"Do you know where Yasmin is?" Talia asked Declyn.
Declyn shook his head. "Gregory divides tasks, and he is the only one who knows the whole plan."
"You must have some ideas where he could keep her," Talia said.
Declyn confirmed. "I might."
"Was your task to bring Talia here?" Damon asked Declyn.
Declyn shook his head. "I was to stay here and be a backup if anything unexpected happens. I knew he would make you be with another woman, so Alpha Natalia leaves you."
"What!?" Talia snapped. This was so sinister and ridiculous that her insides churned. If it worked, Talia would be devastated.
"Gregory knew that if we just kill Alpha Damon, you will never forgive us," Declyn explained. "That's why he was planning for your mate to be with another woman. Gregory would remove restrictions once Damon gets intimate with the other female, so you can feel the pain of betrayal, at which point you will break your mate bond, and chances of you coming to us willingly will increase."
Talia was observing Gregory, who was just glaring at Declyn. She could tell he was angry but was he angry because Damon suppressed his powers or because Declyn was ratting on him?
Damon didn't trust Declyn, but Gregory's anger was palpable, and he believed that Declyn didn't make it up. It was too farfetched to be a lie.
Damon glared at Gregory. "For someone who thinks of himself as above others, you are demonstrating weak dick energy."
Gregory was outraged. "What did you say?"
Damon glared at Gregory. "Weak. Dick. Energy."
"Only a child would use such crass insults."
"Right now, you are weak as a child, so these insults are appropriate."
Gregory growled angrily and lunged at Damon.
Damon extended his hand just in time to grab Gregory's head and push him back with so much force that Gregory flew backward and landed unceremoniously in the snow with a groan.
"Get up!" Damon commanded. "You were so eager to play with me. Come now. Don't make me wait."
Damon lifted his hand that was holding Talia's and kissed her knuckles.
"Is this the woman you want? You should know that she is taken, and coveting her guarantees you won't have an easy ending…"
Talia didn't want to listen to their bickering. Yasmin was somewhere with her kids, their friends were facing rogues, Declyn was suspiciously cooperative, and Damon was right when he said that Gregory was weak like a human.
'What did Damon's ability do to Gregory?' Talia asked Liseli.
'It looks like it suppressed it. Gregory is regaining his powers gradually, and if he were not this furious, he would notice it.'
Talia didn't like this. Gregory was a dangerous man. Should she kill him? Can one kill a Guardian?
Declyn seemed neutral, but if she tried harming Gregory, Declyn's attitude might change. She didn't trust any Guardian, but they shouldn't kill indiscriminately either. There was a reason why most of them went to live with humans; they didn't want to act like Gods who were above others, which meant that Gregory didn't have the support of many.
Talia got an idea. 'Can we take away Gregory's abilities how we did with Sophia and Isaac?'
Liseli was not sure. 'There is only one way to find out.'
Hurried steps that came as crunches in the snow got everyone's attention.
Gregory's spirits rose, and he stumbled to his feet. "Ezra, Arthur! Help me capture these!"
Two males helped Gregory stabilize his posture and turned to face Damon and Talia.
Talia glanced at Declyn, who raised his hands defensively with, "I refuse to go against my people, but you have my word that I won't interfere."
"Your word is worth nothing," Damon said. "You might as well stand next to them, so I can take you all out in one go."
"Impudent!" Arthur shouted.
Declyn didn't respond as he took steps away from the place where the commotion was set to start at any minute.
"What happened to you?" Ezra asked Gregory.
Gregory shook his head. "He hit me with something, but I will be fine after resting."
'Damon?' Talia called through the mind link. 'Can you take those two out?'
'I'm not sure,' Damon responded honestly. 'I am still new at this power-controlling thing.' The initial burst was fantastic, but he did it in rage, and he was not sure if he could do it again. The one with the black mist shooting out of his palm was more like an experiment.
'What about you?' Damon asked.
'I used most of my energy to teleport here,' Talia admitted.
Damon looked at Talia in disbelief. 'You what?'
Talia bit her lower lip guiltily. Was he blaming her for using her energy, or was he surprised she could teleport? There was no time for explanations.
'Between the two of us, we can take them,' Talia said. 'Gregory is useless, and Declyn said he will stay neutral.'
More steps were heard, and three more figures appeared.
Talia cursed under her breath.
Gregory puffed his chest as his confidence swelled. He pointed an angry finger at Declyn. "Do you see this? Not everyone is a traitor like you are! You want to remain neutral? There is no such thing on the battlefield. I will deal with you later!" He spoke to Ezra, Arthur, and three newcomers, "Make sure not to harm Alpha Natalia too much."
'Can you teleport out of here?' Damon asked Talia.
Talia's hold on Damon's hand intensified. She was not sure if she had enough energy for one. 'Even if I could, I wouldn't leave you behind. Also, I believe that Yasmin and the twins are in that castle. We need to rescue them. Our packs are under attack from rogues. Retreating is not an option. Win or fail, we will do it together.'
Damon looked at the little woman by his side, and he let her feel his emotions through their mate bond. Pride, love, excitement, worry.
Talia turned to look at the Moon that was up in the sky.
'Lis, if Serena is up there, can she see us? Will she help us?'
'She is already helping us,' Liseli said. 'Feel the energies. They are all around us. Use them as yours.'
Talia closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
She could feel Damon next to her and Gregory standing in front, five people moving to form a big circle around Damon and her. Declyn was further on the left… and then she felt a whirlwind behind her.
Talia's eyes snapped open, and she turned to see several figures appearing there.
"Luna! Alpha!" Keith shouted as he and Arya rushed toward them. Maya, Caden, Liam, and Amelia were right behind them.
"How come you are here?" Talia asked.
"Amelia got us here as soon as we picked up your signal," Keith said with a frown. "How can you leave us behind like that?"
Talia shook her head, but she was glad to see them. "How are things in the pack?"
"George is in charge of warriors. James is on top of things and communicating with other packs. As of now, our casualties are minimal," Caden responded.
Another surge of energy was felt, and Talia saw another group appearing. It was Sandy, Tyler, Tony, Kalina, Jordan, and Lidia.
'They were in our pack,' Maya spoke to Damon and Talia through their pack link. 'Cornelia is sending people here according to James' instructions. More are on their way. Each of us has at least one artifact to help face Guardians. We didn't come here to be captured.'
