Chapter 3: CHAINS OF THE THRONE
1183 Words
Kaelen’s POV
“You dare challenge me in my own pack?”
The King’s voice thundered through the hall like a whip. Every guard stiffened, their hands already twitching toward their blades.
I stood my ground. My claws itched to rip something apart, but I kept them at bay. My pulse was steady, my voice cold.
“I challenge you,” I said, stepping closer to where he stood, “because you’re sitting on what’s mine… my pack, and trying to destroy the one the Moon Goddess has chosen for me. Tell me, Your Majesty… What does that make you? A sadist who loves seeing my mates die instantly after being marked? This one”.... I pointed at Elara… “did not die, but you want her death instantly. You want to kill her yourself. What does that tell you? That you’re happy seeing me suffer? That you’ll even go as far as changing what the Moon Goddess has already planned?”
Gasps rippled through the hall. The air thickened with fear.
The King’s expression faltered for a heartbeat, surprise, disbelief, before it hardened into pure venom.
“How dare you speak to me like that, boy?”
“I stopped being a boy the day you sent me to die for your pride,” I shot back.
The room went silent. Even the guards who stood eagerly with their swords to fight me trembled back, knowing I’d just spoken the truth.
“Seize him!” the King roared. “And the girl too! I want them both alive!”
Ten of his elite guards… the ones trained for Alpha-level threats, surged forward.
Elara, still weak from the bond’s power, staggered beside me. Her skin was pale, her breathing shallow. The scent of her fear hit me like a dagger to the gut.
“Stay behind me,” I murmured.
The first guard lunged. I met him halfway and buried my hand in his chest before he could blink. The next swung his blade, I ducked, slammed my elbow into his jaw, and kicked him into the marble pillar. His bone cracked.
“Kaelen!” Elara cried out.
“Please, we need to surrender. You can’t fight all these people, they outnumber you.”
I was faster, stronger. But there were too many of them. Elara was right.
More soldiers poured in, their heavy boots thundering. The King’s laughter echoed through it all, cruel and satisfied.
“You’ll drown in your arrogance, boy,” he said. “Lay down your weapon.”
I wanted to tear his throat out. But looking at Elara, barely standing, her lips trembling, I couldn’t. She hadn’t eaten in over two days, and the power from our bond was draining what little strength she had left.
If I kept fighting, she’d die here and that, I couldn’t allow.
I lowered my blade, my eyes locked on the King. “You’ll regret this,” I murmured.
“Chain them,” he commanded. “Take them to the lower cells, the ones we built for traitors.”
The soldiers grabbed us roughly. One struck me across the face, another twisted Elara’s wrist until she whimpered. My wolf snarled beneath my skin, but I forced it down. Not yet.
They dragged us through the cold stone corridors, the stench of mold and blood thick in the air, until one of the guards led us to the dungeon.
The single cell waited, carved from rock, laced with wolfsbane and silver.
They shoved us inside. The door slammed shut with a hollow clang.
For a long while, neither of us spoke. I leaned against the wall, every muscle coiled tight. The scent of silver burned my lungs, but I didn’t care. I was counting footsteps. Timing rotations. Watching the patterns.
“How long do you think he’ll keep us here?” Elara asked weakly, her voice barely a whisper.
“Until he thinks I’ve broken,” I said. “He’ll wait for me to beg. He’s always been that kind of man.”
She tried to smile, but it came out as a shiver. “You don’t seem like someone who breaks easily.”
I looked at her. Even in the dim light, she glowed, fragile, exhausted, yet still unyielding. “Neither do you.”
Silence stretched between us, thick and humming with everything we couldn’t say.
By nightfall, the dungeon grew quiet. I watched through a small hole in the door and saw most of the guards fast asleep, except one huge, hefty one who refused to rest.
“He’s going to take the consequences now,” I muttered under my breath.
Perfect.
I shifted slightly, letting my chains rattle just enough to draw his attention.
“What?” he barked.
“I need to piss,” I said flatly.
He snorted. “You can piss in your corner like a dog.”
I tilted my head, feigning calm. “Your King won’t like that smell seeping up through his precious walls.”
He hesitated, then groaned and stood. “Fine. Make it quick.” He unlocked the outer gate, keeping his distance but watching me closely.
I turned my back to him, pretending to fumble with my belt.
Then, in one smooth motion, I spun, grabbed him by the throat, and slammed him against the wall before he could shout. His eyes went wide, I covered his mouth with one hand and snapped his neck with the other.
The sound was clean, quiet and final.
Elara gasped softly. “Kaelen…”
“Shh.” I knelt, taking the keys from his belt and unlocking the cell door. “We don’t have much time.”
Her body trembled as I lifted her into my arms. She was light, too light. Her heartbeat fluttered against my chest like a trapped bird.
I tiptoed silently as a ghost. I could hear the soft snores of sleeping guards beyond the hall, the low hum of magic wards pulsing faintly along the stone.
I found the weakest point, the old tunnel that led toward the forest edge and pushed through.
The cold night air hit us like freedom.
For the first time in hours, I breathed.
The moon hung low, blood-red over the wildlands. I carried her through the thick trees, my boots sinking into damp soil, every sense sharpened.
She stirred faintly. “Where are we going?”
“Anywhere far enough to relax and get you food. You need to be strong.”
She nodded weakly and rested her head against my shoulder.
“I’m sorry to put you in this kind of situation, running away from your own palace,” she said quietly.
“No… don’t think like that. You’re proof that something’s behind my mates dying whenever I mark them. You’re a blessing.”
“My Alpha. Wait…”
A voice called out from behind, running toward us.
I froze. My muscles tensed instantly. The air shifted… that voice was familiar.
Slowly, I turned toward the sound.
And before I could even speak… “I’m going with you,” he said.
- Writer
