The Fallen Fire (Royals of the Realm Series #1)

Chapter 21

"Family not only need to consist of merely those whom we share blood, but also for those whom we'd give blood." - Charles Dickens

Werewolf Kingdom
The Nightshade Pack
The Dungeons

Alessio's POV

Dead bodies of the fallen rogues, fire elves and some of the Nightshade pack littered the solid ground. War is crime, yes, but it is inevitable. Taking arms against injustice will always remain an option for every leader with a great responsibility. I wish I had made Vincent's suffering a bit longer. After ruling the pack with an iron fist, forcing the weak pack members into servitude and abuse he deserves to die a hundred times.

Apparently, those who don't agree with his plan on overtaking the whole werewolf kingdom were locked up in the pack house and serving the higher ranks. The information made sense, since all the pack wolves we fought were high ranked. Those who were forced to slavery appeared quite deprived of what they need, what they should have.

“Beta Edwards is nowhere to be found, Alpha.“ Anthony said while keeping with my fast pace. My men who went to the dungeons with Virgo alerted me that my presence is needed to sort out something out of hand.

“We'll deal with him later. Primarily, the situation in the dungeons needs our attention.“

He nodded, following behind me silently. Of what situation I have no idea, but nothing's going to be worse than not having Fyrrah here beside me.

I miss her. I miss everything about her.

Just thinking about her made something stir inside my head. The beast is once again awake, banging my walls built around him.

'Calm down. You're a king, stop acting like a mad man.'

That silenced him for a bit, and he retreated whining like a wounded pup. I sighed deeply, I don't think I would be able to control him for long.

After a few minutes of ensuing their trail, I can already see the outline of a worn-out building in the middle of the woods. Two of my men were guarding the entrance, immediately baring their necks in submission upon seeing my arrival.

“They're inside, My King. A wolf almost killed one of our men when he tried to retrieve the she-elf inside the cell with him.“ One of them informed right away. “He turns feral when we go near them, yet he doesn't smell the way rogue wolves do.“

I furrowed my eyebrows, could it be? There is only one explanation I could think of. To find out if I'm right I would have to see for myself.

The other warrior cleared his throat, trying to get my attention. “Another thing, Alpha. He's a ranked wolf. I think he's the Beta.“

A beta wolf turning feral? Now that I thought of it, I never saw Beta Edwards since two months ago. I've never seen him in the packhouse earlier nor fought with him in the battlefield. The warrior's report earlier made sense.

“Thank you. Stand guard and wait for us here.“ I gave them a slight nod before motioning for Anthony to follow me inside. We walked down the narrow staircase into the dungeon. Only a few lit torches illuminate the whole room. Jail cells lined up in a row, each holding their very own captives. Three of my men gathered around a particular one at the far end, and they all stiffened as they sensed my aura entering the confines of the room. Virgo who was currently pacing back and forth in panic stopped for a moment to look at me, even the wolf stopped his nonsense growling as he saw my approaching figure. The she-elf however, remained sitting in a tucked position behind the beta wolf, clutching on his fur tightly as if her life depended on him.

I shook my head, Bingo.

I took a step towards the cell, earning a loud growl from him. I smiled upon my confirmation as his stance turned defensive, poised to attack, determined yet hesitant. As the she-elf gripped on his fur tightly he seemed to lose all reservation, taking a step forward as I did too.

I raised my hand up as a sign of good will, “Retract your fangs and claws, Edwards. We are not here to harm you and your mate, it's actually the opposite.“ His ears twitched upon hearing that, baring his neck in submission and finally turning his back towards us. He bent down, licking the side of her face and urging her to go out of the cell by his head. All of those watching had their jaws gaping open, even Virgo who was now opening the cell door for them.

“Goodness, Elisa!“ He blurted out, hugging her tightly. She let out a sob, wrapping her arms around him too.

“I thought I'm never going to see you again.“ She cried, “I was so scared, I didn't know what to do.“

“Shh... Everything will be alright. You're safe now.“ He murmured, kissing her forehead. Then he turned to look at the wolf watching closely beside her, “Thank you. Thank you so much for protecting my sister.“ He said teary-eyed.

The wolf yelped happily but winced slightly. Now taking a better look at him he looked beaten up, and his right front paw looked injured.

“We need Artemis to treat the both of you and get you all cleaned up. Right after that we'll go back to the castle. Let's not waste anymore time, every second is valuable.“ I ordered, turning to leave when a voice stopped me.

“W-We have to save my sister. Fyrrah's in danger.“

I took a deep breath, the lycan kept on growling and breaking my chain of thoughts.

Fyrrah's in danger.

“Where did they took her, Elisa?“ Virgo asked for me, I can tell that all of them sensed the change in the atmosphere. The tension in my muscles must've given him a hint that I was once again close to losing it.

“He took her to their secret base. Leo will make the necromancers extract the stone from her soul.“

That fucking did it.