Part- 66

POV - Marcus

Marcus could feel the surge of rage inside him, pulsing and threatening to overflow.

His wolf begged to be released, itching to get his claws and fangs buried in Aiden's pencil-thin neck. There was a slight movement, and he watched as Aiden's Delta walked forward, stepping between Aiden and Marcus to observe the ancient rites before any Alpha match.

Marcus didn't care to pay attention. His focus was fixed on Aria, who looked so small between Jaden and Mercucio that it was almost comical.

Finally, the Delta nodded and stepped back, signaling for the Alphas to shift and begin the fight.

In a heartbeat, Marcus had shifted, shaking out his thick fur. He stood tall, even in his wolf form, and once Aiden shifted, he took a small amount of pride in seeing that he towered over Aiden's wolf as well.

Aiden's wolf was as plain as Marcus had expected it to be. His fur was a deep russet, though shone more brass than red, similar to his dark hair. Like Aria, he had clearly been built for speed, and was probably better suited to being a pack hunter than the Alpha.

Marcus supposed there were always some perks to being the Alpha's son.

They circled one another slowly, their growls echoing off the stands around them. The crowd had gone eerily silent, and Marcus found himself looking for Aria, trying to keep her in his peripheral at all times.

Aiden must have noticed and he snarled in response, his claws digging onto the hard soil of the arena and launching himself forward at breakneck speed, almost crashing into Marcus before he could dodge.

But he evaded Aiden's clumsy attack, feeling the calmness that came with a battle settle in his chest.

There were few things that he could say he was good at, and fighting was definitely one of them. He could easily dissect his opponent's attack patterns, deciphering their defenses and guessing their attacks to beat them easily.

And yet, it was Aiden's unpredictable instinct that Marcus couldn't figure out. Nothing Aiden did made any sense. He just seemed to keep coming at Marcus again and again without any regard for his own safety.

It was as if his only goal was winning.

Marcus fought back a shiver, dodging yet another close blow that fore a chunk of fur from the side of his shoulder. An Alpha who had lost their sense of self-preservation was a threat, not only to themselves, but to those around them, those they were meant to protect.

Marcus didn't want to think about having to leave Aria behind with a wolf who was so desperate to win that it was all he thought about.

He couldn't leave her with the wolf that had forced his claim on her, and continued to hurt her with every decision he made.

With that thought fueling him, he ducked low to the ground, hackles raised and snout pulled back over his gleaming fangs. He caught the hint of fear in Aiden's black eyes before he barreled forward, knocking the other wolf to the ground with a mighty crash, the crowd collectively gasping as their Alpha hit the dirt with spectacular force.

Aiden snarled as he tried to get back to his feet, but Marcus was immediately on him, a paw on his throat before Aiden panicked and rolled Marcus off. He turned and snapped dangerously close to Marcus's throat, but the latter managed to pull far enough away before Aiden's jaws could close around his neck.

He snarled, lashing out and shredding a chunk of flesh from Aiden's left flank, wincing when he heard Aria gasp.

Would she feel it too? No, that was ridiculous, he was just being paranoid, scared that he would somehow hurt Aria.

He was thrown from his thoughts by Aiden's sharp maw locking around his ankle and taking him down, his head bouncing off the hard dirt of the arena, his teeth clacking with the force of the hit. His ears rang for a moment too long and Aiden was on top of him again, foam lining his mouth and dripping into Marcus's fur.

He felt claws sink into his flesh and twist, and he bit down a howl of pain as skin tore from bone.

He broke free, twisting onto his back and slashing at Aiden's eyes with his claws and making him fall back.

It went back and forth like that, each Alpha dealing damage and taking it in equal amounts. Marcus knew what pushed Aiden to continue, and it made him angry.

Aiden would not leave this arena with Aria, Marcus would rather die than leave Aria in the clutches of this insane wolf.

He lunged again and again, working to wear Aiden down and steal away his energy. Aiden slowly whittled down, getting tired the longer Marcus kept up his relentless assault. Marcus caught the way he stumbled back, struggling to keep his attacks coming the longer that Marcus attacked.

Finally, Marcus had him pinned, the fury bubbling inside his veins. He bared his teeth slowly, wanting Aiden to watch, to see what his death would be. He wanted Aiden to feel every ounce of fear he had put on Aria, wanting him to suffer for what he'd done to her.

He should have been protecting her. But he failed and ended up being the reason she got hurt, allowing his wolf to take what it wanted no matter how badly it destroyed her, and Marcus would make him pay.

He locked his jaw around Aiden's throat, his fangs breaking skin and blood staining his tongue.

But he stopped.

