Third person's POV
"The pre-dawn air is crisp. I bet it is heavy with anticipation of what is going to happen today." Chloe stated, more to herself with excitement.
Her joy knew no bounds. She was gradually getting the revenge she had been living for. The Shadowpaw Pack was going to feel every bit of her wrath and she couldn't wait to break the pack completely.
She stood before her assembled warriors, her golden eyes were gleaming with barely contained excitement. Her beta and childhood friend, Liam was standing slightly behind her. He couldn't stand at shoulder height as a form of respect.
"Today.." Chloe's voice rang out to the warriors, clear and authoritative. She looked at the assembled warriors to assess whether she had their full attention or not. Satisfied with the muscular bodies and determined faces that awaited her command, she continued.
"We expand our territory. The Shadowpaw Pack will fall and their lands will be ours." She said and a chorus of growls and howls erupted from the crowd.
"I heard that their Alpha has fortified their borders with rogues..." Chloe paused and her lips curled into a predatory smile.
"Rogues that are nothing but cannon fodder. They think those are capable of stopping me. It's a shame that their Alpha has no idea how brutal this seemingly fragile girl is." She said and chuckled dryly.
Liam smiled discreetly and shook his head.
"We are going to cut through those rogues like a hot knife through butter.
"Remember, we are going there to conquer. Those who surrender immediately will be spared. The rest?" Chloe's eyes glinted dangerously, as she paused.
"Well, dead wolves can't challenge our rule." She added, her voice sharp and merciless.
"Understood, Alpha." The crowd replied to her in unison and bowed their head in submission.
"Good. Now, let's move." She commanded. The warriors surged forward and immediately bones cracked, indicating the shift from humans into wolves. As the warriors ran, they shifted into their wolves.
Chloe shifted into hers and a magnificent silver wolf with piercing golden eyes appeared. Then, she led the charge.
Her paws were hardly hitting the ground as she ran wildly. As fast as the trained warriors were, none of them could be close to her tail. She was that fast and agile.
As they neared the Shadowpaw territory, the scent of unfamiliar wolves grew stronger. Chloe signaled for her pack to halt at the edge of a clearing.
"We strike hard and fast. Don't give them time to think. They shouldn't see what is coming until it is upon them." She said to her warriors, through the mind link, since they were all in their wolves.
"Ethan, take a group and flank them from the east." She instructed the big black wolf standing at her right side.
"Liam, you take the West. I am going to lead the frontal assault." She instructed the big grey wolf standing at her left side.
"What should we do about the rogues?" One of the warriors asked.
"Are you seriously asking me that question again?" Chloe snapped at him in the mind link as her wolf faced the big black wolf.
"Anyway, in case you don't know, we are going to spare the rogues no mercy. They have made their choice when they joined our enemies." She said angrily and her wolf growled at the wolf of the warrior who dared to ask such silly question.
The wolf bared his neck to her in submission and quickly stepped back.
After that, Ethan and Liam selected their groups and disappeared into the forest.
Minutes later, the sound of howls and snarls erupted from all directions. The war had fully broken out.
"Now!" Chloe ordered, leading her group.
The clearing erupted into chaos as Chloe's warriors clashed with the rogues.
And without any attempt at subduing, teeth tore into flesh, claws ripped through fur, and the air filled with the metallic scent of blood.
In the midst of the fray, a large gray wolf emerged from the trees, flanked by several others. His presence commanded attention, and Chloe immediately recognized him as the Shadowpaw Alpha.
She strode forward, shifting to her human form. The Shadowpaw Alpha did the same, revealing a middle-aged man with graying hair and hard eyes.
"Chloe, you bitch! I knew you were going to attack us soon." Alpha Garrett growled at her.
"And that was why you brought in rogues? Wait, are you seriously thinking they could stop me from getting to you?" She asked the elderly man, a mockery smirk playing on her cheeks.
Alpha Garrett could only grit his teeth in response. Chloe let out a dry chuckle, really enjoying the horrified look on the man's face.
