Flames of Fury

Xander

Incandis and I drop down to the grass where Rohanor has laid a guy out on the ground. Getting closer to him I see that he’s practically cracked his face in half. Impressive.

“Is he dead?” Incandis asks Ro, his voice lacking any affect. The guy deserves death, maybe not one as quick as this, but still Ro wants him alive for now.

“Not yet.” Ro huffs like he’s considering just ending him now. “Is there somewhere secure we can bring him?”

There’s only one place in the world I trust to be secure enough to keep this piece of shit locked down. “We have cells in the palace.” As soon as the words leave my mouth Varian growls angrily.

“I’m not keeping this asshole under the same roof as my mate and children.” He snarls, whether it’s at me or just in general is hard to determine.

The air noticeably tenses around us, but I assume it’s just because of Varian and his reaction to my suggestion.

Incandis grips Varian’s shoulder, “I would never do anything to endanger my baby sister and my newborn niece and nephew. Our cells are secure and there will be two guards on him 24/7.”

Varian nods reluctantly and spits on the still unconscious attacker. The longer he stares at the guy’s unconscious body the more I worry that he’s going to finish what his brother started.

“Let’s get you guys to the Grove.” I say as gently as I can but Varian shakes his head.

“No, not yet. We should finish putting out the fires and check for any more survivors…and casualties.” The way his shoulders slump when he says that pulls a foreign feeling from my chest.

We hardly have cause for mourning and burials, only during times of war if one of us falls in combat. But it’s such a rare occurrence that the feeling is all but foreign to me. I feel badly for them that death and sorrow is something that fills their lives so frequently.

Maybe that’s why the words I say next pour out of my mouth before I can stop them. “Go ahead, D. I can stay with the Alphas and make sure they get back when they’re ready.”

Besides, someone needs to stay behind and bring the rest of them back and I feel like I owe it to them… and to Mags.

I say as much to the Alphas when they look at me skeptically, not mentioning it’s partially because I feel pity for them.

“Why don’t you go with Incandis? We can text you when we’re done here.” Ro says in a half-assed attempt to dismiss me. The three of us are walking a needlessly fine line of eggshells between neutral and enemies.

“Last time you said that, Mags ended up delivering twins in the woods. I’m sure she’d feel better knowing I was with you.” They can be mad at me all they want. I can deal with Alpha anger, I’m not worried at all about them. What I do worry about is Mags.

If something were to happen to Ro and Varian on my watch she’d take great pleasure in making my final moments torturous — and she could do it, too. Somewhere throughout the decades we’ve spent together the scales have tipped in her favor and I can barely ever get a win on her in training anymore.

“It could be a while, our warriors have already found a few bodies. We need to notify the families, prepare graves for them, it’s going to take time.” Varian explains.

An involuntary chuckle bubbles up through me. “Where’s Ralph when you need him?” I mutter to myself under my breath, it’s so quiet it’s practically a thought but the wolves heard me all the same.

“Who the hell is Ralph?” Ro asks.

“Friend from another colony. He’s an elemental, he could make quick work of a grave.” I’m sure he could do it without even blinking. I’ve seen him level mountains, a few holes in the ground would be child’s play.

The sooner I get the guys back to the Grove the better I’ll feel, and the better they’ll feel too.

“With all due respect to this Ralph friend of yours, we need to bury our members with our own hands.” Varian says firmly, but not unkindly. “If you insist on doing something for us then why don’t you go check on Mags? Make sure the mother of my children is safe at home.”

I almost laugh in his face at how quickly this has devolved into a pissing contest. He made it a point to emphasize that they’re more than just lovers, they’ve had children together, they’re family.

“As flattering as it is that you think so, I’m not your competition. If you don’t want me here that’s fine, it’s no hardship for me to look over your girl.”

“We have enough fucking bodies to bury without satisfying your obvious death wish.” Ro spits.

“You still don’t fucking get it, do you? Whatever bullshit you have against me only functions to hurt her. So if you care about her like you claim you do—”

The alphas growl at me angrily, heat rising off of them and their bodies threatening to shift. I pay them no mind and continue on without acknowledging their anger.

“—you’ll stop fighting me and fully realize that I’m here to support you as much as I support her.”

“She doesn’t need you or a guardian anymore, we’re her mates. We’ll protect her.” Varian barks at me.

