Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder-Chapter 1640 - 82 : Stubborn Green Eyes

*Kryzen*

I was beginning to feel like a nomad with the amount of packing and traveling we were doing.

I was currently stuffing my travel backpack with the few supplies that I had packed for this journey. I thought about how each time I repacked my backpack, I was more uncertain than the last time I had done it.

I should have been feeling the opposite of uncertainty. We were finally moving forward. We figured out where Tian was and were going to put a stop to his tyranny. We wouldn’t even be doing so alone. It had seemed like an impossibility that the leaders of Ethereal Grove would allow some of their people to join us, but that is exactly what happened.

It still seemed as if there were a lot of pieces to the puzzle we didn’t have. No matter how many people we gathered to help us fight, we were still going into this blind.

“Hey.”

I looked up to see Roy standing in the doorway of the room Briella and I were sharing. He had a bag slung over his shoulder. He stepped into the room and dropped the bag down beside mine. “We’re thinking we should stop at the market to pick up some supplies before we head back to the valley,” he said. “We’re out of bandages and could use more food–”

“I don’t think we should leave yet,” I said, cutting him off.

Roy froze, giving me a startled look. “What do you mean? We need to leave as soon as possible so we can start gathering forces, don’t we?”

I wasn’t looking at him now, gazing past him out the window toward the forest. “I feel like we’re missing something important,” I told him. “We don’t know what else is down there in the land of shadows. We could be walking right into a trap the next time we go.”

Roy’s expression was grave, so I knew he could tell where I was going with this. “You think we should go back,” he said flatly. It wasn’t a question.

I nodded, zipping my bag up and standing. “We need to know what we’re up against,” I said firmly, “and find any weaknesses so we can better prepare ourselves.”

Roy straightened. “Yes, we’re going to need to go back if we’re going to plan an effective attack,” he said. “I’m in, obviously. I’ll watch your back.”

I knew he would be. I could always count on Roy to watch my back. We had been through training together as well as countless dangerous missions. I tried not to think about how this was by far going to be the most dangerous thing we had ever encountered.

“We should leave the girls behind,” I said decisively. “We don’t want them in danger. Besides, we’ll be a lot quicker and more agile with just the two of us.

Roy rolled his eyes. “You realize that there’s no way those two are going to just let us go off on this mission without them, right?”

I scoffed but flinched inwardly, knowing that Roy was right. My older sister was stubborn, probably just as stubborn as I was. She also had a reckless streak in her. I had to save her more than once when we were kids.

Briella was a whole new breed of stubbornness. I meant what I said when I told her I couldn’t believe that I ended up with a mate who was more stubborn than I was. Still, I wouldn’t change that part of her for anything. Her hardheadedness was largely how she fought for what she believed in. Her devotion to others was one of the many reasons I fell in love with her.

“Well, they’re just going to have to deal with it,” I said firmly, already imagining using that tone when bringing it up to the girls. “I’m not going to put my sister and my mate through unnecessary risk.”

“I believe that we should be the ones to decide if we’re going to be put at risk, don’t you, Alyna?”

Roy and I turned to the door to see Briella and Alyna standing in the doorway. Both of them had their arms crossed in front of their chests.

Alyna glowered first at me and then at Roy. “Why yes, Briella, I do believe you’re right.”

I didn’t let my gaze falter as I stared my mate down. I lifted my chin in clear challenge. I wasn’t at all shocked when those vibrant green eyes were steely. Her jaw was clenched tightly as she narrowed her eyes.

She was prepared for a fight.

“Roy and I are returning to the land of shadows by ourselves,” I said, lowering my tone slightly so they understood how serious I was.

Briella’s eyebrows rose. She dropped her arms before striding right up to me. She was a whole head shorter than me but still managed to lift her chin in clear defiance. “Is that an order?” she asked sarcastically, her tone icy.

I narrowed my eyes at the challenge. “Of course not,” I told her. “You and I both know I can’t order you to do anything.”

One corner of Briella’s mouth tilted upward. “Then, why, may I ask, are you attempting to do so?”

“I wouldn’t call asking you and my sister to stay behind an order,” I said, making my tone light and innocent. I shrugged. “I’d call it a strong suggestion.”

