The Lycan King's Amnesia Mate

Sebastian’s Point of View.

The stench of blood and defeat hangs in thick clouds around me as I stand at the edge of the battlefield, gazing over the chaos below. My warriors—the Lycans of the Dark Blood pack—cut through the Lock Heart wolves like a hot knife through butter. They fought hard—desperately, really—but it was never enough.

I fold my arms, cold satisfaction blooming in my chest. The Lock Heart pack will soon be on their knees, begging for mercy. Their Alpha, Alexander, has tried to put up a strong front, but he must realize by now that his pack’s time is up. There’s no escape for them.

“Your orders, Your Majesty?” Damian, my second-in-command, asks, his voice edged with a bloodthirsty excitement. He stands beside me, all eyes on the last of the Lock Heart wolves being driven back, their numbers thinning.

I glance at him, then back to the battlefield. “We take them all. Those who resist, die. The rest… will serve.”

Damian’s smile spreads, pleased. He thrives on the power that comes from dominating our enemies, and normally, I’d share in his delight. But something feels different this time. There’s a nagging feeling inside me, growing over the past few days, like something monumental is about to shift.

Then I see her.

A whirlwind of movement cuts through the battlefield, silver hair flashing. My gaze sharpens, tracking her with an instinct that has nothing to do with the battle. Her deadly grace, the way her sword is an extension of her will, how she tears through my Lycans with ease. But it's not just her combat skills that draw me.

It’s something deeper. Something… primal.

“Who is she?” I mutter, mostly to myself.

Damian looks over, following my line of sight. “That’s Amethyst Fox. Beta of the Lock Heart pack. A fierce warrior, skilled healer… dangerous.”

I’ve heard of her before—a loyal protector of the Alpha's son, Alessandro, and the finest fighter the Lock Heart pack has. But now that I see her, now that I feel her, something inside me just clicks. The air shifts, and suddenly, every other sound on the battlefield fades into the background. She is mine.

“She’s… different,” I murmur, convinced more than ever. I’ve lived long enough to recognize the pull of fate. And right now, it’s stronger than it’s ever been.

“What do you want to do with her?” Damian asks, noticing the change in my expression.

My mind races, calculating the possibilities. Amethyst Fox is no ordinary wolf, and I can’t let her slip through my fingers. Not now. Not ever. My plans to enslave the Lock Heart pack fall away, replaced by a single focus—her.

“I want her,” I growl, my voice low. “Amethyst Fox will be mine.”

Damian smirks, reading my intent. “Their Alpha won’t give her up easily.”

“He’ll have no choice,” I reply, my tone firm. “I’ll offer him a deal he can’t refuse.”

I watch her as she fights, her movements fluid and precise, but there’s a fierceness that calls to me. The Lock Heart pack has lost this war. Their defeat is inevitable. All that remains now is to claim my prize.

“Arrange a meeting with Alexander,” I tell Damian. “He’ll either give her to me, or his entire pack dies.”

Later, in the War Council Meeting The room falls silent as I step into the meeting chamber. Alexander, Alpha of the Lock Heart pack, stands at the head of the table, his face grim, body tense. His son, Alessandro, stands beside him, his eyes burning with defiance as he glares at me. I meet his gaze briefly, unimpressed. His hatred is irrelevant.

The real prize is missing from this room.

“Sebastian,” Alexander greets me, his voice strained. “I assume you’re here to discuss terms of surrender.”

I step forward, letting my power unfurl and fill the room. “Surrender isn’t the word. Submission suits the situation better.”

Alexander doesn’t respond, though his jaw clenches. I take a seat at the head of the table, letting my gaze sweep over the council. “Your pack is defeated. You fought well, but this is the end of the line for the Lock Heart.”

Alessandro growls, taking a step forward. “We’ll never submit to you!”

I don’t bother looking his way. “This isn’t a negotiation, boy. This is your last chance to save what’s left of your pack.”

Alexander raises a hand to stop his son, locking eyes with me. “What do you want, Sebastian?”

A slow smile curves my lips. “I want Amethyst Fox.”

The room falls silent.

Alessandro’s eyes widen, and he looks at his father in disbelief. “You can’t be serious. You can’t give her to him!”

Alexander closes his eyes briefly, his face pale, then speaks. “Why her?”

“Because she’s mine,” I reply simply, the conviction ringing in my voice. “Fate has decreed it, and I’ll claim what belongs to me.”

“She’s not some object you can just take,” Alessandro spits, his fists clenched.

“Careful,” I growl, my patience thinning. “I’m offering a way to save your pack. I could destroy every last one of you. But if you give me Amethyst, I’ll spare them.”

