Fated to the Alpha–And His Triplet Brothers-Chapter 300: Chained.

*~Hazel’s POV~*

The place felt wrong the moment we stepped into it.

Not wrong in the obvious way, not loud or screaming danger, but wrong like a held breath. Like the land itself was waiting. We stood at the edge of a clearing swallowed by shadows, the building ahead half-hidden by dead trees and jagged stone. No banners. No guards at the gate. Just silence so heavy it pressed against my chest.

"She’s here," I said quietly.

I didn’t need to explain. They both felt it too.

Aurora’s presence hummed beneath my skin, a low, aching pull that came from somewhere deep in my blood. Crescent blood. Witch blood. The kind that recognized its own even through layers of darkness and distance.

Cayden shifted beside me, rolling his shoulders, the wolf under his skin restless. "Yeah," he muttered. "I feel it. Like... she’s close, but blocked."

Lilith hadn’t spoken yet. She stood perfectly still, eyes fixed on the structure ahead. Moonlight caught in her silver markings, making her look carved out of something ancient and unbreakable. She didn’t need introductions. Lilith never did.

Three of us.

That was it.

No army. No backup. Just instinct, blood, and stubborn refusal to leave Aurora behind.

"We go in," Cayden said.

I shook my head slowly. "Not yet."

Something was watching.

I could feel it the way you feel eyes on your back even when you can’t see them. The air shifted, thickened, magic curling and recoiling like a warning.

Then the demons stepped out.

Not all at once. One by one. From the trees, from the shadows, from places that should not have held bodies. Their eyes glowed faintly, mouths stretched into knowing smiles.

And then he appeared.

Darius.

He walked forward like he owned the ground beneath his feet, hands relaxed at his sides, expression almost bored. Almost amused. Like this was an inconvenience rather than a confrontation.

"So," he said calmly, "the Crescent sends children now."

Cayden snarled, the sound ripping from his chest before he could stop it. His bones cracked as his claws slid free. "Say her name again and I’ll tear your throat out."

Lilith finally moved.

She stepped forward, power rolling off her in quiet waves. "You already made one mistake tonight," she said softly. "Standing in our way will be your second."

Darius laughed.

I didn’t wait for more words.

The moment cracked open like glass.

I shifted mid-run, magic and muscle moving together the way only a Crescent could manage. Witch sigils burned along my arms as my wolf surged forward, claws hitting stone, teeth bared.

Demons rushed us from both sides.

Cayden met them head-on, shifting fully, massive and fast, his movements brutal and efficient. He didn’t waste energy. He crushed. Tore. Ended.

Lilith raised her hands and the ground answered.

Moonlight speared upward, slicing through demon flesh like it was nothing more than smoke. Her power was precise, controlled, terrifying. She didn’t shout. She didn’t rush. She decided, and reality obeyed.

I went straight for Darius.

He blocked my first strike easily, catching my wrist, magic sparking where our powers collided. The impact rattled my bones.

"You feel it too, don’t you?" he said quietly, eyes flicking toward the building. "The thing beneath this place."

I kneed him in the ribs and tore free. "I don’t care."

We circled each other as the fight raged around us. Demons fell. The air filled with blood and ozone and the sharp metallic taste of magic burned too hard.

Darius moved fast. Faster than most demons. His strikes were clean, practiced, fueled by something colder than rage.

But he wasn’t fighting to kill.

He was stalling.

That realization hit me like ice.

"Lilith!" I shouted. "He’s buying time!"

She turned just as a surge of power rippled outward from the building, invisible but heavy, like a pulse through the earth. The ground trembled beneath our feet.

Cayden skidded to a stop beside me, blood on his muzzle, eyes wild. "That wasn’t you, was it?"

"No," Lilith said, voice tight.

We finished the demons quickly after that. Darius retreated under pressure, vanishing into shadow the moment Lilith turned her full attention on him.

And then there was silence again.

We stood in the wreckage, breathing hard, bodies aching, magic still humming hot beneath our skin.

We had won.

Technically.

I turned toward the building, my heart pounding painfully now. "Aurora is in there."

