Zephyrine
<b>94 </b>
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I suddenly jerked awake with the immense feeling of the runes burning warm beneath my skin, as though he’s near.
I open my eyes instantly and go still for a heart–stopping moment, trying to remember what happenedst.
Then the sound of galloping hooves crashes into my hearing, fast, furious, and I
go
cold.
I rush to the window and my heart leaps to my throat. Lycannar’s horse surges straight through the Ash Pack gates. Warriors pour out, surrounding him. They’ve been waiting.
“Lycan,” I whisper, horror filling me.
He dismounts just as Varyn steps out of the meeting chamber. My brother freezes when he realizes who has arrived.
Stillness falls across the entire packhouse. Everyone looks on, holding their breath, waiting to see what will unfold.
Lycannar draws his twin des, his gaze cold and merciless. Then, he drops one sword at my brother’s feet.
“Fight me like a man. Let’s end this.”
My heart turns to ice. No. This shouldn’t be happening. Varyn shouldn’t ept that challenge. He’s skilled, yes, but Lycannar… Lycannar is something else entirely.
Before I can react, my brother bends and picks up the de. In a blur, Lycannar strikes fast, violent. Their swords sh, sparks flying. Then Lycannarnds a brutal punch that sends Varyn crashing to the ground. In an instant, he raises the de, ready to finish it and I leap from the window.
The wind rushes past as Ind, taking Varyn’s side, shoving Lycannar back before he can strike again.
He doesn’t stop. Rage blinds him, surging wild, uncontroble. I block his path, anchoring him with my body.
“Lycan..”
<b>9:51 </b><b>Sun</b><b>, </b><b>Oct </b><b>5 </b>
<b>94 </b>
404
<b>45 </b>Free Coina
No response. His chest heaves, his aura trembles with fury. I lose patience and p him hard across the face.
Gasps ripple through the entire pack. He goes still, his jaw tightening.
“Lycan,” I whisper again, reaching for him, but he steps back, walking toward his horse, gripping it for control, his teeth gritted.
My pulse hammers. I turn to my brother, who is pushing himself to his feet, his bruises already fading.
“I’ll give it to you,” Varyn spits. “You’re fearless. But your sins are unforgivable. You kill our father and think you’ll sleep peacefully at night?”
He points at Lycannar, trembling with rage. “He killed Father, Zephyr! Why are you still on his side? He didn’t fight fair in that battlefield, he made us orphans!”
“Fair?” Lycannar’s voice cuts through the air like a de. “You speak of fair, Varyn Ashmere? Tell me, back in that battlefield, didn’t your father hold his sword?”
My heart drops.
“Lycan, please,” I whisper, begging him silently not to go on.
“You nned the strategy and it failed,” Lycannar says coldly. “The warlord you were supposed to fight against rrived when it suited him, and I won. That’s the truth. And you speak of how I made you an orphan, do you have any idea how many children you made orphans by killing the Blood army?”
Silence swallows the courtyard. The truth hangs heavy. I tremble at the naked honesty of <i>it</i>.
“You ughtered men on the battlefield, and I did the same,” Lycannar continues. “Admit it, you’re only guilty because your n failed and your father paid for it.”
Varyn’s face twists in rage.
“How dare you…”
He lunges, but I grab Lycannar, dragging him back, forcing distance between them. My heart pounds as I turn on my brother.
“Will you calm down?”
“You heard what he said!” Varyn’s voice cracks with venom. “How can you ask me to calm down? I wishst night had gone as nned, your precious Lycan’s sisters would’ve been raped
<b>9.31 </b>
<b>OUII</b>, UCL
to death!”
<b>46 </b>Fire Cons
Lycannar’s fury ignites, and he lunges forward again, but I cling to him, pulling him close, holding him tight.
“Lycan, please… please, calm down. I beg you.” I cup his check, forcing his eyes to mine. “Look at me. Lycan, look at me.”
He stops, his chest still heaving. Slowly, his gaze meets mine. His eyes, once gold, shift to a stormy grey, and for a moment, my heart twists at the raw pain inside them.
He swallows hard, biting his lip.
“They camest night to hurt my sisters, Zephyrine,” he says hoarsely. “If not for Chantel, they’d be gone. Taken.”
“Lycan..
His voice breaks low, his every word heavy.
“I respect you, Zephyrine. Too much. And I don’t want more blood spilled between our families, but my sisters are off limits. If my brother Hades were here, blood of your brother would have been spilled.”
“I know, Lycan.” <fnae17> Th? link to the orig?n of this information r?sts ?n findnovel</fnae17>
“They were raped before, many times. They’re broken, scarred, haunted. No one will touch them again. No one. I’ll never sit by and watch it happen.”
The truth hits me hard, cold and deep, raising goosebumps across my skin. I nod slowly, my throat tight.
“Please,” I whisper. “Stay calm. I beg you.”
My touch softens, and he exhales shakily, grounding himself again. For a moment, he closes his eyes, steadying his breath. When he opens them, his irises burn pale gold once more.
I lean forward and kiss him softly before wrapping him in a tight embrace.
After a quiet moment, I pull back and say,
“I’lle tonight to see them. I’ll apologize properly for what happened. I promise.” He searches my eyes in silence. Then, without a word, he presses a kiss to my forehead.
9:51 Sun, Oct 5
45 Free Cons
He steps back, retrieves his twin des, and mounts his horse. With silent fury, he rides away.
Everyone watches, awe and fear mixed in their eyes.
The Blood army died in battle, and so did my father. Maybe that makes us even.
That’s the truth we all need to face, that in war, there is no fair fight or unfair fight.
When we march to the battlefield, there’s only onew. Kill or <i>be </i>killed.
My father fell on thetter category. He got killed. The chapter should have ended there.
Swallowing hard, I turn to Varyn Ashmere. He’s crossed too many lines now.
Maybe it’s time someone finally stops him.
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