After Killian's speech, the army took up their positions, waiting for Alaric's troops to arrive. No one made a sound. Only the wail of the wind kept them company as they stared off into the distance. Jason's heart hammered inside his chest. This was it. The next couple of hours were going to determine their fate. For better or worse, they had to see it through. Jason reached over and squeezed his mate's hand, seeking comfort from Killian.

"Don't worry, Jason," Killian said, kissing him on the side of the head. "We'll win. There's no way I'll let that bloodsucker live past today."

Jason had his doubts. Alaric was an old vampire with a lot of tricks up his sleeve. "Hope so... The thought of you dying would be the end of me."

"Come now." Killian wrapped Jason in his embrace. "Don't think like that. Just stay focused and kill as many of Alaric's abominations as we can. And if we come across Alaric himself, we'll face him together."

Killian's words barely entered Jason's ears before several growls and snarls echoed out across the battlefield. Hundreds of wolves emerged from the forest in their menacing forms. Jason's heart clenched for his enemies; they too were victims. Alaric had taken them and turned them into abominations.

Most of the corrupted wolves' fur had already fallen off, leaving them exposed to the harsh weather. Their exposed skin was laced with infected scars and rashes, which must have hurt like hell. However, the large consumption of demon blood had already ravaged their minds. Jason, however, noticed the leather collars around their necks. Alaric likely controlled them through those chokers.

Amongst the wolves, vampires stepped out into the open. But they weren't the beautiful types who charmed the pants off their victims before bleeding them dry. Oh, no. They were the kind who gave you a heart attack just by looking into their faces. Jason's blood had mutated their faces into a horror show on legs. Black veins littered their pale faces, pooling at the edges of their eyes and foreheads. Their teeth had grown too long for their mouth; their lips could barely cover their gagged row of fangs. Drool slipped from their maw, running down their cheeks. Their fingers turned into claws, ready to shred their enemies into bite-sized pieces.

Jason began releasing his aura. Black miasma pooled at his feet, soaking into the snow. With a flick of his finger, five balls rose from the ground. They hovered around Jason. Mere seconds passed before a silent order passed over the blood-shot eyes of the abominations. The front row of wolves rushed forward, charging at them. Jason released the orbs which shot at his enemies. Hundred of tendrils shot from the orbs and impaled the wolves in their heads, ending their miserable lives.

Killian howled, signaling the army to begging the attack. Jason bolted into the fray and caught the claws of a vampire. He then used his tail to cut off the bloodsucker's head. Then, he swerved out of the way when a rogue pounced on him. However, a dozen tendrils shot out of the snow-covered ground and impaled the wolf and several vampires. Vlad, the Impaler would have been proud of him.

The tendrils delved back into the ground and followed him as he waged carnage upon his enemies. Soon, Jason bathed in the tainted blood of his enemies. A trail of severed bodies lay behind him. Jason wiped the black blood off his face with his hand, only to see maggots worming their way across his bloody hand. He swallowed down the bile that burned the back of his throat. Gross! Jason quickly unleashed fire from his hand and allowed the flames to flow over his body. The blood and maggots evaporated into nothing before the flames died down.

He sighed as he glanced at the bodies of the fallen. They conflicted him. Most of the fallen were innocent. They were someone's brother, father, daughter, and wife. They had no say in this as he had, and yet he had killed them.

"You release them from their suffering, Jason," Cyron said as Jason dodged another attack from a deranged vampire. "They're at peace now."

Jason teleported behind the vampire and snapped their neck before they realized he was standing behind them. "This should have never happened... So much senseless killing for what?" With another twist, he severed the vampire's head from their body and chugged it away.

"Life is cruel. Sometimes terrible things happen to good people. The only thing we can do for them is to end their suffering and then kill off the bastard who started all of this."

Jason whipped around and glared off toward the forest's tree line. Alaric, like the coward he was, stayed away from the battlefield while he commanded innocent people to die for him. A growl escaped Jason. He clenched his fists and darted toward the forest. He wanted to rip the vampire to shreds and cast his remains into the underworld.

Before Jason reached the embrace of the forest canopy, three witches emerged and flung fire at him. Fools. Jason stood still as the fireballs pummeled into his chest. The fire flowed over him but did not burn him. As the fire dissipated, Jason huffed out smoke and glared at the hags. They stood frozen on the spot with their mouth wide open. He would have laughed at the situation, but his rage boiled out of his chest. Black fire burst from his mouth and engulfed the witches. The witches shrieked as hellfire reduced them to ash. The clouds of ash quickly dispersed as a gust of wind swept across the battlefield.

Jason continued onward. The sun disappeared behind the thick canopy of the forest. Cries of battle haunted the woods as he made his way toward his end goal. Luckily, Jason didn't encounter any of Alaric's army. Too quick for his liking, a tug to his senses alerted him. Alaric was near.

