Chapter 23: "Dark Descent: The Battle's Cost"

(POV: Deniel)

Sitting in my chair, I watch with satisfaction as the battle unfolds. I smile, after over six centuries, I am finally witnessing the suffering and defeat of these filthy and disgusting creatures. I am finally avenging my kind.

Seeing the sadness on Nicollas' face is priceless. But... I am disappointed. I thought Nicollas would ally with the other supreme and they would both fight against me. But that didn't happen. Soon I will have to wage war again.

Due to the collateral effect, many of my projects perish in this battle. But I had already calculated these losses. But, as planned, the werewolves suffer much more. For every one of my fallen soldiers, three of Nicollas' army die.

I stop observing them as I see Lina and Nicollas facing each other. As expected, Lina is overpowering him. The injection I gave her, besides putting her completely under my command, also increased her powers. And with the training Scarllet gave her. Lina is the perfect warrior.

Their fight is intense; I see Nicollas hesitating in his attacks against Lina. He tries to dominate her, trying to talk to her at every opportunity, but she strikes him without mercy. Perfect!

I fill my chest with expectations, my whole body vibrates with euphoria. Now Nicollas is covered in blood, likely with most of his bones broken, and Lina holds a sword, aiming at his heart. I stand up from the chair, savoring the most beautiful scene of all. As soon as Lina raises the sword, I follow the blade's gleam with my eyes...

Damn it! I punch the wooden armrest of the chair. Calm down, Deniel.

A wolf jumps on Lina and knocks her to the ground. Observing more closely, I recognize the wolf, it's Melanie, the one who always bullied Lina.

Melanie, in wolf form, attacks Lina with all her might, but now Lina manages to dodge and grabs her enemy by the neck. Melanie cries out under the tremendous force exerted on her. More wolves appear and surround Lina, growling and positioning themselves to attack her. They all pounce on her at once.

I remain calm because I know she is stronger than them... What!? How did she end up on the ground? I look incredulously at the image of Lina lying on the ground, bleeding from her head, arms, legs, and abdomen. My blood runs cold, and my heart skips a beat.

"No!" I scream. Inexplicably, a growing sense of despair fills my chest.

I run to Lina in the middle of the battlefield. She can't die! With hatred coursing through my veins, I conjure a spell, and all the wolves fly away from Lina. I crouch by her side and create a barrier to protect us from further attacks.

From the side pocket of my pants, I take out the syringe. It contains the healing potion. I hold Lina's head in my lap and grasp her wrist, preparing the syringe, but before I can inject it, I hear Nicollas' weak voice.

(POV: Nicollas)

I feel my heart shatter as I witness the wolves of my pack attacking Lina. I struggle to keep my eyes open due to the blood that pours over them. Lina deftly dodges and strikes the blade of her sword at most of them. But they do not give up and continue to advance fierce on her. While defending herself from the front, one of the wolves attacks her from behind, and at that moment all the other wolves bite and wound her.

"Stop... stop..." I try to speak, but my voice is weak and low.

"Daddy! Help, Daddy, me, Mom, and my siblings are dying, Daddy... please help us... Daddy..." I hear the baby's voice again. My heart tightens even more. Soon the voice is replaced by weak cries, gradually fading away, as if they were voices from my imagination.

I look towards Lina and see her abdomen bleeding. Once again, an extremely sharp pain pierces my chest. My legs are broken, my arms too, but I try to crawl closer. Deniel appears in my field of vision and throws the wolves away from Lina. I try to get closer, but Deniel creates a magical barrier that prevents me from approaching.

The feeling of losing my family overwhelms me, throwing me into a dark and desperate abyss. I need to do something! But I am too weak... Damn it!

"Daddy, please help us," the pleading voice repeats.

I drag myself across the blood-soaked ground, banging my head against the barrier. It vibrates, but it doesn't let me through. I observe Deniel holding Lina in his arms, and now he is holding a syringe. With no alternatives, I summon all my strength to speak:

"S-Save my wife and my chil... dren," I say with a strained voice. Deniel widens his eyes at my words, he looks at Lina's abdomen and then at her with a puzzled expression. Apparently, he didn't even know about the existence of the babies.

I open my mouth, but I can't utter another word. Darkness hangs over me, and I faint.

How could I be so weak?