The Strength of Trust

The Strength of Trust

Nyte

Trust her. The words echoed relentlessly in my mind. I have to trust her. I should have trusted her from the beginning, yet the fear of never seeing her again—never holding her—clenched my heart like a vice. It took all my strength to dive into the cave and lead my pack into battle while my mate sought her own fight—one I had to trust she would emerge from unscathed.

I didn’t spare a glance back at her as my pack collided with the vampires, their forms shifting midair. I had to believe she could take care of herself. I had to trust in her strength. She swore to me she could handle this. So instead of looking back for her, I focused on finding the vampire who had caused all this chaos. I landed in my fully shifted form, my thick coat gleaming in the moonlight. A vampire lunged at me, fangs bared, but I swatted him away like a fly. My claws tore into him, and his body fell motionless at my feet. My true opponent wouldn’t fall so easily.

As I searched for the ancient vampire lord, I helped my pack by knocking lesser vampires off their backs as I passed. Grateful yelps greeted me as they regained their footing, rushing off to assist another packmate. A flash of purple-streaked hair caught my attention—Paige, on Madi’s back, with Thompson racing alongside them. The sight of my Betas protecting her gave me solace as I continued my search for the leader of the vampire horde.

“You undoubtedly are a werewolf king,” a deep voice chuckled from my left. I whipped my head around to find the source, but only wisps of smoke remained, the deep laughter echoing around me, heavy with the scent of death.

“Your size and power are impressive, I must admit; however, you aren’t the most impressive werewolf king I’ve faced in my time.”

I growled low, searching for the voice’s owner, but I missed him again.

“My witch was so concerned about you. She wouldn’t dare target any major pack branches outright. She always uses her little pendulum to decide which packs to take. Now that I see you, I’m curious what worried her so much about you.” His voice surrounded me, and the battle faded as a dark aura settled around us.

I shifted back to human form, turning in a circle to locate the demon. “If you’re so unimpressed, then why don’t you stop hiding from me?” I called out, sneering.

“Where’s the fun in that?” he whispered directly in my ear. I turned just in time to see him fade from sight, his laughter echoing once more.

“I’ve encountered many who hide their cowardice behind the guise of playing a game,” I chuckled. “Never thought an Ancient would be among those fools.”

“Trying to bait me?” the disembodied voice asked, amusement lacing his tone. “I’m far too old to fall for that. I’ve killed many werewolf kings in my time, and I think I’ve earned the pleasure of playing with my food.”

I gritted my teeth as his voice bounced around me, his aura blocking my view of the pack and Paige. I couldn’t hear them behind his miasma. I had no idea how their battles were going. For all I knew, the witch working alongside this ancient being was wiping them out while I was distracted by her partner.

No! I scolded myself. I have to trust her.

I shook my head, focusing on the vampire lord. “If you are so powerful, then why are you only now trying to bring back the werewolf slaves? From what I’ve heard, past werewolf kings nearly wiped your kind off the planet. Yet here you are, centuries later, trying to revitalize the practice.” I let out a mocking laugh. “Seems to me you only had a chance at this because of the witch helping you. Maybe I should focus on her and take out the real power.”

“She is simply a weapon. A tool. A means to an end. If she were taken from me, well, there are more witches where she comes from. Just like your Luna.”

I held back a snarl, refusing to let him bait me. He already had the upper hand, creating his battlefield with his aura. I didn’t need him manipulating my emotions.

“I think you’ll find my mate isn’t interested in helping you revive the past,” I said, catching his scent behind me, but I didn’t turn. I remained still, waiting to see if he would make a move. The moment he did, I would turn it against him.

“I can just do to her what I did to my current witch,” he whispered behind me. “It’s amazing what a few sweet nothings whispered in a woman’s ear can earn you.”

A growl slipped from my lips, one I couldn’t hold back. “It takes a lot more than that to win over Paige.”

“I’m sure that’s what Silva’s mate thought too.”

I felt the air rush between us as I swiftly dodged his clawed hand. Liquid dripped from his nails—the scent of wolfsbane nearly made me gag. His deathly aroma had masked the poison’s scent until now. I could only smell it because his hand had been less than a foot from my face. I shifted back into my wolf form with a snarl, leaping back to finally get a full view of the vampire lord. I had heard the rumors of Ancient Vampires and their beauty—the kind that drew victims like moths to a flame—but I hadn’t believed it. Not until now.

He was pale, though not as pale as I expected. Behind the years without sunlight, some color remained—a soft brown hinting at his origin. His bone structure was sharp and strong, and his hair tumbled in curls around his face. Even I had to admit the man was handsome. If what he claimed was true—that he wooed the witch to the dark arts—I could see why she would be drawn to him.

“You certainly are quick,” he laughed. “I will give you that. Possibly the fastest werewolf king I’ve encountered, but you will fall just the same.”

I growled, bending my legs to prepare for another dodge. He laughed again, running his hands through his hair, tilting his head back in amusement.

