283 The Storm Arrives

    Lucian

    My legs were failing. Each step was agony, each movement forced by willpower alone. My body was shredded, my strength slipping away, and I was just pushing-one enemy at a time, one breath after

    another.

    Then I heard it.

    Gunfire. Loud, rapid, relentless. But the voices-they were female. Fierce. Angry.

    Upromising.

    I turned, blood dripping from my ws, and dared to look.

    A surge of women stormed the battlefield, silver bullets flying, their aim merciless. Their fury was surgical.

    Precise. Ruthless. And beautiful.

    In the middle of the chaos, there she was.

    Mara.

    Rage written on her face. Vengeance in her eyes. She moved like death incarnate, gunning down the markless wolves with terrifying precision. I’d never seen her like this. And gods, it broke something in me- in the best way.

    From the opposite side of the field, another massive group emerged-wolves, dozens of them; charging in under themand of an Alpha I didn’t recognize. For a breath, I feared another enemy.

    But then I saw who they were cutting down.

    ric’s men.

    They were ours.

    Where the hell did Mara find all these people? I should’ve been furious that she came, that she put herself in danger.

    But I wasn’t.

    I was f*****g grateful.

    -Mara and Martha brought fighters, Denis linked, his voice alight with something I hadn’t heard in hours: hope.

    And just like that, everything changed.

    We surged up from the dirt and blood, my remaining men rallying with fresh fire in their veins. We fought back, stronger, sharper, alive. The tide was turning.

    The women’s ammo ran dry, and one by one, they shifted-snarling, howling,unching themselves at the

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    remaining enemies with savage fury. Unlike the Neev traitors, they hade prepared. Their bullets were

    silver. Their ws burned with purpose.

    And Mara…

    She pushed through them all, shifting partially as she fought her way toward me, her eyes locked on mine like a lifeline. Nothing slowed her. She moved like a woman possessed.

    -You aren’t dying on me, Lucian Nighthorn, she linked.

    That voice-steady, fiery, full of love and rage-ignited something deep in my chest.

    I roared, the sound ripping from my throat like it had been buried under rubble.

    Then I charged.

    I tore through every Neev wolf in my path, ripping and shing, my only goal to get to her. My mate. My

    war. My everything.

    And this time, I wasn’t fighting to survive.

    I was fighting to win.

    Reinforcements came for the Neev soldiers.

    More bodies. More weapons. Another wave crashing toward us.

    But this time-we were ready.

    We had the numbers, the firepower, and most importantly, the fury.

    The women were bloodied, but they fought like it gave them life. They moved like wolves and warriors both-every strike precise, every kill deliberate. It wasn’t just revenge anymore.

    It was domination.

    And gods, it looked like they were enjoying themselves.

    Then she reached me.

    Mara.

    She burst through the battlefield like a storm-cutting down anything in her path until she stood beside olli For a moment, the world slowed. The chaos faded. Our eyes met, and she ran her ws gently /li/ol

    through my fur, the way she might’ve stroked my hair back at home.

    I howled, deep and long, my voice filled with reverence..

    Itsted only seconds, but it meant everything.

    Then she shifted fully and surged forward again, fighting in two directions at once, like a force of nature. I

    followed.

    We were all in wolf form now-grouped, coordinated, hunting.

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    Mara, Darian, and Rowan fought as one, forming a tight, lethal triangle. Their synchronization was unmatched-fluid, deadly. The group behind them was made entirely of Academy-trained soldiers, their synergy near perfect. Their movements were sharp, every strike falling into rhythm like choreography.

    Efficient. Unforgiving.

    Darian’s Alpha mark zed like fire across his shoulder, but it didn’te from me.

    This was his fire now.

    He wasn’t just a Nighthorn. He was bing an Alpha in his own right.

    And together, with Rowan and Mara as his Beta and Gamma, they turned their unit into a deadly, unstoppable force. A real pack. A war-born pack.

    My father, Martha, Denis, and I formed another strike group, joined by a mix of the veteran women fighters. We moved with purpose, cutting through the enemy as we searched for ric.

    The final group was led by the stranger-an Alpha, fierce and focused, who had arrived with the second wave of reinforcements. His soldiers moved like they’d fought together for years. I didn’t know who he was or where Mara had found him, but I knew this much: my mate was resourceful, and I trusted her judgment with my life.

    And that was exactly what we were fighting for now-life.

    Darian’s team hunted Ighor with surgical precision, clearing a path with relentless focus. Meanwhile, we tore through the battlefield, our eyes locked on one goal.

    ric.

    We were done ying defense.

    It was time to finish this.