Chapter 106 The Confrontation

*Diana*

The one Emmett had called Amos was caught off guard. He hissed at me as I entered the room. Aranck, on the other hand, was smiling malevolently while keeping an eye on my father. I knew what he was thinking. We had to act fast while their guard was down.

"Emmett, destroy the black sapphires," I ordered him through mind-link.

He muttered a spell under his breath and lifted his arm with his hand outstretched directed the light from his bracelet towards the gems. The white light shined so brightly causing Amos and Aranck to shield their eyes from its glare and hide the huge amulets hanging beneath their necks. Their red-orange eyes, eyes like that of a vampire, was sensitive to the white light, hence their black cloaks.

The gem on Emmett's bracelet was a moonstone blessed by the Moon Goddess. It was given to the Beta of my predecessor to destroy cursed gems, such as the black sapphire. Once the light of the moonstone touches the surface of a cursed gem, it would disintegrate. Emmett and his descendants had travelled far and wide to find cursed gems and destroy them. However, there were certain people who collected them. Andrew was one of them, but he sold his extensive collection to a woman wearing a burqa. I looked for the gems in the thoughts of all the wolves, but no wolf has it. I believe someone human had acquired the gems.

The light from the moonstone sparkled against the surface of the floating black star sapphires before turning each one into fine specks of dust which disappeared in the air. Aranck noticed the destruction of the black sapphires and in an attempt to salvage as many as he could, he snatched the two black sapphires which were off to the side intended for the two wolf troops.

"Lads, step away from the black sapphires," Emmett said. "Do not, I repeat, do not feel threatened by these miscreants who are no longer wolves!" The two Wolf Troops moved back and proceeded to run towards the back. However, midway to the door, they froze, as if paralyzed. Aranck, with his hand up in the air, was using his magic to keep them inside the bistro. He, then, maneuvered the two wolves towards him, making them stand infront of him.

Amos covered his eyes with the hood of his cloak and hid his amulet underneath his cloak. Aranck followed him and did the same. Now that their eyes were shielded, their black sapphires protected, and with hostages to use as leverage, they believed they had the upper hand. I gestured to Emmett to lower his arm.

"Do you care for these two wolves, Black Wolf? Do you care enough for them to let us go?" Aranck asked mockingly. His eyes rested fleetingly on my father who was prepared to shift, including Uncle Mike.

"Dad, please stand behind me," I mind-linked him and Uncle Mike. "He's out to kill you." Uncle Mike nudged my dad to move behind me. He begrudgingly positioned behind me, but he knew it was for his own good.

"Diana, there's three cloaked figures out here in the back. One of the cloaked figures is a woman who has One on a leash," Ethan said through mind-link. He, Alpha Connor and Matt were keeping an eye on the back. I already knew One was here and I also knew he wanted no part in the Black Resistance.

"Do not engage with the three cloaked figures. They have powers. They are here to rescue Aranck and his Beta, Amos," I mind-linked them. Aranck impatiently stomped his foot to grab my attention. He knew why I was stalling.

"Well, Black Wolf, you will let us go, yes?" He placed an arm around one Wolf Troop in an attempt to break his neck.

"You think I care for those two Wolf Troops? They are trying to kill me and my father. Go ahead and kill them. Less for me to worry about," I told him, walking towards them, letting my fangs and nails come out. "I'll let you go, if you leave behind your Beta. If you value the life of your heir, you will leave Amos to me."

I saw Amos move his hands to stop me, but nothing happened. "Your powers do not work on me for I with my human form are stronger than your magic." Onyx's husky voice filled the bistro. I saw Amos's hands quiver. "As I told you, in the end, you will die. Now, I can kill the both of you here or you, Aranck, can at least smell freedom for a short period of time until I finish off what was started so long ago. I will allow you to leave and summon the rest of your flock, so I may once and for all, destroy the very evil which has allowed your return." I stopped in front of both of them, took Amos by the neck and lifted him high off the ground.

