Chapter 67 Alpha at The Gate
Dagnoth’s POV
The inner gate wouldn’t hold much longer.
I could feel it in the way the palace trembled beneath my boots. Every impact from outside traveled through the stone like a heartbeat, It was heavy, relentless, and unstoppable.
Wood splintered somewhere in the courtyard. Metal screamed as another section of the gate strained under the pressure.
kael alone couldn’t do this, I was certain of that. There is definitely more to this.
‘He probably made an Alliance’ My wolf said in my mind and I was certainly agreed.
Kael’s army was tearing through the defenses, he wouldn’t dare challenge, he definitely had backups.
The scent of smoke drifted through the corridor, thick and bitter, mixing with the metallic smell of blood. Warriors rushed past us carrying weapons, some already shifting halfway into their wolf forms, their eyes glowing with the feral edge of battle.
Behind me, Dahila held the pups tightly against her chest.
Three small bundles wrapped in blankets.
Three fragile lives in the middle of a war.
For a moment, my attention drifted to them.
The triplets.
Lily stirred first, her tiny fingers gripping the fabric of Dahila’s shirt. Liam let out a small, restless whine. Libby slept through the chaos, her breathing slow and peaceful despite the thunder shaking the palace.
I had seen countless battles.
I had watched warriors fall and enemies burn.
But looking at those three small wolves…
Something unfamiliar tightened in my chest.
“Alpha!”
A warrior sprinted down the hallway toward us. His armor was scratched, his breathing ragged.
“The outer defenses are collapsing,” he reported urgently. “Kael’s forces have breached the first wall.”
My jaw tightened.
Of course they had.
Kael didn’t lead weak armies.
He led conquerors.
“How long until they reach the inner gate?” I asked.
The warrior hesitated.
“Minutes.”
Behind me, Dahila inhaled sharply.
The fear in the sound made my shoulders tense.
I turned toward the warrior again.
“Evacuate the west wing immediately,” I ordered. “Move the civilians through the underground tunnels.”
The warrior nodded quickly.
“And the palace, Alpha?” he asked.
I glanced toward the distant rumble of battle.
“We hold the gate.”
The warrior straightened instantly and ran down the corridor to relay the command.
Silence settled between Dahila and me for a moment.
Then her voice came quietly behind me.
“You’re going out there.”
I turned slightly.
She stood only a few feet away, clutching the pups so tightly they were nearly hidden in the blankets. Her hair had fallen loose around her shoulders, and fear shimmered in her eyes.
But beneath it…
There was steel.
“Yes,” I answered.
“You can’t fight him alone,” she said.
A faint smile touched the corner of my mouth, though there was no humor in it.
“Kael didn’t come for the palace,” I said quietly.
Her arms tightened around the triplets.
“He came for them.”
Dahila’s gaze dropped to the pups.
Her voice trembled slightly when she spoke.
“No one is touching my children.”
A low growl vibrated in my chest before I could stop it.
“Not while I’m breathing.”
Another violent crash shook the palace.
Dust rained down from the ceiling.
A distant howl echoed through the night—raw and feral.
Then another.
And another.
The wolves outside were growing restless.
Hungry.
Ready to tear the palace apart.
I stepped toward the nearest window overlooking the courtyard.
Flames flickered across the battlefield below, casting long shadows across the stone ground. Warriors clashed in brutal bursts of violence, steel striking steel, wolves leaping through the smoke.
Bodies were already scattered across the courtyard.
But my attention locked onto one figure standing in the center of the chaos.
Kael.
Even from this distance, he was unmistakable.
Tall.
Broad-shouldered.
Still as a mountain while the battle raged around him.
His dark cloak rippled in the wind, and the moonlight gleamed faintly along the edge of the blade in his hand.
He wasn’t fighting.
He was watching.
Waiting.
As if the battle around him were nothing more than a distraction.
My stomach tightened.
Behind me, Dahila stepped closer.
“What do you see?” she asked softly.
I didn’t answer immediately.
Because at that exact moment—
Kael lifted his head.
And looked straight toward the palace.
Toward this wing.
My blood ran cold.
“He knows,” Dahila whispered.
Yes.
He did.
A deep, powerful howl suddenly split the night.
The sound rolled through the air like thunder, carrying authority that made every wolf in the courtyard freeze for a split second.
Kael’s voice followed.
Deep.
Cold.
Commanding.
“Send the children out.”
The words carried across the battlefield with unnatural clarity.
Inside the corridor, every warrior nearby went still.
Dahila’s breath caught behind me.
“He can’t be serious,” she murmured.
Outside, Kael continued.
“Do that… and no more blood will be spilled tonight.”
My hands slowly curled into fists.
The arrogance.
The confidence.
As if he believed we would simply hand the children over.
Dahila stepped beside me at the window now.
Her arms tightened protectively around the pups.
“You’re not considering it, are you?” she asked quietly.
I turned my head toward her.
“Not a chance.”
For a moment, silence stretched between us.
Then something strange happened.
Outside in the courtyard, Kael tilted his head slightly.
Almost as if he could hear us through the palace walls.
Then—
He smiled.
It wasn’t a normal smile.
There was no warmth in it.
Only certainty.
And that certainty made my stomach twist.
Because Kael didn’t look like a man hoping for surrender.
He looked like a man who already knew how this night would end.
Suddenly, another warrior ran into the hallway.
“Alpha!” he shouted. “The inner gate is cracking!”
Right on cue—
A massive crash echoed through the palace.
The entire building trembled violently.
Somewhere below us, wood splintered like thunder.
The gate.
They were breaking through.
Dahila’s face went pale.
“They’re inside…”
Not yet.
But they would be soon.
I turned away from the window and faced her fully.
“You need to leave,” I said.
Her eyes widened instantly.
“No.”
“Dahila—”
“I’m not running while my home is under attack.”
Her voice shook, but she didn’t back down.
“I’m not leaving you to fight him alone.”
My chest tightened slightly.
“You’re not just a Luna tonight,” I said quietly. “You’re a mother.”
Her gaze hardened.
“Exactly.”
She lifted the blankets slightly, revealing the small faces of the pups.
“They need their father alive too.”
For a moment, I didn’t respond.
Because those words hit harder than any blade.
Another crash thundered through the palace.
The inner gate was breaking.
We were out of time.
Outside, Kael’s army roared as the wood finally splintered apart.
The war had reached the palace.
I took one last look at the triplets.
Three small wolves who had no idea the entire battlefield outside existed because of them.
Then I turned toward the corridor leading to the courtyard.
My wolf stirred beneath my skin, restless and eager.
Kael wanted a war.
Fine.
He would get one.
Behind me, Dahila’s voice followed softly.
“Dagnoth…”
I paused but didn’t turn.
“If he’s truly here for them…” she whispered.
A slow, dangerous smile spread across my face.
“Then Kael just made the worst mistake of his life.”
And with that—
I stepped into the battlefield.