Briella’s hands flew to her hips. “Well then, we strongly decline to said request,” she said.

I sighed deeply, grasping for patience. “Briella, we can be in and out much more easily if you two stay behind. We’re going in to spy. Please stay here, for me.” I grabbed her hands. I felt them twitch as if she was going to snatch them away.

I saw just a touch of understanding in Briella’s eyes. Her lower lip slid between her teeth for a moment. “You saw what was down there,” she murmured quietly. “I don’t want you two going there on your own.”

“Just like I don’t want you in danger,” I countered. I lifted a hand and tucked a stray hair behind her ear, my fingers lingering on the skin of her cheek. “I promise we’ll be alright. We’ve done stealth missions like this in the past.”

The stubbornness returned full force across Briella’s face. “With my magic and Alyna’s healing abilities, we should come too,” she said firmly. Her eyes grew incredibly warm as she gazed up at me intensely. “Please, Kryzen. Let us come. We’re in this together, aren’t we?”

I sucked in a breath at the pleading look on her face. I glanced over at Roy but could tell he was faltering as well as my sister gazed up at him with a similar look. I looked back down at my mate to find that she had a glint in her eye.

Her expression was almost passive. “Even if you did leave us behind, we know where the entrance to the land of shadows is anyway. Would you rather we followed you and weren’t with you, leaving us more vulnerable in the process because you left us behind?”

I just gaped down at her.

Roy chuckled. “She’s got you there, buddy.”

I gave him my best unamused look. “Thanks, pal.”

***

We waited until the middle of the night to sneak into the underground labyrinth. The darkness made it more foreboding than the first time, but we figured we would be less likely to be seen at this time.

It was definitely quieter in the tunnel. We crept along as quickly and silently as we could, pressing ourselves against the rocky wall.

I could feel the tension permeating through us as we made our way through the cave. Briella stuck close to my side, which I was thankful for since I was nervous about putting her in danger.

It was eerily quiet as we moved through the darkness. I took Briella’s hand and was surprised to find it cold and clammy, further emphasizing her nervousness.

It was almost comforting to hear the familiar cries coming from the animal companions as we neared the cavern where they were detained. Briella’s hand tightened over mine as we stood in the entryway.

The animals looked the same, and it didn’t seem like they had grown in numbers either. Come to think of it, there had been no further reports of missing animals. I wondered if Tian decided to cease the abductions to ride under the radar.

Just as she had last time, Briella slowed and looked around sadly at the caged creatures. I gently but hurriedly tugged her along. We needed to get to the underground city.

We all froze when we finally made it to the entrance leading into the dark town.

Roy swallowed thickly, voicing the question that we were all thinking. “Where are the shadow demons?”

The terrifying shadows that had been flying around were now nowhere to be seen. It was once again eerily quiet as if the city had been abandoned.

I was the first to shake myself out of the shocked stupor. I led the way into the city, continuing to pull Briella behind me. I felt tense as I gazed around at the dark buildings. They seemed to loom over us as if they were waiting for the right time to strike down on us.

Alyna was walking close to Roy, who had his weight moved in her direction as if he was preparing to defend her at the slightest hint of danger. She stopped walking suddenly.

We all turned to look at her concerned expression.

“What’s wrong, Alyna?” Briella asked, sounding scared to hear the answer.

Alyna’s eyebrows pulled together. “Do you guys hear that?”

We all froze, listening for what Alyna was hearing. It was faint at first, but I heard what she was referring to. My heart skipped a beat at the low humming sound in the distance.

Briella blinked. “It sounds like chanting,” she said after we all listened for another long moment.

We made our way toward the sound, slipping between the black buildings. As we grew closer, I could hear that Briella was right. It sounded like hundreds of voices chanting in another language.

The sounds were coming from a large building that resembled a temple. It had dark spires and stained-glass windows with twisted motifs on them.

“Stay behind us,” I ordered Briella and Alyna.

The two didn’t argue. Roy and I took the front as we approached the building. We slipped to the side so we could crouch beneath one of the large windows.

I gritted my teeth together at what we saw.

Briella couldn’t stifle her gasp, but it didn’t seem to matter. The occupants inside were too fixated on the dark man standing in front of a large crowd.

It was Tian.