81. Alaric

CHAPTER 81

Alaric

April-

Tonight's a night of retribution; Aurora is out for blood. To be perfectly honest, so am I. The memories she's shared with me, and the pain that she buries down deep... I'm ready to burn the world to the ground and hear the screams of my enemies as they burn to death. The flight back is much quicker than the initial flight out.

Aurora is standing in the middle of the field, waiting with the other dragons as we breach the horizon. I notice at Aurora's feet is the box with the wing suits in it. Surprisingly, the box looks untouched. I circle the field twice before I land and shift back to human. "Hey, babe, let's get your present on you so we can take off." Aurora looks to me curiously, then back to the box, then back to me again before she tears into the box.

In the box, there are four wing suits, two black and two blue. Aurora squeals and starts trying to slip into the suit. I know for a fact she knows what it is since she's been begging me to order her a few so she can experience flight. I help her with the final straps and buckles and then have her open her arms to make sure the membranes are properly stretched out for her. After several minor adjustments, I send her up with one of the small Gold Dragons so that she can get the hang of the suit. Aurora glides around catching the thermals, and manages to stay in the air much longer than I had initially anticipated. When she finally lands, she runs up and kisses me passionately. Score one for me.

I break away from my beloved mate and smile softly at her before shifting to my dragon's form. Carefully, I lie down and she quickly climbs up and onto my back. Surprisingly, she sits just before my wings instead of up by my head like she usually does. Is everything okay, love? I question her through the bond, unsure of her decision of where to sit. Did I do something wrong?

I hear Aurora's laughter through the bond, and then I hear her. Everything is perfect! I get to drop down out of the sky and kill my enemies when they least expect me. Best day ever! She starts singing the song "Architecture of Aggression" by Megadeth. Yup, she's in her homicidal mindset for this mission.

I take off and join the other seven dragons flying towards the camp where Elena is hiding. I see Marco come towards us, and he lines himself up under me. Before I can question Aurora, she runs and jumps off my back and clings to Marco's Black Dragon. Through my mind's eye, she shows me her plan, and fuck me, it's solid. I didn't think about the fact that my dragon may be spotted because of its light color.

Marco expresses his concern and says he's sorry, but he can't disobey Aurora. Honestly, I can't blame him; after all, she took down an ancient Black Dragon almost twice his size alone. I watch them take a different path to the camp than the rest of us are.

Aurora enters my head again, telling me more of her plan, that the other dragons and I are the distraction. Marco will drop her within gliding distance, then he's going to lay down a circle of acid around the camp so no one can escape.

I'm almost stunned at the brilliance of the plan that Aurora has come up with. I know Aurora's false mate Sebastian had gifted her with a battle strategy, I just didn't realize she would still retain the gift after the bond was severed and he died. It's quite a curious state of events that I must investigate with Nicodeamus once this mission is over with.

I fly with the rest of the assault force and start laying waste to the camp that Elena thought that she had hidden so well. I get the pleasure of briefly watching my mate gliding through the air, then shifting last second to land upon what looks to be the Alpha House. Her giant, white Lycan visible only for the briefest of moments before she leaps off the roof.

Screams and the sounds of fighting fill the air; white snow turns crimson as my mate goes on her rampage. She calls to me through the bond. Apparently, Elena has a bunker underground and Aurora can't lift the lid. I land just as Marco starts to lay his ring of acid down around the campsite. Bloodcurdling screams fill the air as unsuspecting rebels step into his black acid fog. I pause in my forward momentum to watch that acid of Marco's melt the flesh off of whomever it touches. What a way to go!

A tapping catches my attention now, and I look down to my pissed off impatient hybrid mate. Fuck! I reach my taloned hand over and grip the stone disk and lift it free of its resting place. Several series of tunnels are below, each leading in a different direction. I watch Aurora look skyward, and then Marco circles and lands next to me. Aurora locks eyes with Marco then motions to the hole.