"A-alpha, d-do n-not leave me," he choked. Aranck lifted his arm to hit me, but I grabbed his wrist before it struck and twisted it. The Wolf Troop, who Aranck just threatened to kill, wiggled his way out of Aranck's grasp, took the arm of his companion and ran towards my dad and Uncle Mike.

"So, what is it going to be, Aranck, Alpha of the Black Resistance? Should I call my Beta? Or would you like me to do the honors?" I twisted his wrist further, yet he did not mind the pain unlike his Beta.

"My heir has undergone mind conditioning. Pain is nothing to him," he said, snickering at me. I let go of his wrist, slashed his face with my claws then I grasped his cloak where the black sapphire lay hidden underneath. I could feel its heat through the clothing. Aranck, reached up to touch the wound I had inflicted on his cheek. I saw him grimace. He did feel pain after all. When he spoke again, he had changed his mind. "However, you strike a most difficult bargain. You can have Amos for the time being, Black Wolf, but I promise you, when I have unlocked the mysteries of the black sapphire, I will come for him. Now, may you so kindly let me go. Let go!"

"I already gave you time to answer me. Now that I have you in my grasp, you think I will let you go?" Onyx paused. I saw it too. Ethan, Alpha Connor and Matt had been taken by the woman.

Suddenly, the back door opened and in came Ethan, Alpha Connor and Matt followed by three others in black cloaks. A tall figure stepped in front and lifted her head to show her pouty red lips. She moved her hood, uncovering her face, so we could all get a clear view of her. She was a stunning woman with long dark curly hair, but just like Aranck and Amos, she also had red creepy eyes.

"Theodora!" Emmett exclaimed. He moved forward, but Theodora flicked her hand and maneuvered Ethan to stand infront of her. She placed her hand on his throat, causing Emmett to stop.

"Not so fast, old man. I wouldn't move if I were you. I might get nervous and kill someone," she said.

"I see a white light in your aura. You found a priestess to possess," Emmett said.

"Fate favors the patient. It was easy to find one among the rogues. It seems the leader of the wolves detests magic," she laughed merrily, happy such circumstances were on her side. "Black Wolf, we meet again. I must say, you have become stronger than your former self. A man in each hand. I enjoy multi-tasking myself, but I only stick to one man. Now, be a sweetheart and give me my Alpha and his Beta and I will let these three little pups go. If I'm not mistaken, this one here," she gave Ethan a kiss on the cheek, "is your mate." Ethan's face scrunched up in disgust.

I let go of Amos and Aranck almost instinctively after seeing Ethan in trouble. Theodora tightened her grip on Ethan's neck and giggled, thinking she had won. Amos fell down on his knees gasping for air while Aranck, with a triumphant smile on his face, straightened his clothing and rolled his broad shoulders. He took a tentative step forward thinking I would do something to him, but when I didn't stop him, he chuckled and continued walking towards his Luna.

The sky grew dark as the gray clouds covered the sun causing the already dark bistro to become even darker. That's when Onyx and I made our move. 

Emmett's moonstone began to shine anew, keeping a hold on Amos as well as protecting the others while I sped through the darkness. Caught unaware, Theodora shielded her eyes from the white light and made the mistake of letting go of Ethan.

"Beta, place a binding spell on all of them," Onyx ordered Emmett through mind-link. He closed his eyes and the light from the moonstone enveloped all of them except for Aranck.

I couldn't just kill these black hooded people. They were wolves sucked into the malice of these spirits who called themselves the Black Resistance. One of them was my grandfather, the other a wolf Troop who Chief had given one to and the woman was a she-rogue whose mother was killed during the 'mage cleansing' of the High Lord Wolf.

Yes, I just needed to destroy the black sapphires and all will go back to the way it was. But before I could finish them off, I would have to allow Aranck to summon the spirits of all the members of the Black Resistance. It will be risky, but there is no other way.

