Chapter 84: Eighty Four : The Breaking Point

Ronald's POV

The words left my mouth like a vow written in fire. For a second, even the night held its breath.

The guards above the walls froze, the elders watching from the fortress windows went still. Only the wind moved, cold and sharp against my skin.

Then one of them laughed. A guard. High up on the battlements, he barked out a sound that grated like steel on bone.

“Bold words, Alpha,” he called. “But words won’t break our gates.”

That was the wrong thing to say.

My wolf rose fast, too fast. The bond to Mara pulsed through me, sharp and frantic. Pain lanced through my chest, not my own but hers. I could feel it, her agony, rippling through our connection. The sound of her scream echoed in my skull, and the last thread of restraint snapped.

“She’s hurting,” I rasped. “They’re hurting her, Lucas.”

Lucas’s voice came tight and careful beside me. “Ronald, think. You charge in now and everyone dies. The wards around that gate aren’t…”

“I don’t care about the wards.” My vision blurred red. “They’re trying to rip her away from me.”

He grabbed my arm, fingers digging in. “If you do this, the Council will declare war. You’ll damn the entire pack…”

“I’ll damn them before I let her scream again.”

The air trembled with power. My wolf pushed harder, claws scraping against my ribs, begging to be set free. I couldn’t hold him much longer.

Around us, the warriors watched, their hands on their weapons, waiting. I could see it in their faces, they’d follow, no matter what came next.

I turned to the soldier manning the battering ram. “Bring it forward.”

He hesitated, wide-eyed. “Alpha…”

“Now!” I roared.

The wolf’s growl threaded through my voice, deep and feral.

The soldiers moved fast, setting the ram into place. Metal clanged, armor shifted, and the air filled with the scent of adrenaline and smoke.

Lucas stepped in front of me again, desperate. “Ronald, if those wards shatter, the backlash will burn everything within reach. You’ll kill your own men.”

“Then they’ll die for something that matters,” I said, voice flat. “Because I swear, if she dies in there, none of this world is worth saving.”

The first strike landed.

BOOM.

The sound tore through the night. The ground shook beneath our boots, and light flared along the carved runes on the gate, blue and violent.

The wards screamed like a living thing. Sparks showered down on the men, and one of them cried out when a bolt of magic seared across his shield.

“Again!” I shouted.

BOOM.

Cracks splintered through the wood. The runes flickered, weaker this time. The chanting from inside grew louder, faster. I could taste the magic in the air, bitter and old, thick with blood.

Lucas’s voice cut through the chaos. “Stop! If the gate breaks…”

“I told you,” I said through clenched teeth. “It’s already broken. She’s in there. I can feel her slipping.”

He flinched at my tone but didn’t move again. He knew it was too late.

The third strike hit.

BOOM.

The wards flared one last time, then cracked apart in a burst of white light. The force slammed into us like a storm. Men stumbled, shields fell.

The taste of ozone filled my lungs, and the world rang like a struck bell.

When the glow faded, a line split down the center of the gate. Smoke curled from it, faint and eerie. I could smell burned magic and charred wood.

Lucas’s face was pale. “You just declared war,” he whispered.

“Then let it start with me,” I said.

I stepped forward and planted my hand on the gate. My palm came away blackened with soot. Inside, I could still hear them chanting. I could still feel her heartbeat fluttering weakly through the bond.

I turned back to my men, voice low and cold. “Break it open.”

They looked at one another, hesitant only for a heartbeat, then lifted the ram again.

“Once more!” I shouted. “For your Luna!”

The roar that followed shook the night itself. The ram surged forward and struck.

BOOM.

The gate split in two.

The wards shattered completely, sending a ripple of energy screaming through the courtyard. Light burst from the cracks like fire. When it cleared, the fortress stood open, vulnerable.

I could see the corridor beyond, lined with terrified guards.

The bond inside me snapped taut. I could feel Mara—her fear, her pain, her heartbeat stuttering like a drum too close to breaking.

My wolf howled, loud and wild, echoing off the stone.

I drew my sword, my voice steady even as my hands trembled. “We’re done waiting,” I said. “We take her back. No mercy.”

Lucas met my gaze, eyes hollow. “There’s no turning back from this.”

“I never planned to,” I told him.

I raised my sword toward the gate.

“Break the gates,” I ordered. “We end this tonight.”

The warriors charged. The howl of the Bloodfangs thundered behind me as we stormed forward into the fortress and war began.