Chapter Twenty-Eight: Uniting the Factions

As the days passed, the tension remained, though Kairos and Azrael did their best to maintain a fragile peace. The pack had begun to prepare for the next phase of their strategy. They had pushed back the Wild Hunt, but it was clear that the battle was not over. There was still danger lurking, and the threat was only going to get worse.

Calyx and Lyra had stepped up, both playing critical roles in maintaining unity within the pack. Calyx, as Kairos's beta, was key in bridging the divide between the vampire and shifter factions, using his unique heritage to unite the pack under one cause. Lyra, with her quiet but unshakable loyalty, had become a voice of reason between the two powerful leaders.

As the full moon approached again, Kairos and Azrael stood at opposite ends of the courtyard, their gazes locked as they prepared for the next move. Seraphine, standing in the center, felt the weight of the moment pressing down on her. She knew it was time.

Turning to both men, she spoke, her voice steady but carrying the weight of her resolve. "If you want to claim me - if you want to make this bond truly work - then it's time to stop fighting. Now. We've all fought too long, and I am done with this tension between us."

Azrael and Kairos exchanged a long, heated look, neither of them moving, but the air between them had shifted.

Seraphine took a deep breath and stepped toward them, positioning herself between them. "If you want me, you both have to seal the bond right now. No more waiting. No more running from this. This is the moment we decide to either fight together, or break everything apart."

Without hesitation, Azrael stepped forward, his dark eyes softening as he reached for the side of her neck, exposing the tender skin there. She felt the coldness of his fangs before they sank into her flesh, a sharp sting of pain that was somehow electric, laced with power. The bond flared as his magic intertwined with hers, marking her as his.

Then Kairos followed, his touch gentler but just as firm. His fangs sunk into the opposite side of her neck, and Seraphine gasped as the second bond flared to life. The connection between the three of them surged, a tidal wave of power, unity, and magic.

The world around them seemed to still, as if the universe itself was acknowledging the strength of their bond. She felt the surge of both Azrael's dark magic and Kairos's wild, grounded strength, both marking her, sealing her as theirs, but also uniting them all in a way that could not be broken.