Esra was gone. Again.
I sent search parties out to look for her but she was long gone. Almost like she vanished into thin air.
My office was a mess. The anger in me didn't spare anything. Heat boiled from within. I was pissed.
"Dammit, Esra!" I banged my desk.
I couldn't believe she wasn't paralyzed. I couldn't believe she'd actually do something like that.
"Alpha Kratos, you should see this. It's bad. We don't have time." Alpha Hayes barged into my office. "What the-"
"Don't." I cut him off, lifting my hand to silence him then clenching it into a fist after. "Don't ask." I sighed. "I'll be right there."
He gave a nod. I followed him to the next office.
"The full moon is tonight." He said. "Its-"
"The blood moon." I punched the wall. "Fuck this, Esra. This is why you ran away!"
"Calm down, Alpha Kratos."
"Calm down? Calm down?" I shouted. "How can I calm down?" The walls seemed to vibrate with my voice.
"You shouldn't be so infuriated." Hayes frowned. "Not unless..."
"What are you talking about?" I questioned.
"Your mate ran away. You shouldn't be so angry. Your wolf shouldn't be like this. Only if she's..."
My breath hitched. "No. I cannot be."
"Alpha-"
"I refuse to believe that!" The anger swelled inside. "Esra, cannot be pregnant. Can she?" I choked on my words.
"Alpha-"
"Is this why she ran away? Hm? Does she not trust me? Does she not love me?"
"Calm down, we have a war to prepare for tonight."
"Fuck this war."
Alpha Hayes kept quiet.
"Why are our lives so complicated?" I sighed.
"Alpha, if Azrael has the Moonstone right now then we're all doomed. We need your father."
"I want Azrael dead." I gritted my teeth.
"He's a demon wolf. It's in his nature." Hayes said.
"I'd rather just fucking die right now."
"No. You're not thinking straight. This isn't you, Alpha Kratos. You're a dire wolf. A pure blood. You will lead this war and win."
"You know we're not going to win." He remained silent. "You already know."
"I'm just trying to save everyone's lives. That's one of my priorities as an Alpha."
"That's your priority. Mine is my mate." I growled.
"Our mates are our first priority but your mate is damn confused! She does not know what she wants! One minute she loves you and the next she's running away. How many times has she run away? How many times has she actually loved you?" He narrowed his eyes. "She has disgraced the Argent blood line. She isn't fit to be an Alpha female. She is more human than shifter. She's weak."
I growled and grabbed his collar. "Talk about her one more time like that and I'll make sure you regret it."
"You know it's true. You just don't want to accept it."
I growled and let him go. "I forced Esra to come here. She lived in the human world peacefully. I'm the reason why she left in the first place. I'm the reason why she's like this now. And I hate myself for it." With that I turned my back at him and walked away.
'Everyone gather together in the grounds. We're leaving.' I mind linked everyone in the pack.
I went downstairs to the dungeons to talk to my father again.
"Good news, you're free." I opened his cellar gate.
"What?" He looked at me confused.
I walked into his cellar and unchained him. "Help us defeat Azrael and I shall grant you your freedom."
He rubbed his wrists that had marks due to the chains attached for years.
"You want my help?" He was still confused.
"Yes."
"Ohh." He cleared his throat. "Let's get your brother first."
"For fucks sake, I want nothing to do with him. He's on Azrael's side." I grunted.
"He's my son too. I need to speak to him."
I eyed my father. "Very well. I'll come with you. But we don't have much time. The blood moon is tonight."
"Aye, you couldn't tell me that earlier?"
I rolled my eyes. "Let's go."
We walked out of the dark cellar. I took him to the room where all the other Alphas were.
My father eyed the pack house. "Aye, this place has changed...a little."
I opened the doors to the office. "Alphas, is eveyone in the grounds?"
"Yes." Alpha Kori nodded.
"The Lunas?"
"In the safe room."
"Good. Let's go."
We went into the grounds were all the wolves from the packs waited for us. The rest of us shifted as well.
The other Alphas were stunned when they saw my father's wolf. I snarled at them. The Alphas backed up.
I growled at them to follow. I sprinted into the woods. The mountain ash no longer provided a shield.
The other wolves ran after me, following me into the depths into the forest.
My father on the other hand, drifted away from the pack. I was pissed off for some reason.
I growled and mind linked Hayes. 'Lead them to the Valley of a Thousand Hills. I'll be back just now.'
I ran away from the pack and after my father. I caught up with him within a minute.
'Son, you shouldn't be here.'
'I do.' I snapped and ran faster than him. I ran ahead while he ran behind me.
When we reached the Darkwood pack border I didn't bother to stop. I ran with my father through the border. I picked up various scents of timber wolves.
Timber wolves.
Every thought in my mind pissed me off even more. Everything infuriated me further. Every thought fueled the never ending fire that burned throughout my mind and body.
Distant howls were heard.
Soon, the demon wolf and I were surrounded by timber wolves. I shaped at them, snarling, showing my sharp teeth. I growled whilst my father remained still, waiting.
Soon the Alpha appeared. The demon wolf.
My father walked toward him.
The other demon wolf, my brother, stood still, eyeing the demon wolf in front of him. The timber wolves backed up. My brother stared at me. It looked like my father and him were mind linking each other.
He made his way toward me. He was my size but was black.
'Brother.' He stood tall.
'Donovan.' I snorted and shook my fur. I looked at my father with a serious face.
'He's on our side.' My father mind linked me.
I didn't waste any time. I turned and sprinted back toward the Valley of a Thousand Hills. My father, brother and his timber waves followed.
I hit into tree trunks and snapped broken logs that were in my way as I ran. I ran faster than usual. The anger heightened everything in me.
We didn't run for long. We soon reached the valley were the other wolves waited. I ran onto the top of the mountain. The top of the mountain was full with these yellow plants. It messed with my smell. I couldn't smell anything.
These were sage... Yellow sage?
'They mask your scent.' My father mind linked me.
I ignored him. These plants angered me even more and yet I didn't understand why. I didn't care.
I cared about revenge. I wanted revenge...
The full moon shone bright in the dark sky. I lifted my head and howled. The other wolves, one by one, began to howl. Our howls echoed through the night.
And soon... Azrael stood on the other end of the valley with the Moonstone.