The keeper said nine had communed with her earlier. Emmett had destroyed three sapphires  along with all the shards the keeper had. One black sapphire split into three which brought about Amos. This same phenomenon could have happened for the three other cloaked members. This meant there were still eight small black sapphires in their possession. The photo in the album showed me there were twelve of them who led the Black Resistance. This only meant they had more than enough sapphires to summon all twelve without Aranck's black sapphire splitting into three. It would provide him more power against anyone else. Unfortunately for Aranck, I will be imprisoning his Luna.

I rushed towards Theodora, pushing her down to the floor. Since the other two behind her were distracted by the glare of Emmett's moonstone,  it was easy for me to push them outside the back door where One and Otis were waiting. They were armed with daggers and stabbed the two cloaked men repeatedly before kicking them down the stairs. I, then, sped towards Aranck and slashed his eye with my claws before throwing him out of the back door. He tumbled down the steps landing on his two wounded disciples. One and Otis rushed inside, closed the back door and locked it.

Theodora quickly stood up and ran towards Otis, but I charged at her, impaling her on the wall with my claws. She screamed in pain, her saliva dripping out of her red pouty lips.

"Not so fast, Theodora. You're coming with us. Beta, make sure your binding spell holds, so they can't use their magic on anyone," Onyx told Emmett. He closed his eyes again and the light from his moonstone enveloped the two.

"Binding spell fortified, my Alpha, although it is not necessary since the first spell was enough," Emmett said. I took my claws out of Theodora's shoulder and she collapsed on the floor. "Unfortunately, Aranck had a shield against my binding spell. I was not able to bind him." Theodora laughed when she heard Aranck was still capable of magic. "But after tonight, when my Alpha is anointed, she will be able to travel through wolves. You of all people should know that, Theodora. Alpha Connor, you may now hold her. She is no longer a threat."

"I'll take her," Ethan said, roughly picking her off the floor. "I will make you pay for threatening to kill me." He pressed his finger on her wound and she screamed.

"Please stop," she begged for mercy. Ethan scoffed at her and dragged her to the entrance. My dad and Uncle Mike grabbed a hold of Amos, who was still reeling from being strangled, and followed Ethan. Emmett put his arm around Otis and together they both walked towards the entrance with a grim expression on their faces.

I reverted back to myself, trying to rub off the blood from hands. I turned around to see Alpha Connor trying to exercise restraint in front of a very scared One. I guess Alpha Connor couldn't restrain himself any longer because he punched One in the face. One fell to the ground and hurriedly covered his face, just in case, Alpha Connor took a swing at him again.

"That's for killing my brother and almost exterminating my pack," Alpha Connor said. Then he offered his hand to One. One slowly uncovered his face and saw Alpha Connor's outstretched hand. He took it and Alpha Connor helped him up. "And that's for sacrificing your life to save ours, but this doesn't mean we're friends. You still owe me. Now, let's go before they barge through that door."

"I doubt they will. All of them are injured and I scratched Aranck's eye out. They'll rest and regroup before summoning the rest of their group since the two he's with no longer have the capability to do magic. He'll need to plan accordingly if he wants to rescue his Luna," I told him. I walked to the entrance where everyone was waiting for me.

"Emmett, don't forget to take those amulets off their necks, but don't destroy them just yet. They'll just place Theodora's spirit in another wolf. Also, search her for more sapphires. If you find any on her, destroy them. Otis, I need you to call the High Lord Wolf and tell him I'm headed to the penitentiary. Aranck will be looking for mages to assist him and we all know where all the mages are," I said. I turned to the Wolf Troops who were awaiting orders. "There are about 478 inmates in the Wolf Penitentiary, yes?"

"Yes, the inmate population is currently under five hundred although the penitentiary can hold up to a thousand," one of them answered. "Why do you ask, Black Wolf?"

"Call me, Diana," I smiled at them. "Sorry about a while ago. I needed to distract Aranck and his Beta." They both nodded at me telling me they understood. "Well, I ask because that's the army Aranck is looking for, but he needs the rest of his disciples to help him. I need to get to the penitentiary and move every single mage out of there and under my protection."