Into The Woods (mxm)

Twenty Six

Augustus

My tasks as Beta was always fairly easy. I liked to think that I was good at my job. My life consisted of helping Asmodeus with all his paperwork and advising him. I helped supervise the warrior's training days. And a good portion of my job was watching over the young prince. When he showed up one day in our territory during a downpour shivering and alone, I felt the need to protect him.

When prince Ansel was found, my life had changed. I felt an immediate connection to the boy when I first locked eyes with his wide eyes which were a beautiful light blue color. I recognized the color immediately. The blue tint was the same as a boy's that I knew long before. From that day on I was drawn to the little boy. I knew from day one that he was Aamon's son. Maybe that was why I had such a deep connection with him in the first place. Maybe deep down my wolf knew that Ansel's father was our mate.

We were happy when we were young pups. Thinking back on the memories of my childhood at the palace had mostly been thought upon fondly.

I was an orphaned pup when I arrived at Aamon's father's kingdom. He took me in as his own when he learned that I had strong warrior blood running through my veins, as my father was the head warrior from my previous kingdom. Both he and my other father were killed in a rogue attack. I was there when it happened. I loved my parents with all my heart and it crushed me to see them get torn apart by the rouge wolves. I threw up onto the forest floor and turned to run away from the carnage. From the small chunks of flesh that used to be my parents, scattered across the forest floor. Scared to go back and face the wrath of my Alpha, I ran until I stumbled upon another kingdom.

From then on I was seen as a royal. Not by blood, but through the bond, I shared with the king's two heirs. His two sons. The oldest, Asmodeus and the youngest, Aamon. We lived a lavish life, receiving whatever our little hearts desired. We were spoiled brats, putting it lightly. Especially Asmodeus since he was the firstborn. The first in line after his father to take the throne. His father wanted to make sure that Asmodeus shared his values so that even when he stepped down from the throne, it would still be like the kingdom was still under his rule.

Everything changed for us when we were around twelve years old. Aamon and Asmodeus' father had an affair with a duchess who was far more youthful and beautiful than the Queen ever was.

Their mother was so heartbroken that she took her own life inside Asmodeus and Ammon's bedchamber while they were asleep. They had woken to the smell of blood but were too late to save her. The worst part about the whole ordeal was that the king did nothing to comfort his two young sons who had witnessed their mother's dead body sprawled across the floor. He went ahead and married the young duchess two weeks after the death of his mate.

Asmodeus and I hated the woman. She was cruel and everyone could see it except for the king. He doted on the woman, showering her with expensive jewels and the finest imported silk dresses.

Asmodeus and Aamon had their fight and falling out because of the duchess. Aamon tried to defend his father, saying that the duchess was a kind woman and that their father was brave for moving on so quickly.

Now that I look back, he was in denial that his father had been so cruel to cheat on his wife and to marry the woman weeks after his mate's death. I do not think that he wanted to see his father for the cruel man that he truly was.

Asmodeus was angry with his brother. He convinced me to run away with him and be his Beta as he would start a new pack of his own. My chest had swelled with pride with the fact that he would pick me to be his Beta when there was already another boy who was chosen to be his Beta if he stayed in his father's pack. The boy's name was Blake. Blake was the son of Osiris Lancaster. Osiris was the king's Beta. Blake had grown up with me and Asmodeus so we would all get to know each other when he and Asmodeus would inevitably share a pack.

Asmodeus hated Blake and the feeling was mutual between them. Blake did everything he could to sabotage Asmodeus's chances of becoming the next Alpha. It was no secret that Blake favored Aamon over his older brother. Blake groomed Aamon into the perfect Beta so when Osiris led an attack on their father, Blake would be the new Alpha and Aamon would be another one of his loyal subjects.

Osiris one day planned an attack that as a result the king had been brutally murdered in front of his people at a party. The townspeople loved the king and attacked Osiris, making his plan backfire. He had planned to take over as king "for the good of the kingdom" he had said. Since Asmodeus had left, Aamon was the only heir left to the throne. He refused to be king and like the loyal friend he was at the time, passed on the title as king to Blake.

Blake executed the duchess in front of all the townspeople as his first official act as king when he turned eighteen. The duchess had tried to get away with stealing priceless jewels and trying to leave the palace with them.

I remember the way he laughed as she struggled to breathe as she dangled from the rope. Blake made sure to make it painful for the duchess, her struggling lasting about three minutes before she was cut down, barely breathing but still alive.

Blake then ordered a guard to revive her only to drag her to a bathtub and strap her down in it. The bathtub was full of water and over a fire. She screamed as the water boiled and her body became an angry red color from the burns.

But still, the torture was not over.

Blake then ordered her to be placed in a metal box for her last punishment. I remember the way she screamed as the three rats were placed in the box with her. The box slowly heated up causing the rats to go into a panic. The rats chewed right through her chest and her stomach.

The townspeople grew a fear of Blake after that, never wanting to be on his bad side. So when Blake told the townspeople to hate their beloved Asmodeus, they were forced to comply and turn their backs on the only man they thought would one day save them from Blake's reign of terror.

Asmodeus' kingdom and Blake's kingdom feuded more times than necessary. The two kingdoms hated each other from afar though. They both planned out calculated attacks that were more like a series of inconveniences. I knew that even though they may have felt hatred towards each other, that deep down Aamon and Asmodeus cared about their bond as brothers enough to not cause any physical damage to the other. For that, I thanked the Goddess every night because my two most favorite people in the world were not being hurt.

The night of the ambush on Asmodeus' palace when Ansel was taken away, everything was in complete disarray. Luanne was a sobbing mess because her pup was stolen from her. The townspeople were frightened not only because of the attack but that they were all being held back while the prince was seemingly the only one being targeted. They all thought the prince was going to die.

There were no casualties on either side. Just minor cuts and scrapes. It was odd and no one knew why the opposing kingdom chose to carry out the attack as they did.

All the townspeople were so elated to see Ansel safe in the palace. There was a large welcoming home party where Asmodeus announced the return of his son and Aamon. He introduced Greyson and Rumi as the two future kings who would rule alongside Ansel when he inherited the throne. Asmodeus introduced Collin as a new member of the pack as well. And finally, he announced Ansel's pregnancy. The crowd of people cheered in happiness at the news that the kingdom was going to receive another heir.

Even after everything was seemingly alright with the brothers, Asmodeus and Aamon had not talked about what happened. Neither had Aamon talked to me about our past together when we were all children.

Aamon and I talked about pups. Since neither of us was female nor omega, we could not produce a pup of our blood. We talked about adoption. There were so many pups in need of a home in the kingdom. They were wasting away in the orphanages spread all over the territory. We had agreed to eventually make a trip down to the orphanages with Ansel to look for the perfect little pup to take home. It was my idea to bring Ansel because the pup would be his little sibling.

All seemed right with Aamon and I. Over the past two months we had gotten closer as mates. Aamon was all I could have ever asked for. Everything and more. And I am sure that if my parents were still alive and had the chance to meet Aamon, they would love him just as much as I do.