The heavy thud of boots against polished marble filled the grand hall of Stormveil's stronghold. Warriors moved swiftly, making way for the approaching figures.
At the center- Tee.
His face was unreadable, but his hold on Waranon Metawin was firm.
Waranon's body was pale, lifeless, his usual composed expression replaced by a grimace of pain. His breathing was shallow, his form weighed down by exhaustion.
The room tensed.
And then- Win moved.
"Father-!"
He was at his side in an instant, hands gripping Waranon's shoulders as if anchoring him back to reality.
For the first time in his life, Win Metawin felt helpless.
Waranon Metawin was a pillar. A force. Unshakable.
Yet now, he looked- fragile.
Win's chest tightened, his hands curling into fists as emotions threatened to choke him.
Then- a warm hand covered his own.
Bright.
Grounding him.
His presence was steady, a silent reassurance against the storm raging in Win's mind.
Win didn't move, didn't look at him, but he didn't pull away either.
"He's alive," Bright murmured. "Focus on that."
Win inhaled sharply, forcing himself to nod. But his grip on Waranon didn't loosen.
From the side, Nani watched.
His hands clenched tightly, barely suppressing his own unease.
Waranon was strong. Too strong.
If Blackridge had managed to do this to him-
His father.
Warut Hirunkit.
His heart pounded at the thought, his instincts screaming at him to move.
Beside him, Pond shifted restlessly. His usual confidence had vanished, replaced by something far more vulnerable.
Nani didn't have to ask.
Pond was thinking the same thing.
Where was Warut Hirunkit? Where was Prayuth Naravit?
Then-
A sudden movement at the entrance.
The heavy doors swung open.
Stormveil warriors flooded in, their expressions dark, their presence suffocating.
And at the center-
Warut Hirunkit and Prayuth Naravit.
Both men stepped into the hall, their bodies tense, their eyes sharp.
Warut's gaze immediately landed on Nani.
For a brief moment, the usual authority in his stance wavered.
Then, Nani exhaled-relieved.
Prayuth's eyes swept the room, landing on Pond.
Pond didn't move.
But his shoulders relaxed, even as his jaw remained locked.
For now-
Their fathers were alive.
But something was wrong.
Nani could feel it.
Something was still missing-
And then-
He noticed.
Where Was Sky?
His stomach twisted.
Sky was nowhere to be seen.
The Stormveil warriors were here. His Beta was here.
But Sky-
Nani's breath hitched.
His heart pounded against his ribs, a sensation he hated.
Something was wrong.
And for the first time, he hated that he didn't know what.
The waiting felt unbearable-
Until finally-
The doors opened again.
And then- Sky stepped inside.
The moment he entered, the world felt smaller.
He moved without hurry, but each step carried the kind of authority that demanded submission.
His Stormveil warriors instinctively lowered their heads. Even the strongest among them-Alphas, Betas, warriors trained for battle-felt their spines stiffen.
Not because of fear.
Because this was Sky Wongravee.
Because this was power.
The kind that didn't need to be declared. It simply existed.
His presence was overwhelming.
And he was furious.
His clothes were dark with blood. Not his.
His usual composed expression was set in something colder, sharper.
His golden eyes burned.
The room held its breath.
But Nani-
Nani felt it more than anyone.
Something inside him twisted.
Something that felt too much like fear.
Not fear of Sky.
Fear of what he was capable of.
The moment Sky's gaze found him, something hot and unrelenting coiled around Nani's lungs.
He hated it.
But he couldn't move.
Couldn't breathe.
Because for the first time, Sky wasn't looking at him like the mate he wanted to protect.
Sky was looking at him like an Alpha.
Like a ruler.
Like the man who had no equal.
And everyone in that room-including Nani-felt the instinct to kneel.
-----
The war room was a battlefield before the first command was given.
Arguments clashed like swords, sharp and unforgiving.
Alpha leaders roared over each other, their voices filled with anger, fear, accusations.
"The Blackridge Pack has moved beyond rogue attacks-they're striking in broad daylight!"
"They aren't just coming for us! They've attacked pack-owned businesses in human society."
"They're breaking the laws of exposure!"
"And somehow, Stormveil didn't see this coming?" A low, cutting voice sneered from across the table.
