The Nameless Luna – Book Two: What Binds and Breaks: Chapter 22

‘Are you sure about this?’ I ask Tristan, unable to keep the concern out of my voice.
‘My daughter is right,’ Marco adds. ‘I am grateful for everything you have done, and I appreciate the support, but this is not your battle. If you go now, there is still enough time to get your army out of these woods and away from this fight.’
‘All due respect, your majesty,’ Nico says, shifting in his seat with a sly smile. ‘But why do you think you’re here?’
The flowers… the pack’s army… the Rovers didn’t come here to punish me or fight me. They did it to protect me. Even when they believed I’d betrayed or abandoned them, they came all this way to fight by my side.
I turn to Tristan, testing the link between our minds that I first felt when I shifted and looked into his eyes. I know our connection is not nearly as strong as it might be if he marked me and we actually mated, but now that I’ve manifested a wolf, maybe it’s strong enough that he can hear me just as my father does.
‘You are my king. But I am not your Luna. You don’t have to do this. None of them have to do this.’
He turns to face me, and I know from the glint in his eyes that he heard me. He doesn’t seem surprised.
‘My little flower… always so unassuming. I told you once I would tear the Banes into pieces if they tried to hurt you again. Did you think I was lying?’
I shake my head, but before I can protest further, he brings my hand to his lips and kisses the backs of my knuckles, his lips on my skin making my mind go blank.
‘My mate, my fight,’ he says softly. Then, he lowers my hand and turns to face the rest of the council gathered. ‘We all have our own reasons for wanting Viktor stopped, but this isn’t just personal. If Viktor defeats the nightwalkers, he will be the most powerful Alpha in history. How long before he turns his attention to the Rovers? He hates all outcasts. If he wins, none of us will be safe.’
To my surprise, Helena is the next to speak, something shimmering in the healer’s eyes. I’ve never seen a nightwalker look emotional that way. She sits with her head held high, her shoulders squared, and her voice quiet, but there’s a vulnerability in her crimson gaze that I did not expect.
‘I believe each one of us at this table has suffered in one way or another because we were different. Nightwalkers have lived in secret for years because of that. The very things that make us dangerous have made us prey.’ She pauses for a moment, her attention going around the table as she looks at each of us before turning back to my father. ‘I, for once, am tired of hiding. If the wolves will stand with us, it would be my privilege to fall among them.’
‘The flower is one of us,’ Lucy chimes in, and I’m surprised when her brother nods in agreement. ‘Besides, we’re the pack of outcasts and misfits. The nightwalkers are basically family. We fight for our own and for others like us who were never given the chance.’
‘She’s right,’ Amara says. ‘Our indolence would be complicity. If we let men like Viktor Massen destroy this kingdom, then we deserve whatever his tyranny brings next into ours.’
‘She means we’re in,’ Mark adds. ‘All of us chose to be here. The same goes for our brothers and sisters waiting to join us in the woods. Just say the word, and we’ll fight by your side. Personally, I can’t wait to kick some Bane ass.’
I turn to my mate one last time to ask, ‘You’re sure? There will be no turning back.’
He smiles at me, a hint of sadness in his eyes when he answers just for me, ‘There never was. Not for me. Not when it comes to you. But if it helps you to hear it, I’m sure. We all are.’
‘Then it’s decided,’ I say, turning back to the rest of our council.
‘You have my thanks and that of my clan, Rogue King,’ my father adds.
‘There’s no need for it.’ Tristan shakes his head. ‘Just tell me what we can do.’
What to do indeed…
‘Now that all the sappy parts are done with, let’s talk strategy. We do have a plan… right?’ Lucy asks.
‘We could barricade the entrance of the fortress and block off the bridge?’ Helena offers. ‘Viktor and his allies will never get across the chasm.’
‘If we seal off the bridge, we condemn our allies in the woods. Even if we move the Rovers’ army into the fortress, a siege will not end well.’
My father is right. The army coming for us can wait us out. The truth is that Viktor has had years to prepare. Hell, he’s had the better part of his life to figure out how to take down the nightwalkers after failing against them so miserably in the past. He’ll be prepared to wait.
Eventually, the nightwalkers will need to hunt. Even with the livestock and resources in the citadel, vampires need blood, and there won’t be enough resources for the Rover army if we house them as well. We need access to the forest.
Besides, wolves don’t exactly do well in confined spaces. Even with the best of intentions and a sincere alliance, locking a bunch of werewolves and vampires in a castle for an extended period of time seems like a recipe for disaster. Between the full moons and the eventual blood lust…
No. A siege is not an option.
‘We’ve hidden from the rest of the world for long enough. If our enemy is coming for us, then we will face them, but we should get Rover forces across the bridge.’
‘You’d have the battle happen on the doorstep of your own city? Why not face them in the woods?’ Mark asks my father with uncertainty.
‘We cannot risk the weather,’ Helena replies solemnly, and many of the Rovers frown in confusion.
‘Sunlight,’ I explain. ‘With a bit of luck, the mist and clouds will give us enough coverage for the fight, but the Banes will be arriving at dawn. If the sun is out, the nightwalkers will be at a disadvantage against the wolves. They will have to stick to the shadows, and they’ll need the cover of the citadel.’
The castle was designed to cast a shadow over the village during the brightest hours of the day, and everything inside the fortress was meant to provide coverage.
‘This fortress of stone was designed to withstand the ages. It was built with blood magic, and it will outlive us all,’ my father says gravely. ‘It will provide shadow and give us the opportunity to thin out the Banes’ forces. We will have higher ground when they cross the bridge. We can pick them off as they try to enter, and even once they’ve breached the gates, they won’t be able to fit an entire army through at once. It will give us an advantage against their numbers.’
‘We can evacuate anyone unwilling or unable to fight to the central square in the village. The enemy will have to get through all of us and the entirety of the keep before spilling innocent blood,’ Helena adds.
‘But if we lose the fight, we’ll have nowhere to retreat,’ Nico points out. ‘If Viktor manages to take the castle, then we all die in the dark, and there will be nothing to stop him from destroying the village anyway.’
‘Then we do not retreat,’ Amara says. ‘We will not run, and we will not hide. Viktor won’t stop, so we do not retreat. We do not lose.’
There is something final about her words that makes the room go silent. Mark and Tristan exchange a look, and I can tell my mate is giving his Beta a silent command.
Mark nods at his king and stands. ‘I’ll get our army on the right side of the bridge and prepare for battle.’
My father sends Helena with him to gather the nightwalkers. They will join the wolves and tell the Rovers what they need to know to navigate the fortress.
The fight must start at the bridge and end before it gets to the city, with most of the battle taking place along the wall and the inner bailey of the castle. If it comes to it, we lead the enemy to the heart of the keep and make our final stand there.
I turn to my mate, my hand still in his.
‘Together?’
No siege. No chance of retreat. No escape. War is really coming, and we will either win or die.
‘Together.’