EIGHTY

EIGHTY
DIMITRI'S POV

My eyes were on the flower when I heard multiple footsteps approach Eva and me.

"Protect his Majesty!" The Sentinel of the first guard ordered.

Coming from the older man who protected my family for generations, I knew this was serious.

I immediately pulled Eva behind me and surveyed my surroundings.

The guards present formed a circle and kept their weapons loaded and ready. The ones with spears prepared to fire, and the others with guns placed their firm fingers against the trigger.

"What is happening?" I asked the first sentinel.

If the Sentinels were going all out, I figured it was a group of traitors prepared to kill me for the throne. My bet was on my distant family name. Only their lot would be this emboldened.

"Dorian Legrand is here." The man replied, unsheathing his sword. "He and a few radicals managed to force their way through the gates, killing twelve sentinels."

Eva gasped. "Goddess."

I held on to her, assuring her it was alright.

"This is my fault," she whispered. "I shouldn't have told him a thing."

"This isn't your fault, Eva," I told her, my eyes still flicking around the garden for sudden movements. "You only did what you thought was right."

Then, I turned my attention back to the first sentinel guard. "What about my mate, Camille, and my children? Where are they?"

"Last I heard from your Beta, the twins are in their room with their mother. We also have the Palace guards prowling the lower floor, ready to overdose on moonshine to force a transformation if it calls for it."

"What are your thoughts about the situation?"

The sentinel was aged. Full of wisdom of old. He had probably faced so many wars and survived them. He would be able to tell how this kind of situation will play out.

"The Lycan is drunk on his grief. He sees no reason. But his goal for coming and cutting his way through is clear. He wants you. The man would be easy to put down if he was just any Lycan. But that man has played around with his demons and unbound them from the laws of the mad god. Lives would have to be lost to subdue him if not finish him."

I appreciated the Sentinel's honesty. Lives would continue to be lost because of me. Those Sentinels were not just fodder. They had family and lives just like me and any other.

What kind of King would I be if I was cowering here while people suffered? Accountability was necessary.

As if she could read my thoughts, Eva gripped my hand tightly, her eyes reflecting fear in equal measure. "You better not be having any suicidal thoughts."

"I have to face the man—"
Before I could say anything more, a shadow darted out from the foliage, lunging towards us with a blade gleaming in the sunlight.

"For Milana!" The creature with a skull for a face and teeth jagged like a piranha charged towards me.

The horns and the glowing heart in the chest told me it was a wendigo—vile creature even in the world of the numinous.

The first sentinel sprang into action immediately. His sword flashed in the light as he intercepted the attacker with lightning speed.

With a swift and decisive motion, he disarmed the assailant, rendering them powerless before they could inflict any harm.

But Wendigos has teeth. Seeing its arm and weapon were gone, the beast turned to its old, savage ways. Its mouth ripped open, and it lunged again for the sentinel.

However, the guard was quicker. Just as the beast dislodged its jaw to chunk down his face, he drove his sword into the mouth of the creature and cut through.

Eva pulled me even closer when this happened, shutting her eyes so tight that she wouldn't see the brutality of it.

I watched the sentinel look down at the beheaded Wendigo in pleasure before I came to the realization that I couldn't keep standing here, hoping to be protected. If Milana's father has hired even Wendigos to his cause, what else lurked out there, waiting to strike?

"You said Dorian wants me, did you not?" I addressed the first sentinel who was wiping the Wendigo's blood from his blade.

"Yes, Your Majesty." The man nodded.

"Take me to him. There is no need for this unnecessary bloodbath."

"Absolutely not," Eva retorted, latching onto my hand. "The man seems psychotic. He will waste no time trying to kill you. You might be the Lycan king, but even you are not capable of shifting without the full moon. From what I have heard, that rule does not seem to apply to Milana's father. I know you want to fix things. But going there without any form of defense is suicide. Think about me. Think about... Camille."

I stared down at Eva's hand. Her nails were practically digging into my flesh as she tried to convince me to stay here where it was safe.

"The full moon isn't the only thing that makes me capable of shifting," I informed Eva before meeting her gaze. "The need to protect my children and my woman is more than enough."

I then yanked her hand off and turned to the first sentinel. "Take me to Dorian."

The first sentinel hesitated, his gaze shifting between Eva and me. He was clearly torn between duty and concern. But ultimately, he nodded in reluctant agreement.

"As you wish, Your Majesty," he replied, his voice tinged with apprehension. "But I must insist on accompanying you. Dorian Legrand is a formidable adversary, and it would be unwise to face him alone."

I nodded, acknowledging the wisdom in his words. "Very well," I conceded, steeling myself for whatever lay ahead. "Lead the way."

With a sense of grim determination, we set off towards the front of the palace, where the first sentinel last saw Dorian.

Eva walked beside me, her expression tight with worry. "Are you sure about this?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "There's still time to turn back."

But I shook my head, my resolve unwavering. "No," I replied firmly. "We can't afford to wait any longer. Dorian needs to be stopped, and I'm the only one who can do it."

Suddenly, there was a gunshot. Loud and within the premises.

The sentinels around me stiffened and observed our surroundings again.

