Chapter 101

Chapter 101
Caleb’s POV 

The takeover of Nadine-West should have felt like victory. The land is settled, patrols are established, Mason and Zahra are secured in custody. Warriors are tending to the injured, reorganizing territory, standing tall after a clean strike, everything is finally… quiet, too quiet.

Even Morris feels it, pacing the perimeter with a frown carved into his face, something heavy sits in the air, something waiting. I try to shake it off, but the unease clings to me like a second skin. I left Raven earlier with a promise I’d return, and as the sun dips low, all I want is to go home, to lay beside her, to breathe.

I’m halfway across the courtyard when the wind suddenly shifts, the ground trembles once. 

“What the hell was that?” a warrior whispers, before we can comprehend what's happening another tremor is heard , then another.

Morris stiffens. “Positions... now.” He orders but before the command fully leaves his lips, the sky tears open. A storm, black and electric, forms out of nothing, clouds swirling like a living thing. Lightning snaps across the sky with sharp, unnatural precision.

This isn’t weather, this is power, I remember this scene clearly, its storm power. The same kind Raven holds in her veins but this feels darker and cold. 

Warriors tense around us, grabbing their fighting gear ready for battle as they are always taught, the

out of the shadows of the trees, they appear, hundreds, Wolves and men, armored and moving like they’ve trained for years for this purpose. They are here to destroy us.

It's like they knew our plan all along and we're waiting for us, but how? 

A figure steps to the front, cloak whipping violently in the wind, lightning illuminating his face. My breath stops as I recognise him, no, its not possible.

“Raphael…” I whisper , he just smiles. he's alive and looks even stronger than he ever was.

Morris mutters, “I thought he was dead.”

“So did I,” I breathe, my heart plummeting.

Raphael lifts one hand, and the storm responds to him . His voice booms through the air, amplified by raw power.

“Caleb!” he calls and every warrior flinches. His eyes lock onto mine, burning with obsession, vengeance, madness sharpened into clarity.

“You took what was mine,” he growls. “And I’ve come to take her back.” He hisses. So this is what the attack is about, Raven? Hell no! I'd rather die than lose her to him again, never. 

I step forward, blood ice-cold. “She was never yours Raphael.” I say firmly. 

“Liar,” he snarls like a wounded animal. “She was made for me, she is the other half of my soul and you STOLE her, and now I will rip the life out of you.” He raises his arm and lightning forks downward with a deafening crack, slamming into the earth inches from Morris.

“ATTACK!” Morris roars and hell erupts. Blood-howl wolves rush forward but Raphael’s warriors move like shadows, silent and impossibly fast. Every strike is purposeful and every formation flawless. Every strike has my warrior down, st, we weren't prepared for an attack like this. I can’t have my warriors killed like this. 

Screams fill the air, lightning cracks again and this time hitting a Blood-howl warrior square in the chest. His body collapses, smoking. Raphael doesn’t stop he revels in it.

Morris tackles one soldier only to be flung back by a blast of wind so sharp it slices his shoulder open.

"Brother!" I scream, we can't lose our Alpha it will be doom for Blood-howl. I ran in front of him leaving my body as his shield. "Are you okay Morris." I ask without looking at him, my eyes are on Raphael who seems satisfied. 

“Where did he get this army?” someone cries.

“He shouldn’t be alive!” another shouts before being swept off their feet by a surge of power.

I fight through the chaos, shifting, claws tearing into anything that moves wrong, blood splattering my fur, all this time shielding Morris. It's my duty as his brother and his Beta, but they keep coming and we are dismantled, piece by piece. Our defense grows weaker and weaker. I link my brothers back in the pack and inform them about our situation through the chaos. I urge them to tighten the security because we don't know what Raphael has planned. 

Raphael walks through the battlefield untouched, lightning dancing around him like a crown. He looks stronger than before and every step he takes is aimed at me. I shift back, chest heaving, blood dripping from my arm but I don’t care.

I roar at him, " RAPHAEL!” His smile widens as he finally sees me the way a predator sees prey.

“Caleb,” he says softly. “I’m going to break you.” He smiles slowly walking towards me. 

“You’ll never touch her again.” I hiss charging forward not caring about his damn powers. I want this over, I want to kill him, I want his head on a stake. 

“I don’t need to touch her.” His voice is a hiss. “I just need to remove you.” He lifts both hands and the storm condenses above him into a single, massive bolt. He aims it straight at me.

“DIE.” He screams and before I can do a thing, lightning crashes downward and the world explodes before my eyes. 

All I hear is his laughter as my ears ring, I land on the ground, I feel all my bones rustling. I see Raven's smile, I regret that I might not see it again. I feel the ring in my pocket, I wish I had given it to her. Will she ever know what I had planned? I'm such a fool for now cherishing her and protecting her. 

I am such a fool for dying and leaving her all alone at this bastards mercy. 

"Caleb!" I hear Morris' voice, my eyelids become heavier as I feel blood seeping off my abdomen. I think I'm done for. 

My world goes black.