I took a step forward.

And stopped.

Something pressed back.

Not force. Not pain. A barrier, subtle but absolute. Like trying to walk into a memory that refused to let you in.

Lilith reached out, her hand stopping inches from the invisible line. Her fingers trembled.

"This isn’t a wall," she said slowly. "It’s a lock."

Cayden frowned. "On what?"

She looked at me.

"On blood," Lilith said. "On choice. On sacrifice."

My stomach twisted.

Inside that building, Aurora was waiting. Trapped. Hurt. And whatever was holding her wasn’t something we could claw through or burn away.

Not yet.

I curled my hands into fists, nails biting into my palms.

"We didn’t come this far to stop now," I said quietly.

Lilith nodded. "No. We didn’t."

We all turned to one another, giving each other that silent, encouraging look. The kind that said we’ve got this even when none of us were sure we did. I couldn’t help but wonder where Leon, Kispian, and Alice were. Maybe they were still lost on the road, delayed by whatever spell guarded this place. I only hoped they would get here fast, because I didn’t think the three of us could take down everyone inside.

Not alone.

We were just about to step forward when a familiar presence slammed into my senses.

I froze.

He stood right in front of us.

Darius.

He looked... untouched. Unarmed. Calm. Like he hadn’t just been beaten and left on the ground moments ago.

Cayden and I immediately turned around, instinctively checking our backs. We had seen him fall. We had felt his strength fade. There was no way—

"Oh," he said smoothly, tilting his head. "That was a vision."

My stomach dropped.

"I already knew Aurora would call for backup," he continued. "So I prepared. Very well."

Cayden gritted his teeth, claws sliding free. "Please, do not stress me," he growled. "Bring out a real foe and we will leave you unscratched. Or at least," he added darkly.

Darius tilted his neck slowly, amused. "And why do you think I would believe that you, of all people, would come here for someone and then leave without that person?"

He took a step closer.

"And also, I’m not scared of you. You’ve already shown me your worst." His eyes darkened. "Now it’s time for me to show you mine."

My body tensed. I cracked my fingers, magic flaring under my skin, ready to pounce.

Then he snapped his fingers.

The world changed.

Darkness swallowed us whole, thick and suffocating. The air turned heavy, poisonous, crushing my lungs. I gasped, my chest burning as I dropped to my knees.

Cayden fell too.

Lilith staggered, her hand flying to her throat.

"What’s going on?" Cayden rasped.

"There’s something wrong," Lilith said, her voice strained. She scanned the darkness, eyes wide. "I can’t breathe. There’s poison in the air."

Darius walked toward us, his boots echoing calmly against the stone as if nothing was wrong.

He laughed.

Then he threw his head back, amused. "Clumsy little babies," he mocked. "Is this really who Aurora thinks will save her?" 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

He stopped in front of me.

"And by the way," he added casually, "where’s Leon? I was really hoping to see that bastard myself."

My heart stuttered.

"He dares to impregnate my own lover," Darius said, his voice sharp with venom.

My head snapped up.

"Impregnate?" I whispered. "Aurora is pregnant?"

He smiled.

"Go to sleep," Darius said softly. "Go to sleep."

My vision blurred instantly. The ground rushed up to meet me as my strength vanished, my body giving in against my will.

The last thing I felt was the poison dragging me under.

Then darkness took me.

I finally fought my way to consciousness, and then my eyes fluttered open. I looked around to study my environment, but I was too weak to even know where I was. That was when I noticed the chain on my hand.

I turned to Cayden, and he was already awake. Hunger was written all over his face, but my mother was still sleeping.

Go to sleep," Darius said softly. "Go to sleep."

My vision blurred instantly. The ground rushed up to meet me as my strength vanished, my body giving in against my will.

The last thing I felt was the poison dragging me under.

Then darkness took me.

I finally fought my way to consciousness, and then my eyes fluttered open. I looked around to study my environment, but I was too weak to even know where I was. That was when I noticed the chain on my hand.

I turned to Cayden, and he was already awake. Hunger was written all over his face, but my mother was still sleeping.