Ultima Trials

Changed Rogue

Noah’s POV

I was released that night after the most excruciating process of getting a wolf shoved into my body. Just further proof that I was stronger than any other wolf. The woman had told me that the last wolf they tried it with died after only an hour. I lasted five.

It was the dead of night, and I had no money, and only my wolf to guide me to the first pack. It was small and weak. My wolf took the single Alpha with ease. The very next morning, I began training my new wolves to fight. They were strong, which was surprising considering how weak their Alpha was. Three days later, I took another pack. That pack was more difficult because they had numbers, but numbers did not make up for the strength of my pack. Those that were defiant were killed on sight. I was Alpha and no one would defy me.

The first week past, and I had already taken four packs. I now had both numbers and strength. I was ready.

Cam’s POV

“What are we planning to do about this, Alpha?” Bentley looked to Hayden.

We had heard that Noah was back and slowly taking over smaller packs. He had gathered around six or seven hundred wolves under his command. We all knew his first stop after gathering an army would be Black Storm.

Hayden stared down at the letter he had sent. It was short and sweet. “I’m coming.” Cliché but whatever.

“Alpha, we should get the borders protected, move the pack closer to the pack house.” Rich suggested.

Hayden continued to stare at the letter.

“Alpha-“ I stopped Bentley from asking anything else. I motioned for them to leave and waited until they closed the doors.

It had been a little over a week since Hunter had woken up, and there was something different about my mate. She was much more dominate than she had been before. Too many questions would set her off, and almost every day for the past week we had to clean up her office. She had to shift more often than she had before, and even her beautiful snow-white coat was changing. Mira was much more stand-offish with Jersey. We barely ran together. She also didn’t link to him as often.

“He wants a war.” Hayden growled.

I said nothing as she stared at the letter. It had been delivered almost three hours before and it was the first thing she had said since it was left on the doorstep of the packhouse.

“I’ll give him war.” She growled and threw the letter in the fireplace behind her.

She shoved past me and left her office. Though I loved Hayden, I couldn’t allow her to use our pack in a war we may not win. Black Storm was strong, but Noah had been gathering the strongest small packs in the country. Moving them closer and closer to us.

I sighed as I followed her. I felt the mind link connect and Hayden order the entire pack to the front of the packhouse. She never gathered them like this before. The fear poured through the pack bond, and even that pissed Hayden off. I shut my side of the mate bond off. They needed at least one of us to be calm enough to explain what was happening.

“Alpha? What’s going on?” A young warrior asked.

“Don’t ask questions. There is a war coming. If you can fight, you will be on the border. Move the pups into the old warrior suites in the packhouse. Every able-bodied person will defend our pack, our home. If you do not, I will not hesitate to banish you and you can live as a rogue.” Hayden growled.

I stared at her. Was she serious? What the hell was wrong with her?

“What our Alpha means is-“ I tried.

“I said what I meant. Either you fight or get the hell out.” She growled at me and turned on her heel going back into the packhouse.

The pack all looked to me. Hayden had never ordered anyone to fight. Half of the able-bodied members of our pack had never received proper training. She was sending them off to the slaughter.

“Don’t worry.” I said trying to calm the whispers, “I will fix this. Warriors, get with Beta Rich, and get new assignments. Gamma Bentley has already begun organizing the pups in the warrior building.”

I gave them a smile and went to find Hayden. She was pacing in her office. She didn’t even notice when I came into the room. Her mutters and growls grew as I tried to get closer to her.

“Hay, what’s going on? Talk to me.” I asked.

She ignored me, continuing to pace her office.

“Hayden, I think we should talk about what you told the pack. You can’t..”

“Do not tell me what I can and cannot do with my pack! I am the Alpha! You’re just.. just weak. You let some rogue take what was rightfully YOURS. I AM THE ALPHA!” She screamed; her eyes were black.

Whatever Eli had done had awakened the negative part of her twin bond. Hunter hadn’t been seen in days. After they woke up from the coma, neither had spoken to each other. Hayden had been growing worse with each day. I decided not to argue with her any longer. My first call was to the elders. I needed Hayden out of the Alpha title until she was under control. She would be pissed but after trying to send our pack to slaughter, I couldn’t let her lead. The next call was to Eli.