"By the way, are you enjoying the show?" She asked him rhetorically.
Alpha Garrett's face contorted with fury.
"You are going to pay for this, you bloodthirsty monster!" He slammed at her. Chloe tsked.
"And who will make me pay? Is it you whose head is going to be severed from your body soon?" She inquired and the Alpha's lips parted in shock.
"You can't attack a pack, kill an Alpha unjustly and get away with it." The Alpha protested.
"Unjustly? That is really rich coming from you, evil doer!" She spat at him. The Alpha's eyes widened as he realized what she was talking about.
"Believe me, it is not what you think." He said in a rather low voice.
"So now you know what I think?" She scoffed in annoyance. But the Alpha pressed on.
"I wasn't involved in the plot. Yes, I knew about it but I didn't partake in the execution.
"Your father knew how much I cherished our friendship..." The Alpha pressed on but Chloe interrupted him angrily.
"Yet you joined hands with the others to send in rogues to our pack, to destroy everything, just because my father didn't want to be a part of your conspiracy, isn't it?" She spat at him furiously.
"I didn't join hands with them. Listen child, you don't know the whole story." Alpha Garrett protested. Chloe hissed.
"But I know enough that you deserve death. Just as my father's head rolled in the mud which had been mixed with blood, your head is going to roll on the ground today." She told him, her golden eyes flashing dangerously.
"I gave you the opportunity to surrender to me and I was just going to take over your pack only since you are no longer fit to rule, but you refused. Now, this is your fault not mine." She added, shaking her head as if pitying the man.
But the Alpha knew she had no pity for him. Mere looking at Chloe's face, Alpha Garrett could tell she had made her mind and he knew pleading with her wouldn't help him out. So, he decided die with dignity.
"I am an Alpha who has been ruling even before you were born. I can never submit to you." Alpha Garrett maintained firmly even though his heart was pounding in his chest like crazy, due to fear of the tragedy that was about to befall him.
"Then you will die, it's very simple." She said, shrugging casually.
Without warning, Alpha Garrett lunged at Chloe, shifting mid-leap. Chloe met his attack head-on, her own shift was smooth and practiced. As a wolf, she was even more impressive. Then the fight ensued.
The two Alphas clashed in a whirlwind of teeth and claws. While Alpha Garrett fought with the desperation of a cornered animal, Chloe's movements were calculated, each strike meant to inflict maximum damage.
Despite Garrett's strength and experience, Chloe was faster, more agile, and fueled by an insatiable hunger for victory. In a matter of minutes, she had him pinned to the ground, her teeth at his throat.
Chloe was about to end the fight when Alpha Garrett weakly spoke up.
"I...is this going to end with my death? Will my family be spared?" He asked as he had decided to accept his fate of dying.
Chloe scoffed in disbelief.
"Like how you spared the lives of my father's family?" She retorted.
"Know this so that your miserable soul won't know peace. I am going to end your descendants. Everyone of them. I am going to let them know how wicked you were and how your actions and decisions ended my entire family. How it ended my baby sibling who couldn't even see the light of the world as he was brutally killed while still in the womb of my mother." She informed him, gritting her teeth.
"You bitch..." The helpless man wanted to protest but she didn't let him.
With a vicious twist, Chloe ended the fight, Garrett's body going limp beneath her, and his head rolled on the ground. She shifted back to her human form, standing over the fallen Alpha, her foot pressing down on his lifeless chest.
"Let this be a lesson, this is the fate of those who stand against me." She called out, her voice carrying across the battlefield. She was making them understand that, that wasn't just for revenge.
The fighting around them slowed as the Shadowpaw pack realized their Alpha had fallen. Chloe's warriors pressed their advantage, cutting down those who continued to resist.
"Enough! To those still standing – your Alpha is dead. Surrender now, and you may yet live to serve a true leader. Resist, and you'll join him in death. Choose quickly." Chloe commanded.