“Asking me to stop being the Queen’s guardian is like asking you to stop being Alphas. It can’t fucking be done. It’s written in my DNA, sealed in blood. And this,” I gesture between us, “this constant tug of war between us only hurts her.”

I wait for the snarls, a growl, their bodies to shift into wolves and lunge at me, but they don’t come. I might finally be getting through their thick Alpha skulls.

“I’ve said my apologies for wiping your memories. I’ve said my apologies for betraying her trust. But I will never apologize for serving my Queen…and our future Kings.”

Their eyes widen by a fraction and lose the hardness they held moments ago. Finally, they’re getting it. Up until now it’s been her being their mate, their pack’s Luna, all about them.

But this is the first time I think they’ve fully seen the other side of the coin. That they’ll be our kings, they’ll be a part of our colony, and responsible for our people.

Ro lets out a long, resigned sigh. “Go check on Mags for us? Make sure someone is with her, Ember or Kat, doesn’t matter. Our wolves are frantic. The last time we left her alone in the Grove…”

“Of course. I’ll be back as quickly as I can. You’ll be okay?”

“I doubt the attackers will be back tonight. This was just a warning. We’ll feel a lot better knowing Mags is still safe.”

“Alright, I’ll be back in a bit.”

I teleport out of Shadowmoon and head for the Palace. I’m pleasantly surprised when I realize Mags is right in front of me.

“Mags,” I’m cut off by her startling, practically jumping out of her skin. “Woah, easy, hey you doing okay? Where is everyone?”

I do a cursory sweep of the room with my eyes, trying to assess how many people she has left to place and how they’re fairing in terms of injuries. Incandis teleports back in giving me a head nod that says everything is all set with the prisoner.

Mags draws my attention back to her when she elbows me in the stomach and then punches me in the shoulder. I’m not expecting the blows, or at least that’s the excuse I’ll use when I explain how I double over in pain.

Glad to see she hasn’t lost her touch. She’s shaping up to be quite the MILF, a mom I’d like to...fight.

“Everyone has been housed or sent off to the infirmary. Kitchen is working on getting food out. I need someone to check on linens and such for all three floors and then —“

Incandis grabs her arms and practically shakes her, “what you need is to go back upstairs and take care of yourself and your newborns. You’ve done enough for everyone else.”

Incandis does something I’m not brave enough to do, he teleports her out of the great room without permission or prior warning.

I catch movement in my periphery and turn to see Ember. She looks tired – no, not tired. Drained.

“Where’d Mags just go?” She asks me, exhaustion weighing heavily on her body.

“To rest, just like you.” I grab her like Incandis grabbed Mags and I teleport Ember to Mags’ room.

This will work out nicely. They can both rest here, and since they’re together I can honestly tell the Alphas that Mags is safe at home with Ember.

“Mags before you say anything, you’ve done an insane amount of work already. You’ve got two babies who are hours old, and you’ve housed close to 500 people at a moment’s notice.” Incandis says to his sister.

“The hard part is over, let the Guardians handle it from here. I’m sure even neanderthals like us can’t fuck up linen distribution.” I tease her.

She rolls her eyes but I can see her fighting a smirk. “Fine. But I’ll want to meet soon.”

Soft little cries from the cribs draw her attention.

“They can smell their mama, they know you’re here.” Kat beams at Mags.

I need to get going, especially before she whips tits out. I know there’s nothing sexual about it, she’s just nursing her babies. But try telling that to two Alpha wolves who are already on edge being separated from their mate and children and are looking for any reason to kill you. “And that’s my cue to leave. I’m going to grab Ro and Varian and then see if anyone needs help with anything.”

When I get back to Shadowmoon the wolves are gone. I fly around and quickly find them in a small fenced-in clearing. Several other warriors are with them and are digging graves in pairs.

“Hey guys,” I make my presence known and they immediately turn to me, “she’s good. The pack has been housed, they’re getting food out to everyone. Mags is back in her room with Kat and Ember and the babies.”

Ro hops out of the hole he was standing in and strides up to me in swift, confident steps.

He glares at me for a moment and then sticks his right hand out between us. “Thank you, Xander.”

I shake his proffered hand, hoping this is the beginning of the end of our animosity. He nods, walks away, and jumps back into the hole to continue digging.

I decide the best way to help them now is to grab a shovel and jump into the hole with them. The sooner we get done here, the sooner we can all go home and I can keep them all safe.