A ripple of tension ran through the room.
The insult hung in the air. A challenge wrapped in disrespect.
Nani's jaw tightened.
Even Pond bristled, ready to lunge at the speaker.
But before anyone could respond-
It got worse.
"This is what happens when we allow hybrids and vampires too close to our kind," an older Alpha from an outer faction growled. His gaze flicked toward Tee, then landed on Bright before sweeping to Sky's seat. "You let a pack of outsiders into our council, and now there's a spy among us."
The words shattered any remaining restraint.
Fury erupted across the room. Chairs scraped. Hands slammed against the table. Growls reverberated, voices overlapping in heated rage.
Some accused Stormveil of hiding information.
Some accused F4 of being reckless.
Some accused each other.
Sky hadn't spoken once.
Hadn't moved.
But the moment his eyes lifted, the room silenced.
A second too late.
Because Sky was done waiting.
The air... collapsed.
The walls shook. The oxygen in the room turned heavy, thick-oppressive.
And then-
Everyone dropped.
It wasn't a choice.
It was instinct.
The weight of an Ancient Alpha's power crashed into them, stealing the very breath from their lungs.
Alphas. Betas. Warriors. Leaders who had never bowed to anyone in their lives-
Now on their knees.
Because they had no choice.
Even the strongest among them clawed at their throats, gasping for air.
Even the most dominant Alphas couldn't lift their heads.
Stormveil warriors had witnessed their Alpha's power before-but never like this.
This was absolute.
This was final.
And then-
Nani collapsed.
His lungs refused to take in air.
It was too much.
Too much.
Because Sky wasn't just an Alpha.
He wasn't just strong.
He was something else.
And as an Omega, Nani's body reacted the hardest.
His limbs shook, his vision blurred-
A strong hand caught him before he hit the ground.
Tee.
The vampire elder was the only one still standing.
But even he was strained, his jaw tight, his grip unsteady. Blood dripped from his nose.
And yet, his fingers pressed against Nani's pulse, grounding him, shielding him from the worst of it.
Tee's voice was hoarse, edged with pain.
"Enough."
A single command.
A single reminder that while Sky's power was unrivaled-
Tee's wasn't something to ignore either.
And then-
The weight lifted.
The room gasped for breath.
But no one stood.
Because they still felt it.
The truth.
The reality.
Sky didn't need their approval.
Sky didn't need their respect.
Because he already owned it.
Because no one in this room-no Alpha, no warrior, no faction-
Could match him.
-----
Silence.
Not just the kind that fills a room-but the kind that drowns it.
The kind that lingers long after the storm has passed.
No one could move.
They had known Sky was strong. Feared. Respected. Untouchable.
But this?
This was beyond strength.
This was something primal. Ancient. Terrifying.
Pond still clutched the ground, knuckles white as he braced against the fading weight in the air.
His entire body shook, something deep in his instincts screaming at him to submit-and he hated it.
For the first time in his life, his body betrayed him.
Beside him, Phuwin's breathing was uneven.
His Omega instincts had kicked in too hard, too fast. His hands trembled as he struggled to recover, eyes locked onto Sky with undeniable fear and awe.
Dew was motionless.
Not because he wasn't affected-but because his mind was reeling.
Strategizing. Calculating. Trying to process what the hell they had just witnessed.
Sky had just forced every Alpha in this room to their knees.
That wasn't just dominance.
That was absolute control.
Dew's gaze flickered to Tee, the only one still standing.
Even with blood trickling from his nose, his expression was unreadable.
But Dew saw it.
The way Tee's fingers twitched at his side.
The way his usually immovable stance had the slightest shift.
Even Tee-who had walked among immortals, who had seen power beyond comprehension-had felt it.
Bright's reaction was the most visible.
He hadn't just dropped-he had fought.
His entire body was still taut with resistance, muscles locked from the force he had tried to push against.
But his efforts had been pointless.
He had never stood a chance.
Bright let out a breath-sharp, ragged. He turned his head slightly toward Win, expecting him to be the same.
But Win...
Win wasn't moving.
Not because he was frozen in shock-but because his eyes were locked onto his father.
Waranon was still unconscious.
