Chapter 44
Long Live The Royals
Bjorn’s eyes scanned the space around him calmly. As if he wasn’t in immediate danger. As if the
presence of not one but two Lycan Kings was nothing to him.
He dropped Brigit to his feet, losing interest in her. The woman almost wed her own chest, trying to
get some air into her lungs.
She was lucky to survive as it was.
Kai and Gideon both growled again, warning the bear, letting him know his days were numbered. They
saw what kind of chaos he caused and were ready to end him right there and now.
“On your knees!” Gideon ordered, eyes glowing golden. “Do it quietly, and your life will be sparedi”
A chuckle escaped the white bear leader, and Savannah had a bad feeling about it as his gaze grazed
over her. Calm, he was too calm. This kind of confidence could only mean he was sure he would be
walking out of here unharmed.
However, this was ridiculous! She might have had trouble defeating him on her own, but now there
were three royal Lycans in the
room and a few Alphas to top that off. Not to mention the feisty contenders who all looked like they
wished to take part in his
execution.
Bjorn knew all that, and he still remained uncancerned.
“So temptingl” He stepped over Penelope’s body which was on his way again. “Did you make an offer
like that to my brother before you killed him, Western King?”
Everyone tensed as his red eye gleamed in the dimmed lighting of the ancient temple. They all had
been thinking about the same
person now.
“You are Castiel’s brother,” Riannon entered the shrine, and Gideon growled, trying to step in front of
her for protection, but she only
ced her palm on his shoulder and didn’t move an inch from where she stood. Those two had an
understanding between them, and
although Gideon wanted his wife safe and sound, as far away from here as possible, he had to respect
her choices. And she chose to join the fight alongside her family as the Alpha that she was.
“Ah, Queen Riannon Stormhold in the flesh. I thought getting to you in person would be much more
complicated.” Bjorn sneered,
taking a step forward. The remaining warriors snarled at him; however, everyone’s movements were
restricted because of the narrow
bridge between the two tforms. There weren’t too many left, but with the royals in the room, their
chances of winning were huge now.
“It’s bold of you to just arrive here like that in front of me.”
“I am not going to die or get hurt today,” the Queen stated calmly, and now he stared at her with
genuine interest. “He spoke about
you a lot, you know.” Ria tilted her head to have a better look at him.
“He didn’t speak much about you,” Bjorn countered. “Which only means he treasured you, considering
how much trouble he got
into thanks to you. My silly brother was probably afraid I would want to take you for myself. He was a
bit insecure like that.”
Gideon’s eyes shed gold as he bared his teeth, but that only made the white bear chuckle.
“Rx” he lifted his hands up in the air. “I am not interested in what belonged to my brother. I have my
own prize in mind.” Bjorn’s
gaze locked with Savannah’s once again, and both Lycan Kings growled menacingly, realising what he
meant.
“Over my dead body!” Kai was next to her in an instant, pushing the three girls behind his back, his
hand brushing over Savannah possessively. Gideon followed him to the centre of the bridge, ready to
rip the enemy to shreds.
.
. “Funny you should say that because this is exactly my n!” Darius threw his head back andughed
wholeheartedly.
***Why don’t youe closer and try bringing it to life?” Kai scoffed, knowing there was no chance in
hell the bear would do this. Although Darius had spent a lot of time on his territorytely, Kai had
trouble meeting him face to face for months. Every time he was close, Bjarn changed his location. This
chase had been going on for years, and there was no end to it. However, right now, he was close. So
close. It could altend tonight. The white bears would be broken easily without their scheming ruler. This
was why the Norther King
was so surprised that Bjorn was still here, with a smug expression stered over his face.
“I am afraid you will be too busy for that.” The bear king’s grin deepened. This couldn’t be good.
“Sawy, take the other women and leave,” kai found her hand without looking at her as he had to keep
his eyes on his foe and gave it
a squeeze.
“I have a better idea!” Bjorn got angry for the first time as he observed them. “Come here, Savannah,
and I will give you the best gift.
