One could cut the tension with the dullest knife in existence. Brenton quickly averted his eyes and looked to the ground as he processed what, or rather who, he had just seen. Syri gulped silently before turning to the other three pann and bowing in greeting.

"I am Syri, son of Beta Tora of Eternal Dawn, betrothed mate to Alpha Jae, and Ante Luna of Crimson Night. It is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance." Syri donned a small smile once he completed his introduction, quite surprised by the number of titles he had gained in a mere few weeks. Just a few months ago, he was a lowly stable worker who held an insurmountable debt to the pack's then-prince, and now, he was royalty in not one, but two packs and betrothed to be mated to the love of his life.

A small gasp left the delta who had been watching Syri with wide eyes. Xander's lips curled ever so slightly into a hidden smile as his heart felt light. The wolf he and Haikon had saved from its fated mate had grown into a beautiful Ante Luna and was absolutely radiant.

Though Syri had been raised in poverty and pain, Xander could feel the confident elegance that emitted from the zeta and had no doubt in his mind that Syri would make a fine Luna. Xander lowered his head and smiled to himself. It was a pleasure to meet the wolf who had gone through so much to be able to stand where he was now and introduce himself as the rightful love of Jae's life.

Isn't he the one who Jae asked us to get rid of his fated one? Xander looked at Haikon after receiving his mate's message and nodded in confirmation. Mm. It is.

It's nice to finally meet him. Haikon nodded to himself slightly as he confirmed the scent of the zeta to be the one he smelled on the tattered shirt Jae had given him as a means of tracking down the unstable alpha.

Agreed. I just wish it wasn't under these circumstances.

Mm. The two fell silent as Armina began to inform the four of their responsibilities. However, Haikon, already aware of their roles, continued his silent conversation with his mate. Shouldn't we be helping Jae? There are plenty of other pann who could stay and protect the Ante Luna.

I mean, we are still recovering. Xander was quick to explain Reem's reasoning for stationing the two at the palace. Almost dying does not mean you should be tally-ho about actually dying. I'd very much like to be alive with you for as long as we possibly can.

Xander's response caused Haikon's lips to tug into a small side smile. He knew why Reem placed them at the palace and greed with Xander, but he just wanted to keep the conversation running and talk more to his love. He had not tired of the bond and link he now had with the delta after yearning for it for many years

While the delta and theta carried on their personal mind-linked conversation, Reem had picked up on the source of the tension that had risen. The rho looked back and forth from Syri to Brenton, his detailed gaze noticing the uneasiness and expressions of discomfort bouncing between the two. Reem's brows furrowed as he watched his brother revert to the ashamed and quiet wolf Brenton had been when he first joined the pann after Alia had caught fire.

Reem had been curious as to why Brenton had suddenly decided to join the League of the Pann, and he began to think something happened that involved the Ante Luna and traumatized Brenton so much that he needed to get away from society. And what better way to ensure you would never run into someone you do not want to see than joining the pann and living in the heart of the forest?

Brenton had thrown himself into his training and hardly spoke to anyone including his brother. Reem had not inquired about what made Brenton leave Alia suddenly and join him and the pann, but he knew it had to be something dire. Brenton had resented Reem for leaving him and Rosie to become a pann, so whatever happened between Brenton and the Ante Luna was traumatic enough to force Brenton to withdraw from the world and his life as he knew it while leaving his sister with a trusted friend to join the pann.

Reem had joined the league to provide for his younger siblings. The league was the only option Reem had. He was not educated and did not possess any trade skills except hunting and fighting. Through becoming a pann, Reem was able to send his siblings the earnings he made by completing missions that had been contracted with the league. Reem's reason for joining was his family. Brenton's remained unclear, but Reem knew it had something to do with the zeta standing before him with wet eyes.

<<<<<<<>>>>>>>

The response party ran tirelessly through the night and the next day and then the following night until they arrived at the scene of the slaughter. A small village just off the border with Eternal Dawn had been completely annihilated. The wolves closest to the village rushed there as quickly as they could, but by the time they arrived, everyone had been killed. The two alphas and three betas who were the first to the scene to experience the aftermath of the brutal killing bowed their heads at the arrival of their Alpha. They had staked out the surrounding area and made certain there were no lingering enemies.

Jae's jaw clenched as he observed the scene of the slaughter. Bodies lay strewn across the ground. Some lay in their wolf form, but most had died while human, indicating the suddenness of the attack and lack of time to prepare and defend themselves. The smell of blood filled the air, and the ground was stained by the red liquid. The five who had arrived after the killing had decided to leave the scene as they had found it to avoid accidentally obscuring any evidence that would help point to whoever was responsible.

"Document everything," Jae ordered in a low voice as he swept his eyes over the bodies of his pack members, "so we can lay them to rest."

"Ae, Alpha," Yejin responded with a bow of his head before relaying orders to his guards. The five who had arrived before the response party quickly lent their aid to the soldiers and helped in whatever ways they could. Jae scouted the perimeter of the village while the documentation took place and took in as many details as he possibly could.

The scents of fear, pain, and horror still clung to the air where most of the deaths had occurred. The true blood closed his eyes as he focused on the lingering scents of the scene. He could discern the smells of those of his pack, but the attacking wolves' scents were unrecognizable. They must've been wearing moonflower. Bastards. They killed in the dead of night and masked their scent to evade the consequences. Who could be so cowardly? Those they killed were families, children...innocents. They had done nothing wrong.

Jae's heart broke as he thought of how afraid they must have been. He never imagined he would lose members of his pack to something like this. No official declaration of war had been received, and Jae was certain it was not a rogue group. Rogues always made statements with everything they did and marked their scents all over it.

They did so to stand up to the larger packs and defend what little territory they were able to grab. There was no way they would mask their scent. These were the deeds of someone who did not want to get caught and whose intention was to pass the blame to another pack to incite conflict.

No matter how much Jae did not want to jump to conclusions, there was one pack, or rather, one wolf in particular who would do something like this. And Jae's blood boiled at the thought of that wolf hurting members of his pack. Once he found him, Jae swore to go for the kill. There would be no mercy for the one responsible for killing those of Crimson Night.