Through an Action, a Man becomes a Hero.

Through Death, a Hero becomes Legend.

Through Time, a Legend becomes Myth.

Through hearing a Myth, a Man takes an Action.

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I feel numb. I drift in and out of reality from the blood loss, the weight of the situation, and seeing Alpha as the murderer of my family for the first time in a long time. I had thought I was past that, but here it hits me again, with such reality that I'm shaken to my core. 

I'm vaguely aware that everyone is moving around me; it looks like a blur, but I'm at a standstill. I know the reality of the families of these elves; I know the nightmares and how they will picture over and over how their loved ones were torn apart. 

We have to end this, but at what cost? 

I realize I'm trembling; the air feels dead and cold as the afternoon turns into evening. In the dim light, the pack gathers the dead, and I count one... two... three... seven... ten. My stomach rolls as a large male pass me, Fleet dangles on his back.

 His limp paws sway, his tongue hanging from his open muzzle. What I wasn't prepared for was that his eyes were open, and it was almost as if he was looking at me. I shut my eyes and look away. 

Blood. So much blood. 

When I open them, I realize an elf is on the ground beside me, looking at me with glazed-over eyes. His throat is ripped, his hand outstretched towards his knife. 

I admire the porcelain skin.

His long white hair is splayed around him, he looked so much like Haryek it's almost eerie. Elves are all around me, hanging from trees, splayed out on the ground, and now, being led away. 

So this is what it looks like; this is the destruction that was promised to me.

 One man capable of leading a small force, unarmed, to victory against a more significant force.

  'If anyone can do this, Alpha can.' 

They could pull this off. He could pull this off. 

I wonder what that will mean to my people if the elves and the humans are forced into submission. 

In light of this, it became all the more apparent that we need the alliance with Alpha if we're going to survive this. No matter my thoughts on this, it was time to start making moves. I had to make this work for my people's sake, no matter the cost.

"Stop! He doesn't want to go!" Someone is screaming. 

I squint, almost excusing myself from the dead version of Haryek before I remind myself that he's dead and he's not Haryek. 

"I'll bury him myself! Just stop!" Sobbing. Hysterical sobbing. 

 I'd been healing the wounded, who appeared to be noticeably bleeding, but it appeared I was irritating them more than helping them. 

Tonic. 

I risk a jog into the field to see my friend, clinging to the body of Delta. Oh, Tonic.

"Just wait for a second, please," I ask the male who looks too tired to deal with our crap. 

Shoving Delta away, he storms off. 

"I'm getting Alpha." He says, annoyed. 

Delta has been gutted. The chocolate wolf is a sad heap; someone has taken a knife and made his innards his outtards, and poor Tonic has him by the neck, holding his head in his lap. His bloodied tongue lolls like a dog in the sun, though his eyes are glossed over. He's gone; there is no bringing this one back. 

"Tonic.." I breathe. "He's gone. We can't leave him here." I try to sound patient, to think of how I would have felt if someone wanted to drag my mother's corpse through the woods.

The young man shakes his head, here, next to the wolf he looked more like a boy than a man. "He doesn't want this, Nicolas. He told me he doesn't want to go to Valhalla." He shakes his head, burying his cheek against the bloodied forehead. Rocking quietly, I come to realize Tonic is gone too. 

This is a useless husk of emotion; this is grief gone mad. I know it well because I had been there.

I talk to him as if he's insane; the mentally damaged can't reason. My voice is soft and light, "Maybe we can talk with Alpha. But we must take him home; we can't leave him here. We can't leave you out here. " 

His dark eyes lock on me, "I can't let them burn him." His tone haunts me; frightening in the intensity behind those words. 

Alpha arrives with Victor, they both look disappointed at the emotional display.

"Tonic, it's time to go," Alpha says quietly, standing before us at the gray beast who'd wanted to kill me this morning. With the loss of the twins and Delta, he has little help save for Victor. 

Tonic shakes his head. "No! I'm not going with you. With any of you. You killed Delta." His body tenses, and he clings to Delta's frame.

Exhausted, the gray male firms up his resolve just as I did. "I'm not asking you, I'm giving you an order as your Alpha to release that body to his men. You are not the only one who is mourning this man, Tonic, now stand up and get it together." His response is firm.

"You killed him! You did this! " Tonic is screaming now. "He trusted you! I trusted you! And look at this! Dead! Everyone is dead!" He starts to break down into sobs. 

Hysterical, heartbreaking sobs. 

Overwhelmed, I fall to my knees, crawling over to hug him and cry with him. Nobody needs to see their friend like this. 

"Come on, Tonic." I coax, and slowly, I pry his hands away from Delta's neck. 

His whole body is sticky, covered in dried blood and hair. My leg is screaming at me from where I'm kneeling, threatening to push me over the edge from mental fatigue and pain.

 Victor lowers himself slowly, making deliberate movements as I help Tonic climb on, and I slip in behind him, wrapping my arms around him; much as I don't want to leave Alpha here by himself, it would appear that Tonic needed me more. 

And when I look back, and see the look of the lycan watching us leave, I wonder if that was truly the case.