“I love the way you creatures react—so animalistic. When I was younger, I had a pup with the same lively attitude. Always so defiant.” He looked back at me, a gleam in his yellow eyes. “She became an excellent guard dog after I broke and trained her. Maybe I won’t kill you.”

I couldn’t hold back anymore; my paws dug into the ground as I rushed at him. Pain ricocheted through my body as his claws dug into my side. Warmth soaked into my coat. He was faster than me. A hacking sound erupted from my mouth, blood spraying onto the ground as I fell to my belly.

The vampire laughed from behind me again, but I didn’t turn to look. My body screamed from the pain, my mind fighting against the urge to examine the wound. I didn’t need to look; I knew he had cut me deep—the kind of wound that wouldn’t heal quickly. It was deeper than any other werewolf could inflict.

“What?” he cackled. “Was that all you had? Some werewolf king you are! The last one I killed was still standing after that. He even managed to claw my gut pretty good.”

I felt the strength slipping from my body. The pain throbbed through my entire being. How could anyone move from this wound? The vampire had to be lying.

“Nyte!” The scream echoed in my head. Paige’s terrified voice sobered me immediately. “Don’t give up! You can do this!”

I lifted my head, searching for her, but only saw the dark aura enveloping us in our private battlefield. It took me a moment to realize she was speaking to me through our bond. The connection was stronger now that we were within range of one another.

“You have everything you need to beat him,” she assured me. “Trust me.”

There it was again—the reminder of Liberty’s warning. Trust in my mate. I had to trust that she could handle her fight, but I also had to trust she knew the outcome of this battle. She had sworn to me that we would both walk away from it—that this wouldn’t be our end.

Howls rang out beyond the aura—the first sound of my pack since the miasma had blocked them out. I glanced over my shoulder to see the surprised look on the vampire’s face. He quickly masked it, plastering his amused grin back in place.

“They can’t get in. They can’t help you,” he taunted.

I pushed myself back to my feet, growling through the pain in my side. I forced myself to shift again, the action helping to accelerate the healing of the wound, although the process was far more painful due to the damage.

Standing at my full height, I looked back at the vampire, smirking at him. “I don’t need their help to kill you. I have everything I need right here.” I shifted my fingers into claws, gesturing for the vampire to come at me. I would fight him in this position and trust my mate’s vision of us walking out of here together. Unlike me, she had never lied to me. If she said I could do this, then I could fucking do it.

I charged at the ancient vampire as he ran toward me, a glint of fear crossing his features. He wanted to fight either the wolf or the man. But I was neither now; I was both—a single being fighting as one. The realization filled me with newfound confidence as I leaped over the vampire’s head and landed behind him. My clawed hands sliced down his back, peeling away skin and clothing in a single blow. Blood poured down his back, pooling at his feet.

A vicious scream erupted from the vampire's lips as he spun around to swipe at me, but I was faster in this form. I dodged him easily, his movements appearing in slow motion before my eyes. The pure fear in his expression was evident now. I understood the true strength of the werewolf king. The greater size and faster movements in wolf form held power within the pack, but my true strength came from embracing both my forms.

Unlike other werewolves, I was faster in my partial shift. I was also stronger. If the vampire’s claims of killing werewolf kings in the past were true, it was likely due to the lack of knowledge passed down through generations. The truth behind the true strength of the werewolf king was to embrace both the human and the beast as one. Judging by the panic in the ancient one’s eyes, he realized this truth too.

I twisted away from another of his blows, a laugh escaping my lips as I moved past him in a blur. My claws dug into his side, ripping organs from his body and tossing them aside. Although he no longer needed the organs from his human life, the loss of blood and pain would still affect him.

I spun on my heels, clawing into his other side as he reacted to the chunk of flesh I had taken. I had found my rhythm in this fight; I was tearing the vampire limb from limb before he could even react. A crazed laugh bubbled up from within me as he fell to his knees, clutching his wounds.

I stopped moving, standing before him and surveying the bloodied mess around him. He snarled at me, his yellowed eyes devoid of the humanity they had held moments ago.

“It’s over now,” I told him.

“You really think that killing me will end this?” He spat blood at my feet, offering me a cruel smile. “You think I’m the only Ancient looking to return to the old ways? We are just waking up, boy. You can’t fight us all.”

I smirked back, squatting down to meet his gaze. “You think I’m the only one willing to fight? I may be the only known werewolf king right now, but this is a new world your kind is awakening to.” I opened my arms wide as if to gesture to the wonder of our world. “Witches and werewolves are uniting. Do you think you were so clever to find a single witch? We have covens on our side. Entire cities of witches are ready to fight with us. So, this isn’t the end?” I laughed. “Bring it on.”

I slashed my arm back, my claws severing the vampire lord’s head from his body. His haze faded away, revealing the battlefield anew. Lesser vampires turned to the dissipating aura, their eyes bulging as they saw me stepping forward, their lord now nothing but dust in the wind.