Chapter 7

A L I N A

Before the tension can escalate further, my mother steps in, her voice smooth as silk.

“Perhaps we should focus on the matters at hand,” Kaela says, her tone light but firm enough to command attention. “After all, tonight is meant to strengthen bonds, not fray them...”

The conversation shifts again, though the undercurrent of tension remains. I catch Magnus glancing at me, his eyes filled with something I can’t quite place—concern, perhaps, or maybe frustration.

As the evening drags on, I find myself stealing glances at him, wondering how he manages to stay so composed in the face of such blatant hostility. But then again, this is Magnus Vorathiel, ever so calm and collected... So if he is keeping it together, I suppose I should do the same...

... The present ...

The halls are alive now, filled with shouts, screaming, and the distant clash of metal, growling and thrashing. Smoke thickens the air, choking the familiar scent of stone and timber with something foreign. Something violent.

This isn’t a siege. This is destruction.

I descend the stairs swiftly with the guards surrounding me, every sense sharpened, every step deliberate. My wolf claws at the surface, a predator aching to be unleashed, but I keep her at bay. Not yet. Not until I know what I’m dealing with.

The great hall comes into view, its tall windows glowing with the orange hue of distant flames. Figures move in the shadows, their weapons glinting in the dim light.

My heart stops.

They wear no crests, no identifying marks. Only dark armour and masks that hide their faces. Who are they? Why are they here? At first, I believe them to be Hunters especially if they are fighting with armour, but soon I am able to pick up all of their scents...

These are Lycans...

A blade whistles through the air, and I spin, blocking it just in time. The force rattles up my arm, but I hold firm, pushing back. My attacker’s strength is formidable, but I’ve faced worse.

The guards form a barrier around me as they prepare to defend me against the people in front of us. There are about 20 of them, and only 6 of us. But I am certain we can take them... and soon enough...

The fight begins.

Steel sings against steel, echoing through the burning halls. I move with precision, each strike deadly, each step calculated with the intention of killing. They came here thinking I’d fall easily, that Xalveria would crumble in the face of their faceless assault.

They were wrong.

But by the time the last of them falls at my feet, the great hall is eerily silent. My breaths come heavy, and blood—both theirs and mine—drips onto the stone floor. I look around and see that I am the only one left standing and all the guards around me are dead... men that have trained me... died trying to protect me...

I glance around me, trying to gather myself in the aftermath.

But the silence doesn’t last.

A slow clap echoes through the chamber, and I turn sharply, my nails extending into razor-sharp claws as I prepare to defend myself.

"Well done, love, you put up quite the fight... can't say the same for your guards though..." The voice, smooth and familiar, sends a shiver down my spine. I freeze for a moment, my heart thudding in my chest right before I finally manage to turn around, my heart sinking as the person who had just spoken finally steps into the light...

"Magnus?" My voice was barely above a whisper as I meet his gaze. He steps into the light confirming my suspicions. There is a sinister expression on his face as he stares back at me...

The grand hall is eerily quiet... and the only thing that can be heard is the sound of my exasperated breathing, and the flickering torches lit on the stone walls of the wide hall.

My legs tremble as I stagger forward, each step a battle against the ache coursing through my body. Bruises cover my arms and ribs, painful remnants of the chaos that erupted earlier. Though the pain fades quickly due to my advanced healing as a Lycan, there is a hollow pain in my chest that is far worse, gnawing at me with every breath... one that doesn't seem to go away...

I keep my eyes on him, who walked up to me after the battle in full armour and a sword covered in blood.

Magnus...

He stands at the far end of the hall, impossibly calm, as though the bloodshed tonight isn’t staining his hands. His golden hair gleams in the dim lighting, his familiar and heartbreakingly perfect face void of any emotion as he stares back at me...

“What... what are you talking about…?” My voice cracks, the words scraping against the lump in my throat as I figure out what he is talking about... “We... we have to get out of here...” I mumble as I step closer to him and instead try to ignore what he just said to me...

Maybe I was instead just imagining things...

“I am not going anywhere with you, Alina... Don't you understand what's happening...?” he says at last, his tone as cold as the wind outside.

I take a faltering step closer, desperation clawing at my insides. “T-this wasn't you... This couldn't have been you, Magnus...” I shake my head, but even as the words leave my mouth, I am unable to convince myself...

He was behind this attack.

“What does it look like to you?” he asks, tilting his head slightly, his voice laced with mockery.

“You... betrayed me...?” My voice is quiet despite my emotions surging like a storm...“You orchestrated the attack on my family... Tell me it’s not true, Magnus. Please..." I continue to shake my head as tears suddenly well in my eyes, my body now trembling out of my control.

A low chuckle escapes him, the sound chilling me to the bone as he stares at me from head to toe. “Ah, Alina. Still so naive, even now.”

“Naive?” My fists clench at my sides. My heart aches as tears stream down my face... but now the pain slowly shifts to anger. I see that there is no remorse whatsoever in his eyes... in fact... he is glad to have done this...

“I trusted you... We all trusted you. You promised to stand by me..." I try to stay but instead, he cuts me off shortly, the smile disappearing from his face completely.

“And you believed me,” he says simply, a narrow glare meeting my gaze as his face darkens completely...