King Bailey POV
The arrival of King Julian was almost serendipitous. None of us had considered the possibility of the Elder's using witches to prevent us from entrancing them with the sirens on our side. We should have, knowing them for the cowards they truly were. As I shifted and shot myself into the melee, my eyes were on one shifter in particular, his wolf in the thick of the group, as I rushed headlong into them, fury coursing through me. I was angry. I was filled with rage. Dominic Mathias had gone too far when he openly threatened my mate in front of her, mentioning her vulnerable condition and instructing the other elders to go directly for her. Bastard. I would have been hesitant to move, had it not been for the Vampire King and his men who had moved to surround her, the look of confidence and assurance on Riley's face the only thing preventing me from remaining by her side, no matter how much I might wish to stay.I had to remember that she was just as capable, even in the condition she was.
As I barreled through several wolves, I landed directly in front of Dominic's wolf, watching from the corner of my eye as several witches were swiftly dealt with before they could so much as make a simple gesture or utter a spell to counterattack the vampires. I would have felt sympathy for the poor women, had it not been for the fact that the fate of myself, my mate and my pack were currently on the line. I didn't have the luxury of being sympathetic as I rushed towards Dominic, swiping his midsection with claws, while several vampire males flanked me, keeping other elders from interfering and turning attention towards them instead. I let out a ferocious roar, intent on destroying the man and also aware of the need to keep him alive, despite my intense desire to see him dead.
Dominic snarled, launching at me. I swiftly dodged to the side, avoiding his attack just in time and rolling out of the way. I turned swiftly and brought my paws up just in time as he attempted to leap on me, swinging my arm and sending him flying backwards into the trunk of a thick tree, his body sliding down and hitting the ground with a heavy thud as he let out a small yelp. My Lycan purred with maliciousness and licked his lips in satisfaction, lumbering over and dragging him by the tail, sending him sprawling across the ground, growling with frustration.
I expected more considering that he's an elder my Lycan snarled, impatient either he's toying with us or all the talk about his power and prowess is simply a bunch of bullshit and ...
Lies spread by a group of men who would do anything to maintain their reputation. I told him, slightly amused, while my Lycan growled frustrated.
Either way, this isn't the fight I was anticipating he sulked.
Dominic lunged towards us, snapping his jaws and clamping them around our arm as we impatiently shook him off and then jumped lightly on top of him, stunning him because he stayed immobile before attempting to buck us off as we held on tight and bent our jaws to his neck. I cut his throat, deep but not deep enough to kill, hearing him whimper pathetically beneath me. I saw vampires effectively working to take out elders together and as I glanced towards my mate, I could see that for now she was safe, with all the witches' bodies lying on the ground, while Riley's eyes began to glow, a look of pure rage beginning to show on her face. I gritted my teeth. I knew that look. I knew it well. It always happened just before an explosion of anger on Riley's part. Either she would go too far or she would simply lull them into a trance. I bit down on Dominic's neck, listening to him pant and whine beneath me. I needed him to submit and admit that he had been defeated. Instead, he flopped to the ground and took me off guard, causing me to fall before swiftly taking to his feet and running through the group.
A haunted melody began to sound through the air. Beautiful and poignant, another voice rose to join it in perfect unison. It was enough to bring tears to one's eyes. I felt my body responding, even as I stared towards Dominic, desperate to finish the fight, wanting to ensure he didn't get away while he still had the chance. My body began to shake, my limbs trembling. The vampires looked fascinated towards the source of the sound, towards Riley and Marigold, who were holding hands and lifting their chins, both of their eyes blazing as they stared down at the lot of us, pain and anger mixing with notes of despair and fury. Without thought, my body shifted back to human form and I blinked, coming back to myself in surprise, my body moving until I stood behind my mate, while the vampires, followed by an amused looking King Julian who did the same, while the elder's began to transform into their own human forms, one by one, standing there, looking lost and helpless. This was no ordinary song. This was more. I could feel the air, I could feel the chill that formed as I stood there. Riley's eyes were dark, not simply blue and orange tinged, but so black that they looked obsidian with orange rimmed around them. Her facial expression turned glacial. Marigold's did the same. None of the women looked like their ordinary selves. Their hair flowed around them, while we stood a short distance back, not daring to approach them as the music grew steadily louder and steadily more eerie and ominous. Slowly, the elders began to sink onto their knees, their bodies shaking violently, unable to move, while Riley and Marigold opened their mouths wider, the song becoming more piercing and dark. I stared at my mate, fascinated and also apprehensive. Riley was unpredictable, or at least her siren side tended to be. It was virtually impossible to tell what she was trying to achieve right now, but I sensed it was nothing good.
