MATED TO THE BEAST ALPHA BROTHERS
Chapter 74: The truth about to unravel.

Chapter 74: The truth about to unravel.

"You should’ve stayed buried, Zareth."

The voice sliced through the stillness like a blade across flesh.

Zareth didn’t turn.

Didn’t flinch.

Didn’t blink.

"You finally remember my name," he said calmly, his hand still resting on the blood-stained stone. "That’s cute."

Artemis stepped out of the smoke, dragging a corpse behind him...its face half-melted, its armor bearing Liora’s sigil.

Archer followed, sword drawn, eyes cold.

"You were there the night the Moonstone seal shattered," Archer said. "You fed her information."

Zareth chuckled softly. "And you think you’re the first to figure it out?"

Haelyn’s voice came from behind them. "You were supposed to be family."

"I was," Zareth replied. "Until your family left mine to burn."

Seraphis stepped into the half-circle, magic glowing at her fingertips. "Speak carefully. You’re not going to walk away from this."

"I don’t need to," Zareth said.

Then he finally turned.

And smiled.

"The wolves needed a villain. I gave them one."

"You gave Liora a path to my son!" Haelyn snapped, stepping forward.

"And look at him," Zareth replied smoothly. "Still breathing. Stronger than ever. Maybe he needed the fire."

Archer lunged.

Zareth sidestepped, fast...too fast...and spun a dagger into Archer’s side.

Archer grunted, staggered, but kept coming.

Zareth backflipped over a rock, landing light. "Always the brash one."

"Always the disappointment," Archer growled, ripping the blade from his side and throwing it back.

It grazed Zareth’s cheek.

The smirk vanished.

Seraphis whispered an incantation.

Chains of light shot from the ground.

Zareth leapt just in time.

"You’ll have to do better," he hissed.

Artemis grinned from the shadows. "I’ll handle that."

Then he struck.

He tackled Zareth into the mud, claws flashing.

Zareth hissed, slamming a fist into Artemis’s jaw and sending him flying into a tree trunk.

"Careful, brother wolf," Zareth sneered. "You’ll break again."

Artemis wiped the blood from his lip. "Already broken."

He charged again.

Fists collided.

Claws tore.

Blades flashed.

Haelyn moved to intervene, but Seraphis held her back. "Let them finish it."

Archer pressed a cloth to his side, wincing. "What’s his endgame?"

Seraphis’s eyes narrowed. "He doesn’t want to kill us. Not yet. He wants to destabilize us. Cut loyalty. Stir fear."

"And after that?" Haelyn asked.

Seraphis met her eyes. "He wants to crown a new heir."

They both looked at Ezra...peacefully sleeping, wrapped in blankets behind them.

Archer cursed under his breath. "He’s after the boy."

"No," Seraphis corrected. "He’s after the power that made the boy."

Zareth caught Artemis mid-leap, twisting his arm with a brutal crack. Artemis roared, slamming his forehead into Zareth’s nose.

Blood burst.

Zareth reeled.

Artemis didn’t stop...he pounced again, claws digging into Zareth’s shoulder and dragging him through the dirt.

"Where’s your magic now?" Artemis spat.

Zareth smiled through blood. "Right... here."

The ground under Artemis erupted.

Roots burst upward...dark, corrupted.

They wrapped around Artemis’s limbs, pulling tight, draining energy.

"Liora gifted me the soil," Zareth hissed. "She taught me to twist the land itself. And now..."

He stepped forward, hand glowing black.

"...I’ll drain every drop of wolfblood from your veins."

A blast of silver energy slammed into his back.

Zareth stumbled.

Seraphis stood, her hands still smoking. "Try it."

Zareth rose slowly.

"You’re not ready for what’s coming," he growled.

"We’ve survived everything else," Haelyn said, stepping forward. "You think you scare us?"

"I don’t want to scare you," Zareth said softly.

"I want to undo you."

Then he vanished.

A black ripple shot across the clearing..and he was gone.

Silence fell.

Artemis groaned from the ground, blood in his mouth. "I’m getting too old for this."

"You’re twenty-nine," Archer muttered.

"I meant spiritually."

Haelyn rushed to Ezra, scooping him up.

Still warm.

Still breathing.

But something was wrong.

"Seraphis..." she whispered. "His heartbeat’s... slow."

Seraphis touched the baby’s chest.

Her face paled.

"He’s been linked."

Archer moved beside her. "You mean tethered?"

"No," Seraphis whispered. "Zareth didn’t mark him for Liora. He anchored himself to the child’s spirit."

Artemis froze.

"That bastard..."

Haelyn shook her head. "How do we break it?"

Seraphis looked up.

"We don’t."

Archer’s hand curled into a fist. "What does that mean?"

"It means Zareth’s in," Seraphis said. "And every time Ezra breathes, he breathes with him."

Haelyn’s face shattered. "No..."

"He didn’t just betray us," Seraphis said. "He ensured that no matter where Ezra goes, Zareth will follow."

Archer backed away slowly, staring at the child. "There has to be something."

"There is," Seraphis said softly.

They all looked at her.

"You kill the anchor."

Haelyn stepped forward. "Kill Zareth."

Seraphis hesitated. "Or..."

Artemis’s voice dropped. "Or what?"

Seraphis looked at Ezra.

"Or kill the vessel."

The silence choked the air.

Haelyn didn’t move.

Her eyes stayed locked on her son.

Then her voice...low, final.

"That will never happen."

