“Human leadership,” Solen said. “They’ve stirred the pot. They’ll want to see if they can reap the rewards of their efforts.”
“If we can defeat Renaldo and his generals, the Keep will fall. It will be under Luxorian rule. We can free all the omegas, and discipline anyone responsible for harming them. That’s where we want to focus our efforts.” Dagger looked back at Tavia. “Ready, little firecracker?”
“I was born ready.” Tavia moved to climb out of the hatch, but then she stopped and grabbed my arm. “What the hell was that?”
“What?”
“The ground just moved. There. It happened again.”
Sand twisted, but there was no wind. It was a hot, still day that was just waiting for something to happen. Everyone turned to look where Tavia was pointing.
“How close are we to those red blotches?” I asked.
“They’re all around us,” Dagger said.
Okay. Which meant there could be a whole lot of omega females in trouble. Or something totally different. “Any signs of Renaldo?”
“His battalion is ahead,” Solen said.
That did nothing to settle my stomach.
Tavia waved her hand in front of her nose. “It reeks of humans. Like the Keep. Oh, shit.”
A mutant rose from the sand, red eyes and gnarled teeth. Their omega soul long gone. Dagger gunned the engine and ran it over.
More mutants rose from the sand. The humans had hidden their weapons underground, and now they were ready to play. The omega soldiers stood paralyzed, stunned by what they were seeing.
“We’ve got to get the army to fight.” I was panicking. For the first time since we came up with this plan, I thought we might lose. “How do we make them move?”
“We lead by example.” Solen said. “Stop the truck. We get out now and properly lead our army into this battle.”
“But the mutants.” I could shift into a wolf, but I was no match for a monster.
“Don’t worry, Ashla.” The king had never addressed me without saying omega first. It was a massive show of respect and I’d fight to show my appreciation. But the mutants scared the ever living hell out of me. “Our weapons are stronger than theirs. Especially the man that I’ve put at the helm of this operation. Your mate.”
Solen
Chapter Nineteen
My gun was already loaded with anti-juice capsules so I wasted no more time on strategy. It was time to fight.
Springing from the vehicle, Adalai and Dagger right behind me, I aimed at the nearest mutant and fired a test shot. The round exploded on impact, dousing the mutant with blue liquid. He let out a high-pitched screech and staggered backward, red eyes glowing with confusion. He contorted in a way that reminded me of shifting from human to wolf, except slower. The transition was less smooth, and incomplete, leaving the mutant almost… glitching.
My mind raced. Could this be used to reverse the effects of the juice on the mutants? Could they be redeemed? It seemed impossible, but if I’d learned anything in life, it was that there was no such thing as impossibilities.
Before I could grapple with the idea further, the mutant I fired on straightened, going back to his half-shifted, muscle jacked state. And he looked furious as his gaze narrowed on me.
Shiiiit.
One shot of the anti-juice stopped the mutant from advancing, and even temporarily altered his body. What would multiple shots do?
“It works,” I shouted back at the others. “Evander’s concoction works.”
Dagger and the king started picking off the mutants as they rose from the sand where they had waited to ambush us while I crossed over to address the terrified omega army. My own alpha soldiers were mixed among the crowd. Some were already ramping up the omegas, calling for them to fight for the king.
But no, that wasn’t what we were fighting for. Not anymore.
“For peace,” I shouted, gaining the attention of the crowd.
“For the Badlands,” one omega female spoke up. She was brave, and I could see she was respected, but it had to be more than that. These people had to fight for more than just their Badlands.
“For unity,” I argued. “For Weren.”
She gave a slight nod before raising her fist to the air. “For Weren!”
“For Weren!” the crowd chanted as Ashla and Tavia rushed to distribute the anti-juice artillery.
Turning back to the battle, I spotted more mutant Elites rising from the sand while others writhed under the anti-juice attack. Some even seemed unable to keep fighting after the blue liquid covered their body. But the humans would show up any minute, and they were just as skilled in battle as us.
As the alpha and omega soldiers rushed in for a closer attack, I looked across the desert toward Luxoria. There would be a signal if—when—the beta rebels began their attacks. Blue smoke from Evander’s army between the Badlands and the kingdom, and purple from Cassian’s within the city. So far, there was no distress signal. But I’d be a fool to think the mutants attacking at this precise moment was for nothing. Renaldo and his men were close, maybe only seconds away, and I had a feeling they expected to see a lot more of us dead when they arrived.
A grin curled my lips.
They had no idea what was waiting for them.
I joined the fray, cutting a path through the army and mutants, delivering blow after blow of Evander’s blue stuff. Omegas shifted into their wolf forms, fighting the beasts the best way they knew how. Animal to monster. Fang to dripping fang.
My eyes continually roamed the battlefield to find my mate. Each time I spotted her, she was kicking ass and taking names, just like I