The expression haunts me the entire way back to the castle. 

Was he pained for the disgust of Tonic, the lack of his ability to share in that grief, or for something else entirely? I analyze it as the castle comes into view, anything to take my mind off the stench of death emanating from Tonic.

When we arrive home, Adriam appoints a man named Frost to my protection detail, and he helps me take Tonic to get him cleaned up in the servant's showers. While I'm tempted to take Tonic to Stefan's, I change my mind. He seems calmer, though he's murmuring to himself, and Stefan might just upset him further.

I glance at Frost, a tall man with a hard face and short white hair, that faded into a shocking black at the roots. "I don't think we've met before." I attempt to scrub the debris from Tonic's hair.

The man glances up toward me; his eyes are almost lighter than Alpha's. "I'm not a fan of the crown." he admits, "But it would seem this isn't the time for bias. Much as I don't understand him, Tonic is one of us.. and he's suffering."

I can tell he wants to say more but holds his tongue. We scrub the blood off of the broken man until he's clean, "I don't fault you for that; I'm not a fan of the crown either after all of this." I mutter, wishing the water would stop turning red, flinching as I realize my hands and arms are also stained. 

Frost presses his lips together, taking my words in as he seems to watch the drain the same way I do. "We'd be dead if it weren't for you. Those men were unprepared, with Alpha gone... it's been hard to keep the areas patrolled and the men motivated. He's a good leader, but he can't make up for a lack of training all on his own, and that was what we were faced with.

 A hard decision forced by the hand of inexperience. With your help, my brothers got to come back today. Well... most of them." His words are slow and calculated but genuine. 

"Your people are my people," I tell him firmly, it's a conviction I've committed to, the only statement that had felt right. While it would be easy to call them bloodthirsty barbarians, and my thought going into the battle had been purely focused on Alpha's reputation, they were as scared as the rest of us. "You're owed the protections that I can offer, and that's helping you find your way to your salvation. I can't say I enjoy the battle, or that I see this as the only path forward, but I also don't have any other solutions, and for that, I-"

I what? 

Apologize? I'd inherited a dying kingdom bathed in blood. I couldn't see a solution forward that didn't involve war.

"You're doing plenty. You made a big impression today." Frost attempts, forcing a small smile. 

I look at Tonic, brushing his wet hair out of his face; Frost hands me a towel. "Here." I wrap it around his shoulders and pat him dry. The man's expression is hollow, vacant like he was no longer in his body."Maybe we should get you to bed?" I suggest. 

He nods numbly. 

I excuse us from Frost, and I lead Tonic to my old bedroom to set him up there, tucking him into bed.

I can only tell him what I wish to hear: lies and assurances that everything will be alright. "It's safe here, Tonic; you can stay here as long as you need." 

The gray-haired youth says nothing, only staring past me at the wall as he pulls the down comforter up to his chin. His body slowly curls around himself, and I know he'd had enough of my intrusion.

In the bathroom, I scrub myself as best I can in the small basin of water, sore and filthy. It feels like a lost cauce, but when I finally feel less vile, I retreat to the closet for clothes. 

 I grab some clothes and pull them on- long sleeves and leggings. The night air has some bite to it now that the sun has gone down and the day's activities have died down. I close the door behind me and pull on my clothes, flinching as the pants touch my leg, reminded that I had been shot.

Going into the kitchen, I try to find food but can't eat. I pick up items and put them down, opening and closing cabinets. My hands shake out of my control, and I fist them to slam them down on the countertop. "Get it together, Nic." I spit at myself, unable to tolerate such weakness from this body. 

Leaving the kitchen, accepting a lack of appetite over admitting defeat, I spy Frost standing guard in one of the open windows, not daring to tread onto the balcony. While  I watch him, I can't help but wish it was Alpha who had made an appearance. But, I was glad to see some protection still offered to me. 

Clearing my throat, he tilts his head in my direction before gesturing for me to join him.

The stone pillars reflect the blaze as they light the column of logs; the fire catches his arctic eyes. I watch as they load the bodies into the stacks. Ten bundles were loaded into the pyre.

"What are they doing?" I ask. 

"Sending the spirits to Valhalla, the smoke pillar provides a passageway to the gods and will lead them to the gates." Frost exhales, arms crossed over his chest, exhaustion heavy in his words. 

The sentiment almost makes me scoff, but I realize how insensitive that might seem. Falling silent, I stood erect for fear of losing standing with the man if I shared how fatigued I was. I can feel the weight of his gaze on me, and after a moment, he sighs once more. 

"You can relax; you're not Alpha; I don't need you to pretend you're not tired. I'm unfamiliar with the customs of royalty, but I'm not your subject, and you are not my King, so I don't need your valor. You also don't have to pretend that this makes sense; most of us don't believe it."

"Then why do it?" I push back, unable to prevent the severity of my tone. "I'm standing in respect for my nation, while I appreciate the offer. The dead can rest; the least I can do is honor them by holding the ground. I'm mourning the elves, too. They probably don't believe in their side either; they're just soldiers.. doing a job."