I hear Marco's ignitor click several times before he lowers his head and starts releasing his acid fog into the tunnels. Smart thinking on Aurora's part, the fog will creep along the floor and swiftly move through the tunnels. Aurora comes over to Marco's side and pats his cheek; his ignitor clicks again, and more acid fog comes out, this time thicker. Once that round finishes, he moves away and takes flight again. Now, we wait and listen. Eventually, we hear Elena screaming. The acid has found her. Aurora drops down on all fours and lowers her head to the opening. I hear the click of her ignitor, and Aurora breathes her blue flames onto the acid fog. Aurora leaps back quickly as the highly flammable acid ignites and the flames race along the mist. Elena's screams and cries are muffled then silenced.

Aurora nods her great wolven head then starts heading towards the building that suspiciously just went up in flames. Once reaching the porch, Aurora kneels down, sinks her talons into the wood, and starts freezing the house, effectively putting out the fire. By the time the house is frozen, I raided a house nearby and stole pants for myself to wear.

Aurora looks back at me then proceeds into the house cautiously. I feel like we are walking into a trap with each step we take. Aurora pauses and looks around; something catching her attention. I can watch her wolven ears moving in several different directions before focusing on a door. Her talons come up, and she cuts through the burned door with ease. The scent of burned flesh permeates the air that drifts up to us. Most of the staircase is missing, and what's left doesn't look safe to climb. Aurora kneels down and motions for me to climb onto her back. Hesitantly I wrap my arms around my mate's thick neck and my legs around her beast's waistline.

Without warning, Aurora drops down into the house's basement. Her head scans the area then she backs up a bit. I feel the vibration of her ignitor when it clicks to life, and she starts breathing her blue flames around the room. I follow the path of her flames, and she is burning away the last of the acid fog pockets. Slowly she crouches down, and I slide off of her back and begin to look around.

Lost artifacts from her mother's castle are here in what I'm guessing is a safe house for Vladimir's secret forces. I hear Dante and Edgar calling for us, so I holler and let them know we're fine. They leap down and motion to Aurora, still in her beast's form. "Something still isn't right; she won't shift back until the area is clear."

I motion to the walls, and the look of recognition flitters across both War Dragons' faces. "We need to secure all the treasures housed here. Send for others to come back and carefully pack this stuff up." Both guys nod, and we watch Aurora stalk down the hallway in full stealth mode.

The three of us are no more than ten feet behind her when she raises her tail and crouches low. A muffled moan and whine reaches us. Aurora's ears flicker, catching the sound. Slowly, her wolven head tilts as she listens to the room carefully. My gut tells me that Elena is in the room.

Aurora shifts back to a mostly human form, leaving herself three-quarters of the way shifted. Her taloned hand slashes at the damaged door, sending splinters flying in every direction. Bodies litter the floor and yet somehow, Elena is untouched at the back of the room behind the pile of charcoaled corpses. A guttural growl escapes Aurora's lips, the reverberations shake the walls in the room. Elena visibly pales, staring at Aurora in her partially shifted form.

"You killed my son!" Elena yells at Aurora.

The clicking of Aurora's talons is the only sound besides our breathing that can be heard. It's almost as if time has stopped. Shaking her head slowly, Aurora begins to prowl the room as the guys and I block the only exit. "You've caused so much damage and told so many lies, yet you dare yell at me, witch!" Aurora says witch with so much venom in her inflection the old woman cringes at the tone.

A brief huff of a laugh escapes Aurora's lips as she stares at Elena. "You meddled in the Elder God's plans for us, damaged sacred bonds, and falsified a bond for your own benefit." Smirking, Aurora crosses her armored arms over her ample chest.

"There shall be no Elysium for you or your bloodline, Elena. I swear on my blood and the blood of my ancestors I will make your bloodline go extinct." Aurora's long, white tail thrashes violently behind her as she stalks forward. Elena doesn't bother begging for forgiveness or mercy. Death has come for her in the form of the last Marelup.