“What the hell did you do to my mate?”

Cam’s POV

Hayden had been thrashing in the cell since we had to tranquilize her. She had attacked me the moment the elders came into her office and relived her of her title for the time being. I declined the right to Alpha as her mate. I needed to focus on getting her better. Rich was appointed interim Alpha.

Hunter whimpered in the corner of the interrogation room watching as his sister thrashed about. It was almost as if he felt all her anger but instead of anger he felt blissfully happy. What was it that Eli had said? Twins are complimentary, where one is calm the other is war filled. Or where one was angry the other was peaceful.

I had read up more on twins. As their wolves grew so did the bond between them. Their first shift was supposed to balance the two wolves. The imprint. The one that never happened because they weren’t together when they shifted.

“Shit.” I said as I looked at my mate.

“What?” Bentley asked finally speaking to me.

I explained my theory. It was the only thing that would make sense. Their wolves were supposed to bond during the shift, but as far as I knew they had never shifted together or even at the same time. Though we had Hunter back, they were both lost in the feelings of their wolves. Hunter began laughing as Hayden threw the chair against the window for the hundredth time in the last few hours.

Breach! One of the warriors bellowed through our minds.

I snarled as I looked from Hayden to Hunter. Neither of them would be much help during an attack. “Keep them both down here until I deal with this shit.”

I didn’t fight Jersey on the shift, as soon as we made it through the doors, I saw the full out war Noah had brought to my home. Too close to my mate. Jersey grabbed the first wolf he didn’t recognize and secured his neck in our jaws. The wolf went limp before we threw him jumping onto the backs of Noah’s wolves. I had taken out five of the enemy’s pack, when I saw the first flash of a silver wolf. He smelled familiar, both powerful and rogue. The wolf zoomed between the trees ducking between the brush and the fallen trees.

I had seen this wolf before, but it was different. I continued to take out the rogues, my eyes still trying to find the silver wolf. I didn’t want to move far from the bunker I had locked my mate and her brother in. I shifted back and released my aura. Jersey was chomping at the bit to get his hands on whoever had come to disrupt my home, especially while my mate was so vulnerable.

“If you continue to fight, I will not hesitate to end you all!” I bellowed. “STOP FIGHTING!”

The snarls continued, but each wolf bowed in submission. Bentley and Rich were by my side in an instant. I ordered them to gather all the dead wolves, the enemy would be sent back to their home pack and ours would be buried with their fellow warriors. Emma had begun separating warriors when the silver wolf sprang out from the tree line. Immediately he shifted and even Jersey was shocked to see Noah.

He’s different. I’ve seen his wolf. This isn’t it. Jersey was confused.

I was too. Most Alphas were black. Noah was a second born, and his wolf was a mangy gray color the last time I had seen it. Now he was brilliantly silver. The aura that rolled from this wolf was also different than the one that Noah had attempted to use on me for years. It didn’t affect me still, but it was much more powerful. Almost familiar.

“Camden.” He greeted me. His body looked worn down. As if his wolf was too powerful for his body.

“Noah. You’ve been a busy little s**t haven’t you?”

He snorted and tilted his head as his eyes glazed over. “Where’s the b***h?”

Jersey released a snarl at the insult to his mate. He pushed forward, his need to get back to Hayden was stronger than I wanted to fight with. We shifted again, going straight for Noah’s unprotected neck. There was no time for games.

Except instead of making contact with the flesh of another wolf, I was met with nothing. Our body flopped to the ground. Jersey scrambled to his feet and flipped around to find that Noah wasn’t in the same spot. Jersey released a deep growl before snapping. Missed again.

Jersey, what the hell? I had never seen him miss his target.

It’s not me! It’s the little s**t. He’s somehow moving before I get to him.

Is it just me or is there something else going on here?

Jersey hadn’t moved since missing the second time. At least that time we landed on our paws rather than our side. We turned around to find that Noah was nowhere to be seen. What the f**k?

The familiar emptiness flooded my body as the mate bond ripped apart. Jersey howled in pain and forced himself towards the bunker. He couldn’t feel his mate anymore. Noah had taken Hayden.