Save Me Mr. Alpha

“Alpha, Luna, enemy forces at the main gate; they’re trying to destroy the barrier. We’re under siege!”

Tyson dropped me off at the front gate of the castle, mind linking me to get the women not fighting, children, and elders down to the safe rooms in the base of the castle.

"Be safe,” I link Tyson as he runs from me and towards the makeshift fieldworks where the warrior leaders are gathering.

"You too."

I run into the castle where the non-warriors are gathered. Everyone huddles together, some of them are crying. At my entrance everyone turns to me, hope in their eyes.

“Everyone, we need to go into the safe rooms in the epicenter of the castle. Now, follow me.”

I flashback to Tyson’s detailed instructions regarding the safe room of the castle that the Luna was in charge of and felt my heart grow warm as I walk into the basement, the memory and the pack members following after me.

“With war coming up, I need to know that you’ll be safe,” Tyson’s voice is raw. He pulls me down the hallway and to a hidden staircase.

“Tyson, I can handle myself--”

“The Queen is the most valuable asset our community has. To keep her safe is the king’s priority and the pack’s priority. When this castle was built, Victoria built a room that truly was made so that the people could protect her Luna and the Luna could protect her people.”

I don’t respond, letting his words take over and fill the silence. Tyson wound down a tight hallway, the stairs growing steeper and the walls darker as we descend into total darkness.

“Grab my hand. You won’t be able to see anything,” Tyson murmurs. I hold my hand out, reaching out blindly in the darkness.

A warm, calloused hand takes mine and I feel myself blush, happy that the darkness could hide my feelings so that they weren’t obvious to the entire world.

“Why is it so dark?” I ask in an effort to distract myself from the overwhelming feeling of embarrassment and warmth.

“You’ll see.”

“When you bring the pack down here, you will need to think of every possible thing you love about the pack. About the people. About being Queen. You’ll need to instruct the pack members to think of their king and queen. They’ll know what to do.”

“Okay...?”

“When you do it, you’ll know what to do. Cassandra will guide you.”

“Okay.”

I don’t question anything Tyson says, but nod, thinking of what kind of situation would force us to be here.

War was evil. It wasn’t kind. It was something that was selfish and greedy. It brought nothing more than destruction and pain.

War was coming. And I had no idea what I would do when it came.

“I need you all to think of your king and queen as we descend down the staircase. I need you to do that.”

I hear murmurs of agreement and as we descend the basement, I think about Tyson’s words, ”When you bring the pack down here, you will need to think of every possible thing you love about the pack. About the people. About being Queen."

Tyson’s words follow me as we get to the bottom of the stairs. People surround me and even though I can’t see them, I can feel the people looking at me with worried, yet hopeful faces.

I follow Tyson’s instructions, thinking of all of the memories I’ve made with the pack, with Katie, from before and after leaving James. I remember meeting Tyson at the field, slapping him across the face despite his continuous smile.

I remember Katie hitting me with her car, then meeting her all over again when I returned to Northbrooke.

I think of my brothers, their smiling faces when they came to “rescue” me from Tyson. I think of Chase’s smile when he first saw Katie after the shift in the hospital. They were mates. They loved one another.

Mates.

Pain fills my chest at the word, the pain blossoming as memories of Tyson fill my mind.

I think of his hazel eyes and sandy hair. I think of him sleeping in the hallway outside of my room, me curled up next to him. I think of him and I in the treehouse, curled up in a ball asleep, tangled up in one another.

I think of him holding my hands: going in through the barrier, walking in the royal suite, him holding my hand anytime we had to connect to be equal parts of the pack leaders.

Mates. Mates. Mates.

That word held so much power over the people in our pack.

For me it didn’t mean much. It meant that Tyson would always be involved in my life in one way or another; similar to your ex-husband staying in your life because of a shared child.

He was Tyson. And I was Cassie. My chest aches and I close my eyes.

We were practically “co-parents” to the pack.

He was my mate, but that’s not why I care for him. I do. I care for that stubborn, arrogant, and annoying Alpha.

I cared for him more than I thought possible.

"You love him.”

It wasn’t a question, it was a realization. A fact.

I love Tyson Bergson.

A warmth covers me at the thought and I finally open my eyes at the realization. Around me is a bright light. It shone and sparkled an iridescent purple.

“Cassandra...” I smile. I step forward, following the light as it sends the darkness away and leads me through a maze of tunnels, doors, and entryways until we were in the epicenter of a large maze. The epicenter was a large room with impossibly high vaulted ceilings. I look up and see that the beam that lead us to the room connected to a giant root ball hanging above us, acting as our guiding light.

“It’s you,” I murmur, realizing that we must be under the garden where Cassandra’s tree rests.

I smile, comforted by the thought that my “friend” was watching over us all.

Suddenly, a pain flashes in my chest again.

Something’s wrong.

I look around and see everyone huddling under the roots, holding hands in a horseshoe shape not dissimilar to the one the pack made during the pack meeting. They all had their eyes on me and were waiting for me.

“You are all my charges and I love and care for you like we were related by blood. I said at our pack meeting that I’d be damned if anyone tries to hurt my family without having to take me down first. And that is true. Something is wrong up top and I have no clue what it is, but as your Luna, it is my job to protect you. So I am going to leave you here in the presence of the Barrier Tree who protects us all and go and see what is going on.”

People nod, tears streaming down some people’s faces at my words.

“I love you all. I care for you all. And as your Luna I will keep you as safe as I can.”

With those last words spoken I run from the atrium-like space and am led by pure instinct on my way to my mate and my love.

Pain blossoms in my chest again and again as I run closer and closer to my impending future.

