The Alpha's Unclaimed Mate novel Chapter 143

Chapter 143: No Magic, No Backup, & No Damn Sense

"Forty thousand," Aeron called over the wind.

Serena’s stomach dropped. "Forty thousand?"

Row after row of soldiers marched across the snow in precise formations, weaving in and out of fortress walls. Velanthor spanned multiple mountains. Obsidian towers rose at each corner, their peaks lost in the swirling clouds.

"The High General doesn’t take chances." Aeron’s eyes were fixed on the fortress, calculating. "He’s been preparing for something. Or someone."

They stayed hidden behind a ridge of snow-covered rocks, timing the patrols. Guards changed position every few minutes with clockwork precision.

"I need to tell you something before we go any further," Aeron said quietly. "This fortress is resistant to mage magic. The entire structure is woven with dampening wards. I can feel them from here, pressing against my senses like a weight."

"What does that mean for us?" Elara asked.

"It means I won’t be able to summon enough power to create a portal back once we’re inside. We’ll need to find another way out." He paused and turned to Serena. "It also means you won’t be able to fabricate. The wards target non-fae external magical signatures and suppress wolf transformations."

Serena felt the blood drain from her face. Every exit strategy she’d been building in her head collapsed at once. "So I’ll be powerless in there."

"Correct." Aeron’s expression was grim. "And Elara won’t be able to shift."

Elara swore under her breath.

"On the bright side," he added with a ghost of dry humor, "we all know Serena can’t shift anyway, so at least that’s one less thing to worry about."

Serena let out a startled laugh despite the terror clawing at her chest. "Thanks for that."

"I thought you could use the levity." Aeron’s mouth twitched. "It might be the last joke any of us makes for a while."

They fell silent, studying the fortress.

Then the alarms started.

A horn blared, cutting through the wind like a blade. Lights flared along the walls, bright and pulsing, and voices began shouting in High Orosian.

"She’s here somewhere!"

Serena’s blood turned to ice.

"How do they know we’re here?"

"They have detection wards." Aeron grabbed her arm. "Move. Now."

They ran.

Snow to the knee with every stride. Her lungs couldn’t get enough air, and her legs were begging her to stop, but stopping meant chains.

Behind them, the shouts multiplied.

"This way," Aeron hissed, pulling them toward a narrow ravine that cut through the mountainside. "There’s an old service entrance. It was sealed decades ago, but I might be able to—"

An arrow struck the rock beside them, sending chips of stone flying. Another whistled past Serena’s ear.

She ducked instinctively, nearly losing her footing in the snow. Elara caught her by the collar and wrenched her upright without breaking stride.

"Split up." His voice left no room for debate. "My magical signature lingers from the portal. They’re tracking me, not you."

"We’re not leaving you," Serena protested.

"Run east. Don’t look back." Aeron was already veering toward the open snow. "And if I die, tell Bellatrix she still owes me six hundred marks."

The shouts immediately shifted direction, following him.

"Come on." Elara grabbed Serena’s hand and pulled her toward the eastern cliff. "We can’t let his sacrifice be for nothing."

By the time the shouts dissolved into wind, Serena’s legs had gone numb. She almost didn’t recognize what she was looking at: a collapse of ancient rocks piled against the base of a sheer cliff face.

The service entrance.

"If we survive this, I’m never letting you plan anything again," Elara hissed.

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