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"Thirteen! Thirteen fucking Zombies!" Mason panted, throwing down the last ones corpse as I ripped open another pulling out a vial.

"All missing their hearts" I held up the tiny vial, "all with a message."

He grumbled, opening the last one.

I started removing the messages.

"So." I muttered, looking them all over, "we have hello, dying, bones, Your liver?, soul, may, I, Brain?, Large intestine?, have, Eyes?, your, Small?"

"This doesn't seem pleasant." Mase huffed.

"More reason to read it." I muttered, rearranging the scraps.

Hello dying soul, may I have your bones? Your liver? Eyes? Brain? Large intestine? Small?

"Well..." I drawled, "I don't know about you but I think she must be talking to me." I smirked a bit, "only organ of of mine a woman has ever asked me for is my cock, at least she's original."

Mason looked around us, "she sent zombies to a vampire layer, thats ballsy Alpha. It would have started a war if they leeches had been alive."

"Vampires are never alive."

"You know what I mean."

"She must know they were dead which means she was either watching us or them and knows about my issue." I cut a sharp look his direction, "still want to seek one out?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because frankly I would rather not see you die."

I sighed, looking over the papers again, "burn it all. We cant have mortals accidentally stumbling onto a field of dust and rotten bodies with their guts spilling out."

"Yes Alpha."

I surveyed the area as he got to work, wondering how far the witch was.

Depending on her power, she could be controlling those zombies from miles away.

The true question was, how did she know about me?

My gaze went to the moon, wondering not for the first time if Luna was watching.

If I asked, would she answer?

Tell me why it was we had so little time to find our mates before we died.

Why we have them at all when the reality is they could already have died in hunt before we even knew their name.

"Beautiful tonight isn't she Bash?" Mason asked from beside me pulling out a lighter, "we made her proud with this one."

"That we did Mason. Bring back part of one of the zombies for the temple."

The Temple of Luna resides at the center of my packs grounds, it is custom to bring the goddess a bit of our hunt back.

He nodded, "arm or head?"

"Arm. The heads always scare the pups learning to pray."

"Right." He nodded, "speaking of pups...seeing as you are without a mate, you don't have any."

I gazed back up at the sky knowing exactly where this was going. "And?"

"You are not just any Alpha, Bash."

"Hmm."

"You are our king."

I winced at the word.

I always did. "I am aware."

My pack grounds were honestly less grounds and more giant city in a mountain.

Sometimes I tried very hard to ignore.

I have never been good at being royal.

"You have no siblings."

"Yup."

"Your parents are dead."

"Very much so."

"There is no heir."

No. No there is not. I sighed, "because there is no queen."

He nodded, "you don't like another alpha for your successor?"

"No. They are all much too eager to rule. Never a good sign." I watched the ground burn pensively, "no one who knows what it truly means to rule desires it."

Mason seemed to physically deflate, "and you will not seek a witch. Alpha you have less than a year." He looked me over sadly, "it is starting to affect you physically... if you insist on dying perhaps consider leaving behind an heir."

"I would need a mate for that..." I trailed off, realization dawning.

"Absolutely not." I snarled. To have a child with another woman?

I shuddered, "we are cautious in our exploits for a reason, the women take herbs for a reason.

I will not betray my mate like that, even never having known her. "

"Alpha... you won't help yourself by seeking a witch, you have searched the world for her and she has never shown. I cannot help but think..."

"She dead." I said cooly, "I came to terms with that years ago and console myself by pretending she was some hideous old hag with absolutely no ass to speak off."

"Again." Mase gaped at me, "you are horrible at coping."

"But I wont have a child with a woman who is not mine."

"Then pick another alpha to take the throne or go to a witch!" He snapped, "honestly are you so stubborn you would die and leave your people on chaos?!"

"Yes!" I growled back, "I am determined to find another solution."

"You don't have the time! The delta council is pushing every day for the future of our people.

You need to offer one!"

As if I didn't know that. "Your spoiling an excellent night Mase."

"Excellent?!" He growled, "Sebastian I was nearly bitten by a zombie!

There were too many too powerful zombies and just the two of us.

I could easily have died, would have if there had been more.

Thats why we have the party law, one you forget applies to you as well. No less than 6 wolves on a hunt."

I stared at him unimpressed, "your fine Mase."

"Barely! Ronny is at home pregnant with my first child Bash and I nearly died!"

I almost cringed. Veronica, Masons mate had struggled to catch for years. "You're right Mase. Shes due any day isn't she?"

"Yes."

"Good!" I chimed snapping my fingers, "if your pup is a boy with alphas blood he's our next king."

I turned around and started back towards the mountain we called home.

"What?! No! Alpha, you are the last descendent of the original alpha, Ronny and I have neither ever had an alpha manifest in our bloodline. The odds are slim to none and if my child was an alpha he wouldn't be nearly strong enough."

"But he would be a kind king." I replied. "Besides, you said choose, I did, when Ronny gives you your beautiful pup I can pick someone else if it doesn't turn out to be an alpha."

"You're procrastinating."

"If we shift and run full speed you can get home to her in time to slip into bed before morning so you wake beside her and your pup."

A smile crept onto his face and he immediately shifted, arguing no more.

I watched his wolf start off anxiously, envy tricking down my spine.

Having known Ronny most of my life, I knew full well she would be awake to greet him when he returned.

Would have left dinner out for him at the very least.

He was a lucky man to have a woman like her, a pup on the way.

I shifted after him and ran ahead, setting our pace so he could be home in time to steal a kiss or two before she hurried off to work in the morning.