Time slows to a crawl as Aurora moves forward, extending her taloned hands towards Elena. The tips of those long, white, curved talons press into the soft pink flesh of Elena's skin. As a last-ditch effort to save herself, Elena attempts to shift into her Lycan to try to break free of Aurora's vice-like grip. Black fur erupts all over Elena's body as it bends and breaks, trying to transform before she meets her demise.

The most sadistic grin crosses Aurora's lips as she allows her body to fully shift to that of her hybrid beast. The guys and I quickly back up as the sound of ripping and whining fills the air. Weakly, Elena's Lycan tries to fend off the much larger hybrid that has her suspended in the air.

Without warning, Aurora's muzzle comes down and clamps onto Elena's shoulder as her talons sink deeply into the black Lycan's flesh. The familiar clicks of Aurora's ignitor fill the air before the roar of the flames can be heard. Within minutes, flames erupt from Elena's body as the scent of burned flesh fills the air. Her cries suddenly silenced as her lungs are burned to ash. To add insult to injury, Aurora rips Elena's body in half then proceeds to burn the remains till there's nothing left. Aurora's pain and heartbreak pulse through the bond as her memories of all the things that Elena damaged come to mind.

Aurora falters shortly after torching the room. Her body betrays her, and she shifts back to her human form without warning. "Guys, we need to get Aurora to the surface. We can send the others to gather the treasures and skulls later." As soon as I finish speaking, Aurora falls to her knees in front of me.

Dante quickly takes off the shirt he was wearing, and we wrap it around Aurora's shoulders. We make it back to the room we entered from. Edgar has found a ladder that we lean against the wall leaning towards the door. The ladder is about three feet too short. Dante climbs up first, then I follow, holding onto Aurora as Edgar braces my back as we move up the ladder. At the top, I hand Aurora off to Dante. Once she is out of the way, I climb up then help Edgar.

"After I'm in the air, send Marco to go get my family from where we hid them." Both men nod agreeing, and I back away to shift back into my dragon. I stretch out my taloned hand, and my beloved mate is laid in it. I look down at Aurora; she's so limp and exhausted. Slowly, I close my hand around her. Dante gently moves her limbs around so that she remains safe and comfortable. Normally, my dragon would not be happy with another male touching our mate. Today is an exception. He knows we cannot adjust her the way Dante can; we both are grateful for his assistance.

Once Aurora is settled, we take flight and clutch her close to my scaled chest. I wrap my other hand around the hand, holding Aurora to protect her from the cold and wind. I reach out to Dimitri and Klaus, telling them what happened and how Aurora is at the moment.

I can feel the slight tug at my strength as I fly with her. Baby girl, I know you're weak. Please wait till we get home. I don't want to crash and kill us both. I feel the pull lessen then stop completely. I just hope she took what she needs for now. In the distance, I see the camp and the bonfire that the residents have every night. I roar, alerting the pack to my arrival in the field behind the houses. I spot Dimitri and Klaus with torches waiting for me. Elsa and two other females are there waiting as well.

I circle twice and do the one thing I told my children not to. I land with my hind feet first, then gently my front foot. Dimitri and Klaus rush over, and I slowly open my hand to expose a very bundled Aurora, sleeping soundly. Both of my bond mates are worried and concerned for her. Gently, Dimitri lifts Aurora up. Klaus moves behind him and throws a blanket over her and Dimitri, trying to keep his body heat in for her. Elsa stands there holding a robe out for me as I turn my back away from everyone and shift back to my human form. I am not shy in any way, but I find it rude for the world to see what's for Aurora's eyes only.

I slip on the offered robe, and everyone follows Dimitri and Klaus into the house. Klaus directs Dimitri to the master bedroom on the main level, and he lays her down gently. Elsa moves and starts to examine Aurora from head to toe. She shrugs her shoulders then looks back at us. "I don't think she ate enough before heading out on the mission with everyone. I believe her beast burned through her available fat reserves faster than she anticipated."

"What happened that was different with this mission than in the past?" Elsa looked to me for answers. Oh, I had answers but not ones I was willing to give her.

