Chapter 20 He came to rescue me
King deacon:
The morning air in the forest of Prussia was biting and cold, smelling of pine needles and impending death. I stood at the edge of the clearing, my boots sinking into the soft, damp earth.
"How dare you trespass into my territory and take my mate?" I roared. My voice didn't just carry; it vibrated through the ancient, towering trees, shaking the very leaves from their branches.
The man standing near the small, rotting hut was like a shadow—a void in the air. I narrowed my eyes, trying to catch a scent, but there was nothing. No heartbeat, no musk, no trace of a soul. He was a ghost in the daylight. Beside me, I could feel Carlus’s heart racing. He was a bundle of nerves, his hand hovering over the hilt of his sword, his knuckles white.
"Sire, do not forget," Carlus whispered urgently, leaning toward my ear. "You cannot lose your temper here. We cannot restart the war. Remember what happened thirty years ago. For a girl you might abandon in a few days, she is not worth the blood of our people."
I turned my head just enough to snap at him, my eyes glowing a feral, dangerous gold. "Snap out of it, Carlus! This one is different. I don't care if the bond is rejected or if she is wolfless. I won't allow even a single scratch on her skin. If our bond fails, I will keep her as my own personal Omega. She is mine."
"Sire, your royal Highness, King—"
"Shhhhh," I commanded. I let my Alpha aura flare out like a physical weight. It was so heavy that Carlus choked on his words, his knees buckling slightly. "I command you to stay silent until I ask for your voice."
Carlus went quiet, but I could see the frustration in the tight set of his jaw. He didn't understand. He saw a girl; I saw my soul.
Suddenly, four more figures stepped out from the gloom of the trees. They were strange, masked men, dressed in black. They moved together, forming a human wall between me and the hut where I knew Aurora was hidden.
"You do know you are nothing against me?" I asked. My voice dropped from a roar to a deadly, calm silk. "You know I am the King of this land? This soil belongs to me, which means every breath you take is a trespass. If you don't get out of my way right now, I will make sure you humans do not return to your world in one piece."
The masked men didn't say a word. They leveled their swords at my chest, their eyes steady behind their masks. One of them, bolder or stupider than the rest, lunged forward with a shout.
In one swift, blurring motion, I moved. I was faster than any human eye could follow. I sped through the space between us and sliced him open before he could even blink. He hit the ground hard, the ground beneath him turning red before his blood even had a chance to steam in the cold air.
"Who is next?" I asked, flicking the red droplets from my blade with a bored expression.
The remaining three men hesitated. They looked at their fallen comrade and then at me. Without a word, they turned and bolted into the thick undergrowth.
"Carlus, after them!" I commanded. Carlus didn't hesitate this time; he vanished into the trees in a flash of speed.
"Aurora! Are you there?" I called out.
Silence followed my voice. The forest seemed to hold its breath. I approached the hut, my senses dialed to their absolute limit. I could feel two presences inside the wooden walls one was weak and trembling, the other was sharp, cold, and full of malice.
Just as my hand reached for the door, the latch flew open.
A man stepped out, dragging a girl with him. It was Thorne. His face was twisted in a sneer, and he was pressing a poisoned dagger against Aurora’s pale, delicate neck. My heart stopped in my chest. She was shivering, covered only in a man's heavy black jacket that was far too large for her. Her eyes were wide with terror.
"If you come any closer, I will harm her," Thorne threatened, his voice shaking with a mix of fear and hatred.
"Are you ready for your tongue to be pulled out of your head?" I growled, my claws beginning to prick at my fingertips. "How dare a mere hybrid like you face the King of Kings. What do you want, Thorne?"
"I want to see you suffer," Thorne spat. He had been hiding this rage for a decade, and now it was pouring out of him. "I know she is the only way for you to survive. If she doesn't complete the bond, you die without an heir. I want to see you suffer for killing my family."
"Which of them?" I asked coldly. I didn't care about his sob story. "I have killed many. You’ll have to be more specific."
Thorne’s eyes flared with a touch of madness. He pressed the blade harder against her skin.
"I give you two minutes," I stated, lowering the tip of my sword to the ground. "If you let her go now, I won't hunt you down. But if you lay even the slightest harm on her skin, I will wipe your entire pack from existence. I will hunt every last one of them, even if I have to step into the human world to do it."
"What could a beast like you know about mercy?" Thorne hissed, digging the blade deeper. A tiny bead of red appeared on her neck.