I wasn’t sure how, but people had gotten past the barrier and were fighting all over the castle. People in wolf-form and human form fight in reckless abandon. No one approaches my tower, the stairs curiously empty and I realize that Tyson’s words about no-one entering my tower were overwhelmingly true.

I search the room, my eyes looking for a familiar face or even a familiar wolf face so I can start looking there.

My chest burns and I let out a scream that echoes around the noise-filled chamber.

"NOOOOO!"

Suddenly everyone in the room drops to their knees, foes and allies alike and bear their necks to me as I scream. My mouth closes and black edges at my eyes as I shake my head trying to focus on finding my mate.

“Where is my mate?!” I scream, a feral growl escaping my mouth.

The men belonging to my pack point towards the front doors while the enemies stare at me in fear and awe.

“Round up the insurgents. Take them to the dungeons. Do not harm them further unless they resist.” I instruct my pack members.

I turn to the enemies in the main foyer, “Do not resist.”

I run past everyone, a path made for me as people quickly get out of my way and start following directions.

“TYSON!” I scream as I run out the open front doors.

War continues out on the front lawn. Grass had been torn out, blood, mud, and tears mixing together to create a mosh pit below of dirty people struggling to fight against one another. I look around, frantic.

I recognize Babe and Chase battling two goons using hand to hand as they get pushed further and further from the castle.

“NO!” I scream, lunging forward, sprinting at the men threatening my loved ones. Black fills my eyes and I run to them, narrowly avoiding advances of the enemy trying to engage me.

I tackle the goon closest to Chase and my lunge knocks him to the ground, my fists quickly pummeling him into unconsciousness.

“WOW! How’d you manage that?” Chase asks, surprise filling his voice and myself as I realize what I had done in mere seconds.

Babe quickly disengages his partner, cracking his neck and sending his either unconscious or dead body down to the ground.

“Babe! Status update!”

“They have a witch--” Babe pants, wiping his head. “Yakunda was able to disengage the barrier for a few seconds and enter the pack lands.”

“Numbers?”

“5,000 enemies. 50 of our own dead.”

“Where is Tyson?” I demand, pain blossoming in my chest once again as I say his name.

“He’s fight--”

An earth-shaking roar fills the air, sending everyone into silence and finally the pain in my chest spreads to my entire body. Before Babe can finish explaining I’m running.

I’m running to Tyson.

I’m running to my mate.

I’m running towards my fear.

I just need to get there in time.

I found myself running along the path Tyson and I had been walking down not even three hours before. The closer I get, the more I feel Tyson’s warmth and heartbeat pounding in my own chest, the bond growing in my mind.

I finally arrive in a wooded area, a small clearing with wolves covering it when I see Tyson.

He’s bloody, his naked body exhausted, but his eyes determined. Blood and mud coat his entire body, but he has changed back into his human form.

A large man, nearly a mirror of Tyson, stands across from him. Equally as bloody, equally as determined.

Gray edges his hairline, showing his age, but he’s still fit and in shape. Tyson can’t see me from the angle, but I knew he could feel the tingles running up and down his body as I run closer.

Tyson lunges at Yakunda, shifting midair as his father matches his actions.

Pain fills my chest again as I watch Yakunda swipe Tyson’s chest and make deep contact.

Pain fills my chest again and I let out another world-ending scream that shakes me to the core.

"NOOOOOOO!" I scream.

Once again the world seems to stop as our pack and our enemies fall to their knees, leaving me, Yakunda, and Tyson able to move as they continue to fight back and forth. I run forward, hopping over the blood-covered bodies of men and women who were defending my new home.

Yakunda swipes at Tyson again who hits the ground, shifting into his human form again.

“Tyson!”

I run to my mate and fall to my knees beside him. I look at his chest and note the black webs stemming from the deep lacerations on his chest.

“What did you do to him?” I demand, staring at the poison potentially spreading through his body.

“Ahh, you must be my son’s little mate,” Yakunda chuckles, shifting into his human form. He takes a large whiff of the air and growls at me, “Witch.” he snaps.

“I’m a human.” I spit.

“Maybe, but I doubt it. You smell just like that damn woman,” he hisses.

“What. Did. You. Do.”

Yakunda stretches his fingers and I notice the metal caps sitting on each of them. A red mixture rests on each of them and I realize that he must’ve scratched Tyson using those and administered some sort of nasty poison that weakened Tyson as he fought.

“Interesting thing, you know? A little shot of wolfsbane mixed with vampire blood can do some nasty things to a wolf. Now with my son out of the way, I can restore my kingdom to the way it’s supposed to be run.”

Yakunda starts to walk closer and closer to Tyson and I eye him. Growling as he advances.

“Stay away from him. You’re not his father. You’re not King. You are nothing, you fucking bastard.”

Black edges at my eyes as Yakunda laughs. He’s loud and boisterous and if he wasn’t such a psychopath, I’d almost think he was probably a fun and jokester of a dad. Similar to my own.

“Hmm, tut tut, you have no idea who or what I am. Once he’s dead, you’ll be too depressed to fight for the kingdom and I’ll be able to take over.”

“Cassie,” Tyson moans, staring at me as his body shudders in pain.

“You won’t kill him.” I snarl. “He’s mine!"

“Wow, your Luna powers have some bite, not as much as my Alpha powers once had, but with Tyson dead--”

Black fills my eyes and I let it, lunging at the callous, cold, impersonal man threatening my mate.

Yakunda is surprised at my attack, falling back a step and that’s when it happens.

Pain fills my body, my bones crack, my teeth lengthen, and all I can see is red and all I want is blood.

His blood.

And I’ll have it to protect the man I love.