Chapter 20
The Abyssal stepped back, and that single movement was enough to quiet the entire terrace.
A creature built to kill Sovereigns, a monster that had just thrown the Dragon King across the sky like it weighed nothing, was retreating. For a moment, no one moved.
Ariana's heart pounded as she watched Kael rise slowly from the ruins of the broken pillar. Dust slid from his shoulders, and small fragments of stone fell around his boots, but he didn't seem to notice any of it. Something about him had changed.
The air around him felt different, heavy and tense, like a storm about to break. His eyes were no longer gold. They were white, steady and intense, not glowing like magic but carrying something deeper and older.
Kael flexed his hand slightly, as if testing his strength. Inside him, the wolf was no longer fighting for control. It had already taken it.
The mate bond between him and Ariana surged sharply, strong enough to take her breath for a second. "Kael…" she said quietly, but he didn't respond.
His attention stayed on the Abyssal.
For the first time since it arrived, the creature hesitated. Its silver eyes flickered, uncertain. Beside Ariana, the man in black and gold spoke under his breath. "That power…"
Ariana turned to him. "What is it?"
He swallowed, his expression tight. "That's the blood of the First Alpha."
"The what?"
"Before wolf packs existed, before Alphas ruled territories, there was only one."
Wind tore across the terrace as dragons clashed high above the city. Fire flashed through the clouds, but Ariana barely noticed. She was focused entirely on Kael. "The first wolf king," the man continued. "The one who stood beside the original Sovereign."
Ariana struggled to process it. "You're saying Kael is…"
"Yes." The man nodded slowly. "His bloodline comes from the first wolf ever created."
Kael stepped forward, and the stone beneath his feet cracked instantly.
The Abyssal reacted. Its wings spread wide as darkness poured from them, but it didn't attack. It waited.
From above, Malrec's voice cut through the battlefield. "What have you done?"
His gaze locked onto Kael. "That bloodline should have died centuries ago."
Kael gave a faint smile, but there was nothing friendly about it. "Looks like someone missed one."
Malrec's expression darkened. "That power belongs to the Sovereign."
Kael tilted his head slightly. "Funny. My wolf disagrees."
The Abyssal roared and lunged again, shadow spilling from its jaws as it attacked. This time, Kael didn't move.
He simply raised his hand.When the creature's claw came down, Kael caught it.
The entire terrace shook from the impact, and the Abyssal froze. Ariana's eyes widened. "He just… stopped it."
The man beside her stared in disbelief. "That creature weighs more than the palace gates." Kael tightened his grip. The Abyssal tried to pull free, but it couldn't. Then Kael shoved it.
The massive creature flew backward and slammed into the palace wall, sending stone exploding outward. The Abyssal roared in anger, and even the dragons above seemed to hesitate.
The Dragon King's voice echoed in Ariana's mind. The Wolf King awakens.
Ariana frowned. "Wolf King?"
The man beside her nodded. "When the blood of the First Alpha awakens, he becomes more than an Alpha."
Kael rolled his shoulders slightly. The power moving through him felt steady and controlled, stronger than before.
The Abyssal attacked again. This time, Kael moved first.
Halfway across the terrace, he shifted. His body changed rapidly, and when the wolf appeared, it was no longer the same one Ariana knew.
It was massive, far larger than any wolf she had ever seen. Its fur was dark, and its eyes burned white.
The wolf slammed into the Abyssal, and the two crashed across the terrace, breaking through pillars and shattered stone. Claws struck, shadow spread across the ground, and the palace trembled under the force of their fight.
Ariana stared. "That's Kael?"
"Yes," the man said quietly. "But not just Kael anymore. That's the Wolf King."
High above them, Malrec watched with cold focus. "So the prophecy was true."
Ariana looked up. "What prophecy?"
But Malrec wasn't speaking to her.
"The Sovereign reborn… and the Wolf King beside her."
The words made Ariana tense. She remembered the symbol carved into the chamber floor, five lines, four spreading outward, one rising in the center. Now it made sense.
Malrec slowly raised both hands, and the runes along the fortress flared brighter. The sky darkened.
Below, Kael's wolf slammed the Abyssal into the ground again, tearing into its shadow-covered body. The creature roared, but it was losing.
The Wolf King was stronger, faster and more relentless. Malrec saw it.
"Then we end this properly."
The runes burned brighter, and the sky above the battlefield began to tear open. Ariana's stomach dropped. "No…" The man beside her looked up sharply. "What is he doing?"
Malrec's voice echoed across the mountains. "You awaken the Wolf King… then I will awaken something worse."
The tear in the sky widened, and darkness poured through it, but this felt different from the Abyssal.
It felt heavier, older, and far more dangerous than anything they had faced before. The Dragon King roared sharply. No.
Ariana looked up, her chest tightening. "What is it?" The dragon's voice echoed in her mind. That gate leads to the prison.
Ariana felt cold dread settle in her chest. "What prison?" The answer came in a single word.
Augustus.
The tear widened further, and something massive moved behind it,something powerful enough to make even the dragons hesitate. Kael's wolf stopped mid-fight, and even the Abyssal paused. Whatever was coming through that gate was far more dangerous than anything they had faced so far, and it was about to enter their world.