You can choose the one who will survive out of your family. Your brother or your pregnant sister-inw.”
Silence engulfed the room as Sawy’s head snapped to Riannon. She already knew, of course, but this
wasn’t something they
announced to everyone. This was a secret. It was essential for safety reasons, yet Bjorn was aware. It
started to seem like traitors were everywhere.
“I will repeat myself just once.” The white bear’s healthy eye found the Princess, immediately getting
darker. “Come to me now, leave this ce with me, and I will spare one of them.”
“Let’s start with the fact that you are not leaving this ce!” Gideon was barely holding himself back.
“Not after you threatened my
wife and my unborn child.”
“Savannah is not going anywhere with you, Bjorn. And for the first time ever, I have to agree with
Stormhold; neither are you. It ends
now!” Kai joined the Westerner.
The bear wasn’t even looking at them, his eyes still lingering on the woman he desired.
“I only need your answer,” he said, frowning.
“I’m not going anywhere with you,” Savvy replied calmly. “My choice was made a while ago. I already
told you that.”
“Then don’t me me when the timees.” Bjorn gritted his teeth, clenching his fists and turning his
back to them. This was when Brigit tried to attack him again, but he caught her in the middle of it and
threw the woman at the two Kings who charged at him. Savannah and Naya helped the group to keep
their bnce and prevented them from falling off the bridge, but all of them were dyed now. The
warriors shifted into their wolves, ready to fight.
This was when a sound of an explosion reached them. The ground shuddered, and so did the walls of
the ancient temple, threatening to fall on their heads at any moment.
Owned by N?velDrama.Org.
“Yeah, I forgot to mention that the Forgotten City is about to explode!” Bjorn chuckled as he observed
their reaction with some kind of amusement on his face. “Now, it’s a real survival mazel If you make it
out of it alive, I’d be surprised! But I will give you a little clue on how to do it. Silver pits. Jump in them,
and you’ll be safe. I’ll get youter, and we will continue where we left offl”
Gideon was furious, but his protector’s instincts took over. He knew he had to get his wife out first.
There will be another chance to
get this bastard.
“Everyone outl” Hemanded, looking at his sister and then Riannon. The stubborn woman
hesitated, and he knew he’d have to
carry her out against her will if he had to. He wasn’t taking this risk, even if it was just a distraction for
them.
Kai, however, still ran in Bjorn’s direction. Savannah followed close behind, even though Astrid tried to
stop her.
“Sawyl” The Southerner begged, but the Princess wasn’t going to leave her chosen mate alone. Brigit
rushed for the exit, and so did
Naya after clicking her tongue. The cat knew better than to stay in a crumbling building,
Two warriors charged at the white bear, but he recoiled easily. The Northern Lycan King was close,
ready to shift into his third form
and end this,
“Aren’t you missing a Beta?” Darius burst outughing, and Kai froze, blocking Savannah’s way, “And a
little bird to go with
him?”
“What did you do?” Savvy growled, growing her ws. “Where are they?!”
“No need to be so angry!” His lips curled into a smirk. “I am going to tell you! I ani not a monster. Maybe
they are still alive… maybe not. Can they both swim?”.
Another explosion deatened them, some kind of dust or sand falling through newly created cracks in
the ceiling. This one was too close.
Kai clenched his fists, knowing that he had already lost this light.
“Conic on” Bjornchcored for him with a mocking smirk. “You already know I locked them in the
dungcon, don’t you? The first
explosion caused a leak in the old water supply system of the city. The space where they arc is rapidly
illling up with water. You have minutes to try and save your friends. Although, my personal advice
would be to run and save yourselves.”
The two wolves snarled at him, but kal mentally ordered them to stop. They wouldn’t be able to win
against the bear without him, and he couldn’t stay.
With a smug smile, Darius Bjorn bowed with contempt on his face and tell through the back exit, his
laughhoing through the building
“Take Penelope’s body!” Kai ordered his men and turned to look at Sawy. “Go find your brother. As long
as Gideon and Riannon are with you, they will be safe.”
