Ruins Of Alph Novels & Stories

Leah We traveled for hours through the kingdom's countryside. I watched forests give way to villages, villages to open plains. Every settlement we passed showed signs of Ares's rule, new buildings constructed, but also burned foundations that hadn't been rebuilt. Prosperity for some, devastation for others. The ledger's words echoed in my mind with each destroyed home I saw. 47 dead. 12 children. Entire population enslaved. 31 children under ten. How many of these ruins were cataloged in those pages? How many lives destroyed by the man who now claimed to be my mate?

And a paper falls out from his mouth that I immediately read with my tears blurring my sight. “Three months. Surrender my fated mate, Alexia Volkov, the Alpha’s sister to the Chasma pack of the South Canidae within three months and we shall never see the cold war again. Alister Kai Alpha of the Chasma Pack...” “Alexia...” I drew out quietly and recalled the reaction she displayed back in the hall and pondered.

Samael spoke then, his voice cutting through the room. Corbin hesitated, not moving. "Now!" Samael commanded coldly. Corbin fumbled as he pulled out a piece of parchment from his pocket and handed it to Adler. Adler scanned through it, and when he lifted his eyes, they were filled with fury. “Alpha, this document is dated two weeks ago. Marcus died last month." The room erupted in an uproar, and Corbin’s face went pale. He rushed forward to grab the papers from Adler, but some warriors pinned him down.

It was gone too fast to name. “Is that so?” His voice was low and rough, like smoke over gravel, and it did something dangerous to my stomach. “Yes. That’s exactly so.” I was rambling now, couldn’t stop myself. “I don’t even know what the Alpha looks like. Could be hideous. Could have three heads and breath like a sewer. Doesn’t matter. I have dreams that don’t include being a crippled man’s glorified incubator, so here we are. Here I am. Talking too much because I’m nervous and—”

"You let us take her. Let us walk away with the hybrid who's so important to you. And in exchange, I won't cut her throat right now." "You won't kill her," Silvain said, though his heart hammered with terror that he was wrong. "Obsidian wants her alive. You said so yourself." "True." Ragnar's smile widened. "But he didn't specify how alive. She could lose an eye. A hand. Her tongue. So many ways to hurt someone without killing them." He leaned down, his voice loud enough for everyone to hear. "How much is she worth to you, Alpha? How many pieces can she lose before you decide the price is too high?"

POV: Delph The smoke still rose over Bloodstone Fortress, thin, tired ribbons curling toward the soft light of morning. Rain had fallen through the night, washing away the blood and ash, leaving the courtyard slick with silver puddles that reflected the rising sun. Delph walked slowly through the ruins, his boots crunching on broken stone. The once-mighty gates of Bloodstone lay scattered in pieces before him, twisted by flame and light. His fingers brushed against the charred wood. It was the same gate he had sworn to protect when he first became Alpha. Now it stood open, humbled, like everything else that had survived this war.

Rufus asked, his voice dropping to a whisper. "Heard about what, my friend?" Randall asked, ready to hear something new. Rufus was known to always have the latest news and information from far and near. "A mysterious Alpha who occupies the Green forests of the High East... They say this Alpha is unlike any other – powerful, wealthy, and…" he paused, his voice dropping to a dramatic hush, "rumored to be a hybrid." Rufus emphasized his last word in a hushed whisper, looking around to be sure no one heard him.

Nobody was foolish enough to mention it. The meeting eventually resumed. Trade agreements, border negotiations, harvest reports, and territorial disputes filled the next hour. Evren listened where necessary and endured where required. Most council meetings followed predictable patterns. This one changed when a visiting Alpha mentioned a recent discovery. "We uncovered ancient ruins near the eastern border." The room quieted slightly. Even Lucien looked interested. "What kind of ruins?" he asked. The Alpha shook his head. "We aren't sure. Most of the structure was buried beneath a collapsed mountain. The symbols don't match any known language."