"Jason!" Killian shouted over the mind-link. Jason nearly jumped out of his skin.

He cursed under his breath before answering his mate's call. "Yes?"

"Where are you?"

Jason vaulted over a fallen tree. "I'm heading off to kill Alaric, of course."

"Are you mad?" Killian cried out. "You can't face him yourself. He'll be waiting for you. Let us know where you are and we'll be there as soon as possible. We'll kill him together."

Jason's eyes darted across the forest's floor, watching out for the enemy, but found none. "And what about the army? You can't leave them right now."

"Don't even try to convince me," Killian replied with a huff. "The Alpha Council will take charge."

Jason grumbled while shoveling up dirt with his boots. He knew he was acting recklessly, but he didn't want his mate near Alaric's claws. The vampire wouldn't hesitate to kill Killian in an attempt to weaken Jason. However, his stubborn mate wouldn't let him face Alaric alone.

"Fine," Jason replied, scratching his chin. "Just get your ass here as soon as you can. The longer we waste time killing Alaric, the more soldiers we lose to his army. If we can kill the fucker, his compulsion over them will break, and we'll have an easier time eliminating the unfortunate souls he has enslaved."

"Very well. We'll be there in a few minutes."

Jason perched on a boulder, freezing his ass off. Jason watched the snow scatter to the wind when he flicked his tail across the ground. His eyes darted restlessly across the forest floor, still keeping an eye out for one of Alaric's abominations. Three rogues and four vampires lay dead in front of him, ripped apart already.

Minute-by-minute, Jason's patience neared its end. What the hell took them so long? He couldn't wait all day for Killian. As much as he wanted to wait for his mate, Jason couldn't delay the inevitable. He had to kill Alaric before the vampire's army decimated their own. Too many lives were at stake for him to sit around counting his claws all day long. He only had ten claws.

"Fuck this!" Jason grumbled out before he jumped off the boulder. His feet landed on the frozen floor with a crunch.

Just as he took a step to where Alaric was waiting for him, his eyes caught several shadowy figures running toward him. Jason took up a defensive stand. He wasn't sure if they were friends or foes. He conjured up two balls of shimmering white flames, analyzing the approaching threat. Just as the first figure darted out into the open, he threw a fireball.

"Jason! It's me!" His mate yelled out.

Just as the fireball was about to hit Killian in the face, the fireball changed direction with a flick of Jason's hand. The spell hit the tree near Killian and started devouring the tree. The towering giant began dying. A series of loud snaps pierced the forest as the tree started falling apart. Killian and the group following him scattered out of the way before the dying tree hit the ground with an earth-trembling crash, which sent a large plume of snow and dirt scattering in every direction. Jason covered his face before a few pieces of shrapnel hit him.

"Shit! That was close!" Mallory hissed out, wiping the dirt off her torn t-shirt. "Are you nuts, Jason? You could have killed us!"

The remaining fireball in his hand withered away before he said," Well, it's not my fault you didn't mind-link me. I didn't know it was you who was approaching me. If you haven't already realized by now... we're in the middle of a battle."

Killian rushed up to Jason and then hugged the shit out of him.

"Uh... Killian?" Jason wheezed out, trying to wiggle out of his mate's iron grip. "My eyes are about to pop out of my skull if you squeeze any tighter."

Killian chuckled as he released his hold on Jason. "Sorry... Just couldn't resist the temptation."

"OK, lovebirds," Astrid called out, stepping over a vampire's corpse. "We have to kill the douche who started this mess before his army overwhelms us."

Killian nodded and then glanced in the direction of the battle, which still raged on. "Where do you think Alaric is hiding?"

Jason walked off toward Alaric's location. As he glanced into the depths of the forest, a dark aura ebbed off into the distance. It was Alaric's. No other creature's aura was as tainted as his.

"Follow me," Jason called out. "I know where the undead bitch is hiding."

Mallory, Henry, Ishmael, Astrid, and Killian started following him through the forest. It took them about ten minutes to make their way to their final destination before Mallory broke the silence between them.

"Wait. I know the place." Through the trees, an abandoned pack house came into view. "It's the original pack house from when the pack first settled in this region over a hundred-or-something years ago."

To say it was a pack house was a massive statement. The harsh weather, over the years, had reduced the humble homestead to a weathered husk. There were no doors or window frames, exposing the interior to the mercy of the forest. A large tree had fallen onto the derelict building, taking half of the building with it. A thick blanket of snow covered the remaining portion of the roof and the fallen tree.

Jason would have taken in more details of the fallen pack house, but a figure emerging from the homestead drew his attention.

Alaric, the undead bitch, finally made his appearance.