“Excuse me?” The Princess surrowed her brows, shocked by his words.
“Something tells me Bjorn wouldn’t blow up the parts of the city where you walk.” Ile haled saying these
words, but it was the truth.
The Bear King was a calcting bastard. He made a im on Savannah, meaning that killing her
wasn’t in his ns. He wanted her
alive.
“More reasons for me to go with you!” She insisted.
“Sawy, please, we have no limel” He grasped her, almost ready to send her off lolully and let one of
the wolves carry her back to salety. But the stubborn glint in her cyes told him this would take a number
ol minutes he didn’t have at his disposal.
“Ria is blessed by the Moon Goddess.” Savannah reminded him. “When she said she isn’t dying today,
she meant it. Trust mel Zara is my friend! I am not leaving her behind, and if you are right, it’s only
more reason for me to stick with you guys!”
“Finel” He growled and took her hand. They were running down spiralling stairs as the third explosion
went off not too far away
from the shrine. Kai swore under his breath at how easily they got into a trap. This ce was checked.
Other than the Luna Trials traps,
nothing was supposed to happen. Yet Penelope was dead. And Fenrir knew how many other casualties
they would have by the end of the
night.
The staircase was too narrow, ceilings too low. Ancient lycans were delinitely smaller than modern
oncs.
“How long?” Savannah asked him as they skipped steps in the darkness to save time. There was no
light in here, and they only relied
on their night vision.
“Two or three minutes,” Kai replied on the way.
“Will it be enough7” She couldn’t help herself, worried sick for her friend.
“I don’t know,” the King admitted as it was the truth. “All we can do is try…”
L was furious. He had years of experience as the King’s Beta, but he still found himself in this
situation.
A bait. He was a bait for his own best friend.
When they found themselves alone inside of this catb, he already knew it was a trap.
The bears got Zara first, the werebird wasn’t a match for them, and when he saw a knife drawing blood
from her delicate neck, he
lost the ability to think clearly.
He med himself. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. He knew exactly what he had to do back then.
She was the sacrifice he had to –make for the greater good of his kingdom.
She was just an assistant of a foreign Princess. He had to be able to give her up in a heartbeat for the
North, for Kal. But he wasn’t
able to
Bjorn wasn’t there. The damn bear didn’t even spare them a nce before he left. He clearly had more
important things to do. His
men brought L to his knees, threatening him to kill the bird. His bird. They injected him with
something that made his head hazy
and then chained the two of them together, back to back.
They left and didn’t leave them a single torch behind. Darkness surrounded them, and only the sounds
of their breathing were their
“You shouldn’t have done it,” Zara said. He could hear her pulse quickening. The girl was terrified.
“They didn’t kill us,” he said, hoping to bring her some kind of relief. It didn’t work as she started
panting. “Birdie, calm down,” he
advised. “The stuff they injected me with will wear off, and I will break these chains.”
“You don’t know that,” she held back a sob. He could tell she was on the verge of crying.
“Listen,” he tried to chuckle, “I’m not a royal, but I’m still a lycan. Whatever it is, my body will process
this sooner orter.”
Her breathing became ragged. He could tell she was panicking.
“I hate closed spaces!” She confessed all of a sudden and leaned her head on his back. He tried to do
the same, stretching his hands
as far as they would go thanks to the chains and reaching for her delicate fingers. She flinched when
hisrge palm wrapped around her
tiny wrist, drawing circles on her skin. It was surprisinglyforting.
“Will you tell me why?” Although he told her his strength would get back fast, sadly, this wasn’t the
case. He could feel life slipping
away from him, but he wanted to at least help her in hisst minutes. Ever since his mate died, he
never wanted to care about anyone
else.
Zara changed that for him.
“I was locked up for a long time,” she said in a broken voice. “Trapped in a golden cage. First, I didn’t
understand what I was getting into, and by the time I did, it was toote. Every day, all I could do was
fly to the unbreakable ss ceiling and look at the sky, imagining! would be soaring free one day again.
