CHAPTER 43: THE RESISTANCE GROWS

Aiden POV

The emergency howl tore through the night air just as I was about to sleep.

I shot up from my bed, my heart already racing. That wasn’t just any howl – it was the old call for help, the one used only when pack members were in deadly danger. And it was coming from the way Lily and Caleb had gone.

"No, no, no," I mumbled, shifting into wolf form before I even reached my bedroom door.

Brock was already in the hallway, his eyes wild with fear. "Did you hear that?"

"We have to go," I said, but Father stepped in front of us, blocking our way.

"Wait," he ordered, though I could see the worry in his eyes. "We don’t know what we’re running into. This could be a trick."

"I don’t care!" Brock snarled. "They have Lily and Caleb!"

But before we could argue further, another sound made us all freeze. A different scream, deeper and more twisted than any wolf sound should be. It was answered by more of the same, coming from all around our area.

Shadow Wolves. Lots of them.

"They’re surrounding us," Father said sadly. "If we leave now, they’ll attack the pack while we’re gone."

My mind raced. This was exactly what the Shadow Wolves wanted – to split our forces, make us choose between saving our family and protecting our pack. But there had to be another way.

"The River Pack," I said suddenly. "We need to contact Alpha Rivers. If the Shadow Wolves are here, they might be attacking there too."

Father nodded. "Do it. But hurry."

I ran to our connection room and grabbed the special crystal we used to talk to other packs. My hands shook as I activated it, sending out the emergency signal to River Pack area.

Static crackled for what felt like forever. Then a familiar voice came through, tense and panting.

"Silver Peak, this is Rivers. Thank the moon you called."

Relief flooded through me. "Alpha Rivers, we’re under attack by Shadow Wolves. My brother and our Triple Moon bearer are missing, and–"

"We’re under attack too," he interrupted. "Have been for the past three hours. These things are everywhere."

My blood went cold. "How many packs are they hitting?"

"All of them, from what I can tell. This isn’t chance, Aiden. This is coordinated. They’re trying to wipe out every pack at once."

The pieces clicked together in my mind. "It’s a distraction. They want us all busy fighting for our lives while they do something with Lily."

"The Triple Moon bearer," Rivers breathed. "Of course. If they can capture her power..."

"They can control every wolf that survives the attacks," I ended. "We have to stop them."

"Easier said than done," Rivers responded. "I’ve got forty Shadow Wolves surrounding my area and half my pack wounded. How many fighters do you have?"

I looked around at our gathered wolves. "Maybe thirty who aren’t hurt. But Father’s right – if we leave to help Lily and Caleb, the Shadow Wolves will kill everyone else."

There was silence on the other end. Then Rivers spoke again, his voice different. Determined.

"What if we don’t have to choose?"

"What do you mean?"

"I’ve been fighting these Shadow Wolves for months, Aiden. They’ve been infiltrating my area bit by bit, turning some of my wolves against me. I know how they think, how they fight."

Hope sparked in my chest. "Tell me."

"They’re strong, but they’re not smart. They follow directions without thinking. If we can make them think their main force is under attack somewhere else, they’ll leave their positions to help."

I understood immediately. "A diversion."

"Exactly. I’ll take a small group and make a lot of noise on the eastern border. Make it look like a big attack. That should draw most of the Shadow Wolves away from both our areas."

"But what about your pack? They’ll be powerless."

Rivers laughed bitterly. "Not as vulnerable as you think. The Shadow Wolves don’t know about the tunnels under our land. My people can hide there until this is over."

It was risky. If the plan failed, Rivers could lose everything. But it might be our only chance to save Lily and Caleb.

"There’s something else," Rivers continued. "Something you need to know about these Shadow Wolves."

"What?"

"They’re not just regular dogs turned evil. They’re being directed by something. Something that feeds on fear and pain. The more afraid we are, the stronger they get."

My stomach dropped. "How do you know that?"

"Because I’ve seen it happen. When my wolves fled during the first attack, the Shadow Wolves got bigger, faster, more vicious. But when we stood our ground and fought with courage instead of fear..."

"They got weaker," I breathed.

"Exactly. Whatever’s controlling them needs our terror to keep its power. That’s why they took your brother and the Triple Moon carrier. They’re going to hurt them where you can sense it, make you afraid, make you desperate."

The mate bond. Of course. Every wolf in our pack could feel when Lily and Caleb were in danger. The Shadow Wolves were using our ties against us.

