Chapter 147

Chapter 147
  Laura stood in the middle of the battlefield. Bodies lay everywhere. Some moved. Some didn't.
  The silence was heavy. After hours of fighting, the quiet felt wrong.
  "How many?" she asked.
  Lucian walked toward her. His clothes were torn. Blood covered his hands. "We're still counting."
  Laura closed her eyes. She could feel it through the bonds. The pain. The loss. Warriors from all four packs and more had died here.
  "Sixty-three," Zephyr said quietly. He limped over to them. His shoulder was still bleeding. "Sixty-three dead. Sixty-seven wounded."
  The numbers hit her like a punch to the gut. All those lives all gone.
  "They died for something," Dante said. He was helping carry wounded wolves to the healers. "They died fighting for a better world."
  "Doesn't make it hurt less," Laura said.
  She walked through the battlefield. Stopping at each body. Saying a prayer. Remembering their names.
  These were her people now. All of them. Not just one pack. Every wolf who had fought here was under her protection.
  "We need to send word to their families and packs," she said. "They deserve to know."
  "Already done," Lucian said. "I sent runners an hour ago."
  Laura nodded. She trusted him to handle these things. He was good at the hard parts of leadership.
  "My Queen," a voice called.
  She turned. It was Kai. He was bandaged but alive. Behind him stood a group of warriors. All of them were watching her.
  "What happens now?" Kai asked.
  Good question. Laura had been so focused on the fight, she hadn't thought about after. About what came next.
  "Now we heal," she said. "We rebuild. We make sure this never happens again."
  The warriors nodded. They looked tired but hopeful.
  "Go rest," Laura told them. "We'll figure out the details later."
  As they walked away, Laura felt the weight of it all. These wolves were looking to her for answers. For guidance and leadership.
  She was their Queen now. Not just in name but in reality.
  "You okay?" Nikolai asked.
  She looked at him. He was still pale from grief. His eyes were red. But he was standing. He was here.
  "Are you?" she asked back.
  He shrugged. "I will be. Eventually."
  Laura reached out and touched his hand. "She's at peace now. You gave her that."
  "I know," he said. "It still hurts."
  "It should," Laura said. "That's what makes you human."
  They stood together in comfortable silence. Around them, the cleanup continued. Wolves carrying bodies. Healers tending wounds. The work of picking up the pieces.
  "Where's Zephyr?" Laura asked.
  "Looking for someone," Lucian said. "He's been searching since the battle ended."
  Laura frowned. "Who?"
  "Selena," Dante said. "He's been asking everyone if they've seen her."
  Laura remembered the woman. The one who had caused so much trouble in camp. Who had been jealous of Laura's bond with Zephyr.
  "She was here," Laura said. "I saw her fighting."
  "So did he," Lucian said. "But she disappeared after the battle ended."
  Laura felt a pang of worry. Zephyr had been through so much. The curse. The battles. The near madness. If something happened to Selena...
  "We should help him look," she said.
  "He wants to do this alone," Dante said. "Trust me. I tried to help. He nearly bit my head off."
  Laura understood. Sometimes you needed to face things by yourself. But it still worried her.
  "Let's give him space," she said. "But keep an eye on him."
  Her mates nodded. They understood too.
  Laura walked toward the ruined building. The place where it all ended. Where Nikolai had held Elise as she died. Where Kragoth had made her last stand.
  The walls were cracked. The roof had fallen in. But it was still standing.
  Kind of like all of them.
  "We need to talk," she said to her mates. "About what happens next."
  They followed her inside. Past the broken stones and shattered glass. To a room that was mostly intact.
  Laura sat on a piece of rubble. Her body was exhausted. Her mind was spinning.
  "I never wanted to be Queen," she said quietly.
  "None of us wanted any of this," Lucian said. "But here we are."
  "The packs need leadership," Dante said. "They need someone to follow. Someone they trust."
  "They trust you," Zephyr said. He had found them. His face was tight with worry. "They fought for you. They would have died for you."
  "Some of them did die for me," Laura said. "That's what scares me."
  She looked at each of her mates. These four strong, powerful men. They had given up everything for her. Their independence. Their packs. Their old lives.
  "I need to know you're okay with this," she said. "With me being Queen. With you being... what? My advisors? My generals?"
  "Your mates," Lucian said simply. "Everything else is just details."
  Dante grinned. "Besides, someone needs to keep you from making stupid decisions."
  "I don't make stupid decisions," Laura said.
  "You tried to sacrifice yourself about ten minutes ago," Zephyr pointed out.
  Laura laughed. It felt good to laugh. After everything, it felt like a miracle.
  "Okay, fair point," she said.
  "We're with you," Nikolai said. "Whatever you need. Whatever you decide. We're with you."
  Laura felt their bonds pulse with truth. With love and with absolute loyalty.
  "Okay," she said. "Then let's figure this out."
  They spent the next hour talking. About territories. About laws. About how to merge four different packs into one unified kingdom.
  It was complicated. There were traditions. Hierarchies. Old grudges and ancient rivalries.
  "We can't just force everyone to get along," Laura said. "That's not how it works."
  "No," Lucian agreed. "But we can give them reasons to want to get along."
  "Like what?" Laura asked.
  "Trade," Zephyr said. "Each pack has different strengths. Different resources. If we create a system where they benefit from cooperation..."
  "They'll cooperate," Laura finished. "That's brilliant."
  "It's basic economics," Zephyr said. "But it works."
  They talked about laws. About justice. About how to handle disputes between packs.
  "We need a council," Laura said. "Representatives from each pack. People who understand their needs."
  "And we need to travel," Dante said. "Visit each territory. Show them their Queen cares about them."
  Laura nodded. It would be a lot of work. A lot of responsibility. But it felt right.
  "What about the wounded?" she asked.
  "Already being taken care of," Lucian said. "We have healers from all four major packs working together."
  "And the rebuilding?"
  "In progress," Zephyr said. "We're prioritizing shelter and food first. Then defense."
  Laura smiled. Her mates were already thinking ahead. Already taking care of the details.
  "What about you?" she asked. "Are you ready for this?"
  Lucian was quiet for a moment. "I've been an Alpha for ten years. I'm used to giving orders. Not taking them."
  "I'm not asking you to take orders," Laura said. "I'm asking you to help me lead."
  "That's different," he said.
  "How?"
  "Because it's you," he said simply. "I trust you. I believe in you. If you say we should do something, then we should do it."
  Laura felt tears prick her eyes. "That's a lot of faith."
  "You've earned it," Dante said. "You saved us all."
  "We saved each other," Laura corrected.
  "Same thing," Nikolai said.
  They were interrupted by a knock on the door. Garrick poked his head in.
  "My Queen," he said. "We've set up a temporary command center. The other pack leaders are asking for you."
  Laura stood. "Tell them I'll be right there."
  Garrick nodded and left.
  "Ready?" Laura asked her mates.
  "Always," they said together.