I swore to myself that if I ever got out, I would never let anyone lock me up ever again. And now look
at me!”
She didn’t make another sound, but he could feel her body twitching, recognising a silent sob.
“it’s not your fault,” he grunted, trying really hard not to close his eyes. He knew that if he did, it would
be the end. “I should have
protected you.”
“No,” sheughed through tears as she struggled against the chains, “you really shouldn’t have.”
He knew that.
“I wanted to.” A confession came easy to the dying man. There were no games between them
anymore, no teasing.
“Why?” She asked desperately. She needed the answer on a physical level because she knew he was
now dying because of her.
“You … you make me feel alive again.” Heced their fingers together, and she didn’t object one bit.
There was nothing around to help them. No weapons, no metallic hooks to help them break the chains.
Just the dirt on the floor and
naked walls.
His eyelids became too heavy, and L started slowly falling asleep. Zara could feel it, and it
scared her more than she could
imagine. She knew what it meant, and her heart clenched at the thought.
“Hey mighty Lycan Beta,” she taunted him, challenged him. “If you don’t die today, I will let you see me
naked as soon as we get out
of this city.”
“I am listening!” He chuckled weakly, but surprisingly it did help him a lot.
“I will personallye into your room and let you peel every piece of clothing off me.” Zara’s voice
became raspy.
“Go on,” L encouraged her. He may have lost the fight with his own eyes, and they were now
closed, but his vivid imagination
was keeping him going.
–” will let you explore every inch of me,” the woman continued.
“With my hands?” he asked, Lips curling into a smile.
“First with your hands,” Zara purred. “Then with your tongue.”
“And then7” His breathing hitched, but this time it wasn’t the poison’s fault.
“And then everything will depend on how good your tongue isl” The werebirdughed.
“I call fennir to be my witness, Birdie, you wille undone before you even know it!” He growled.
“I sure hope so,” she ground against him, making blood run faster through his veins.
“Seductress!” He breathed out. “You will raise a man from the dead with your promises.”
“Oh, L!” Zara turned her head so that her hot breath burnt the skin on his neck. “I haven’t even
started seducing you. After all,
when you’re done exploring my body with your tongue, it will be my turn.”
He wanted to say something hot and dirty in reply, but this was when the first explosion went off.
“What’s that?” Zara was worried now.
“I have no idea,” the Beta admitted, fearing the worst, He knew Bjorn didn’t just leave them to sit here
for hours.
However, soon they both heard the sound of gushing water and knew that it promised nothing good for
them.
Soon ice cold water started streaming through a hole at the top of the room created for venttion.
There were no windows, and the
two doors were sealed.
“Cr*p!” L muttered. “Birdie, we need to get upl Now!”
She did not object, although it proved hard given the way their arms and legs were chained tightly.
Luckily, they still managed to do
The water was streaming fast, its coldness helping him toe back to his senses. Nheless, they
were still trapped.
“Let’s move towards the door,” he offered, and she did not object. “Stay still and I will try to knock it
out!”
The Beta tried hitting it with his feet, but he was weaker than usual, and the ancient door did not budge.
Soon the water was at their chests, and panic started to grab them both. They knew they wouldn’t be
able to swim. Not with their
hands and legs tied up and heavy chains weighing them down.
The water was at their necks.
“Listen to me, Zara.” L’s tone was serious now, not containing a hint of yfulness from a few
minutes ago. “I want you to give
me a signal when it is near your mouth. Then we both take a deep breath and count to thirty. After that,
we bent down and jump as high
as we can. This will give us a chance to gulp some air. We’ll be doing it while we can. Do you get me?”
“Yes,” she was already breathing heavily. “Thirty seconds.”
She tapped his hand in less than a minute, and he knew it was time. They bent down slightly and then
pushed as hard as they could,
taking in full lungs worth of air before they went down underwater again. Counting seconds in their
minds helped them to avoid giving
They were still alive and had a goal to keep them going. It might have been silly, but it worked.
It worked right until they slipped, lost bnce and fell down…