CHAPTER 5: THE JOURNEY TO IRONCLAW
1087 Words
CHAPTER 5: THE JOURNEY TO IRONCLAW
AIRA'S POV
The forest held its breath.
Aira kept her eyes fixed on the Lycan King's back, her fingers numb around the straps of her pack. Every crunch of leaves beneath her boots sounded like a death knell. The warriors flanking them moved like shadows—silent, lethal, their gazes cutting through her whenever she stumbled.
"Keep up, omega."
Rorke's growl sent ice down her spine. The scarred warrior bared his teeth when she glanced his way, his massive frame blocking the fading sunlight.
She quickened her pace.
Xavier didn't slow. Didn't look back.
The bond between them was a live wire in her chest, sparking with every step he took away from her. It shouldn't have hurt. She shouldn't have cared.
But her wolf whined low in her mind, aching for the male who refused to acknowledge her.
Is he... ours? her wolf murmured, tentative.
Aira's breath hitched.
Second-chance mates were rare. A gift from the Moon Goddess few received.
But this?
This felt like a curse.
Because Xavier Thorn was no alpha.
He was a Lycan King.
And the way his golden eyes cut through her—like he could see every secret, every fear—made her want to both kneel and run.
A shadow fell into step beside her.
"Breathe, little wolf." Darius's voice was a quiet rumble, his amber eyes crinkling at the corners. "He won't let you drop dead from exhaustion. Probably."
Aira didn't answer. Her throat was too tight.
Darius sighed, his gaze flickering to Xavier's rigid back. "He's fighting it harder than you are."
"Fighting what?"
"The bond. The need." His lips quirked. "The fact that you terrify him more than any war he's ever fought."
A choked laugh escaped her.
Then—
"Darius."
Xavier's voice cracked through the trees like thunder.
The beta winced. "Ah. His Majesty's patience wears thin." He squeezed Aira's shoulder—quick, reassuring—before striding ahead.
She didn't miss how Xavier's golden eyes tracked the movement. How his claws unsheathed just enough to glint in the dying light.
Aira's pulse stuttered.
Predator.
And she was prey.
---
XAVIER'S POV
She was touching Darius.
Xavier's vision hazed red at the sight of the beta's hand on her shoulder. On his omega. His wolf snarled, raking against his ribs, demanding blood.
Mine.
Not yet.
Not while she still wore those damned blue ribbons.
"Scout the ridge," he ordered Rorke, his voice dangerously calm.
The warrior paled but obeyed.
Darius didn’t flinch. "You're being an ass."
Xavier stepped into his space, his growl vibrating the earth beneath them. "You forget your place."
"Someone has to remind you of yours." Darius held his gaze, unflinching. "King or not, you're going to lose her if you keep this up."
The words struck like a blade.
Xavier's control snapped.
He whirled, his claws slicing through bark as he slammed Darius against a tree. "I said. Scout. The. Ridge."
A gasp cut through the clearing.
Aira.
Her scent spiked with fear—sharp, acrid. It doused the fire in his veins like ice water.
Darius smirked, blood trickling from his lip. "Well. That got her attention."
Xavier released him with a snarl.
When he turned, Aira stood frozen, her gray shift fluttering in the evening breeze. The ribbons in her hair were the only color on her—bright as fresh blood against the pallor of her face.
His omega.
His terror.
"Come," he commanded.
She didn’t move.
The warriors stilled. Even the wind seemed to pause.
Xavier's patience shattered.
In three strides, he was on her. His hand fisted in her hair, tilting her face up to his. Her pulse fluttered like a caged bird beneath his fingers.
"Never make me repeat myself."
Aira bared her teeth. "Then stop treating me like a dog."
A hushed inhale from the warriors.
Xavier's grip tightened.
Her whimper was his undoing.
He released her abruptly, his claws retracting. "Set camp," he barked at his men. Then, to Aira: "Fetch water. Alone."
She fled.
Darius wiped his mouth, watching her go. "You're a f*****g idiot."
Xavier didn’t deny it.
---
AIRA'S POV
The river mirrored the twilight—dark, endless.
Aira's reflection wavered as she filled the waterskins, her hands trembling. The forest behind her was silent. Waiting.
She could run.
The thought was a drumbeat in her skull.
But where would she go?
He could be our second chance, her wolf whispered.
Aira’s fingers clenched around the waterskin.
Or he could destroy us.
Because Xavier Thorn wasn’t just any male.
He was a storm wrapped in skin, beautiful and brutal in equal measure.
And the way he looked at her—
Like he wanted to devour her.
Like he hated that he wanted to.
A twig snapped.
She spun, water sloshing over her wrists—
Xavier stood at the tree line.
Moonlight gilded the hard planes of his face, his golden eyes glowing like embers in the dark. He didn’t speak. Didn’t move.
Aira’s breath hitched.
Then—
A howl shattered the night.
Xavier’s head snapped up. His snarl sent the birds exploding from the trees. "Darius!"
The beta appeared like a ghost, his sword already drawn. "Rogues. Northeast."
Xavier was moving before the words faded.
Aira stumbled back as the warriors surged past her, their weapons gleaming.
A hand caught her arm—Darius. His grip was iron. "Stay behind me."
The forest erupted.
Snarling. Screams. The coppery tang of blood flooded the air.
Then—
A shadow lunged from the brush.
Aira had one heartbeat to see the rogue’s yellowed fangs—
Xavier’s claws tore out its throat.
Blood sprayed across her face.
The Lycan King stood over her, his chest heaving, his eyes molten with fury.
And then—
He moved.
Aira had never seen anything like it.
Xavier was a blur of black and gold, his claws rending flesh, his teeth tearing through muscle. The rogues fell like wheat before a scythe, their screams cut short before they could even form.
He fought like the devil himself.
No—
Like a god.
And when the last rogue fell, Xavier turned—
His muzzle dripping blood, his golden eyes locked onto hers.
Mine, he growled at the darkness.
The fighting ceased.
Silence.
Then—
A whimper.
Aira looked down.
Her fingers were fisted in Xavier’s cloak.
She released him like she’d been burned.
His gaze burned into hers.
No one spoke.
No one breathed.
Then Xavier turned away.
"Move out."
TO BE CONTINUED...
- Writer