"So how do we fight without fear?" I asked.

"We remember what we’re fighting for," Rivers said simply. "Not just survival, but the right to choose our own fate. The right to protect the people we love. The Shadow Wolves want to make us slaves, but we’re wolves. We bow to no one."

His words sent strength flowing through me. This was why I’d been trained to be Alpha – not just to give orders, but to inspire others when everything seemed lost.

"All right," I said. "Here’s what we’ll do. You build your diversion in one hour. That should give us time to gather a relief team. Once the Shadow Wolves leave to help with your fake attack, we’ll strike at wherever they’re holding Lily and Caleb."

"And if it doesn’t work?"

I thought about my brother, tied up somewhere in the dark. About Lily, possibly terrified but trying to be brave. About our pack, looking to me for guidance in the darkest hour we’d ever faced.

"Then we make our last stand count," I said.

Rivers was quiet for a moment. Then: "You know, when this started, I thought my pack was the only one being attacked. I felt so alone, so hopeless. But knowing we’re fighting together..."

"Makes all the difference," I agreed. "We’re stronger together than apart. That’s something the Shadow Wolves will never understand."

"One hour," Rivers stated. "Good luck, Alpha."

The crystal went dark, and I turned to face my pack. Father looked proud but worried. Brock was walking like a caged animal, desperate for action. The other wolves watched me with trust and fear in their eyes.

"Listen up," I called out, my voice carrying the power I’d been training for my whole life. "This is bigger than just our pack. Shadow Wolves are attacking every area, trying to divide us, make us weak. But they made one mistake."

I looked each wolf in the eye, making sure they understood.

"They thought we’d fight alone. They don’t know about the ties between packs, the friendships we’ve built. They think wolves are selfish creatures who only care about their own area."

Murmurs of agreement spread through the group.

"They’re wrong. Tonight, we fight not just for Silver Peak, but for every pack under attack. We fight for the right to live free, to choose our own leaders, to protect our families. And we’re going to win."

A cheer went up from the gathered wolves, and I felt their fear begin to change into determination. Good. That’s what we needed. " Brock, take fifteen wolves and ready for the rescue mission. The moment Rivers makes his diversion, we move. Father, I need you to organize the defense here with the remaining wolves."

They both nodded, moving to carry out their directions. But as I watched them go, a cold thought came into my mind.

What if this was exactly what the Shadow Wolves wanted? What if they knew about our partnership with Rivers? What if the whole thing was a trap meant to make us feel confident right before they crushed us?

I shook my head, pushing the worry away. Rivers was right – fear made the Shadow Wolves stronger. I had to trust in our plan, trust in our bonds, trust in the power of united packs.

But as I prepared to lead my first major battle as Alpha, I couldn’t shake the feeling that we were walking into something much bigger and more dangerous than any of us knew.

Fifty minutes later, I stood at the edge of our area with Brock and our rescue team, waiting for Rivers’ signal. The forest was eerily quiet, like even the trees were holding their breath.

Then it came – the sound of war from the east, exactly as planned. Howls and snarls rang through the night as Rivers and his wolves made as much noise as possible.

"It’s working," Brock whispered, pointing to dark shapes moving through the trees away from us. "The Shadow Wolves are falling for it."

I nodded, feeling a rush of hope. "Remember, we’re not just trying to save Lily and Caleb. We’re sending a word to every Shadow Wolf out there – you cannot break the bonds between packs."

We shifted into wolf form and raced through the forest toward the Sacred Grove, where our feelings told us our family was being held. But as we got closer, something felt wrong.

There were too few Shadow Wolves watching the area. Way too few.

"It’s too easy," Brock said, sharing my own thoughts.

That’s when I heard it – a sound that made my blood freeze. Lily’s scream, cut short like someone had covered her mouth.

And underneath it, barely audible, the sound of chanting in a language that hurt to hear.

"They’re starting the ritual," I realized with fear. "Whatever they plan to do to her, it’s happening now."

We weren’t just running to save our family anymore. We were racing to stop the Shadow Wolves from getting power that could destroy every pack in existence.

But as we burst into the Sacred Grove, what we saw made us all skid to a stop in shock.

The ritual wasn’t just started.

It was almost finished.

And Lily was shining with a light so bright it hurt to look at, while something dark and hungry reached toward her with claws made of pure shadow.