It remained that tense until the first sentinel broke the silence. "Word has gotten to me that Dorian Legrand was shot."

I watched him put his radio back in place, and we continued onward.

A scream followed—a familiar one. Hearing my mate cry out caused my blood to burn, and before I knew it, I pushed past the Sentinels, doing their best to protect me, and ran as fast as my feet could carry me closer to the origin of the voice.

The sight in front of me was equally as terrifying. Neal was pinned to the ground by Dorian, whose face had morphed into a beast.

I anticipated what was about to happen next.

With adrenaline coursing through my veins, I charged forward.

My instincts kicked into overdrive as I raced to intercept Dorian before he could inflict serious harm upon Neal.

Launching myself at Dorian with all the force I could muster, I collided with him mid-air, knocking him off balance and sending us both tumbling to the ground in a chaotic heap.

As we grappled on the ground, I felt the total weight of Dorian's monstrous strength pressing down upon me, his snarls reverberating in my ears.

But I refused to yield. With every ounce of determination I possessed, I fought back against the onslaught, desperately trying to pry him before it was too late.

Finally, I managed to gain the upper hand, wrenching Dorian away from above me and flinging him aside with all the force I could muster.

As Dorian staggered to his feet, his gaze locked onto mine with a feral intensity.

"Dorian, stop," I warned, my voice ringing out with a steely resolve. "This ends now."

"What ends now?" The man growled, his face shifting back to its human form. "Because only I get to say when it ends."

I watched Neal get up and grab a gun from a sentinel. He cocked it at the skull of Dorian, but I ordered him to stop with one look. I could handle this. I hoped I could. I understood Dorian. This was his grief manifesting.

I knew how much he loved his daughter. Hearing her die in such an undignified manner must have been soul-crushing.

"Would Milana want this?" I asked.

"Don't you ever mention my baby girl's name!" He warned. "Don't you ever try to use her to save your skin! I will not spare a murderer. Milana wouldn't want me to."

Dorian's accusation cut through the tension like a knife, his words heavy with accusation and grief.

"You let her go," he continued, his voice laced with bitterness. "You found your fated mate, and you let my girl slip away. You abandoned her when she needed you the most."

The weight of his words settled heavily upon me, a crushing reminder of the consequences of my actions. Guilt gnawed at my insides, twisting and churning because it was true.

"I didn't mean to," I protested, my voice strained with pain. "I never wanted to hurt her. I thought I was doing what was best for both of us."

But even as the words left my lips, I knew they offered little solace to Dorian, whose grief and anger seemed to be consuming him whole.

"She loved you, Dimitri," he spat, his voice thick with anguish. "And you abandoned her. You left her alone in the darkness, and now she's gone because of you."

"I'm sorry," I whispered, my voice barely audible. "I'm so sorry, Dorian. I never meant for any of this to happen."

Dorian nodded, but it didn't look like any of my words were reaching him. "When I came here, I came with the hope of committing treason by killing you. I understand the allure of having a mate. It's intoxicating. I had one myself. For a while. So I couldn't really blame you. But you, telling me you never meant for any of this to happen? What am I supposed to do with that? Will that bring my daughter back?"

"You have already committed treason," Neal retorted. "How many Lycans have you killed today?"

"A lot," Dorian replied, chuckling while his eyes were still trained on me. "I have broken the law of the Lycans. Haven't I?"

"Yes, you have. And you have to pay dearly for breaking it. Give yourself up, and I will make sure you get a merciful end." Neal continued.

"Do you know the law I broke; the edict of unprovoked violence was actually rewritten from an even older tenet?"

"What are you yapping about, old fart?" Neal continued approaching the man.

Dorian looked at me as he spoke. "In the tenet of the old laws, it was originally called harm not the innocent of self. A law Dimitri has broken by harming my daughter. A part of myself."

"Treason!" The Sentinels yelled.

"Dorian, you have to stop," I repeated. "No matter how angry you are, no matter how much I try to understand, I am still your King."

Dorian scoffed and turned to face the booing Sentinels. "Before the Galdinas' got into power, the Lycans that wore the crown were especially fond of breaking this old tenet that it was soon passed into law that if any Lycan felt they had been wronged. They should challenge the party who offended them to a Duel aon bhuannaiche. A duel to the death. A duel where the victor takes it all. A Lycan who rose to Alphahood by title had nothing to worry about. Who was going to take him down?"

"The duel aon bhuannaiche is archaic and no longer standing." I retorted.

"It is archaic. But it is still standing, Your Majesty. Just because Lycans grew tame and aristocratic doesn't mean it is not a valid law."

"We cannot resort to barbaric rituals of the past," The first sentinel guard interjected. "Our society has evolved beyond the need for such senseless violence."

But Dorian remained unmoved, his resolve unyielding. "The laws of our ancestors still hold sway over us," he insisted, his tone resolute. "If your King is unwilling to face the consequences of his actions, then I believe he is not fit to wear the crown. Maybe I should wear it."

There was a murmur from the sentinels.

"I challenge you to a Duel aon bhuannaiche, Dimitri Galdina. Kill me to clear yourself, or I kill you as revenge for what you did to my Milana."