The Alpha Weredragon's Favorite
CHAPTER 101 - Dragon Flight

Ryan

I stormed out of Wista's cabin. Scales formed... fusing together, bones lengthening, snapping into place.

The red-witch's words echoed in my ears. "Moonshadow will fall, and there's nothing you can do to stop it."

I couldn't let her hurt my pack, not again. The red-witch would die tonight.

"Ryan, wait!" Wista called out. "I have the necklace ready..." her voice faded as I transformed into my dragon form and with another mighty roar, I took to the sky. I didn't care about some damn necklace. Not when I had to... Kill them. Burn them. Watch them die.

My mind was consumed with thoughts of destruction. I would burn their village to the ground, leaving nothing but ashes in my wake. Mighty wings beat against the wind, my dragon on a mission of destruction to char Wolfsong into oblivion. I was halfway there when Killian's voice cut through the numbness of my mind. "Ryan, stand down," he ordered.

I snarled, fighting against his command.

Stupid Silver Wolf. Hate him.

Killian's voice kept messing with my thoughts, reminding me of what was truly important. "Lyra needs you, Ryan. She needs your support for the upcoming Luna trial."

The mention of Lyra's name was like a bucket of cold water, dousing the flames of my rage.

Lyra. My woman. My mate.

A surge of warmth, fierce as a dragon's fire yet tender like a wolf's care, flooded my heart at the thought of our little one.

I loved her. I loved Lyra, more than anything in this world. She was my everything - the air I breathed, the beat of my heart, the very essence of my soul. Her happiness was mine. Her safety my top concern. I'd give my life for her.

Lyra saw me for who I truly was, not just the Alpha of Moonshadow, but the man beneath the title. She had seen me at my best and my worse and continued to stick by me fiercely through it all. Her strength, her compassion, her surviving spirit - these were the things that had captured my heart so completely.

And with the last Luna trial looming on the horizon, I knew I couldn't let my thirst for vengeance consume me. Lyra needed me by her side, needed my support and my love. Destroying Wolfsong completely, killing the innocent along with the guilty when I promised not to do so, would only bring her more heartache.

Hadn't my little one suffered enough?

I had to be stronger than my anger, stronger than the dragon's urge to burn and destroy.

For Lyra, I would do anything. I would be the man, the mate, the partner she needed me to be. Our love was worth fighting for. It was worth setting aside old grudges. I couldn't let my thirst for vengeance destroy what we had between us. With a final roar, I turned away from Wolfsong, my wings carrying me back to Moonshadow. As I landed, I shifted into my wolf form, my body trembling with adrenaline.

Killian was there waiting for me his silver fur gleaming in the moonlight. After he saw I was calm and composed as I could be, he shifted into his human form and I did the same.

His silver eyes met mine with a mixture of understanding and concern. "Ryan," he said softly, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"It's Lyra..." I swallowed hard against the lump in my throat, thinking how close I came to breaking us apart if Killian hadn't reigned my dragon in. "I love her, Killian," I confessed, my voice hoarse with emotion. "More than anything. I can't... I won't let anything happen to her."

Killian squeezed my shoulder, his expression sympathetic. "I know, my friend. Your love for Lyra is clear to anyone who sees you together. It's a powerful, beautiful thing."

I ran a hand through my hair, struggling to rein in my emotions. "But what if love isn't enough? What if I can't protect her from all the people who want to harm her?" "You're not alone in this, Ryan," Killian reassured me. "Lyra is strong, and she has you, me, Wista and the White Wolf. She will be okay."

I nodded, drawing strength from his words. "You're right. I just... I can't lose her, Killian. I don't think I'd survive it."

"Then fight for her, for the love you share," he urged, his eyes flashing with conviction. "Don't let fear or anger cloud what truly matters. Lyra needs you now more than ever." I took a deep breath, letting his wisdom sink in. "Thank you. You've truly helped me tonight."

Killian nodded, his expression grave. "No need for thanks, you just concentrate on helping Lyra by remaining calm. She has one more trial to get through and then she is yours." The trial...

The necklace. The necklace was for the trial...

It all came flooding back why the necklace was so important. "I have to go see Wista," I said, bunching my muscles to shift.

"I'll come with you."

Killian and I shifted into our wolf forms and took off through the woods together. Our paws thudded against the ground as we ran, leaving clouds of dust in our wake.

"I need to tell you something," I mind-linked to Killian as the wind whipped past us. "I think Lyra's stepmother is the one behind the dark magic used against Lyra."

"What? Lyra's stepmother?" Killian's surprise rippled through our link. "Are you certain?"

"I'm sure of it. A memory-long forgotten-came back to me." I tell Killian about how Beta Juan told me to hide while he battled the red witch, her hood falling off and exposing her face. Beautifully ugly. That was Vivian.

As I relayed the disturbing scene to Killian we raced through the forest. Twigs snapped under our paws and foliage blurred by.

"Juan... was a silver wolf? A descendant of Luna Harbringer? And you believe her stepmother is the red witch that attacked Lyra?" Killian said grimly. "I don't know of anyone named Juan among my close relatives. He is probably an off-shoot descendant. They mainly live in the North." We ran on silently for a minute then Killian mind-linked and said, "Lyra hasn't relayed much to me about her time with Gregory only that it was harsh."

I agreed, filling in the blanks with my own accounts of just how harsh. I went on to tell him about the adumbra stones and that Wista had a necklace ready to go to protect Lyra during the last trial.

We went on, back and forth on how to monitor Lyra during the last trial, our mental exchange carrying us all the way to the dirt drive outside Wista's cabin. We skidded to a stop, our chests heaving. Killian shifted in an instant. One moment he was the silver wolf, the next he was a man, his silver eyes wide with understanding.

I shifted to my human form, the transformation seamless and swift. We walked up to the door and I was about to knock when Killian let out a strangled sound from the back of his throat.

I turned to him. "Is something wrong?" I asked, noticing the grave expression he wore.

Killian nodded, his silver eyes meeting mine. "Indeed, there is," he said, nodding slowly. "I just made the connection. A red witch killed Lyra's parents. What are the odds that a red wolf... and a red witch are one in the same?"