Chapter Twenty-One: The Price of Loyalty

The full moon rose high in the sky, casting its eerie glow over Rivenfall and the surrounding forests. It wasn't just the night of the hunt. It was the night everything changed.

Seraphine felt the tension in the air - thick and heavy, like the calm before a storm. She had heard the rumors, the whispers of those who feared the Wild Hunt was coming for Kairos's pack. It was a known fact that the Hunt, a mythic and ancient faction of fey, beast shifters, and druids, often targeted those who broke the laws of nature. And Kairos, as her second mate, was considered a break in the natural order of things.

They had always been a target, but now, the Wild Hunt was closing in on him in a way that was dangerous - unpredictable. The night would change everything.

Azrael had been increasingly distant, the shadows around him growing thicker as the moon approached. His impatience was starting to show. Kairos, on the other hand, seemed more resolute than ever. He had always been the strong, silent one, but tonight, he was quietly preparing for what was coming. The pack was on edge, knowing the threat was real. But Seraphine felt the weight of the coming storm more than any of them.

It wasn't until the dead of night, just as the full moon cast its full light on the forest, that the Wild Hunt struck.

The pack was torn apart in minutes. The alpha and beta - once the heart of the pack's strength - were slaughtered by the Hunt's relentless, merciless pursuit. Kairos had been marked, his connection with Seraphine and Azrael drawing the attention of the Huntsman, the leader of the Wild Hunt, who commanded the Hunt with an iron fist.

Seraphine, standing at the edge of the forest, could feel it in her bones. The presence of the Hunt, the shift in the atmosphere, the balance of life and death teetering on the edge. It was too late for anyone to escape the chaos that had already begun.

She stood there, rooted to the spot, as the sounds of the hunt reverberated in the distance - the cries of his pack, the roar of Kairos fighting back.

And then it happened.

Kairos emerged from the shadows, bloodied but alive, his eyes wild with the primal fury of an alpha who had been forced to protect what was his. The Wild Hunt had left him no choice. With the fall of the alpha and betas, the pack needed a new leader, and Kairos stepped into that role - not as a choice, but as a necessity.

He turned toward Seraphine, his chest heaving with exertion. "It's over," he said, his voice strained. "I didn't want it but I'm alpha now. It comes at a cost."

Seraphine felt the weight of his words settle into her chest. She had always known Kairos would be a leader. But not like this. Not in this way.

"How are we going to survive this?" she whispered, fear gnawing at her.

Kairos's eyes darkened, his posture shifting as he looked to the rest of the pack, the remnants of his former family. "We fight," he said, the finality in his words solidifying the role he had been unwillingly thrust into. "And we hold together. The Wild Hunt won't stop. Not until they've taken everything."