Theo scanned the trees, looking for any signs of movement. He'd been on edge ever since finding a spot to settle, unable to shake the feeling that someone was nearby.

Behind him, the soft orange glow of a fire flickered from deeper in the small cave he'd found only an hour or two ago. The entrance was small, and it had been hidden behind several bushes, so he'd almost missed it.

Both he and his uncle had to crouch will moving down the tunnel, but thankfully it opened to a small cavern. He theorized that it was, or still could be, a bear den used for when they hibernate, because there was still the lingering scent of one.

That didn't help his nerves either... He wasn't sure he could take on a bear by himself. Not right now.

Plus he hadn't heard from Avayla for several hours now... Which made him even more anxious.

He didn't sense that anything worse had happened to his mate, thankfully, but having no answers and no connection to anything happening in the pack left him feeling lost and helpless.

With a long sigh, Theo turned and crawled back to his uncle.

Mingi glanced in his direction as soon as he was close enough to be heard, although his eyes looked a little too far to the left. 'Is everything alright?'

The beta frowned and stood in place.

How the hell were they supposed to communicate?

One blind and one deaf...

What a team they made.

'Theo?'

Not knowing what else to do, Theo sat next to his uncle and grabbed his hand. It made the alpha jump and his head snapped to the side. Theo squeezed it, trying to apologize, but then he got an idea.

He tried tapping his pointer finger once against Mingi's skin.

'Yes?' Mingi tilted his head a little, then twisted his lips to the side when Theo again tapped once. 'Are we in a cave?' One tap. 'Are we safe?'

Theo hesitated, then tapped twice.

His uncle nodded slowly. Fear etched itself on his face and he started to tremble. 'What are we going to do?'

That was a question Theo didn't know how to answer, even if they could communicate normally...

For a moment, he really hated that pack links broke with distance and could only be made by either mating or between alphas. Whoever came up with that rule deserved to die a slow, painful death as far as he was concerned.

Mingi shifted next to him, moving closer so that their shoulders were pressed together. 'Thank you... for... helping me...'

A small whine tickled Theo's throat as he wrapped his arms around his uncle. He would give anything to tell Mingi that he'd do it again anytime he needed.

Despite some of the differences they'd had, Theo would do anything for the alpha.

Even if it meant giving his own life.

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San took a deep breath before springing forward to sink his teeth into the female's neck.

Blood pooled instantly, letting him know he'd broken skin in several locations.

Which just made him bite down harder, earning a scream of pain as he used his strength to swing her in a circle and send her flying into the nearest tree.

He kept his momentum going so he could try and deflect the attack coming from the second alpha he'd been fighting.

Their muzzles ended up smashing together with an awful crunch. San worked quickly to snap his shut, teeth piercing through her upper lip. A quick jerk of his head tore the piece of skin from her face, leaving behind the exposed bone.

She howled in pain and jumped back a few paces to try and collect herself.

But San was ready for that. He surged forward to knock her to the ground, then wrapped his jaws around her throat and squeezed until she stopped breathing.

As he lifted his head, he ran his tongue over his muzzle. Tangy, coppery blood tickled his tastebuds and made him snarl with delight.

Fighting was still happening around him. He was happy to see that the betas were holding their own, but there were still plenty of female alphas ready and willing to restrain them.

Then his eyes were drawn to one of the larger cabins that had caught fire as the front door burst open.

"Help! Help us!" Panicked cries came from inside.

Right before Sungjae stumbled out and fell to his hands and knees. He had soot covering his ripped clothes and had a horrible, raspy cough.

San spared one more second to look for Hongjoong, only to see his alpha already running toward the omega.

They got there at the same time, Hongjoong kneeling to place a hand on Sungjae's shoulder. "Are you ok? What happened?"

The omega only continued to cough, but he motioned over his shoulder. "Others... Injured..." He wheezed.

And a quick glance told San that Sungjae was hurt too. Ash clung to the blood trickling down his forehead and his knuckles were swollen and bloody as well.

"San, go help them." Hongjoong ordered.

The younger alpha scurried around Sungjae and stepped into the burning building.

His eyes immediately began to water, the awful sting made him whimper and almost turn around...

But a few pleas for help made him lower himself to the ground so he could crawl forward on his belly.

From what he gathered, he was in some sort of medical cabin. A couple of beds had been tipped on their sides, glass lay in scattered shards on the floor, and flames danced at the back of the building.

"H-Hel-" A weak voice called from somewhere in front of him.

San whined to let them know he was coming, crawling as fast as he could.

He paused when he noticed what looked to be a basket of clothes that had spilled. They smelled of blood and chemicals, though that didn't stop him from shifting and pulling on the first pair of pants he could find.

"Hold on! I'm coming" He yelled, now crawling on his hands and knees.

San only had to go a little further before he found two omega girls huddled together behind one of the medical beds. He motioned for them to move with quick jerks of his hand.

They hesitated, but thankfully started crawling once he insisted they would be ok.

"Is there anyone else?" He asked before the last one got too far away.

"I don't know. I don't know who got out, but I think there may-" An explosion from behind them cut her off.

San dove on top of her, shielding her from the roaring flames that kissed his back.

A wave of fear slammed into his connection with Hongjoong right before he heard his alpha's scream come from outside. "SAN!!!!"