Miles away, Zareth stood on a cliffside, watching the stars bleed into the ocean horizon.

Liora approached from behind, silent.

"You pushed them too far," she said.

"Exactly where I want them."

"They’ll come for you now."

He turned slowly.

"That’s the plan."

Liora narrowed her eyes. "You marked the boy."

"I became part of him," Zareth whispered.

"Why?"

"Because one day, they’ll beg me to save him."

Liora tilted her head. "And will you?"

Zareth smiled, cold and sharp.

"Depends who’s still alive to ask."

"I want him dead."

Haelyn’s voice didn’t waver. Not once.

The cave had fallen into a silence so sharp it could draw blood. She stood by the fire, eyes locked on Seraphis.

"He marked my son. He walked into our lives and cursed my child. I want. Him. Dead."

Archer exhaled slowly. "You’ll have to get in line."

Seraphis didn’t look up. She was already working. Her hands moved in rapid, precise sigils across the cave wall, glyphs glowing blue and gold.

"You said we couldn’t sever the bond," Haelyn snapped. "You said the only way was to kill him..."

"There might be another way," Seraphis said quietly. "But you’re not going to like it."

"Try me."

Seraphis turned.

"We need to summon his blood."

Archer stepped forward. "What do you mean..."

"His lineage," Seraphis said. "The mark Zareth used is old. Rooted in his family’s soul tree. If we can drag one of them here...alive...we might be able to use their blood to override the tether."

"And what happens to the person we drag?" Artemis asked.

Seraphis didn’t answer.

Haelyn narrowed her eyes. "They die."

"If it works," Seraphis confirmed, "we get Ezra back. If it fails...Zareth will know."

Archer rubbed his temples. "Let me guess. This ritual hasn’t been done in centuries."

"It’s never been done," Seraphis muttered. "But I’ve been building it for a long time. Just in case."

Artemis smirked. "Of course you have."

"I say we kill him the old-fashioned way," Haelyn said.

Archer nodded. "Agreed."

"Good," Seraphis said, standing. "Then you’ll need bait."

They all looked at her.

She held up a dagger.

"This belonged to Zareth’s father."

Midnight.

The forest was breathing again...calm before a scream.

Artemis crouched beside the riverbank, sharpening his claws with a stone.

"You’re not subtle," Seraphis muttered.

"Wasn’t planning to be."

She crouched beside him, unrolling a scroll of sigils.

"You’re going alone?"

Artemis nodded. "You said we need one of Zareth’s blood. I’ll bring back a dozen."

"Dead or alive?"

"Don’t insult me."

She studied him for a moment. "You’re not doing this for Ezra."

"I’m doing it because I hate traitors."

She smirked. "Spoken like someone who’s been one."

He paused. "Once. Never again."

Then he was gone.

Back at the cave, Haelyn paced.

Archer watched her from the shadows.

"Talk to me," he said finally.

"No."

"You’re scaring me."

"Good."

He stepped forward. "Haelyn."

She stopped.

"I keep seeing it," she said. "Zareth standing over his cradle. Touching him. Whispering something."

"That never happened."

"How do you know?"

He didn’t answer.

She turned, her hands shaking.

"I’d die for Ezra. I’d burn this entire forest if it meant keeping him safe."

"I know."

"But I’m starting to wonder..." She looked up. "What if I have to kill for him?"

Archer didn’t flinch. "Then I’ll help you bury the bodies."

Artemis returned two nights later.

Dragging a man by the neck.

Tall. Pale. Eyes like Zareth’s. Screaming.

"He’s a cousin," Artemis growled, throwing him at Seraphis’s feet.

The man spat blood. "You don’t know what you’re doing."

"I know exactly what I’m doing," Seraphis said. "You’re going to bleed."

Haelyn stepped forward.

The man looked up. "You’re the mother."

She didn’t blink.

"My name is Calen. I didn’t choose this."

"You carry his blood."

"I never supported Zareth. I warned the council about him. He murdered my brother."

"Then prove it," she said.

He frowned. "How?"

She offered him the dagger.

"Help us destroy him."

The ritual began at dusk.

Seraphis led it. Artemis stood guard.

Archer held Ezra in the circle, close to his chest, blade at his side.

Calen stood in the center, bound by threads of light and iron.

"This will hurt," Seraphis said.

Calen nodded. "Do it."

The sigils glowed.

The cave trembled.

Ezra twitched...eyes fluttering, lips trembling.

Zareth’s presence stirred.

Haelyn’s voice broke. "It’s working."

Archer held him tighter.

Then suddenly...Ezra screamed.

Blood poured from his nose. His chest arched.

"Stop!" Haelyn shouted.

But Seraphis didn’t.

"We’re close!"

Calen screamed, convulsing.

Artemis grabbed Seraphis’s arm. "Stop it!"

The magic snapped.

The light vanished.

Ezra collapsed against Archer’s chest, unconscious but breathing.

Calen lay still.

Dead.

Haelyn knelt beside her son, shaking. "No more. I won’t risk him again."

Seraphis looked hollow. "I failed."

"No," Haelyn whispered. "We just start again."

Miles away, in a black cavern beneath the Earth...

Zareth felt the tether shudder.

He smiled.

"They’re getting desperate."

Liora watched him quietly.

"You sure this ends the way you want?"

Zareth didn’t look up.

"I’m not trying to win, Liora."

He lifted a bloodstone from the fire.

"I’m trying to erase them."