Big Bad Wolf Chapter 105: Their Only Hope

The sounds of blades colliding against one another, horror-laden screaming, and agony filled the air in Velaris just a couple of hours after the initial explosions. The screams of men and women fighting for their lives could be heard coming from every direction. Flames erupted from homes, bodies lay on the streets and ledges of the walls, and flying shape-shifters swooped down, snatching up enemies before dropping them to their deaths.

After the first wave of rebels emerged from the breach in the middle of the garden in the Casa, the second wave came, and Alex sprang and rushed for one of the larger mounds of human soldiers. He fought every one of them with a sword.

He then raced down the yard till he arrived at the training field. Although they had reduced half of the Casa to rubble as a result of the several explosions they had put off, by the time reinforcements from Velaris's close neighbors arrived, most of the rebels were either exhausted or badly hurt from fighting.

Rescuing, let alone finding, Harper had not been as simple as Alex had anticipated. He hadn't seen Harper or even any signs of her, nor had he spotted any traces of Lucas while he searched the area. And as soon as he arrived at the far eastern end of the enormous Casa, he saw that the rebels, most of whom were former slaves, were already overwhelmed by the swarm of soldiers who had come to Gillen's aid.

He tried to shift. Nothing happened.

"Shit!" he hissed. He was finding it difficult to let his wolf out. And the harder he tried, the more he felt like the wound in his chest was going to rip him apart.

The tip of the sword Lucas used to stab him had grazed his heart, and Gwinifer had warned him that it would take time before he could fully recover. But, given the circumstances, he was practically desperate to unleash the beast.

Cursing loudly, he looked down at the only weapon he had to defend himself. The sword Alpha Redmane gave him.

And he had just sliced the throat of one vampire when he was caught in a chokehold from behind by another. His sword slipped from his hand. A third charged with a sword at him. He leaped to seize the blade between his feet. He twisted his legs quickly and forcefully, snapping the vampire's wrist. The bloodsucker attempted to reach for his fallen weapon but was stopped by Alex's powerful kick to the face.

Alex shoved his head back towards the vampire who was holding him. As the vampire's nose broke, he was delighted to hear the unmistakable crunching sound. Before the vampire had a chance to regain his composure, Alex turned and raked his sharp claws across his throat. The stricken soldier collapsed on his knees, his hands clutching the large gash in his throat.

Alex looked down at his hand. He hadn't realized his claws had come out. He was finally merging with his wolf. It was a huge relief for him since he actually preferred slaying with his claws to killing with a sword. They were noticeably more acute, and it was far less difficult.

Suddenly, the vampire he had kicked came screaming for him. Alex charged back, his bleeding nails digging deep into the vampire's chest. He looked into the vampire's eyes as he plucked the heart from his body.

The lifeless vampire fell to the ground with a gaping hole in his chest. 

Then he caught a glimpse of Francine. The vampiress was fighting a lycan when a vampire approached from behind.

Grabbing a blade on the ground, Alex hurled it at the vampire. It went through the back of the guard's neck and out the other side. He died at Francine's feet just as she was climbing up the Lycan and snapping the beast's neck. She grabbed the blade from the vampire and stabbed it into the Lycan's forehead, before she looked at Alex, looking absolutely shocked.

"I can't believe it. You're... you're here. Y-you're..." she stuttered, swallowing hard as she continued. "You're *alive*!" she cried, her cheeks flushed to the point where it appeared as if she had held her breath the moment she realized he was rushing to her rescue. Her eyes welled up with tears almost immediately.

"Yes, I'm alive. Have you seen－" Francine wrapped him in a tight hug before he had a chance to finish his question.

"Oh, my god! I can't believe that this is actually happening. You're really here. Oh, my god!"

Alex carefully placed his arms around Francine and hugged the vampire back.

"How did you manage to survive?" Francine asked as soon as he let her go.

"I'm not even sure how it happened. I even told myself I wasn't going to make it." Alex took a few steps back. "Where is Harper?"

"Are you serious right now?!"

"I assure you that I am serious, Francine. Where is she?!"

"After what she's done? It was her fault that Lucas lost it." Francine took a deep breath, gathering whatever strength she had left to persuade Alex to reconsider his mind. "She rejected him, and he almost lost his mind. The rejection prompted him to kill you, for fuck’s sake!" 

