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“My father taught me many things. He was wise, just, and cared deeply for his pack. But it wasn’t just his pack who experienced his love.

He shared it with anyone in need. He was a beacon of light to those wrapped in darkness.

I hope with everything in me that I can be even half the leader he was. ” ~ Fane

F ane stood at the center of the clearing, the weight of leadership pressing down on him like a boulder.

The air was heavy with grief, punctuated by the underlying currents of determination.

Costin stood beside Sally. His arm wrapped around her with Titus standing in front of them.

His third in command was ready for any order Fane would give him.

As if hearing his thoughts, Costin nodded and dropped his gaze in submission.

Decebel, Jen, Wadim, Zara, Crina, Adam, Sorin, Elle, and the list went on as Fane’s gaze roamed over the entire group. All were waiting for the orders he would give. They would fight until their dying breaths and not think twice about it.

Fane felt Jacque’s hand slip into his, her touch grounding him as his wolf threatened to rise again, clawing at the edges of his control. He couldn’t lose it now. Not again. Too much was at stake. He took a deep breath and forced himself to focus on the path ahead.

Jewel and Dalton were gone. That pain would stay with them, but they had no choice but to move forward. Raja was still out there, and if they didn’t stop him, Jewel and Dalton wouldn’t be the last to fall.

Fane’s voice broke the silence. “We will give Jewel and Dalton a proper funeral. But it will be quick. We don’t have time to mourn.

Raja won’t stop. If we don’t act now, he’ll take every soul he can to gain more power.

We need allies—every supernatural willing to fight, every ounce of magic we can gather.

This has to end, and it has to end quickly.

” He began pointing to people, giving out the orders that would get them on the move.

“Jacque, Decebel, Jen, Heather, Kale, Nissa, and I will go to the fae realm.” Fane’s blue eyes flicked to Nissa, who stood with her chin lifted, her expression unreadable.

“I imagine you have a better rapport with your kind than Peri. That’s why I’m choosing you.

Each group will need a fae to help with traveling, though we might need to rotate them, or recruit more, and a healer for the most difficult situations.

Their light is pure and will encourage the other races. ”

Nissa nodded. When she spoke, her voice was calm but firm. “I agree.”

Fane glanced at Peri, and the high fae simply shrugged. She knew she couldn’t argue with him on this. Peri had burned a lot of bridges with her race, all for the good of the other supernaturals and humans.

Fane’s gaze shifted to Wadim. “Historian,” Fane addressed him formally. “I’m sending you to a realm probably only you know anything about.”

Wadim’s eyes lit up. “Troll realm?”

Peri folded her arms across her chest as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “You know that realm hasn’t been breached in a very long time. We don’t even know if there’s anyone left in that realm. And if there are, we have no idea how they will respond.”

Fane nodded. “Still, we need to check and if there are, we need to see if we can get them on our side. Nick, you’ll take Kara, Wadim, Zara, Gavril, Rachel, and…” Fane paused then looked at Peri. “We need another fae warrior.”

“On it.” Peri nodded. She pulled out a cell phone and tapped on the screen. A moment later a male fae warrior appeared. “Aphid,” Peri said. “Thank you for coming.”

The male, with long dark hair and light brown skin, glanced around the clearing, and his gaze briefly landed on the bodies of Jewel and Dalton. His jaw clenched, but Fane saw sorrow in his dark eyes. “I’m glad I can help. Just tell me what you need, Alpha.”

Fane didn’t waste time. “I need you to join those six”—he pointed to the group he’d just assigned—“in the troll realm. We need to convince them to help in this battle. Be careful, stay alert, but make it clear that they will be affected by this. They have no choice but to join us.”

Aphid walked over to join the group and folded his arms across his broad chest. He looked ready for battle.

Nick inclined his head, his expression grim. “We’ll get it done.”

Kara, her golden eyes fierce, nodded. “Even trolls have feelings. We will figure out what matters most to them. Not as a threat, but as a way to appeal to those emotions.”

“And that’s why the healers are needed.” Fane smiled.

“Thalion.” Fane’s gaze landed on the elven prince. “You’ll take Cyn, Stella, and Ciro to the realm of elves. They’re your people. Lead them.”

