ETHAN
My men and I gather at the front gate. Xander and Alex each take their own men to the other exits so that we can attack our opponents from the sides as well. Their only escape would be to retreat. Caleb stayed on the wall to lead the archers and our back-up forces.
We are all ready to go, and I look around, realizing that I donât see Scarlet anywhere. I have a moment of panic before I see her descending the stone steps with Cassia.
They are leaning toward each other having a quiet, and seemingly heated conversation. My eyebrows furrow. Something is wrong.
A large boulder comes flying overhead and crashes into a tower, sending brick and glass shards cascading down. My attention instantly goes back to the task at hand.
âScarlet! Cassia! Time to go!â
They both shut their mouths and hurry up to me. I quickly mind-link a few of the guards, and the gates open. Cassia immediately throws up a magical shield as we march onto the battlefield.
She stands on one side of me while Scarlet is on the other, her hand tightly gripped in mine. I focus in front of me as we near the enemy lines.
Spells and arrows continue to bombard us, but Cassiaâs barricade holds. I can see Xander and his warriors to the left and Alex and his men to the right. Sheâs protecting them as well.
âCassia, on the count of three, drop the barrier. When the fighting begins, I want you to stay out of the fray and focus on protecting everyone from any spells or death blows. Scarlet, when that happens, take out their catapults so they canât do any more damage to the city. And no matter what, you stay by me,â I say to them before mind-linking all our warriors on the field.
A few of them are assigned to protect Cassia, while others are to protect Scarlet. The rest will take care of the witches and Silver Shadow Pack.
Once everyone has their assignments and knows what to do, I yell out, âOne⦠Two⦠Three!â
Cassia whips down the shield as Scarlet sends a giant blast toward the catapult. It immediately splinters and bursts into rubble. The warriors of our opposing pack rush toward us with growls and snarls as half of them shift into their wolf forms.
Our soldiers then do the same as we all clash in the middle. The sounds of multiple fights fill the air along with the coppery scent of blood being spilled.
Right away, I notice that Lucien has stayed behind. The coward is hiding behind the witches with a small party instead of fighting alongside his warriors. I want to get to him, but Iâm unwilling to leave Scarletâs side.
Iâm hoping that weâll eventually be able to work our way through his forces and get to him, but I know itâs unlikely. Even if we manage to kill all of his pack members that stand between us, we will still have the witches to contend with.
Iâve seen enough of Scarletâs and Cassiaâs powers to know that it will be near impossible to get past their defenses. All I know is that I want to murder that son of a bitch for everything he has put my mate through, everything he has put me and my pack through.
Scarlet and I stand back-to-back as she shoots her magic toward our enemies, taking out anyone who sets their sights on us. A couple of wolves manage to get close to us, and I instantly shift into my large black wolf.
Pouncing on one, I sink my teeth into its jugular as the other jumps on my back. I spin, throwing him off before swiping my claws out at him. We snap and growl at each other until he lunges at me. I flip myself around and kick him over me before pinning him underneath me and biting his neck too.
An orange burst of light comes flying at me as soon as I look to find my next opponent. I duck and roll before another one spirals toward me. It stops midway and crackles out of existence.
Turning my head, I see Cassia dropping her hand to her side as she releases the shield. Our eyes meet in a silent thank you before I notice one of my warriors knocked down by a Silver Shadow wolf. He was one meant to be protecting Cassia.
The enemy wolf has his eyes set on her, and I quickly bark at her in warning. She spins around just as the wolf lunges at her. Cassia stumbles backward as another wolf leaps into the air, colliding with her attacker and knocking it to the ground.
I recognize the wolf as my brother Xander. Though he has been very stand-offish with his new mate, he clearly cares about her. He growls ferociously before snapping the other wolfâs neck.
I spot movement out of the corner of my eye and turn to face my next attacker. Fur flies as we claw and bite at each other. A snarl escapes my lips as he swipes my leg, leaving a deep gash.
I jump on him, slicing at his underbelly before another one pounces on me. My body slides across the grass before he pins me, his teeth gnashing together as he tries to get at my jugular, and I squirm underneath him.
Before I have the chance to fight him off a burst of light hits him, and he freezes, falling over to his side. I look up and see Scarlet, still shooting spells around her. Willâs wolf is next to her as he fights off one of the Silver Shadow wolves.
He takes one out, just in time to tackle one that lunged for Scarlet as she was fighting off two others in the opposite direction.
Forcing my way back over to her, I take down three more. We are severely outnumbered. So far, weâve been managing to hold our own, but I donât know how much longer that will last.
Using magic drains a personâs energy, and Iâm not sure how much longer Scarlet and Cassia can keep going. Sweat beads along Scarletâs hairline, and sheâs looking pale. â~You should shift,~â I insist to her.
â~I canât~,â she responds back.
â~Youâre going to pass out if you continue to push yourself.~â
â~Donât worry about me. Iâm fine.~â
More enemy wolves converge on us. Soon, I find myself taking on three at a time. My body burns from pushing my muscles so hard. Iâm panting and growing tired.
We are surrounded, and they just keep coming. All our allied packs have inched closer together, forming a tight cluster. Silver Shadow wolves attack from all sides as we form a loose circle.
All of our strongest warriors are on the outer edges while both Cassia and Scarlet are in the middle surrounded by wolves that are ready to protect them.
Wolf corpses are scattered all over the battlefield. Luckily, most of them belong to the Silver Shadow Pack. Several witches are dead too, and the ones that are still fighting are clearly getting tired. Soon, they will be struggling the way Scarlet and Cassia seem to be.
âYou shouldnât beâ¦pushingâ¦yourself,â I overhear Cassia murmur to Scarlet between shooting spells out at a couple of the witches.
I take down another wolf before moving to the next. Lunging for a jugular, another one falls. Several minutes pass as I continue to fight before I hear Scarletâs voice in my head, using the pack link. â~Everyone get down now!~â
We all listen as we hit the ground. Scarlet and Cassia are holding hands, and a burst of bright white light explodes out of them.
The light spreads across the entire field, taking down every wolf still standing and knocking the witches to the ground. I immediately look over at Scarlet to see her and Cassia swaying on their feet.
Both of them have met their limits as their eyes fall shut, and they collapse. Iâm quick to catch Scarlet as Xander hurries to reach Cassia. She lands in his arms as I scoop Scarlet up bridal-style.
âHunt down survivors and kill them. If you find Alpha Lucien, detain him. I want to be the one to end his life,â I command as I carry Scarlet toward the opening gates.