Chapter 5 End Of Evercrest

Akira did not get far into the dark woods before heavy hands grabbed her. She thrashed and kicked, but Dimitri Volkov easily dragged her back into the open courtyard. He threw her down onto the sand near the front of the line of soldiers.

Akira looked up, her face covered in wet dirt. She watched her father, who was gasping for air on his knees. If Alexander had not lost his inner wolf years ago during the great wars, these men would never have stood a chance against him. But now, he was entirely human, weak and bleeding.

Alexander coughed violently, red blood spilling from the corner of his lips onto the sand. Even so, he forced himself to look at his brother. "You can deny it all you want, Kasper. But one thing remains true. Blood is thicker than water."

For a moment, everything fell silent. Kasper's breathing became uneven, and his fingers wrapped tightly around the hilt of his sword.

"Stop lying," Kasper said, his voice shaking.

Alexander gave a faint, exhausted laugh. "You may think we are lying. But the truth will never change. My father saved you from that fire. He raised you. He loved you as his own son. You were family, Kasper. And you destroyed the very people who gave you a home."

"Enough!" Kasper roared.

His sword flashed through the light. With one swift strike, Kasper beheaded his brother. Alexander's head rolled across the blood-soaked sand before finally coming to rest a few feet away.

Akira stared at the space where her father had just been. Her body refused to move, and her mind refused to believe what her eyes had just seen.

Then, a sharp scream tore from her throat. "No! Father! Father!"

Tears streamed uncontrollably down her face as she struggled violently against the guards holding her arms. Kasper slowly lowered his bloody sword, breathing heavily. He looked down at Alexander's lifeless body without a single trace of regret.

Akira continued to scream, her small voice cracking. "Father! You killed him! You killed my father!"

Kasper stepped toward her, his face twisting into a deep frown. "Shut her up."

One of the guards quickly placed a rough hand over Akira's mouth to stop the noise. Akira did not hesitate. She bit down into the guard's flesh with all the strength she had left. The guard cried out in pain and stumbled backward, releasing her.

Before the guard could even recover, Kasper turned around and drove his sword straight through the man's chest. "You cannot even silence a child?" Kasper muttered. He yanked the blade free, letting the dead guard fall to the sand, then looked back at Akira.

Now, only the crackling of the burning manor could be heard. Kasper slowly crouched down until he was at eye level with the young girl.

"You are the only Logan left," Kasper spoke almost gently, though his eyes were cold. "Your father is dead. Your mother is dead. Your brother Ethan and your sister Angela are all gone. So, tell me, where is the Dragon Scroll?"

Akira said nothing. Her vacant eyes drifted from one body to another across the courtyard. She saw her father's head, her mother's pale form, Ethan's shape in the shadows, and little Angela's small body. Tears continued rolling silently down her cheeks, but not a single word escaped her lips.

Kasper's small smile disappeared completely. "I asked you, where is the Dragon Scroll?"

Still, Akira remained completely silent.

Dimitri folded his arms across his chest, looking bored. "She is useless, Kasper. Kill her now. Then burn the manor. Burn everything."

Kasper remained quiet for a long moment, studying the red-haired girl. Finally, he spoke. "No. We wait. If she speaks, she lives. If she refuses, then kill her."

The guards stepped forward and questioned her again. They asked her the same question over and over for what felt like hours. Akira never answered them. Not once.

Dimitri sighed impatiently as the fire grew higher around them. "I told you. She will never talk."

Kasper's patience finally snapped. He raised his heavy sword above his head. "If that is the case, then she is no longer useful to us."

The sharp blade came swinging down toward her neck. But before the metal could touch her skin, a deafening roar shook the entire estate.

A bright golden light exploded from Akira's small body. A magnificent dragon spirit burst from behind her, spreading enormous wings of blazing gold that filled the entire courtyard. The massive shockwave of energy hurled both Kasper and Dimitri backward onto the sand. Nearby soldiers were thrown off their feet, tumbling into the dirt as dust and burning embers filled the air.

When the blinding light finally dimmed, Akira remained standing. Her regular eyes had turned a brilliant, glowing gold. Behind her, the translucent shape of the dragon watched the remaining soldiers with ancient authority. No one dared to move.

Dimitri slowly climbed back to his feet, wiping the sand from his face. "Did you see that?"

Kasper stared at the girl in complete disbelief. "So, it was not just an old legend. The Dragon Blood passed directly to her."

Dimitri's breathing quickened with excitement. "If we do not have the Dragon Scroll, then we have something even more valuable right here. The Dragon Bride. We can present her directly to the Lycan King."

Kasper shook his head, his eyes narrowing. "I still want the Dragon Scroll."

The two men argued in hushed, angry voices near the flames. One wanted the scroll, while the other wanted the power of the girl.

Finally, Dimitri stepped closer to Kasper. "There is another option. You made me a promise before we came here. You said if I helped you destroy House Logan, you would grant me anything within your power."

Kasper remained silent, waiting.

"I want the girl," Dimitri said plainly.

Kasper's expression darkened. For the briefest moment, he hesitated. Despite the bloody massacre he had just caused, Akira had once been his favorite niece. But his dark ambition quickly erased any good feelings left in his heart. He nodded his head.

"Fine," Kasper said. "You can have her."

Dimitri smiled, his eyes fixing on the glowing girl. "I will purchase her as my personal servant. No one in the other packs will suspect a thing. The witnesses are all dead, House Logan has fallen, and as Beta of the Moonstone Pack, I know exactly how to turn this tragedy into real power."

Kasper remained quiet. He knew he would never repeat Alexander's final words to anyone. If the neighboring packs learned that he was not a true Logan by blood, everything he had fought for would fall apart. He buried that dangerous truth deep inside his mind, alongside the family he had just slaughtered.

That very night, the soldiers put heavy iron chains around Akira's wrists and dragged her away. The burning ruins of House Logan grew smaller and smaller until they disappeared completely behind the dark trees. Akira never looked back at her home.