Chapter 221

Chapter 221
Stella's POV

The storm we summoned had a miraculous effect. The gulf is now littered with the wreckage of the Council's fleet, and their long-range artillery has been completely suppressed. Now, the fortress has lost its cover and lies entirely exposed before us. This is the signal for our final assault.

The fortress looms before us, its walls scarred by our earlier bombardment. Kai raises his sword, and the army behind us roars, a tidal wave of steel.

Freya and her storm girls flank us to the left, their wrists glowing with green energy, while Ataq leads a battalion of berserkers to the right, their warhammers swinging in eager arcs.

"Freya, take the east wing—clear the armory," Kai commands over the comms. "Ataq, breach the north gate. We'll head straight for the central spire."

"Copy that," Freya replies, her voice crackling with static. "Storm girls, move!"

I feel the edelweiss shards in my wedding armor pulse as we charge. The cub kicks sharply, as if urging me forward. Kai's sword slices through the fortress's outer defenses, and I summon a shield of wind to deflect incoming gunfire. The air is thick with the stench of ozone and melting ice.

Inside, the fortress is a maze of frozen corridors. Silver Rot soldiers pour from every alcove, their armor glowing with that cursed energy. Kai fights like a man possessed, his blade a blur of motion. I follow close behind, channeling storm blood to incinerate their weapons, the green fire hissing against metal.

"Kai, down!" I shout, yanking him to the ground as a missile streaks overhead. The explosion shakes the corridor, and ice rains from the ceiling. Freya's voice crackles in my ear: "East wing secured. Moving to rendezvous."

Ataq's roar echoes through the comms: "North gate breached! Berserkers, follow me!"

We press deeper, encountering fierce resistance. In a vast chamber lined with cryo-tubes, we find Damon's experiments—hybrids of human and Silver Rot, their bodies twisted and misshapen. Kai smashes the tubes with his axe, and I incinerate the abominations before they can attack.

"Stella, look," Kai says, pointing to a set of blast doors. "Massive energy signature beyond—Damon must be there."

As we approach, the doors slide open, revealing a dome-shaped chamber. Damon stands at its center, flanked by elite Silver Rot soldiers. In his grasp, he holds Hailey, her body trembling, a dagger pressed to her throat.

"Haley?" I watched as Damon held her hostage, fury boiling over inside me. "You animal! Haley's your mate! Let her go!"

Ever since I last saw Haley, she'd been listless—and now, during the days-long siege, she should have emerged as luna to rally the troops. But she never did. It turned out she'd been imprisoned, repeatedly tortured by Damon!

Kai's knuckles whiten around his sword. "Let her go, Damon. Fight me like a warrior."

"Warrior?" Damon laughs, pressing the dagger into Hailey's neck. A trickle of blood runs down her skin. "I prefer strategist. And my strategy says your little friend here is my best insurance."

"Only a beast would threaten others with their own clan members—their own mate! Do you really think using Haley will stop us from fighting back?"

I feel my storm blood surge, the edelweiss shards glowing brighter. "Release her now," I growl, "or I'll tear this place down around you."

Damon's eyes flash. "Is that a threat?" He raises the scepter, and Hailey gasps, her body convulsing. Silver veins spider across her skin, but instead of turning to dust, she collapses, unconscious, a faint pulse still visible.

"Ah," Damon reveled in intoxication. "Haley—she's my mate, my luna. Drawing power from the goddess through the sacred covenant is the true purpose of the soulbond ritual." Then his gaze fixed on me, malicious intent dripping from his words: "I can't wait to drain you! Your power... it makes me crave."

In that instant, I realized why Damon had been chasing and imprisoning me—he'd been trying to steal the goddess' power all along! As the divine chosen, I naturally possess immense latent divine force. But this beast! He actually desecrated the soulbond ritual! Beast! Beast! Beast!

"You bastard!" Kai roars, charging forward.

Damon sidesteps, scepter slamming into Kai's shoulder. The impact sends him flying, but he rolls to his feet, blood dripping from the wound. I launch a bolt of green lightning, but Damon raises a silver shield, deflecting it.

"Pathetic," he spits, advancing on me. "You think your little storm can stop me?"

Kai leaps between us, sword clashing with the scepter. "Touch her again and I'll rip you apart," he snarls.

Damon grins, eyes glowing silver. "Bold words for a man about to lose." He spins the scepter, and silver tendrils shoot from the floor, wrapping around our ankles.

I incinerate the tendrils with green fire, but Damon uses the distraction to strike Kai again. "Kai!" I shout, summoning a tornado to fling Damon back. He crashes into a console, but the tendrils reform, pinning us in place.

" I will win!" Damon says, raising the scepter high.

I meet Kai's gaze, seeing the same fury in his eyes that burns in mine. How dare he use a woman as a shield? How dare he harm Hailey? The cub kicks violently, and I channel every ounce of power, storm blood and edelweiss energy merging into a blinding green aura.

"For victory!" Kai growls, breaking free of the tendrils.

"For all girls," I snarl, unleashing a wave of energy.

Together, we surge forward, ready to tear Damon apart. The battle has just begun, but with our rage fueling every strike!