Chapter 200 200

Chapter 200 200
After witnessing the vision, silence settled heavily inside the tent. Alyna could still feel her heart racing. The image of her own death refused to leave her mind.
Sarmon had seen the fear in her eyes. For the first time since bringing her here, he looked genuinely unsettled.
"What did you see?" he asked again.
His voice was lower now. More cautious.
Alyna stared at him for several seconds. Then she answered honestly.
"I saw my death."
Sarmon's expression hardened. Neither spoke.
The lantern flickered softly between them.
"And?" he finally asked.
Alyna swallowed.
"You were the one who killed me."
For the first time, she saw something crack behind his cold exterior.
It vanished almost immediately, but she had seen it.
Sarmon slowly stood and walked away from her.
His large frame cast a shadow across the tent as he stared into the darkness beyond the entrance.
For a long moment, he remained silent.
Then he laughed. It wasn't a joyful laugh. It sounded bitter.
"You know," he said quietly, "I spent centuries believing I was untouchable."
Alyna remained silent.
Sarmon rarely spoke about himself.
Tonight seemed different.
Perhaps her vision had affected him more than he wanted to admit.
"I wasn't born an Alpha."
His gaze remained fixed on the darkness outside.
"I wasn't born powerful."
His voice carried an unusual calmness.
"I was born as nothing."
Alyna listened carefully.
"A mere wolf."
He turned slightly toward her.
"No title."
"No inheritance."
"No powerful bloodline."
"Nothing."
Alyna had never imagined that.
Sarmon looked like someone who had ruled his entire life.
Yet there was no pride in his voice.
Only fact.
"I grew up during war."
His eyes darkened.
"Endless war."
"I fought before I became a man."
"I killed before I understood what death truly meant."
The tent grew quiet.
Alyna could almost picture it.
A young wolf forced to survive in a brutal world.
"I learned quickly."
His voice became colder.
"The weak die."
"The strong survive."
He folded his arms.
"So I became strong."
Over the years, Sarmon had fought countless battles.
He defeated rival Alphas.
Conquered territories.
Built alliances.
Destroyed enemies.
Every victory increased his influence.
Every war expanded his territory.
Every challenge made him stronger.
His name slowly spread across distant lands.
Entire packs feared him.
Others joined him willingly.
Some out of loyalty.
Most out of fear.
Eventually, he created something unprecedented.
A massive pack made from outcasts. Wolves rejected by society. The people nobody wanted. Sarmon accepted them all. And transformed them into an army.
A terrifying one.
"The world feared me," he said.
"There wasn't a single Alpha who could stop me."
Alyna noticed something dangerous in his eyes.
The pride of a man who had never truly lost.
"I won every war."
His lips curved slightly.
"I took every territory I wanted."
His expression became distant.
"And eventually I stopped believing I could fail."
That was where everything changed.
Power had never been enough.
Victory had never been enough.
The more he gained, the more he wanted.
Greed slowly replaced ambition.
He wanted more lands.
More wealth. More influence. More power.
And because nobody defeated him, nobody challenged those desires.
"I had wives."
His voice softened slightly.
"Many."
Alyna wasn't surprised.
"I had children."
His gaze lowered briefly.
"And grandchildren."
Alyna could suddenly see a different side of him.
Not the monster everyone feared.
A man who had built an empire. A family. A legacy.
Everything he possessed had been earned through blood and war.
And he couldn't bear losing it.
"Then I started growing old."
The words sounded almost strange coming from him.
"I became slower."
Alyna remained silent.
"My body weakened."
His jaw tightened.
"The victories continued."
"But I knew."
He looked directly at her.
"Death was coming."
For the first time, genuine fear appeared in his eyes.
Not fear of enemies.
Not fear of war.
Fear of mortality.
"I spent centuries surviving."
His voice lowered.
"And suddenly I realized I would die like everyone else."
That realization had terrified him.
More than any battlefield.
More than any enemy.
Because death couldn't be conquered.
Or so he thought.
That was when his obsession began.
He searched ancient records. Mystics and Forgotten knowledge.
Anything that promised a longer life.
Anything that could save him.
Then the dreams started.
Alyna, the forest. This region and her eyes.
Again and again. His instincts told him the answer was here.
So he came. Crossing oceans. Until he finally arrived.
And now she sat before him.
The woman from his dreams.
The answer he had chased for years.
Only to tell him that he would die.
Alyna watched his face carefully.
For the first time, Sarmon looked uncertain.
His wolf had spoken to him after hearing her vision.
The voice that had guided him through centuries.
The voice that had never failed him.
Perhaps this is our end. The thought haunted him. But Sarmon wasn't a man who accepted fate.
Never had been.
Every success in his life came from challenging what others considered impossible.
He had defied stronger enemies.
Defied destiny.
Defied expectations.
Why would he stop now?
"No."
His voice suddenly became firm.
Alyna blinked.
Sarmon turned toward her completely.
"I refuse."
His eyes burned with determination.
"If death wants me, it can come and take me."
Alyna sighed.
"You don't understand."
"No."
His voice sharpened.
"You don't understand."
He pointed toward the camp outside.
"I built everything out there."
The faint sounds of soldiers drifted through the night.
"I didn't survive centuries just to surrender."
Alyna looked down.
She had expected that answer.
Sarmon wasn't the type to run.
He would fight destiny itself if necessary.
Yet she had to try.
One last time.
"Sarmon."
He looked at her.
"Leave."
His expression didn't change.
"You still have a chance."
Nothing.
"You can go home."
His jaw tightened.
"You have children."
Silence.
"Grandchildren."
His eyes narrowed.
"You have a legacy waiting for you."
Still nothing.
Alyna's voice softened.
"I miss my son every day."
For the first time, something flickered across Sarmon's face.
Very briefly.
"I want to go home."
Tears gathered in her eyes.
"I want to see him grow up."
She looked directly at him.
"You can do the same."
The tent fell silent. Alyna hoped.
Just for a moment.
That perhaps he would listen.
But Sarmon slowly shook his head.
"No."
The single word crushed that hope.
His gaze became cold again.
Determined.
Unyielding.
"The path behind me is gone."
Alyna closed her eyes.
"And you're choosing the wrong path."
Sarmon walked toward the tent entrance.
Before leaving, he glanced back at her.
"Perhaps."
His dark eyes lingered on hers.
"But I didn't become Sarmon by walking away from impossible battles."
Then he stepped outside.
Leaving Alyna alone once more.
And more certain than ever that a storm was coming.
One that neither of them would escape unchanged.