Claimed By A Midnight King

Chapter 49

Elara’s POV

I was preparing vegetables in the kitchen when she appeared.

The air was warm. Steam rose from the pots. Marta was shouting at servants about slow hands and wasted time.

Everything was normal.

Then she appeared in the doorway like she belonged there.

A woman. Tall. Scars on her face from old fights. Solari armor underneath a servant’s cloak. She moved with the confidence of someone who knew exactly where she was and why.

“Everyone leave,” she said. Not a question. An order.

The servants looked at me. Waiting for my signal.

“Go,” I said. “Now. To the upper kitchens.”

They left quickly. They understood something important was happening.

The woman waited until we were completely alone. Then she removed the servant’s cloak.

Pure Solari armor underneath. A sigil on her chest that marked her as a scout. A sword at her side.

“You’re the spymaster’s mate,” she said.

I put my hand on the dagger Silas gave me. The one he said I’d need someday.

“Yes,” I said carefully.

“My name is Corvina,” the woman said. “I’ve been working with your mate for three years. Deep cover in the Solari ranks. Scout and liaison.”

My mind raced. Silas had a spy in the Solari military? For three years?

“Why are you telling me this?” I asked.

“Because Silas sent me,” Corvina said. “Because the timeline just accelerated and he needed someone to deliver a message he couldn’t deliver himself. Someone the pack wouldn’t suspect. Someone who could get in and out without being noticed.”

“How did you get past the gates?” I asked.

“I came as a Solari liaison,” Corvina said. “Damian sent scouts to assess the mountain. I was one of them. I separated from my unit during the approach and came through the servant passages. I know the tower layout because Silas taught me every corridor, every room, every exit.”

She stepped closer.

“Invasion comes tomorrow at dawn,” she said. Her voice was flat. “As a matter of fact ,the Solari forces are positioned. Damian gives the order tonight. Gates breach by mid morning. Full assault by afternoon.”

“Why warn us?” I asked.

“Because I’ve seen what they’re planning to do,” Corvina said. Her voice changed then. Showed emotion for the first time. “And I can’t be part of it anymore.”

She looked directly at me.

“The girl. Vivian,” Corvina said. “They’re not coming for conquest. They’re coming for her. Damian’s father wants her alive. Wants to study her power. Wants to turn her into a weapon.”

My blood went cold.

“She’s Astraea,” Corvina continued. “Ancient bloodline. Dormant power. When she bonded with the Alpha, it woke up. The Solari have been tracking her for months. Silas knew this. That’s why he positioned me in the Solari ranks. To gather intelligence. To understand their true goal.”

“What’s Astraea?” I asked.

“A power source,” Corvina said. “Old magic. Dangerous magic. The Solari want to weaponize it. They want to turn her into a tool they can use or control. If Dominic loses, if the mountain falls, they’ll take her. And she’ll never see freedom again.”

She moved toward the door.

“Tell Silas the timeline changed,” she said. “Tell him to move up every plan. Tell him I’ve done what I could from inside. The rest is up to him.”

“Wait,” I said. “What happens to you?”

“I disappear,” Corvina said. “I go back to the Solari camp. I pretend I never came here. I continue gathering intelligence for as long as I can. And when the siege ends, when Silas wins, I’ll have information about Solari weakness that he can use.”

“And if Silas loses?” I asked.

“Then I die a Solari warrior,” she said. “At least this way, I die knowing I tried to do the right thing.”

She pulled the cloak back on.

“Get people moving,” Corvina said. “Evacuate to lower levels. Tonight. Before dawn. Move food, water, supplies. Move civilians to defensible positions. You have twelve hours.”

“Why are you helping us?” I asked. “You’re Solari. We’re enemy.”

Corvina was quiet for a moment.

“Because Silas saved my life three years ago,”she said finally. “Found me beaten by my own unit for questioning orders. Took me in. Trained me. Trusted me with his life when he had no reason to. And because I’m tired of being part of something I don’t believe in.”

She moved to the door, then paused.

“The girl. Vivian. She’s not just power,” Corvina said. “Silas told me stories. Told me what she means to him, to the Alpha, to the pack.She’s worth fighting for. Worth dying for. That’s why I’m doing this.”

Then she was gone.

I ran to find Silas.

He was in the war room with Dominic and Kade. Maps spread across the table. Strategy being discussed. Preparations being made.

When they saw my face, they knew.

“What happened?” Silas asked. He was already moving toward me.

“Invasion,” I said. “Tomorrow. At dawn. Twelve hours.”

The room went absolutely quiet.

Dominic’s expression didn’t change, but I felt something shift. Like he’d known this was coming. Like he’d been waiting for the final confirmation.

“One day,” Silas said quietly. He understood the implications. Understood that the timeline had just collapsed.

“Yes,” I said.

Silas pulled me close.

“A woman named Corvina came to me,” I said. “She said she was your spy. That she’s been working with you for three years. That the Solari are coming for Vivian specifically.”

Silas and Dominic exchanged a look. A moment of perfect understanding passed between them.

“I sent her,” Silas said. “Before the invasion became certain. I needed someone inside the Solari ranks. Someone who could gather intelligence. Someone who could warn us if the timeline changed.”

“Is she coming back?” I asked.

“She’s going to do what she can from inside,” Silas said. “After that, she’s Solari. She’ll die if they discover her betrayal.”

“Then we have to make sure she survives,” I said.

Silas looked at me like I’d just understood something important.

“We will,” he said. “Because she’s family now. Because Corvina trusted me with her life, and I’m going to make sure that sacrifice means something.”

Dominic spoke up.

“Then we prepare,” he said. His voice was absolute. Final. “Kade, get every warrior to the walls. Now. Send messengers to the territories. Tell them the Solari are coming. Tell them to prepare or evacuate.”

He looked at me.

“Get the servants moving,” he said. “Take every civilian to the lower levels. The deep storage areas. Anywhere that’s defensible. We move tonight.No waiting.”