I'm sorry I haven't updated for more than a week! I was really busy with my school work and found myself lacking the time to upload. This week's really busy since we have a lot of school activities--not to mention we have a festival we're preparing for this month! So yeah, really busy! I know you guys said I updated short chapters, so I tried to make this one long! :DD I know it might not be enough to compensate for the time you guys waited, but I do hope you like it still!

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Chapter 32

A few moments passed by and Akira remained silent, focusing on the current battle at hand. She could hear the sound of pained screams, agonized howls, growling, gunshots, and all sorts of unpleasant things.

      Kathrynne came sliding beside them, her white fur coated in dirt and blood. The familiar sight of the crimson liquid trickled down from her lips. It made her wolf form even more menacing than it already was. She didn’t look pleased at all.

      ‘Where the hell are your reinforcements, Adam? My men can’t hold out any longer! We’re in seriously deep trouble right now!’

      ‘Just a little longer! I have faith in Marcus!’ He replied.

      ‘A little longer would be too late! Those bastards are increasing every minute and we’re all dying!

      ‘No one’s dying!’ Akira heard him growl mentally, which in turned initiated a hard, serious look from her mother. ‘I will not let anymore of us die.’

      Adam jumped into motion and moved even faster, taking out more men than before. Akira tried to keep herself intact on his back while still shooting the remaining darts to cover his back, but the action proved to be hard.

      She grunted when her shot almost missed her target.

      “Calm the hell down, Adam!” She hissed at him. “With the way you’re moving, I won’t be able to get a clear shot!”

      ‘You can stop now, Akira. I’ll protect you.’

      He sounded . . . so determined. Even though Akira couldn’t get a proper look on his face, she understood perfectly what he was feeling. He was feeling the drive to protect his people—the drive to protect the things important to him. It was clear like crystal. With the way he moved—how much effort he exerted. He truly was a deserving man for the title of Alpha.

      “We can’t have that now.” She told him and suggested, “Aren’t we mates?”

      Adam looked startled for a moment, the visible widening of his wolf-like eyes made Akira raise her brows. When she realized what she said, she hopelessly tried to reason out.

      “I mean—that’s what you told me. And it doesn’t mean I already accepted it!”

      ‘It’s alright. I perfectly get what you were trying to say. But still, I’m happy. I love you, Akira. You’re right. Then why don’t we protect these people—our people, together? You’re my Luna after all.’

      “I—that’s not . . .” She sighed. It seemed like it was helpless to keep up the façade. She wanted to act like she didn’t care, but her heart said otherwise. If she continued this way, she would probably be contradicting what she truly felt. “Yeah. Together.”

      ‘Finally.’ Adam said. ‘For once, you finally accepted.’

      “Look here, bastard! Just because I said yeah, doesn’t mean I’m actually agreeing with you!” She yelled at him. “It doesn’t mean anything!”

      ‘It does. Come on, Akira. Can you stop being stubborn for once and let me enjoy this moment? For you to actually concede feels like a miracle sent down by the heavens.’

      “Seriously?” She said, throwing another dart.

      ‘It is, when you have a really obstinate woman as your mate.’

      They were silent for a few moments, and the battle continued. The pair did just fine until something cut sharply through the air and struck Akira on the shoulder, sending her falling off from Adam’s back. Akira looked up and saw an arrow’s shaft sticking out from her flesh.

      “Holy—” She stopped. “Where the hell did this come from?”

      ‘Akira! Damn it, are you alright?’ Adam trotted towards her immediately, looking worried.

      “I’m fine! Focus on the fight, idiot! I can handle myself.”

      ‘I can’t leave you unprotected!’

      “Didn’t you promise that you won’t let anyone else die? I’m a small sacrifice. Go and get them, Adam, I’ll handle myself just fine. I know Marcus will arrive soon! Have faith, stupid!”

      ‘But I . . .’ Adam hesitated.

      “Don’t hesitate! You’re an alpha!” She growled menacingly at him. “If you don’t get out in that f*ck*ng field, I won’t let you take me out on a date!”

      ‘Akira . . .’ He mentally whispered worriedly, his wolf whining.

      “Just do it and don’t freaking underestimate me! I’m a damn black belt in Karate and Judo!” She hissed at him, feeling her warm blood seep through her fingers.

      ‘If you don’t leave right now, I swear to god, Adam, I’m going to kill myself! This isn’t the time to worry about me!’ She told him mentally.

      ‘Hop on my back. I won’t leave you behind.’

      “I’ll be just a burden. I can’t cover your back. It’s fine with just Ann riding you. I’ll go over to mom.”

      ‘You cannot bother her.’

      “Same to you as well.” She said. “I’m going somewhere so that I won’t get in anyone’s way. I’ll be safe.”

      ‘Stop being stubborn.’ He growled, baring his teeth at her until a man came from behind and tried to attack him. He snapped at that man and threw him off.

      She groaned in agony as the wound throbbed. She could feel the cold metal buried deep in her flesh, and it wasn’t the least bit pleasant. She lied on the cold, earthy ground, surrounded by the sharp and tall plants that tickled her skin. Placing a hand on her wound, she put some pressure on it before she pulled it off. Akira then threw the stupid thing away.

      “Adam! You have to go back out there!”

      ‘I cannot leave you unprotected! Just hop on my back, stubborn woman! You won’t be a burden even if you’re wounded!’