The younger groaned, rolling his shoulders a little to test for pain.

There wasn't as much as he'd expected, but that could also be the adrenaline masking it for his safety.

I'm alright. He sent through the link as he rolled off the omega beneath him. "Go. Hurry." He urged.

As she moved forward, San turned around to survey the damage. He didn't know what had caused the explosion, maybe something with the medical equipment, but it had taken out a wall and opened up a new room.

Where, huddled beneath the debris and smoke, was someone else.

The alpha started to creep forward again, keeping his gaze fixed on his target.

San! What are you doing? Please come back. Hongjoong begged.

I can't, someone is still trapped.

San, please! It's too dangerous, we don't know if another explosion will happen.

The younger paused for a moment, but then kept going. I can't leave them. I'm almost there.

Flames didn't make things easy for him, though, biting and nipping at his skin every chance it got.

But he made it. Somehow.

"Hello?" He asked, his voice ragged and wheezy. "Can you hear me?"

The body in front of him moved slightly, a head popping up from behind what looked to be a cabinet.

San's stinging eyes grew wide, recognizing the female immediately.

"Yoohyeon?!"

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He was hurt... Yeosang could feel it with every single stride. His mate was hurt and he wasn't there to help him.

But he was close.

When Wooyoung howled again, Seonghwa and Yeosang joined him. They created a haunting harmony, filled with desperation and panic.

The sound of fighting grew louder as they sprinted up another hill, angling back toward the mountains, and fewer people were running past them.

Yeosang scented the air, hoping for a sign, a hint, anything.

Slow down! Jongho called, his own fear spreading over them. Wooyoung, STOP!

The order weighed on all of them, Wooyoung most of all, and most of the pack dropped to their stomachs. Whimpers of pain and frustration came from everyone accept Jongho and Gunner.

There is too much going on. It's too dangerous to run in blindly. Jongho scolded, his muzzle curling in a snarl.

But- Wooyoung started to say, but Jongho immediately silenced him with a snap of his teeth.

Gunner and I will go first. Stay behind us.

As the two alphas took the lead, Yeosang fell in behind them, ready to act as backup if needed.

Which they soon realized it was.

At the top of the hill was an open area in the middle of several cabins. Bodies, both human and wolf, already littered the ground. Fighting was happening all around them, hoards of female alphas were taking on betas and a few alpha males.

What do we do? Yunho asked, stopping next to Jongho.

All eyes fell to the alpha, whose eyes were darting back and forth rapidly trying to take everything in. Help the wounded if you can, but otherwise try not to fight. This isn't our battle.

Yeosang was about to ask which wounded they should be helping when...

He was running before he could even think, before he could even feel.

Dirt, grass, and blood sprayed behind him as each of his four paws propelled him forward.

An alpha and beta slammed into the ground in front of him, tearing viciously at each other.

But Yeosang's body was on auto pilot. He jumped over them, stride never faltering even as he landed on the other side and had to quickly swerve to dodge another fighting duo.

Nothing would stop him from reaching his goal.

From reaching his alpha.

For right there in front of him, helping what looked to be an injured omega down a set of stairs coming from a cabin, was his mate.

His Hongjoong.

Yeosang yapped once, loud and clear.

And his entire world stopped when Hongjoong's head snapped up and their eyes locked instantly.

"Sangie?" His alpha's lips formed his name, still too far away for Yeosang to hear him over the snarls and cries of pain happening around him.

Hongjoong took a second to help the omega sit, then he was running.

Mere seconds passed, yet each one felt like an eternity as Yeosang shifted in midair, sailing straight into his alpha's arms.

They spun in a circle, during which he wrapped his legs around Hongjoong's waist so that he could be as close as possible.

Then Hongjoong was running again. He went straight for a cabin, yanking open the door and stepping inside before he fell to the floor and started peppering every inch of Yeosang he could reach with endless kisses.

All while Yeosang did the same.

They whimpered and clawed and pulled at each other, desperate for the connection they'd missed for so long.

Too long.

"Sangie." Hongjoong whispered, his wonderful fingers dragging across Yeosang's skin. "My Sangie."

"Joong." His beta whimpered back.

Neither one of them needed to speak, but it felt so good to hear Hongjoong's voice. "Are you hurt?"

"No, but you are." Yeosang sat back and started looking over his alpha.

Bruises dotted his shoulders, chest, stomach, and hands, but thankfully there was nothing fatal. Not that Yeosang could tell at least.

Hongjoong busied himself with untying the pants from Yeosang's ankle so he could get dressed. "Where are the others? Are they hurt? I'm so sor-"

The door to the cabin slammed open and his first question was answered when Jongho, Yunho, Gunner, and Seonghwa all filed in and threw themselves at the alpha with a mixture of laughing and crying.

Yeosang beamed when he felt his alpha's heart swell with joy.

Hongjoong made a point to look and touch each of them, tears dancing in the corners of his eyes. "You're here. You're here. You're really here." He said over and over, each time with more emotion.

And he never let go of Yeosang. He kept his beta tucked against his side the entire time.

It would have been a perfect moment, a perfect reunion...

If there wasn't fighting still going on outside.

If Mingi was there.

And if Chan and Wooyoung hadn't disappeared.