And for the first time, Bright saw something in Win's expression he had never seen before.
Something between horror and realization.
Because Win finally understood.
What Sky was.
What he had always been.
And why Stormveil was unlike any other pack.
On the other side of the room, the F4 leaders were still gasping for breath.
Warut Hirunkit's face was pale. He looked at Sky like he had just seen a ghost.
Prayuth Naravit rubbed his temples, as if trying to steady his thoughts.
Both men had lived long enough to know power when they saw it.
But this...
This was unnatural.
This was beyond anything they had ever prepared for.
And then-
Nani moved.
Or tried to.
His body was still weak, the remnants of Sky's power clinging to him like a phantom touch.
His breath was still unsteady.
But his eyes were sharp. Focused. Unwavering.
Even through the haze, through the undeniable reaction his Omega instincts had forced on him-
Nani met Sky's gaze.
And he did not look away.
The only one in this room who dared.
And Sky-
Sky let out a slow, controlled breath.
His voice was quiet. Deadly. Absolute.
"Now that I have your attention..."
The war room tensed.
No one spoke.
No one could.
Because Sky had already made one thing clear.
There was no higher authority here.
No greater Alpha.
No one above him.
He was the storm.
And the storm had finally spoken.
-----
The war room was no longer a battlefield of arguments.
It was silent.
Thick with the aftermath of what had just happened.
Some Alphas still struggled to catch their breath, fingers curled into fists to mask their trembling. Others sat rigid in their seats, their pride forcing them to pretend they weren't shaken.
Phuwin was still gripping Pond's sleeve, knuckles white. His breaths were shallow, and he wasn't even aware of how close he had moved toward Pond. Pond, for once, said nothing about it. His own body was still thrumming with the remnants of Sky's power.
Dew had pushed his glasses up, his hand lingering at his temple, wiping away sweat that had no business being there. His mind always calculated risks-but this? This was beyond anything he had anticipated.
Win's posture was perfect, his expression unreadable, but his fingers twitched. The feeling of Sky's power still echoed inside him, something raw and ancient brushing against his very being. Bright, beside him, noticed-but said nothing. Just subtly shifted closer, his presence grounding.
The F4 leaders-the most powerful Alphas in any room-sat in stunned silence. Their gazes flickered between each other, the unspoken truth heavy between them. They had thought they understood strength.
But what Sky had just shown them?
It was something else entirely.
Something primal. Absolute.
A chair scraped against the floor.
Sky stood.
His presence alone made the air shift. Not because he was forcing it-but because they all still felt it. The ghost of his power, lingering in the bones of every person in the room.
He didn't speak.
Didn't acknowledge the fear, the awe, the unspoken questions.
Instead, his eyes found one person.
Nani.
Sky walked toward him, and for the first time in his life, Nani didn't move away.
He didn't fight it.
Didn't question it.
Because his wolf already knew.
And this time, Nani didn't resist it.
When Sky stopped in front of him, Nani tilted his head up slightly, almost unconsciously. A wolf's natural instinct when acknowledging an Alpha they recognized.
It wasn't forced. It wasn't something he even had to think about.
It was natural.
Sky raised a hand. Slow. Deliberate.
And when his palm cupped Nani's face, Nani leaned into the warmth without hesitation.
The entire room held its breath.
This wasn't a submission.
It was recognition.
Sky's thumb brushed along Nani's cheekbone, slow and grounding.
And Nani?
For the first time, he didn't pull away.
The warmth of Sky's touch settled something inside him.
Something that had been restless for so long.
Sky's voice, when it came, was low and intimate. Just for him.
"I'm sorry."
A simple truth.
No excuses. No justifications.
Just an apology that Nani didn't even realize he needed.
He swallowed, but didn't break the moment. Didn't fight the feeling.
Because right now-for this one moment-he didn't want to.
Sky didn't push.
Didn't demand anything.
He just held him.
For a few more seconds.
Letting the silence say what words couldn't.
And Nani?
For the first time, he let himself feel it.
Let himself accept that his wolf had already decided.
Then-gently, without breaking the contact-Sky exhaled and turned toward the war table.
And when he finally spoke again, his voice carried the weight of command.
"Here's what happens next."