      She wanted to cry. She never felt so weak before. ”I’m fine.” She said in a low voice. Maybe it was her pride getting in the way. She was never the type to ever depend on someone when it came to protecting herself, so having to rely on someone repulsed her. Now that she was in this state, she couldn’t bear to have someone protect her because of it.

      ‘I’m your mate, Akira. Mates should protect each other. You’re calling me stupid but here you are, being one yourself. Rely on me for once.’

      His back was turned against her, protecting her from any attackers that came to bring them harm. Adam fended them off with Akira lying under his legs.

      “This is just a flesh wound.” She reasoned. “Nothing serious.”

      ‘Damn it. I’m starting to regret this. JUST HOP ON MY BACK! JUST DO IT!’

      She refused.

      Adam growled before turning towards her and biting the collar of her top. He threw her behind him forcefully, in front of Ann, and ran towards the enemies.

      “I hate you.” She found tears running down from her eyes. “I told you to leave me!”

      ‘We are supposed to protect each other. You said so yourself. Did you hit your head when you fell down and forgot about that?’

      “I . . . didn’t want to depend on anyone. I’m already weak as I am.”

      ‘You’re not weak.’

      “You’re not weak, Akira.” Ann said, repeating Adam’s words. “You’re strong. I don’t know how to explain it, but you’re not afraid to stand up for yourself. You’re amazing, just so you know. I want to become like you someday.”

      It felt like a heavy weight was lifted from her heart when she listened to Ann’s words.

      ‘Ann, attend to Akira’s wounds. Find a way to stop the bleeding.’

      “Will do, Alpha Adam!” She answered cheerfully before tugging on the end of her shirt and forcefully tearing it off.

      ‘You should learn by now, Akira. You cannot forever live as an independent person. You cannot do everything by yourself, so learn to rely on someone for a change. Just how stubborn can you get? You’re not being a burden to anyone. They do it because they want to help you, protect you . . . love you. Learn to accept their efforts. You cannot live like that forever. No man is an island.’

      “Sorry . . .” She swallowed.

      ‘Just keep quiet. Let me protect you.’

      Akira nodded hesitatingly before wiping off the tears from her eyes. Her shoulder was still throbbing while Ann wrapped the cloth she tore off from her shirt around her wound.

      ‘Akira!’ Her mother’s voice echoed. ‘I smelled your blood! Are you alright?’

      She was somewhere far away, so she found the telepathy quite convenient. There was no need to hold a cellphone and dial a number.

      ‘I’m fine . . . just got hit by an arrow.’

      ‘Be careful now. No one else’s dying, you hear me?’

      ‘Yes,’ she nodded. ‘I hear you.’

      Her mother went quiet and the girl thought maybe she busied herself with the current fight. She was quite happy that her mother worried about her like she did.

      Finally, a loud gunshot echoed. This one was different from all else, the bullet whistled noisily and reverberated painfully in everyone’s ears. Akira instinctively covered her head, trying to protect her hearing from it.

      “Argh!”

      Ann was on the verge of screaming, both hands on either side of her head. “Make it stop!”

      Adam whined and flattened his ears against his head, body dropping automatically to the ground. Since wolves had sensitive hearing, it might’ve been really painful for everyone.

      It was really agonizing while it lasted.

      “This battle,” a voice said when the noise finally subsided. “Will end now.”

      Everyone in Kathrynne’s pack was kissing the ground, whining. Akira’s ears were ringing and she felt dizzy, her sight growing slightly blurry. It felt like a thousand voices just shouted right next to her ear, and seeing as Adam and Ann might’ve gotten more sensitive hearing abilities, it might’ve been worse for the both of them.

      “This is a really good weapon. Perfect for to use for a werewolf’s weakness. What do you say about it?” Akira recognized that voice—it belonged to her father.

      “Dad . . .” She muttered. “I never knew you were such a bastard.”

      “You’re all currently weakened by only that attack. Do you think you can fight for yourselves?”

      “They can’t.” Another voice loudly declared. “But we can.”

      Akira turned towards the sound of the voice and saw Marcus emerging from the trees in all directions. He had a smile on his face while he lead a big pack of wolves—each and everyone capable of fighting in Bourne Harlem present in the battlefield. Adam’s people appeared from the thick line of trees, their numbers proving to be superior to the hunters’ current man power.

      “Good afternoon, alpha!” Marcus cheerily greeted. “Sorry to keep you waiting.”

      ‘Marcus, you bastard. What took you so long?’

      “Ah, pardon me.” He smiled. “But the hero appears only at desperate times.”

      ‘Remind me to kill you later.’

      “How harsh. Anyhow, men! Let’s get this party started!”

      ‘It’s already ending, you idiot!’

      “My, what a shame.” Marcus replied, before he transformed into his wolf form and attacked. “But I’ll be having some fun, thank you!”

      Akira felt relieved from their arrival. And although a lot of them were still weakened by the recent attack, victory didn’t feel like it was hard to reach.

      “We’re going to win this.”

      ‘We sure as hell will.’ Adam replied.

      Adam wobbled on his hind legs for a moment before he shook his furry head and tried walking. He almost lost his balance, but finally managed to do it in the end. Akira was worried for the Alpha at first, but seeing as he looked fine, she smiled.

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Thanks for reading! Until next week!