Thalion’s eyes narrowed. “They’ll fight.” His words were resolute. “They know what’s at stake. And they’ve experienced enough darkness at the hands of my father. We will never allow that darkness to reign again.”

“Peri.” Fane turned to the high fae. “You’ll lead the group to draheim. Take Lucian, Lilly, and Gerick with you. You have a relationship with them that no one else does. They are our most needed ally, simply because of their sheer power. But they’ll need convincing. Use whatever leverage you can.”

Peri’s pale green eyes gleamed with determination as she nodded.

“Elle.” Fane turned to the far warrior. “You’ll take Sorin, and the djinn elders—Synica, Rouse, Myron, and Clarion.” He looked at the elders. “Convince your people that this fight is just as much theirs as it is ours.”

“Andora.” Fane addressed the sprite queen again.

“You’re responsible for the sprite realm.

Take Cindy, Chris, Costin and Sally. Having both Cindy and Sally there to lend their opinions, considering they’re both sprites and have lived out in the human world, might help in convincing anyone on the fence. ”

The sprite queen cleared her throat. “We’ll make my people see reason,” Andora said, her voice steady.

“Gustavo, Anna, Crina, and Adam,” Fane made eye contact with each. “You’ve got the pixies.”

Anna groaned. “Of course I do.”

Fane knew that there was no love lost between the healer and the pixies. But Gustavo was powerful, and Adam had a way with words. Crina would keep Adam in check, and Anna, well, she’d have more of a positive effect on the pixie king than she realized.

“Boain and Lorna will stay here in the human realm,” Fane continued. “You’ll seek out any hybrids you can convince to join us. Lizzy and Finn will join you. Lizzy, make the hybrids see they have a stake in this fight, too.”

Lizzy and Finn nodded, their expressions firm and resolute.

“Alice and Maxim.” Fane shifted his gaze to them. “You’ll focus on finding rogue wolves. Convince them to join us. We’ll need all the strength we can get.”

“We’ll find them,” Alice said quietly.

Maxim crossed his arms, his dark eyes gleaming. “And we’ll bring them back.”

Fane could feel the rogue alpha’s determination and knew Maxim would do whatever it took to get any wolves on the fence on their side.

“Bethany and Drake.” Fane met the pair’s gaze, and they dropped their eyes. “You will take the kids. Peri’s house. It’s the most secure place for them. With the fae in each group, we can flash and see them as often as we need to. They have to be protected.”

“I’ll double the wards,” Peri said.

“We can add our own power to that,” Synica offered.

“Dillon, Tanya, Jeff, Tyler, Drayden, Antonia, Aimo, Angus, Dragomir, Arturo, and Victor.”

“Good grief, I don’t know how you keep up with all these freaking names,” Jen cut in.

“It’s a gift,” Fane quipped and then looked back at the wolves he’d addressed.

“Return to your packs. Prepare them for what’s coming, but don’t lose sight of the battle already at hand.

Demons, hybrids, vampires, and every other supernatural being drawn to Celise’s promises are wreaking havoc on the human world.

And now, with Raja joining the chaos, the stakes are even higher. I know it’s a lot to ask of you.”

Dillon held up a hand, a silent request for Fane to pause. “Nothing is too much to ask, Fane. Not for this.”

Fane bowed his head slightly to the other alpha, and his father-in-law. Then Fane looked over the assembled groups, his chest tight with the weight of what he was asking. Their grief was raw, their losses fresh, but there was no time for hesitation.

“This isn’t just a fight for survival. This is a fight for everyone we’ve lost—and everyone we can still save. Go. Do what you have to. Bring back anyone willing to stand with us. If we don’t stop Raja, no one will.”

Jacque squeezed Fane’s hand and said softly,. “We’ll do this. Together.”

“We will do this for the pack.” Decebel stepped forward, his wolf peering out through his glowing eyes.

“We will do this for all packs,” Jen added. “Others might not realize that’s what they are: family, friends, those who are willing to die for each other. Wolf or not, they are all packs.”

Fane held up a fist in the air as he roared. “For the packs!”

His declaration was echoed by everyone in the clearing. Determination etched across their faces as every single member of this pack accepted their place, their purpose at this moment in their lives. Their lives were not their own, and Fane would lay down his if that was the Great Luna’s will.