Lorraine’s POV
The air in the auditorium turned to stone.
No one moved. No one breathed.
Alpha Desmond Ashthorne stood tall on the stage, his presence like a shadow swallowing the light. His voice, deep, gravelly, cold, still rang in my ears.
He was here for Kieran.
He wanted vengeance.
For Selene.
For the daughter Kieran killed.... because of .
My breath caught in my throat. All around , students stiffened in their seats. Even the Lycans, usually so composed, sat rigid, their eyes sharpened.
I couldn’t look away.
I couldn’t move.
I felt like I had swallowed glass.
Then, suddenly.....
"How dare you?" Varya’s voice cracked through the silence like thunder.
I blinked and turned sharply toward her.
She was on her feet, golden red eyes glowing, chin high with regal fury. Every Lycan in the room turned with her, their muscles tensing, their pride awakening.
"You dare refer to our Lycan Prince with no respect?" she hissed, voice trembling with rage. "You may be so big na among the Elites, but you are still just that, an Elite. You are under the rule of the Lycan King, like everyone else in this Academy and everyone else in this kingdom."
Her voice rang louder now, fiercer.
"Kieran Valerius Hunter is your future King and you will show him respect."
The Lycans nodded, eyes gleaming with silent loyalty.
One of Ashthorne’s elite guards stepped forward, as if to shut her up....
But he didn’t get the chance.
In one blur of motion, Varya raised her hand, claws gleaming, and she slit his throat with breathtaking speed.
Blood sprayed like a fan, splattering the steps.
The guard crumpled to the floor, gasping his last.
The Lycans burst into laughter, sharp and cruel, like the thrill of a hunt.
Gasps echoed around the auditorium. Elites and nobles recoiled in horror, shrinking in their seats.
And then, Ashthorne laughed too.
Loud, deep, un.hinged.
He clapped once. The sound echoed across the marble walls.
But his laughter didn’t last.
His face twisted slowly into sothing grave, sothing dangerous. "You Lycans," he said, voice suddenly ice-cold. "You’ve always been so proud. Too proud."
The room fell into total silence again.
Then his eyes flicked up.
"Anyone that is not a Lycan," he said, voice calm now, too calm, "leave."
For a second, no one moved
And then.....
Click.
The sprinklers above the Lycan section hissed to life.
A mist began to fall from them, clear at first, like water, until the scent hit my nose.
I choked.
"What’s happening?" I gasped, pulling my shirt over my mouth.
Adrian yanked to my feet, his face pale. "That’s wolfsbane, Lorraine. We need to leave, now."
Below us, the Lycans scread.
Not in fear.
In pain.
Their skin sizzled where the liquid touched them, blisters rising in seconds. So tried to leap from their seats, only to collapse, muscles spasming from the toxin. The mist kept falling, soaking them.
A sickening hiss of flesh being eaten alive filled the room.
"No," I breathed, frozen, horror rooting my feet to the floor. "No, no, no...."
And then they ca.
Ashthorne’s warriors.
Dressed in thick, flaproof blue suits, kegs strapped to their backs, long tal pipes in hand. The ends of the pipes sprayed jets of wolfsbane, stronger, denser.
They weren’t aiming at the crowd.
They were aiming at the Lycans.
A full-on assault.
The screams reached a pitch that rattled my bones.
"Lorraine!" Adrian barked beside , grabbing my arm.
I couldn’t tear my eyes away. One of the younger Lycans clawed at his face, his skin already peeling off in patches. Another writhed on the floor, snarling through the pain.
Everyone else was already fleeing.
The nobles and elites flooded the exits, shoving past one another, not caring who they stepped over.
And then....
I saw him.
Alistair.
He stepped onto the stage beside his father, his eyes glittering, a smug smile painted on his face
He knew about this.
He was amongst those who planned this cowardly attack.
"We must go. Now!" Adrian growled, gripping my hand tight....
Kieran’s POV
I stood in front of the building that looked like a fortress at the far edge of the academy.
Black stone, seamless and towering, as if carved from shadow itself. No windows. No sound. Just a large steel door right in front
I stood before it, the scent of blood and storm heavy in the air.
I had gone to the auditorium first.
I had intended to watch.
When Professional Cain stepped up onto the stage, calm and composed, I imdiately knew sothing she wasnt back yet like she had promised
Astrid Voss wasn’t there.
She was still in the custody of the Black Guards.
And that was all the confirmation I needed.
She was the only one who might have answers, real answers. About everything that has happened. About Lorraine.
And I intend to rip out the answers from her throat if I had to.
And not even the Black Guards would stop .
Not today
I stepped back from the fortress.like building and launched a single, brutal kick at the steel door.
It didn’t creak. It didn’t groan.
It ripped off its hinges and crashed inward like thunder.
Instantly, the shadows inside stirred.
Figures erged, blades drawn, black armor gleaming faintly in the low corridor light. The Black Guards.
They didn’t ask questions.
Neither did I.
I launched forward with a snarl, claws unsheathing from my hands like blades forged for war. The first guard lunged, and I split his throat with one clean swipe. He collapsed, gurgling.
Another swung a dagger toward my ribs, I caught his arm mid-air, twisted until the bone snapped like twigs, and buried my claws in his gut, dragging upward.
They kept coming.
Five, seven, ten, I lost count.
I moved through them like a storm.
Bodies hit the walls. Blood splattered the floor. My knuckles cracked from impact. My shirt was torn, that was all they could do, and it didn’t matter. Nothing mattered except reaching her.
Astrid Voss
The manipulator.
The one who watched this chaos unfold and still said nothing.
By the ti I reached the reinforced door at the end of the hall, my body was stained with blood. My breathing was steady, controlled. My claws, long and glistening crimson, twitched with anticipation.
I tore the door open like paper.
And there she was.
Astrid Voss.
Sitting on the tal cot, legs crossed, head tilted back as she stared at the ceiling like this was so philosophical retreat rather than a prison cell.
When she saw standing in the doorway, my face bloodied, claws dripping, her eyes widened with horror.
"No. No, no, no," she breathed, stumbling to her feet. "I saw it, I saw it, but I didn’t want to believe it cause it was not even clear enoough"
My voice was low. "What are you talking about?"
"I didn’t believe you would actually co here to save , Kieran," she said, her voice trembling. "Why would you? After everything? Especially when you’re not supposed to be here...."
She stepped toward , frantic now.
"Your people are dying, Kieran!" she cried, hands clutching the bars that still separated us. "All the Lycan students are being burned alive with wolfsbane right now! If you want to save them, you must leave! Now!"
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