Damn them.
I already have some suspects in my mind. I sure do. I hate to say it’s Brandon and Hestia but they are definitely the first ones that come to mind. But I couldn't confirm if it was really them.
Not yet. Not when I haven't yet seen my grandmother.
Crying has brought me to my knees. And as I succumbed to it, I saw Hestia together with a familiar Rogue that we once captured. Her helping her escape is the only best explanation on why she’s here. I forgot her name. It doesn't matter. What matters is… they are now allies.
And they are one enemy of mine.
“You—” I said, pointing my finger at them, my teeth gritting. “What did you do to my grandmother?!”
Hestia hummed, then both of them chortled. “That was your grandma? We ate her. Sorry, Cass.” Hestia muttered my nickname mockingly and scrunched her nose at me.
My heart’s pounding can be heard by the entire forest. My blood roared in my ears. My mind raced, trying to process the unimaginable truth: my beloved grandmother, the one who had raised me, had been devoured by the very beings she had warned me about.
And to think, Zarion is one of them. I am one of them.
Tears tried to blind my vision, but I couldn't let myself break down just yet. I had to see it for myself, had to face the reality that my worst fears had come true.
As I moved closer, the wreckage of what used to be my grandmother's humble cottage—the one where I treated Zarion—came into view. The walls were charred, the roof collapsed, and fragments of her cherished possessions lay scattered like broken dreams. A lump formed in my throat, and sorrows welled up in my eyes as I breathed in the devastation before me. It was a sight that struck straight into my heart like a thousand hot knives. I couldn't help but feel the weight of loss and anger building within me.
“Oh, Cassidy. Just cry it out!” Both of them mockingly blurted at me, bickering. Their voices echoed in my ears, but the taunting only fueled the fury already simmering within me.
Beta Bridgette stood by my side, her presence offering comfort amid the turmoil. She knew how much my grandmother's cottage meant to me—the last remembrance of her standing aside from the castle, and she shared my frustration and grief.
“You two are fucking bitches.” I heard Beta Bridgette snarl behind me. “You will pay for this!” Her transformation into her wolf form was swift and fierce, and her growl blends in with the air like battle drums. It was a sight to behold, a reminder that being a werewolf held its share of power struggles and challenges.
Glancing at Bridgette, I plastered my most badass grin before shifting too.
***
Bridgette was faster than me, a lightning. And I’m the thunder.
My battle cry roared into the night as I turned to see her lunging at the Rogue who had dared to destroy my grandmother's home. The fight that has erupted between the four of us is a sight to behold. For a moment, I wanted nothing more than to let out all my pent-up frustration and anger on them.
I longed to tear them apart with my own claws, to make them pay for what they had done—not just to my Mamita and to Elliot, but what Hestia did to Zarion as well.
Blood, brutality, vengeance. Those three are singing in my veins now, and it sends me raw happiness that I can finally end Hestia and her Rogue at this very heartbeat. I don’t need to wait for tomorrow’s duel arranged by the Chancellor. I can fucking cut her head off, here and now.
Hestia and her Rogue, who she called Vereena, landed on the trunk of the tree as Bridgette and I yeeted them from the ground and sent them flying in the air. A crack of bones from their back sent me smiling.
They shifted, so did my Beta and me. “That’s for my Mamita.” Bridgette threw a huge rock when the Rogue tried to stand in her human form. The stone sent her back on the ground again, unmoving but still breathing.
Hestia’s eyes widened in fear as I strode towards her, bearing a larger rock than what Bridgette had thrown. It’s bigger than my face, but smaller compared to the amount of anger boiling inside me.
“You’d be insane to kill me now…” she breathed, trying to stand on her two feet as she held up her two hands, palms open in mid-air. “You can’t kill me now. The Chancellor will see it as betrayal. Brandon will freaking kill you for real this time.”
“If I’m insane, then what do you call yourself as someone who killed Elliot, burned my Grandmother’s castle down, and manipulated Zarion’s feelings back when he and I hadn't yet met?”
Silence. Hestia didn’t give an ounce of answer. That’s all I need to hear.
I released a sharper battle cry this time, ready to see her brain scatter in the snowy ground.
But the stone only managed to hit her shoulder as a firm grip around my wrist sent me gaping.
“Save it for tomorrow,” Zarion tried to remain composed, holding his tears at bay. Our eyes met, and some sort of silent language passed between us. His gaze calmed my raging fire. We remained staring for the next few minutes.
I didn’t regret it, but I also didn’t see it as a worthy move, especially the next time I glanced at Hestia, she was already fleeing. She left her Rogue unconscious a few feet before us. Coward.
“She’s always a coward, even until the end of our fight.”
“She was born a coward.” Zarion jerked to the running Hestia. I bet she has several gashes and wounds now considering the trees and branches in the Misty Forest are unforgiving.
Zarion sighed as he shifted his body so he’ll face me fully. “Showing to Hestia that you are a force to be reckoned with is enough to let her knees wobble when she enters the arena tomorrow.”
We began walking away, Caleb and Bridgette, our two Betas trailing behind. We left Vereena in the cold behind. We were about to turn around the corner when we heard movements behind us. Vereena finally awaked. And even when we’re far, I still beheld the fear in her eyes as she panicked. She doesn’t know where to run, realizing her mistress has left her.
All alone. She’s all alone in the cold. All alone in fighting us.
Good thing that Zarion and I decided that one fight is enough for the day. The Rogue ended up running in the opposite direction where Hestia fled. She better not cross paths with us or the chance that we gave her to live will be over.
“You were a badass there, Luna.” Bridgette’s praise sent me blushing.
“Is that true?” Zarion’s eyes twinkled. “I saw the broken trunks of the trees. You two threw them in a few moves, huh?”
“Correct.”
Caleb and Zarion gave us a round of applause. Caleb gave me a curtsy bow. Bridgette and I couldn’t help but laugh.
“How does it feel?” Beta Caleb eyed me, his questions mirrored Zarion’s.
“Consider it as training for tomorrow. Some sort of blocking, if tomorrow was a dance performance.”
“Then show them how the Luna of the Volatile Hands Pack dances when facing off such a bitch of an enemy, Luna Cassidy.”
I smiled at Bridgette, winked at Caleb, and stuck out my tongue to Zarion. “To hell I will.”