"Aren't we all?" Frost's tone holds no humor, though I don't find any malice in his words. "We do it because all of this has to mean something. We are painfully aware of the odds that our forces against Ziduri will likely end in defeat. Most of these men have families, though some truly are barbarians. We want to go home, but rest assured; soldiers are ready to collect us if we dare attempt it."

Shutting my eyes, I inhale the heavy scent of the smoke billowing off the pillars. "I suppose that is what all religion comes down to. Nobody wants to feel like they're alone, suffering for no reason."

Frost allows for a small smirk, shrugging one shoulder. "It softens to blow to believe that they're up there, and if it turns out to be true, that wouldn't be so bad, would it?"

 Suddenly, someone started singing, and I realized it was Alpha. The pack joins in, the low hum of the baritones brings the song to life, and I'm silenced by the amazing orchestra of voices and drums, low and high in a rhythmic chant to symbolize soldiers marching home to their gods. 

The rattling shake of the tambourine, the low hum of an aged violin, and the deep voices calling the burning souls home.

"What is this?" I almost whisper.

"They are sending the spirits to Valhalla; it's a song in Norse about the travel. Wolves are very musical creatures." Frost hums along to it; "Alpha, in particular, is gifted in that sense. He always has been."

"Nobody ever sings," I complain.

He glances at me from the corner of his eye. "We're trying not to die." 

 I wish I knew the words; the beat is so intense and yet soothing. It sounds sad, mirroring the pain I feel in knowing that there were elven bodies rotting in that field with nobody to tend to them. "We should bury the elves." I frown. 

Frost grimaces, "You won't find a man who'd want to help you with that, I'm afraid. Tell the rebellion if they'd like to collect them; it could be arranged. That's all the pack would be willing to offer. I'm going to bed. They're all about to start drinking, and I'm not one for drunks. I suggest you do the same; these nights get rough." 

Hesitating as he turns, the tall man looks down at me, squeezing his hand on my shoulder. "Not bad for a Prince. We might make it through this with you, but I hope you understand that nobody expects you to come with us. Certainly not Alpha, so if you're planning to make a bid, it's best to let him know sooner rather than later. Fate lays heavy on his shoulders, he's a damned mess."

I nod, saying nothing, turning back to watch the ceremony a bit longer before I make my way to bed, only to pause when I realize the elf captives are being kept in the throne room.

 They are tied up, with their backs against the wall, and in a corner, only 7 of them remain. Their battered bodies make me frown. I don't remember some of them being so damaged. Gathering a pitcher of water, I offer them all a drink and some bread. That's all I can do for them now. 

They look suspicious of me, but they take my offerings.

Entering my father's bedroom, I'm shocked when I see Alpha, figuring he'd be gone, for it felt like we had hardly resolved anything before the battle. He was in a similar state as I was, dawning haphazardly chosen clothes and the high points of the grit of battle removed.

 I could see the emotion in his eyes; he was hurting, too. 

"I figured you went to see your friend, but... did you not get a chance to bathe properly?" He admits, standing to approach me. I can only assume he must smell whatever I hadn't removed on my body.

"Oh. No. I was taking care of Tonic-" I sigh and close the door behind me, only to lift my hand to keep him from closing the space between us. "Why're you in here?" I question finally. 

 Alpha looks reluctant to answer. "I always come in here when you're gone; it smells like you." 

The sentiment warms my chilled body. Wary of him, I take a slow inhale, noting there was no scent of alcohol. "Not drinking?" I ask, curious.

"I don't like losing control like that. While I find you anything but fragile, I could have snapped your neck." 

My lips part; how did he coax me back to his side? 

I should run, I should take this distance and push far away from this man who was wrong for me by every stretch of my imagination, and yet, I'd never felt seen before I met him. 

He didn't find me so unbearably breakable. 

"Were you here last night?" I ask him firmly. "Or is your wolf too tired to make an appearance?"

Alpha wishes to touch me, taking in my state with a look of concern; if I gave in, I'd crack, and I'd never escape. I needed to know, to see if I'd truly dreamt his words. 

"I was." He finally admits, "Alpha has conceded. To bond to a man was never in the plan; it's been a hard swallow for him."

So the wolf was against my gender, and here I thought the man was hiding behind his various female partners. 

"So it's true that you'd never been with a man before me." I scoff, shaking my head, shrugging as he slips his hands down my arms in an attempt to collect my pieces back together. I was on the brink of falling apart and hadn't even known it. 

"Can't say I understand it either, darling." Alpha breathes, brushing the back of his fingers against my cheek, collecting my face to tilt my chin upward. "Couldn't have been a hair taller, hmm?"

 Rolling my eyes in patented warlord fashion, I allow him to pull me into his arms, pressing my cheek in his chest as I feel the mental fatigue setting in. "What're we doing?" I whisper.

With a long, low sigh, he buries his nose into my hair. "Surviving best we can. Though we could both use a proper bath, I suppose." 

"Such an ass." I sigh, shaking my head in disbelief at his ability to rely on his wit in a time like this. "So does that mean you love me?"