Alex had a sneaking suspicion that Harper had rejected Lucas, but having Francine confirm it gave him a newfound sense of security.

And he was left with only two options at this point. He could forget about Harper and fall in love with Francine in the same way that he did with Harper. But it would be nearly impossible. Or Francine could reject him, and he could accept it, and they would go their separate ways.

But he knew Francine was never going to reject him, especially when the likelihood of his memories returning could also possibly revive his feelings for her. Although their bond was nothing more than a distant memory that he could hardly remember. And he believed that the longer Francine held on, the more damage it would do to them both.

"Francine, again, I'm sorry for the pain that I've caused you. But－"

"Alex, please don't!" Francine yelled over him. "I'm sick and tired of hearing how sorry you are. Look around you. What do you see? Chaos! We're in the midst of a war, and all you seem to care about is Harper! And you express it so blatantly without any regard to how I might feel." She shook her head. "You're not sorry at all!"

"Why don't you try and let me in again, Alex?" Francine asked, her tone dejected and almost beseeching. Her body tensed up visibly.

"I'm-" Alex began to sigh, then continued. "I'm sorry to sound like a broken record, but... look, I'm sorry, but I can't do that. I'm madly in love with Harper." Then his mouth raised in a half-smile, as if he was proud to be in love with Harper, but it didn't last long.

A roar caused them both to look up. The source of the deafening roar wasn't hard to find. On the roof of Gillen's main house, they spotted a large red wolf and a nasty-looking ghoul.

"That's the red wolf from Moorland! He and a pack of rogue wolves came chasing after us," Francine yelled. As she ran after Alex, she severed the face of a vampire who tried to lunge at her with her claws.

Alex stopped. "Alpha Redmane is fighting... is that... Gillen?" He couldn't take his eyes away from the beast engaged in battle with the red wolf. Then he realized how much bigger and more powerful Gillen was in comparison to the alpha.

This was not good.

When Alpha Redmane roared again, he noticed a large and deep cut on the alpha's stomach.

"Oh no! Shit! He's not going to make it!" Alex said between gritted teeth. "He can't lose!"

"Gillen is killing him!" Francine exclaimed.

"Fuck!" Alex bellowed. Now, more than ever, the alpha wolf needed the help of his wolf. It was time to unleash his wolf now, yet the harder he tried, the more he felt the stabbing pain in his chest. "I have to help him."

Francine was yelling something, but he didn't pay attention to her. His gaze was fixed on the Alpha Redmane and Gillen.

"I've got to help!" Alex's legs moved before Francine could say anything else. He raced forward, his clawed claws striking and ripping into every vampire and wolf in his path.

The Alpha couldn't possibly lose. They couldn't afford to lose this war. He would not allow it.

"Alex! We're almost out of bombs!" Gwinifer shouted from a distance.

As ghouls closed in, he turned to see the mage hurling another of the homemade explosives. Alex couldn't move. He was anchored to the spot by the anxiety and fear of the Alpha Redmane losing to Gillen.

Gwinifer had formed a circle to protect the rescued human slaves and tried casting spells on Velarian human soldiers who were rushing to recapture them, but the spells weren't strong enough against the ghouls, and the rescued slaves were still at risk of being dragged out.

As more forces arrived in Velaris' aid and defense, the chances of rescuing the slaves and reclaiming Velaris were dwindling fast.

She ran to Alex's side. "How come you haven't shifted yet?"

"I'm trying, but the wound in my chest... the pain is unbearable!" Alex snarled and raised his eyes just in time to see Francine hurtling through the air, killing two vampires in the process.

"Your *mate*!" Gwinifer said to Alex with a sort of teasing tone, before nodding in Francine's direction. "I told you I knew a lot about you. She's fearless; she's been slaying vampires and wolves nonstop. I thought she was going to－"

Suddenly, Gwinifer's pupils dilated for a few seconds, and she froze in midsentence.

"Gwinifer? What's happening to you? Are you okay?!"

She jolted and almost fell back. "I..." she gulped, her breath coming in heavy gasps.

"What just happened?"

"My father has been seriously injured, and they are close to the Casa."

"Who?"

"Ghouls. There are *hundreds* of them."

"Fuck!"

"We're going to lose."

"Dammit!"

"Alex, we have to find *Harper*!"

"Haper?"

"Yes. She's our *only hope*!"