Vindicator

Chapter 16

"Let's cut to the chase, shall we?" The Alpha began, his eyes darkening to show his wolf was near the surface.

"Fine, what are you after?" The King asked, crossing his arms and staring down at Russell. While the Red Moon pack's Alpha was an impressive specimen of muscle, the Alpha King easily dwarfed him from his nearly-7-foot tall stature.

"We want to expedite the end of the monarchy. Your son can have no heir, so we already know that your family's reign will end with him. I want you to hand the rule of the Royal Pack over to me, officially" he said with his sinister smile.

The King let out a laugh of disbelief, but shook his head. "And what makes you think I'd ever do that?" He asked with a smirk, knowing he held power over the Alpha.

"Because your beloved son will pay the price if you don't" Russell retorted with his own laugh.

Chance growled, but his father stopped him with a gesture of his hand. "You will do nothing to harm my son, or my family" the King said with deadly calm, his hazel eyes narrowing as his order settled heavily over the Red Moon pack wolves before him.

Russell laughed again, letting go of his son to unsheath an intricately designed dagger. The handle was made of bone, with what looked like ancient symbols carved into the hilt. The dagger's blade was silver, and it's razor sharp edge glinted under the glare of the office lights.

The King frowned in confusion, not sure what hair-brained scheme the foolish man before him had cooked up; but confident nonetheless that his order would hold.

Likewise, Jamie was watching his Alpha with confusion and concern, not understanding his plan. Why did he have the ceremonial dagger? It was used to initiate new wolves into the pack, such as mates moving from other packs, or new families wanting a fresh start. What use could it possibly have here? Surely he didn't think the tiny silver blade could stand against the might of the royal family...Right?

With his next action, though, Russell answered all of their questions and clarified everything. He held out his hand and slashed open his palm, much like he'd do in an initiation ceremony. Typically the Alpha's blood was dripped into a chalice filled with water, and the other wolves would also use the dagger to add their blood to the mix. This united their souls, and bound them to the Red Moon pack once they drank.

The ancient blade had other purposes, though. From generation to generation, the blade had been handed down at each Alpha ceremony. The blade had been used to pass the title, as it carried with it the initial oath sworn to the Royal family. This oath was sworn anew by each new Alpha taking the blade, carrying on the pack's loyalty to the crown.

Knowing this, Russell let his blood drip onto the floor of the office. "I, Russell Hemming, Alpha of the Blood Moon pack, reject King Reginald Lycidas as my Alpha. On behalf of the Red Moon pack, I renounce our loyalty to the Alpha King, and declare us Rogues" he announced, to the shock of everyone in the room.

Expecting the pain of the broken pack bond, the Alpha didn't even flinch when his bond snapped. Across the territory, though, the pained cries and howls of wolves echoed through in the air; but still, the Alpha showed no sign of remorse. He even remained indifferent as his son and Beta both let out surprised shouts of pain and fell to the ground, clutching their hearts in anguish.

The King, having never lost a pack during his rule, wasn't expecting such pain. He let out a thunderous roar and dropped to one knee, glaring at the man before him through his agony. Along with her husband's roar, Aless cried out and collapsed from the pain. Fortunately, Chance was able to catch her before she hit the ground. He handed her over to his father, knowing the two could help soothe each others' pain.

Unlike the individual pack members who felt the bond break between them and their King and Queen, the royal couple was feeling hundreds of bonds breaking at once. The Queen wept tears of heartache over the loss of so many connections, and the pain within her soul. The King remained stoic, but an ever-so-slight tremor in his muscles gave away the agony he truly felt.

Chance stood protectively in front of his parents, realizing he was the only one left unfazed by the Alpha's actions. He wasn't the one who ruled, and so he was not impacted by the bonds being torn apart.  "What is the meaning of this? Do you really think I'll accept his rejection just because you made him a Rogue?!" He demanded with an angry growl.

Laughing, the Alpha shook his head. His eyes slowly shifted to those of his wolf, and his laughter became more maniacal. Already, his eyes were beginning to take on the bloody red tinge of a crazed rogue. When he finally settled down, he gave the Prince a triumphant grin. "You fool, you're too shortsighted to understand, aren't you?" The wolf taunted.

"Then explain it to me" the Prince said, hoping to play along and buy his mother and father some time. He desperately wanted to go to Theo; he could barely focus on the monster before him because his eyes kept flicking to the desk in an effort to catch sight of his mate. Xander was absolutely furious, clawing at the barriers Chance erected in his mind to try to contain the beast.

"Let me out, you moron! That bastard is hurting our mate! He's likely hurting, too, let me slaughter him!!" The angry wolf howled at his human.

"We can't be sure, if a fight breaks out—" Chance tried to reason with the wolf.

"A fight won't break out, a massacre will!" The beast snarled back, successfully shattering Chance's mental defences and wrenching control from him. He took a step forward, but felt a feminine hand grasp his own.

"Chance...No!" Aless commanded through her pain, wanting her son to hold his ground. She let out a gasp when he turned to stare down at her, and she saw the golden eyes of Xander. She shook her head at him, concern mixed with the pain clouding her eyes.

His mother's concern kept him from fully shifting, as it also reminded him he could hurt her in the process. Still, Xander maintained control and turned to face the Alpha once more.

"Give me my mate" he said slowly and dangerously, enunciating every word.

The Alpha tilted his head to the side a bit, a wild look in his eyes, and a crazy smile on his face. "Come and get him, he's right here" he challenged, grabbing Theo by the hair to pull him up so his face was visible to Xander. The pained expression on Theo's face stabbed Xander and Chance both in the heart.

Aless gripped her son harder, panting through her own pain and tears. His father spoke up, clearly struggling but maintaining a fairly strong front. "He wants you and Chance, Xander! Don't give him what he wants" he hissed out.

A continuous, low rumble sounded in Xander's chest as he continued darting his eyes between Russell and Theo. He was shaking visibly in his effort to contain his rage from the sight of his mate's pain.

"No?" Russell tutted, then looked at Theo. "Very well. Get up!" He shouted at his son, using his hair to encourage him to a standing position. Struggling, Theo managed to get to his feet with curses thrown at his father. He thought this was all part of his father's plan, but was pissed at him nonetheless.

Xander snarled at Russell with his now-elongated fangs bared in warning. His claws had broken free of the tips of his fingers as well, and his whole body quivered from tension. Aless grabbed his wrist with her other hand, hoping to calm him down. Fortunately for her, the agony had mostly passed and she was coming back around to herself.

As if sensing this, Russell finally showed his hand. He gave Xander an evil smile while flipping the dagger in his free hand. "Last chance for Chance, King Reginald" he said in a sing-song voice.

Still not understanding, the King ignored the taunt. He was focused on helping Aless get back to her feet as she seemed to have recovered enough to stand, but was unsteady.

Laughing at their attempts to ignore him, Russell shrugged. "Very well, you can thank daddy dearest for this" he said, aiming his words at Chance.

Then everyone watched as Alpha Russell turned to his son, and plunged the dagger into his chest.