"Not too much out of the ordinary, Elsa. She froze an entire house that was on fire. She managed to kill Elena and several of her followers. Oh, and we found some of the missing treasures from her mother's treasury." I shrug my shoulders as if it was no big deal. I know I'm hiding vital information from her, but I'm not sure if we have traitors here as well.

Through the bond, I shared the events that actually occurred instead of the edited version I gave Klaus's grandmother. Dimitri gives me a subtle nod, and Klaus raises both eyebrows then spins to look out the window so Elsa wouldn't question him.

Dimitri moves and climbs up onto the bed and lies down next to Aurora. "I'll keep her warm. You two find food for her, probably fresh raw meat would be best." Dimitri makes absolute sense with his request. More often than not, Aurora has been eating her meat rare to raw ever since the babies.

Klaus and I leave to head to the kitchen. We are all on the same page after the last debacle. We are not leaving Aurora alone when she's in a weakened state. Klaus wasn't happy with what was in the kitchen and led me across the village over to a house with several roe deer and boar hanging out front. A stout man with a long beard comes out onto the front porch; he looks to Klaus then to me and bows. "M'lord, Alpha, what brings you to my humble home?"

I smile and slightly bow to him. "Our mate requires sustenance. I was wondering if I could purchase a whole deer from you for her?" Klaus pulls out his wallet and holds out more than enough euros to cover the deer and a bit extra for the hunter's trouble.

"Put your money away, Alpha, it's no good here when it comes to providing for my Queen. Only the best for her. You need meat, you come to me, don't feed her that store-bought chemical shit. My family hunted for Anca; I will be more than honored to hunt for Aurora." Hanz, I find out his name is, moves to his rack of deer and picks off a plump roe deer and a fat piglet. "This should please my Queen, if not, let me know, and I'll see what else I can get for her."

We thank Hanz profusely, then carry our game home. It's nice to see that there are old families still faithful to the crown. We make it back home, and the twins must have arrived with my twins and father-in-law while we were gone. Aurora is sitting up in bed with our toddlers sitting on the bed with her. Klaus leaves to go slice up some of the fresh pork and venison for Aurora. I notice in the corner that Marco is sound asleep. "Aurora, did you play vampire with Marco again?" I tilt my head looking at her, and she blushes.

"Yeah, he told me too. He didn't like me looking so pale and exhausted. Dominik helped him over to the chair to sit back down." Aurora adjusts how she's sitting then looks over at me. "I feel much better now. I'm just curious if I can drain someone to the point of death?" Aurora has that look on her face that lets you know she is seriously contemplating this theory.

Elsa turns around quickly and stares at Aurora, forgetting for a moment that not only is she queen, but that she is her Alpha too. "How can you think such a horrible thing?! It's a monstrous thing for such a beautiful woman to think about."

Aurora smirks and slowly shifts her body to most of her beast. She moves till she's nose to nose with Elsa. "Haven't you heard? I am a monster. A beast of legend, according to the Fae." Elsa promptly pisses herself and backs up slowly. The stench of fear and urine fills the room. "Don't let this beautiful visage fool you. Deep down, my beast lurks, ready to destroy anyone who threatens what's mine." Aurora slides back to where she was previously on the bed; she's completely human again by the time she sits down. Elsa leaves quickly, and the cleaning girls come in and clean up the mess. Aurora is calm, but you can sense under the surface something is bothering her.

Ladon and Tiamat tackle their mother and start leaving sopping wet toddler kisses. My children have grown so fast because of their mother's plan to allow them the anonymity of being in their dragon forms in public. Aurora's plan is solid though, you can't abduct or harm a child that you have never seen. I watch my children play, and it warms my heart to see them so healthy and happy. I've been blessed many times over this past year with a beautiful mate, wonderful bond mates, and two beautiful, healthy children.

I watch over my family that I've made. My legions of dragons wait for orders. We all believe in restoring the last Marelup back to the Lycan throne. The Strigoi have been a thorn in everyone's sides for far too long. Tonight, other packs of shifters arrive for the celebration that we planned for this new alliance's birth.