I stared stoically ahead, listening to stunned gasps. A scream filled the air. The scream was bloodcurdling. I looked and saw Damien clutching at the grass, his body heaving and shaking, a look of desperation on his face as he scrabbled and clawed at the dirt, only to collapse on the ground, a look of hopelessness on his face, a tear trailing down his cheek as though he'd been stripped of something precious, of something that we could not see. Riley's eyes narrowed. She continued. I watched in awe as more elders did the same as Dominic, clutching at themselves and crying out, until all of them lay there, looking lost and wan, the fight well and truly faded out of them. Riley and Marigold's song began to peter out, slowing, becoming softer in harmony, until their voices faded and then dwindled away, leaving all of us motionless, all of us afraid to speak.
Dominic Cain got to his feet as I moved to intercept him, lest he try to hurt Riley. "You" he hissed, "You abomination. Do you have any idea of what you have done?" he roared, staggering forward and then falling back to his knees "you have ruined us all" he screamed, while the other elders remained silent, staring hopelessly at the grass.
They all looked broken and weak.
King Julian's lip curved up "I like your style, Sirens" he said, nodding approvingly. "A fitting punishment for those so proud of their lineage", he guffawed, "nothing to be proud of now though, is there" he mocked.
I was having trouble keeping up with the conversation and still had no idea what Marigold and Riley had done to the elders, but my Lycan was smug, aware of it and refusing to divulge exactly. Frustrated, I turned to my mate.
"What did you do?" I asked quietly.
I was not about to anger my mate while her eyes remained dark as night. I still had to concern myself with my own survival.
She focussed her attention on Dominic, who was beating his fist on the ground like a petulant child. "I took that away which mattered to them most" she said simply.
I stared. Took away what was most precious to the elders? They were proud of being shifters, surely that didn't mean she had....my thoughts trailed off as suspicion lurked in my mind. I looked at her sharply.
"I took away their wolves, Bailey," she said, as though it was no big deal, looking down her nose at the men who were staring off into the distance while the vampires smirked." I took away the one thing they cared about more than anything. They are no better than humans right now" she finished, and several elders gave a gasp, some of the women sobbing into their hands.
"You've ruined us all" one cried, glaring at Riley hatefully "you've destroyed the very foundation that has helped sifters become the race they are today. Do you think that the other Alpha's and Luna's will stand for this?"
"I think you overestimate your importance" King Julian spoke up, his eyes glittering with mirth as he took in the scene, his men looking to him for instructions, "and I think that a bit of humility will do you some good. While I would love nothing more than to kill you all painfully and very, very slowly", he paused and gave a wicked grin, his canines showing as several elders cowered away from him. "I realize the futility of it. So King Bailey, with your permission, my men will gather these unfortunate" he sniffed, "creatures, and place them in the dungeons to await trial", he concluded.
I looked at my grounds. Some of the elders had been killed, lessening their numbers, but there was still a large number left alive. There would have to be several to a cell, it couldn't be helped, unless we killed a few more, something I suspected that King Julian wouldn't be opposed to if I was to suggest it. I spoke quickly before he came to that conclusion himself, motioning to my own men, Thomas, Callum and Cody, who immediately began to direct the vampire men, who looked grateful for the assistance, while Damien came out and joined us.
"Ah, another siren, although male" King Julian studied him fascinated, "do you sing too?" he asked, and Damien shook his head.
"Sorry male sirens aren't born with that ability."
"Shame" muttered King Julian, with genuine regret.
Riley seemed to gather herself while Marigold looked away, unable to meet anybody's eyes. "King Julian" she said, bowing her head. "It is a pleasure to be in your company. May we offer you something to eat now that this is all over?" she asked.
King Julian laughed "I doubt that you possess the kind of food we eat" he said, eyeing her neck as I bristled, "but I would be happy to come inside your home and discuss what your next strategy might be? I feel like there is a lot to discuss" he added warmly, and I saw Riley nod, before taking my hand and beginning to tug me towards the pack house, side by side with her, the others following along in our wake.