CHAPTER 77: WITCH AND WOLF

Chapter 77: Witch and Wolf

Dawn broke blood-red over the ancient ritual circle, its stone pillars carved with symbols older than memory. The twenty Alphas formed a ring around the sacred place, their faces grim with the weight of witnessing history. Liana stood at the eastern edge, her white dress replaced by simple fighting leathers.

Selene and Mara whispered encouragement within her thoughts, but their voices couldn’t hide her fear. She’s had twenty years to prepare, Selene warned. We’ve had twenty minutes. Then we fight smarter, not harder, Mara replied, her warrior spirit blazing with purpose. Across the circle, Lyra waited in flowing silver robes that seemed to catch and reflect every ray of sunlight. Her beauty was otherworldly, making her appear more queen than woman. "Last chance to withdraw, little omega," Lyra called out, her voice carrying easily across the space. "I bear you no personal hate. Step aside, and I’ll ensure your exile is pleasant." "Never," Liana answered, her voice steady despite her racing heart. Elder Mira stepped forward, her ritual staff glowing with ancient power. "By the old rules, this challenge is witnessed and binding. The duel starts at first light." She raised the staff high. "Let the Moon Goddess and Sun Father judge who speaks truth." The moment the staff hit the ground, everything changed. Lyra moved first, her hands making patterns in the air that made reality shimmer.

Silver threads of magic erupted from her fingertips, racing toward Liana like live lightning. Liana barely had time to throw up a wall of moon-fire before the attack hit. The impact sent her sliding backward, her feet carving grooves in the old stone. "Impressive reflexes," Lyra commented, already preparing her next attack. "But reflexes won’t save you from experience." She gestured sharply, and the very air around Liana began to thicken into unseen chains. The omega girl fought against bonds she couldn’t see, her breath coming in short gasps. Counter-weave! Selene shouted in her mind. Remember the pattern I showed you! Liana’s hands moved in a complex spiral, undoing Lyra’s spell thread by thread. The invisible chains shattered, allowing her to breathe again. "Clever," Lyra admitted. "But you’re still thinking like a wolf. Magic takes more than instinct." This time her strike came from below. The stone beneath Liana’s feet cracked and split, dark vines emerging from the earth to wrap around her legs. But these weren’t regular plants—they pulsed with malevolent energy, draining strength with every second of contact. Liana called upon Mara’s fire, silver flames running down her body to burn away the cursed vines. The smell of burned magic filled the air. "Better," Lyra smiled, but her eyes were calculating.

"Let’s see how you handle this." She raised both hands, and suddenly the air filled with dozens of silver daggers, each one humming with dangerous enchantments. They hung motionless for a moment, then shot toward Liana from every direction. There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. Liana closed her eyes and let her dual nature lead her. Wolf-quick reflexes combined with Luna-strong magic, making a whirlwind of silver light that deflected most of the blades. But not all. Three knives found their mark, slicing across her arms and shoulder. Where they cut, the cuts burned with unnatural cold. "Cursed silver," Lyra explained almost casually. "Those won’t heal until you submit or die." But as Liana stumbled, something strange happened. The cursed wounds began to close anyway, silver light flowing from them like liquid stars. Impossible, Lyra’s perfect calm cracked slightly. No one can heal cursed metal without— "Without what?" Liana demanded, pressing her edge. She gestured, and pillars of moonfire erupted around Lyra, causing the witch to dodge and weave. "Without royal blood," Lyra finished, her voice tight with focus as she shielded herself.

"Which you don’t have." "Maybe I have something better," Liana replied, her confidence rising. "Maybe I have something you’ve forgotten." She called upon every lesson Selene had whispered, every fight memory Mara had shared. Raw power poured from her in waves, making the old stones sing with resonance. But Lyra’s next words made her pause. "Do you feel that, my sons?" the witch called out, her voice carrying beyond the circle. "The power running through your veins? The strength that makes you who you are?" From the watching crowd, Kael, Jace, and Rowan traded worried glances. Something was wrong. They could feel their energy draining, running away like water through cracked stone. "She’s not just using her own magic," Talia gasped, her witch senses picking up the truth. "She’s drawing power from the triplets!" Lyra’s laughter was like breaking crystal. "Did you think I would fight fair, little omega? These are my kids.

My blood flows in their bodies. Every beat of their hearts boosts my magic." As if to prove her point, she motioned again, and this time her spell hit with devastating force. Liana was thrown backward, crashing into one of the stone walls hard enough to crack it. "Feel that?" Lyra addressed her sons directly. "That was your strength protecting your mother. As it should be." Kael took a step forward, his face pale. "You’re stealing our power." "I’m using what’s rightfully mine," Lyra corrected. "A mother’s claim on her children’s soul. It’s the oldest magic there is." Jace tried to move but swayed on his feet. "This isn’t... this isn’t fair." "Life isn’t fair, darling boy. But family is forever." Rowan was the first to understand the full horror of what was happening. His empath skills let him feel the magical drain more clearly than his brothers. "She’s not just borrowing our strength," he whispered. "She’s taking our life force. If this continues—" "You’ll be weakened but alive," Lyra finished. "A small price for your mother’s victory."

But Liana wasn’t finished. Bleeding and battered, she pulled herself upright, her eyes blazing with combined rage of wolf and Luna spirits. "You want to talk about family?" she snarled. "Real family doesn’t steal. Real family doesn’t control. Real family doesn’t abandon children and then claim ownership of their hearts!" She raised her hands, and for the first time, her magic wasn’t protective. Pure destructive force lanced toward Lyra, who barely managed to block it. "Impressive," the witch admitted, but her smile was ravenous. "But you’re still fighting with stolen power. I’m fighting with blood and bone." She drew deeper from her sons, and the result was immediate. Kael dropped to one knee, his breathing ragged. Jace’s hands shook as he tried to keep his balance. But it was Rowan who paid the biggest price. As the most empathic of the three, his link to his mother ran deepest. When Lyra pulled harder, drawing more strength, he screamed. "Stop!" Liana cried, leaving her attack to run toward him.

But Lyra wasn’t done. She pulled harder still, and Rowan fell completely, his body convulsing as his life force was drained away. "Rowan!" Kael and Jace both lunged forward, but invisible obstacles held them back. "The duel isn’t over," Lyra announced calmly, even as her youngest son writhed in pain. "Interference is forbidden." "You’re killing him!" Jace shouted, his own strength draining fast. "I’m saving him," Lyra answered. "All of you. From a future of weakness and compromise." Rowan’s tremors slowed, then stopped. His breathing became shallow, his skin pale as winter snow. "Choose, my elder sons," Lyra said, her voice carrying absolute authority. "Sever the blood link that connects us, and lose your brother forever. Or let me finish what I started, and rule as the kings you were born to be." Kael and Jace stared at their motionless brother, then at each other. The choice was impossible—save Rowan and doom themselves, or let him die to protect their family bond.

"You have ten seconds," Lyra announced, raising her hands for a final, devastating blow against Liana. "Then I finish this, and the choice is made for you." Lightning crackled between her fingers as she began to count down. "Ten... nine... eight..." Liana struggled to her feet, but she was too weak, too injured to fight against what was coming.

"Seven... six... five..." Kael and Jace locked eyes, a lifetime of shared understanding passing between them in an instant. "Four... three... two..." And then, just as Lyra reached "one," both brothers spoke in perfect unison: "We choose—"