Awakening The Silver Wolf

DARIUS POV 

"We have at least thirty minutes until they get here," the boy reported, his chest heaving heavily. "There are at least fifty of them." 

Fifty. My pack was double the size and that's not including the Lupinarian. I had been expecting a good number so I could kill as many of those bastards as possible.

"Hide the children, elders, and the women who can't fight," Jorik ordered. "The rest of you go prepare for battle!"

The people went off to carry out the order while those who couldn't fight were taken away to go hide. I turned to look at Ravenna when she remained unmoving to see her face so twisted with rage it was almost unrecognizable. 

Her hands were balled into fists and a droplet of blood escaped through her hand. She had pierced her own skin with her nails. Her teeth were grounded together, her body trembling. I could particularly taste the anger that was coming out of her. 

"They disturbed my grandmother's burial," she fumed, her voice like steel. "They will pay for that." She raised her head and looked at Dalian. That was when I saw her eyes were shining silver. Her wolf was fighting to come out. 

Dalian had the same expression on his face. He nodded and gestured with his chin towards their tent. "Go change." 

Ravenna turned and left without a word, her shoulders tensed. 

"I have never seen her like that before," Mia said quietly as she came to stand beside me, her worried eyes fixed on Ravenna's retreating form.

"There's a lot of sides to Ravenna we haven't seen, Mia." Each day I find a new layer of my mate: more love I didn't know she was capable of; more joy she could barely contain; sadness that eats her raw; and anger that consumes her. I was beginning to realize that Revanna had many, many layers to her, more than I ever have. 

I want to peel those layers off, to study every inch of her being, and love everything goddamn bit. There will come a day for that, but today we were going to fight for her people. 

***

The enemy emerged from the treeline like a swarm of locusts, their dark forms silhouetted against the dimming sky. They were relentless and armed with crude weapons. I could feel their surprise by what they were seeing.

They haven't expected the Lupinarians to fight back, nor have they expected there to be so many people. 

The tension that had hung in the air like a storm finally broke. A blood-curdling battle cry echoed through the forest, and the ground shook beneath our feet as the fight exploded.

I unsheathed my sword in one swift motion, the cold steel gleaming in the first rays of dawn. My wolf surged beneath my skin, eager for the blood that would soon flow. 

Beside me, the pack shifted—fur, claws, and fangs replacing flesh and bone. The Lupinarians shifted also, their silver furs gleaming. 

Ravenna was still human, but her rage was a wild thing, burning hotter than anything the wolves could conjure. I watched her, her fists clenched, her silver eyes glowing with the ferocity of her wolf, but she held it back. Just barely.

The first wave hit, and we collided with the enemy.

I was surrounded instantly, the clash of steel and the grunts of warriors filling the air. A man charged at me with a spear—a fucking spear!—and I sidestepped with lethal grace, slashing his side with my blade. 

He crumpled to the ground with a scream, but there was no time to enjoy the kill. Another attacker lunged, this time with a battle-axe, but I blocked the blow, pushing him back with all my strength before delivering a fatal strike to his throat.

Through the chaos, my eyes found Ravenna again.

She was a force of nature, her form moving with an almost unnatural speed as she tore through enemies with her sword. 

The force behind each blow was brutal, her body fueled by the storm inside her. I watched in awe as she took down one attacker after another, her movements swift and ruthless. Her anger was her weapon, and she wielded it like a goddess of war.

Fuck, how could I be getting hard in the middle of this chaos? Something was definitely wrong with me. 

But even as I marveled at her power, I saw the strain on her face. She was holding back, trying to maintain control. I could feel the fight within her, the wolf straining to be released, but she kept it buried for now.

More of the enemy pressed in, and the battle intensified. I was in the thick of it now, fighting for every inch of ground, every breath. But all the while, my attention never strayed far from Ravenna.

I had to watch her. I couldn't let her lose herself in the madness. I had found myself in that situation too many times. You get carried away by the violence, the power, the blood, so much that you forget to watch your back. 

Ravenna didn't have to watch her back: I had her covered. 

A large man with a jagged sword swung at her, and I saw it coming before she did. Without thinking, I darted through the melee, my wolf pushing me faster than I had any right to move. 

I slammed into the man, knocking him off balance, and with a swift, brutal swipe, I severed his arm at the elbow. He howled in pain and staggered back, and I didn't hesitate—another slash, and he was down.

Ravenna didn't even flinch, her gaze fixed on the next wave of attackers, her body still brimming with that wild energy.

Another attacker charged, this one with a bow, and I barely had time to react before an arrow whizzed past me, grazing my shoulder. I growled in irritation, the wound already healing as the blood dried up.

There was no stopping now.

The battle raged on for what felt like hours, the sky lightening with the approach of dawn, but the fighting only grew fiercer. The Lupinarians moved with deadly precision, tearing into the invaders with all the fury they could muster.

They held this much power and they haven't fought back all these years? 

I was moving almost automatically now—sword in hand, a whirlwind of death. But my focus never wavered from Ravenna. 

She was losing herself more with each passing moment. Her silver eyes glowed brighter, and her movements became more animalistic, more desperate. Her rage was consuming her, and I could see the strain it was putting on her.

I fought harder, and faster, pushing myself to the limit.

I was right beside her when the next wave came—fifty more attackers, this time more organized. I thought that boy had said there were only fifty of them?!

They came at us in waves, and we tore through them. My sword slashed, blood spilled, and my body moved without thought.

But Ravenna... she was something else. She fought like a beast, every move filled with pure savagery. She was a blur of fury, faster than any of us, and stronger than she had any right to be.

Then, the moment came—the one that almost stopped my heart.

Ravenna turned toward me, her eyes wide, and I saw it: the shift. Her wolf was fighting to break free, and I could feel it, the powerful energy rippling off her like a storm. She roared, a sound filled with so much anguish and rage that it shook the very ground we stood on.

I reached out to her, my voice barely a whisper over the chaos. "Ravenna, hold on!"

But it was too late. With a guttural scream, her body shifted—fur sprouting from her skin, her limbs elongating, claws extending with deadly precision. Her silver eyes gleamed with a feral intensity as she fully embraced her wolf form.

And in that moment, she was unstoppable.

Her first howl sent chills down my spine, a battle cry that tore through the air, echoing over the battlefield. She was a blur of fur and teeth, a force of nature unleashed. I watched, both in awe and concern, as she tore through her enemies, the full fury of her wolf crashing over them like a tidal wave.

I couldn't look away, even as the battle raged around me.

The fight was brutal, blood spilling freely onto the earth. 

But amidst it all, I kept my focus on Ravenna. I had to make sure she didn't lose herself completely to the bloodlust. 

But as the dawn broke fully over the horizon, the invaders' numbers began to dwindle. Our people were relentless, and the Lupinarians were an unstoppable force. Slowly, the enemy's lines began to break.

We were winning.

That was until an unexpected twist showed. I was still watching Ravanna when I saw her hesitate. In a blink she shifted back, naked as the bone she was born. 

I took off my shirt and walked to her, but stopped in my tracks when I heard her whisper, "Lilith?"