here! Let her go!” Alpha Roman charges into the arena, and Lucas is beside him. The voices are louder than ever now, shrieking and crying at a deafening volume in my ears and I’m not sure how much more I can take, but I know that I must protect Elise.