Chapter 35: The Fight

The vampires were everywhere. The wolves were fighting them back, and it was utter chaos.

Dorian and Atticus kept me between them, protecting me as Zachariah fought with Taylin a few feet away. It was terrifying to see him in Alpha mode, tearing apart anything that came close.

Atticus shifted moments later and whacked away three alphas that were coming in close. I didn’t know how to help. What if I tried and made it worse?

Dorian fought with his claws, slicing through the vamps that came for us. The packs were shifted, fighting in wolf form everywhere. And they were so powerful, tearing apart the vampires.

Blood sprayed, howls tore through the air, bones crunched. Smoke was high as the fire started to spread. I went to put it out, but Dorian stopped me. Blood splattered over him; panting, he held my face, “No, Sweet Siren. You stay here where we can protect you.”

“I can’t stand here without helping,” I insisted, the urge to do something growing.

Dorian smiled, “Your human blood with siren magic is enough to keep the vampires from being able to fully attack. Their instincts are to go for you, and it is making them manic. That helps enough.”

I stayed put, accepting what he said. But I hated just standing there while the packs fought.

I peered through the wolves and saw Serafina at the back. She had her hands out, her eyes glowing as she sung softly. She put the five vampires on her doorstep to sleep.

My jaw dropped, and I watched her do it over and over again. I longed for that control.

I cleared my throat as it itched. My body hummed so loud I thought I was going to go deaf from it.

I looked over the wolves; they were warmth, light, happiness. The vampires were cold and dark. Even in my human head, I could sense that.

I chewed my lip, wondering if that was enough to help. I looked over to Serafina again. She caught my gaze and nodded once, winking before turning to the next vamp with her hand out.

He slowly dropped to the ground, his eyes closing. “You can do it, Kassie. Sing your song and make it loud. But be careful—use too much and you will burn out, go too far and you will make it worse,” her voice was a whisper in the wind.

It made my heart race to hear, to think of trying to do what needed to be done. A scream to my left stopped my thoughts.

I snapped my head to where Taylin whimpered in his wolf form, his paw bleeding as he howled. Zachariah growled and started ripping through vampires that were closing in. They kept coming, and Zachariah kept fighting, but there were so many of them.

Atticus roared as he was thrown into a hut. He crashed down on it, getting up and howling as he fought back the rush of vampires. He was bleeding all over, his coat matted with it.

Dorian was still fighting with his claws; they were covered in blood, and so was his body. The packs didn’t look much better off. They fought hard, their wolves impressive, but the vampires had the numbers. They were fast and kept getting the upper hand.

The amount of pain in the air had my throat aching. I sucked in a shaky breath and turned to all the chaos. This was my fault. I had brought this on them, and I had to be the one to stop them.

But I didn’t have claws or pointed teeth. I didn’t have the strength of a wolf or the speed of a vampire. I only had one thing that might make a difference—my voice.

So I used it. I opened my mouth and let the harmony fall.

I closed my eyes and opened my arms wide, holding out my hands to guide the sounds. I wasn’t sure if I used words or if it was just a melody, but I knew there was power in it.

I felt it instantly. My body came alive with the magic, and when it did, I focused.

I focused on my alphas, the way they felt, the way they made me feel—the warmth, the protection, the intentions. The good in them. I felt the light that resided in them. And I used that energy to push my voice and magic further.

My ears rang; my body held strong. I moved forward, letting my instincts take me where I needed to go. I kept singing, the softness of my voice carrying through the packs.

My power grew; my magic hummed louder the longer I used it. It was exactly what I needed. It felt so right.

It didn’t feel wrong; there was no pain. Everything clicked. I didn’t stop, swaying as my hands pushed my voice over the villages, the packs, the wolves.

When I opened my eyes and finally looked up, my breath hitched. The wolves were coming toward me. The vampire bodies littered the ground, slowly disappearing into clouds of black smoke.

Serafina was leaning against the door to her cabin, her eyes glowing bright in the moonlight, her proud smile beaming as she nodded gently.

My voice slowed to an end and I panted, the power so sated. More so than it had ever been.

I tried a timid smile, still stunned by what was happening. All three packs, every wolf stood before me in their animal forms.

And then they lowered, every single one of them covered in blood and bowing to me. My eyes went wide and I looked for the alphas.

I swallowed hard when I found them. Zachariah stood with Taylin, Atticus, and Dorian too. They moved to the front of the wolves, all in their animal forms too.

Then they bowed too. I sucked in a breath, my heart stuttering at what was happening.

I didn’t understand it, but I knew it meant something big. A warmth washed over me. A different one than before. It was a warmth that made tears sting my eyes.

They dropped down my cheeks as I smiled. They were accepting me. I felt it in them. My voice was in them, my power. It had given them strength. It had helped.

It hadn’t hurt them like I had been so scared of. I had controlled it.

I grinned and walked over to the alphas. I pulled them to stand in front of me. “We did it,” I whispered.

“You did it, Sweet Siren,” Dorian said softly as he shifted into his human form. “I am not the one covered in blood,” I said, looking over them all.

Zachariah and Atticus shifted back and led me to stand in front of the burning stage. “We celebrate our victory tonight, wolf packs of the realm!” Zachariah called, then brought my hand up with his. “And we celebrate our siren!”

The pack all got to their feet and howled in sync. The sound resounded through the realm, and I grinned, blushing at the warmth that filled me.

I had never really had a home. Not in a long time, at least. But this, with the wolves, felt like home. They felt like home.

Which is why I celebrated with them. When the ale and wine came out, the wolves started shifting back; I drank with them.

I laughed with them; I spoke with them. I was one of them.

I didn’t know which packs they belonged to without seeing their tattoos, but tonight it didn’t feel like there were three packs. It felt like we were one.

I got way too drunk with the pack who were cheating by healing fast; I played and teased my alphas. I celebrated our win. I celebrated using my voice.

Even Serafina came out of her hut. She drank with us too, and the light in her eyes was something special on its own. Especially because it made Atticus smile wide all damn night.

I sat on Zachariah’s lap on one of the bench seats near the bonfire that had been lit. Atticus was sparring with wooden swords, teaching Taylin a thing or two about fighting. Dorian was speaking animatedly with the other pack members, listening to each of their stories about the way they trained. It was giving him ideas for how to challenge his own pack when he went home.

Home. It was here, with all of them.

But it couldn’t be that way forever. I took another sip of the drink that I probably didn’t need and looked up at the sky. The full moon was almost here, and I had a decision to make—one that was going to break the home I had just found.

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