He remembered how it had felt to lose Helena, how the pain had crippled him for weeks before he was even able to eat again. How it had taken him almost a year to come back to their society. How it had taken five years for him to think about moving on.

He couldn't put Aria through the same.

And even though he wanted to punish Aiden for all the things he'd done, Marcus understood that taking away his true mate would be punishment enough.

With a low, warning growl, he released Aiden's throat and spat blood and matted fur from his mouth. The crowd went silent, no doubt in shock over Marcus leaving Aiden alive. He looked down at the defeated Alpha, whose chest shuddered weakly, blood pooling on the ground and soaking the earth beneath him. Aiden was clinging to life, having lost far too much blood, and exhaustion creeping up on him fast. He'd need to see the pack doctor soon and possibly be taken to the nearest clinic if he wanted to stay alive.

Marcus knew all too well what his mercy would look like to onlookers: they would see him as weak, an easy target. He'd have challenges flooding in for his title and his new mate. But he didn't care. Nothing was worth hurting Aria the way he'd been hurt when Helena had died.

He turned his back on the downed Alpha and looked towards Aria, who had already leapt over the low wall separating the stands from the arena itself and all but ran towards him. He didn't bother shifting, he just let her come to him, bowing his head so that she could reach up and thread her fingers through his fur.

"Well done, Alpha," she praised softly, sending ripples of pleasure down his spine. "You did so well."

He grumbled low, a faint growl rolling in his chest. She smiled up at him and pressed her forehead to the space between his lightning grey eyes.

"Let's go home," she murmured, and he huffed in agreement, wanting nothing more than to disappear with her in his arms once more.

She turned to the members of her pack, and Aiden, who watched weakly from his place on the ground.

"I acknowledge Marcus Mercia, Alpha of the Northern Ashryver pack as my chosen mate," she declared, and Marcus rolled his neck in triumph. It felt so damn good to hear her say it out loud, to hear her tell her old pack that he belonged to her, and she was his.

The crowd stayed silent and she led him out, Jaden and Mercucio following close behind them. Jaden was the first to speak.

"Marc," he said, jogging a little to catch up. "We're leaving soon, right? Because those wounds are not looking good and I think you should see Jonah the second you get back."

Marcus huffed but otherwise ignored his Beta, his eyes lingering on Aria, who walked beside him with genuine joy all over her stunning face.

"Aria," Jaden tried. "Please tell him he needs to see Jonah when we get back."

"Who's Jonah?"

"The pack doctor," Mercucio explained softly, and Marcus could feel his Delta's eyes boring into the wound at his side.

"Oh." Aria said, turning to inspect the wound closest to her. "In that case, you really should see Jonah when we get back, my love."

That wasn't fair. She couldn't just say things like that to get him to bend to her will.

Because it worked.

He tossed his head unhappily and shifted back, his wounds hurting a lot more in his human form than they had when he was a wolf. He winced, mumbling a short thanks when Jaden handed him a pair of jeans. He slipped them on, trying to avoid the torn skin on his left ankle and the deep gash just below his ribs.

"Are you okay?" Aria mumbled, her fingers replacing his blood-soaked ones to help him button up. His hands fell to his sides and he smiled.

Yeah. Yeah, he really was.

He'd be better if they were home but he knew he couldn't always have what he wanted when he wanted it.

"You're so grumpy," she teased. "Let me get my things, and then we can go."

He didn't know how she knew him so well, but he was grateful nonetheless.

They'd made it to the packhouse without running into a single wolf when Meredith stepped in front of them, cutting their path to the entrance.

"I just wanted to let you know," she said, addressing Aria. "That I'm also going to be leaving the pack. There's no place for me here."

Marcus didn't really care, but Aria's face dropped and she rushed forward, unconsciously dragging Marcus along with her.

"No, Meredith," she said earnestly.

"You don't have to leave. I'm leaving with Marc. And Aiden will accept that we were never meant to be together. Ah, as much as I've gotten past it, I do still care about him."

Meredith narrowed her eyes at Aria, and even Marcus had to admit that he wasn't sure where Aria was going with this.

"Please stay," she asked. "Please be there for him the way you always have been."

Meredith looked reluctant at first, but Aria didn't give her the chance to refuse her request. She jogged inside, promising Marcus that she would return soon, and she did with her bags, a bright smile on her face.

Meredith had disappeared while Aria was inside, slipping off into the line of trees before any of them could say a word.

Not that Marcus would have stopped her.

"Can we go now?" Aria asked, slipping her hand in his and smiling wide up at him.

He dropped a kiss on her forehead and grinned back at her.

"Let's go."