Lucian
The stench of fresh blood hit Lucian like a strike to the chest. His head snapped towards it—and then he saw her.
His mother.
Queen Liora lay motionless, her heart torn from her chest, blank eyes staring into nothing. Blood pooled around her, thick and dark.
He surged towards her, kneeling in her pool of blood.
Lucian's breath hitched. His pulse roared in his ears.
Then Surtr—Lucians wolf form, howled.
"MOTHER!!"
The wolf's rage thundered through his skull, rattling his bones.
Lucian spun, scanning the room, searching for the killer—but saw nothing. No movement. No scent. No one.
A growl rumbled deep in his chest.
"Calm down, Surtr," he gritted out, trying to rein in the beast. But Surtr was beyond reason.
Then—he snapped.
Lucian's bones cracked. His body twisted. A searing heat rushed through his veins as Surtr tore free.
The black wolf lunged.
The nearest vampire barely had time to react before Surtr's claws ripped across his face. The force sent him crashing to the ground. Before he could scream, Surtr wrenched his spine from his nape.
A shriek tore through the air.
The room erupted into chaos.
A warrior lunged towards him. Surtr caught him mid-air, his claws slicing through ribs, ripping the body in half before it even hit the ground. Blood sprayed across the binding altar, staining its sacred stone.
Lucian's voice echoed in the back of his mind. "Surtr! Get a hold of yourself."
The beast did not listen. He was in rage. He was unhinged.
"That's… no ordinary wolf," one vampire whispered, voice laced with terror. He gripped his sword tighter, but his hands trembled. The last vampire who tried to fight was nothing more than a mangled corpse at Surtr's feet.
Vampires scrambled, some lunging for the exits, others stood firm waiting to fight. It didn't matter. The wolves descended, slashing, tearing, and shredding.
Blood sprayed. Bodies fell.
Surtr moved fast. Another warrior lunged at him—Surtr caught his wrist, twisting until the bone shattered. He sank his fangs into the man's skull, crushing it like an overripe fruit.
The agonizing roar of a wolf turned Surtr towards its direction. He had been slain by two vampires as they ripped his heart out.
Surtr roared as he headed for them. Biting one's head off swiftly and the other he pinned to the ground and tore his spine out. His massive paw crushed the bone under his feet as he moved on.
Children hid under the table covering their ears and their eyes closed shut as bodies—vampires and wolves were flung through the hall.
An elderly vampire clung to the altar, his robes soaked in red. He prayed as a wolf ripped into his belly, intestines spilling like coiled rope onto the stone. And finally biting off his nape and ripping off his spine along with it.
Vampires whose nape were not torn off rose instantly after healing for a while and continued the fight.
Surtr moved on to the next. His massive claws ripped the floor as he lunged to another vampire. A single bite. A throat ripped out.
Then—
A voice cut through the carnage.
"Selene! Get under the table!"
Surtr's ears pricked up. His head snapped toward the sound.
Valamir.
A growl built in his throat, rising to a feral roar.
"VALAMIR!!"
He roared as he headed for him.
Valamir stood his ground, claws bared, fangs glinting. He knew the beast was beyond reasoning.
Surtr lunged the moment he was close.
Valamir caught the beast's claw, even as it tore into his flesh.
"Lucian! Calm down… control yourself! This isn't my doing!" he shouted, trying to pull Lucian back. his feet breaking into the floor from the weight of the beast above him.
Surtr went for his nape, aiming to end it in one swift bite—but he sensed movement behind him.
He roared, the sound shaking the hall.
His beta Hadrian ironmane leapt past him, intercepting the vampire who had been closing in. The fight raged on.
Surtr pinned the vampire king to the ground, his claws dug deeper into his chest. Blood spurted as the vampire king coughed.
Agony echoed through the hall.
"Enough, Lucian. End the war, just like your father wanted you to." Valamir Said trying to get Lucian in control.
"And that's why he's dead!" Surtr snarled, his fangs bared. " I warned you! Keep your people in line. Now I have to do that for you." he continued.
"This isn't my doing Lucian, believe me!" Valamir screamed as the claw of the beast dug into his chest cavity even deeper.
Consumed with rage and anger Surtr leaned in sinking his teeth into Valamir's nape.
Then, movement. A blur of white and gold. Selene. She was running straight toward him. Surtr barely registered her before she threw herself between them, hands gripping his massive paw.
But it was too late.
The damage was done. The bite was already delivered. Surtr's bite was laced with poison and Valamir would die without Lucian's blood.
Surtr could feel her strength, but she was no match for him. He flung her across the room with a swift movement.
He wasn't trying to kill her, he just wanted to get her out of the way.
His gaze lowered to Valamir lying in a pool of his own blood and holding his nape with one hand and his chest almost torn open with the other. He laid there, blood gushing from his mouth as he twitched almost lifeless.
"Enough, Surtr!" Lucian's voice tore into his mind, stopping Surtr from any further bloodshed.
The beast growled, trembling with rage. 'She's dead, Lu!' he roared back at Lucian "she's dead!" "We need to take her home Surtr, that's all she needs now." He responded in an attempt to calm his beast.
Surtr turned toward Queen Liora's lifeless form. He let out a final roar, a sound that cut through the bloodshed, silencing the hall. All the wolves held their ground at the sound of his voice.
Then, he lowered his massive head, carefully lifting the queen's body in his jaws.
He stepped forward, passing through the sea of corpses, the floor slick with blood. Both vampires and wolves lay dead on the blood soaked floor.
And his wolves followed, picking up their dead and left with their alpha. Leaving the vampires with their dead.