MATED TO THE BEAST ALPHA BROTHERS
Chapter 40: Queen of hollow.

Chapter 40: Queen of hollow.

"You should all be grateful," Haelyn’s voice was calm, yet it carried an eerie weight, echoing through the ruins like a ghostly whisper.

She stood at the edge of the now-collapsing hall, her posture regal, almost amused as she surveyed the destruction behind her.

The great chamber....once a seat of power and judgment... was now reduced to nothing but rubble.

And she had destroyed it with a flick of her hand.

Not even a single muscle in her body tensed at the sight of its complete annihilation.

Her fingers, elegant yet deadly, traced over the dust that lingered on her arm, and she wiped it away as if brushing off something insignificant.

As if this whole disaster meant nothing to her.

And then.....

She turned.

And they were all waiting.

Cerius.

Archer.

Artemis.

Seraphis.

Rowena.

Xander.

Ravi.

Their expressions were a mixture of wariness and disbelief.

But one thing was clear.....

They knew.

This wasn’t Haelyn.

And she knew they knew.

Yet, she only smirked.

"What?" she drawled lazily, tilting her head to the side. "Don’t tell me you’re scared?"

Archer moved first.

Without hesitation.

Without doubt.

He ran toward her, his heartbeat hammering in his ears, the weight of desperation tightening in his chest.

"Haelyn!" he called, his voice raw.

She didn’t move.

Didn’t flinch.

Didn’t acknowledge the way his eyes burned with longing.

He reached for her....

And then....

The Faceless Wraiths appeared.

Their shrieks tore through the air....high-pitched, hollow, and utterly inhuman.

They materialized from the shadows, their long, bony fingers stretching out toward Archer as if ready to rip him apart.

His wolf snarled in warning, but he didn’t stop.

Not until.....

"I’d be careful if I were you, Alpha King."

Her voice cut through the chaos.

Archer halted.

She was smirking at him, her arms casually folded as if the entire scene was a mere inconvenience to her.

"My children have no chills and are fiercely protective of me."

She gestured at the creatures, and they hissed but obeyed, withdrawing into the darkness.

Archer’s breathing was ragged.

His hands trembled at his sides.

But it wasn’t fear that made him shake.

It was rage.

He didn’t care what creature was looking through her eyes.

He didn’t care what dark force was puppeteering her body.

She was still his mate.

And he wouldn’t lose her.

"What have you done to her?" he demanded, his voice trembling with fury.

She laughed.

A soft, mocking laugh that sent chills down his spine.

"Nothing she didn’t agree to."

Seraphis stepped closer, her gaze narrowing at Haelyn’s form.

"She’s..." her voice trailed as she suddenly noticed.

Cerius saw it too.

His eyes flickered toward Haelyn’s stomach.

The swell of her belly.

The undeniable truth of life growing within her.

"She’s further along," he murmured.

Seraphis inhaled sharply.

"She’ll be due soon," she whispered to him, her fingers clutching the edge of her cloak. "We need to get whoever that is out of her before she delivers."

Cerius’s jaw tightened.

"And if we don’t?"

Seraphis exhaled shakily.

"Then whatever is inside her..." her voice darkened, her fingers clenching.

"Will be born into this world as something we cannot stop."

Haelyn....or what wore her face. let out a dramatic sigh, tilting her head.

"Oh, come on. Don’t look so terrified."

Her hands traced the curve of her stomach, her fingers ghosting over the fabric that covered the growing child within.

"It’s safe," she said, mocking their concern.

"Unlike the rest of you, I would never let harm come to my child."

Her child.

The way she said it unsettled them.

Rowena stiffened.

Artemis’s hands curled into fists.

Seraphis clenched her teeth.

This wasn’t Haelyn.

But it was still her body.

Still her baby.

And if they couldn’t find a way to free her....

They were going to lose her forever.

Thunder rumbled above them.

The wind howled, carrying an unsettling energy through the air.

Cerius stepped forward, his voice low and commanding.

"What do you want?"

Haelyn blinked at him.

Then smiled.

"I want what I should have gotten centuries ago."

Cerius’s blood ran cold.

"Which is?"

Her smile widened.

Her eyes burned with something ancient.

And then.....

The sky above them shattered.

Lightning cracked.

Wind roared.

And for the first time in centuries....

The Elders of the Abyss stirred.

And they were coming.

"Archer... please... save me."

Haelyn’s voice was barely a whisper, but it sliced through the roaring thunder like a desperate plea.

Her body trembled violently as she collapsed to her knees, gasping for air, clawing at her throat as if something unseen was choking the life out of her.

Her eyes flickered.....not the cold, merciless gaze of the entity controlling her.....but the familiar, fragile light of the real Haelyn.

For a fleeting second....she was there.

The Haelyn they knew.

Tears welled in her wide, terrified eyes as they locked onto Archer.

"Archer! Please... please save me! I can’t take it anymore!"

Her voice cracked, raw, trembling, desperate.

Archer froze.

His heart stopped.

She was there.

The mate he had fought for, bled for, searched for.....

She was begging him to save her.

"Haelyn!" he lunged forward.....

And then.....

She was gone.

Her body stiffened.

Her trembling hands relaxed.

Her face went blank.

And when she looked up again.....

The other one was back.

The cruel smirk.

The amused, hollow gaze.

"Tsk, tsk," she taunted, tilting her head mockingly. "You almost had her, Alpha King. Such a shame, really."

Archer’s wolf howled in agony.

"You....!" He surged forward, his rage blinding, but....

BOOM.

A deafening crack of thunder shook the heavens.

And suddenly.....

The sky screamed.

"Release her! RELEASE HER!"

The voice wasn’t singular.

It was many.

Hundreds....thousands....all at once.

A chorus of ancient wails erupted from the storm, echoing across the lands, rattling the ground beneath them.

The wind howled violently, twisting like an enraged beast.

Bolts of lightning struck the earth, splitting the ground as if the heavens themselves were demanding justice.

Haelyn....or the entity wearing her body....jerked as if the voices pierced through her mind.

Her head snapped back, her hands clutching her skull as she screamed in pain.

"STOP IT!!" she roared, but the storm only grew louder.

Thunder rumbled again.

"Release her!! RELEASE HER!!!"

Then....

Everything went silent.

No more thunder.

No more screaming.

Just....silence.

Haelyn panted, her body trembling.

Then she smiled.

"Tch. Useless noise."

The smirk barely had time to settle on her lips before.....

She vanished.

Everything was still.

The air felt empty.

As if the world itself had been holding its breath....

And suddenly exhaled.

Archer stood frozen, his fingers still reaching for her ghost.

His entire body shook.

His hands....helpless.

"She’s gone."

Seraphis’s voice was barely a whisper, but it cut through the silence like a blade.

Artemis swallowed hard, his fists clenched. "Again."

Rowena turned to Cerius, her voice hoarse.

"Do you think Zareth is...?"

Cerius didn’t answer immediately.

His piercing gaze remained locked on the empty space Haelyn had just disappeared from.

Then, after a long pause....

"No."

The single word felt heavier than the storm that had just passed.

Rowena frowned. "But...."

"He will come back," Cerius interrupted, his voice grim.

"And if we don’t find a way to fix this before then..."

His silver eyes darkened, unreadable.

"He will return even worse than before."

The air grew heavy.

Nobody spoke.

Because they all knew,

Zareth wasn’t the only problem anymore.

Haelyn was.

And if they didn’t get her back before she gave birth....

They would lose her forever.