Alexander’s shoulders sag, and for the first time, he looks truly defeated. He knows there’s no way out. Finally, he nods.

“I agree,” he says quietly. “Amethyst will be yours.”

“Father, no!” Alessandro protests, his voice cracking with desperation.

“There’s no other way, Alessandro,” Alexander replies, his voice heavy with regret.

I rise, satisfied. “Good. She’ll be delivered to me tomorrow as an offering to seal peace between our packs. Do not even think about crossing me, Alexander. One hint of treachery, and I’ll show no mercy.”

With that, I turn and leave the tent, my heart pounding with anticipation. Amethyst Fox will be mine tomorrow. My fated mate. My queen.

And nothing will stand in the way of me claiming her.

--------

Amethyst’s Point of View. The darkness of my chamber feels suffocating as I pace restlessly, the flickering candlelight casting long, distorted shadows on the walls. The room is quiet, save for the soft rustling of my cloak draped over a nearby chair. My thoughts are troubled, a storm of anxiety and confusion swirling within me.

The Lycan King, Sebastian Ashford, is a figure of fear and power. Why would someone so formidable want to meet with our Alpha and Alessandro after crashing us in a war?

"Jara," I called my wolf. "Why does the Lycan King want to meet with Alexander and Alessandro? What could he possibly gain from this?"

I hear Jara's voice in my head, the steady beat of calm laced with an edge of anxiety. “Sebastian Ashford is known for his cold, cruel nature. His dominance is absolute, and his motives often unreadable. If he's involving himself in your pack's affairs, it's not for a trivial reason. His interest likely signals something dangerous and significant.”

My pulse races with every story that involves Sebastian Ashford. The thought sends a shiver up my spine: that he might take a simple interest in the fate of our pack.

A knock on my door breaks my reverie. I hasten to open it and find Lyra, my best friend, standing pale-faced with wide, concerned eyes.

"Amethyst, I need to talk to you," she says in a quavering voice.

"What is it, Lyra?" I ask, catching the urgency in her tone.

With that, she steps inside my chamber and starts off with, "I overheard something horrible today. The elders are intending to offer you to the Lycan King as part of their surrender terms."

The words are like a physical blow dealt to me, and I feel winded. "What…? No, this can't be true!”

Lyra's eyes gleam with a mixture of sorrow and urgency. "I'm afraid it is, I overheard them talking about it. They have made the decision to give you to him. I had to come and tell you before it's too late."

The room spins as my heart rises with panic and betrayal. "Why wouldn't they tell me? What am I supposed to do?”

Lyra's face softens in sympathy. "I don't know. I wish there was more I could do. But you need to act quickly. If you want to escape, you need to do it now.”

Not a minute is wasted, yet turning I hurry toward Alessandro's chambers. My heart pounds against my chest, every step pealing with the danger that might confront me. The frigid stone walls of the stronghold press in closely as I make my way through the narrow, winding corridors.

When I finally reach Alessandro's door, my knocking becomes frantic. Alessandro opens the door, surprise and concern outlined in his eyes.

"Amethyst, what's wrong?" he asks, stepping aside to let me in.

“Alessandro, I need answers,” I say in urgency, my voice shaking. "Lyra said the elders are going to offer me to the Lycan King. Is it true? Are they really going to give me to him?”

Alessandro's face slowly bleaches of color as my words sink in. He shuts the door behind me, tugging me inside, his eyes stormy and at war. "Yes… it is true. My father broached the arrangement. I tried stopping him, but…”

The pain in his voice echoes my own shock and desperation. "But why?”

“He said he will spare us… and won’t kill any of us or take anyone to be their slave as long as…” He paused.

I immediately comprehend it. “Then we should leave! There's still time for us to escape. Please, Alessandro, come with me!"

Alessandro's mask falters, a flash of pain and indecision crossing his face. "I didn't want this either. I fought against my father's decision, but…”

I move closer, my voice imploring. "Alessandro, please, we cannot allow this to take place. We have to try and escape. We can still do it if we hurry.”

Alessandro's eyes flare with conflict, flashing down to the floor as he fights off his emotions. There is silence, perhaps a little too much, where every second seems to stretch into an eternity. I can feel almost tangibly the load of this decision weighing upon him, the reflection of an internal struggle by his furrowed brow and clenched jaw.

He finally turns to me, his face set, but laced with doubt. "Alright. We'll escape. But we need to be careful. They'll be watching for us."

I feel a wave of relief wash over me, while fear and the urge are still there. “Thank you, Alessandro. Where shall we go?”

"Let's meet in the forest," he says somberly. "It was where we had always gone when we had to think or come up with a plan. It is the safest place we know of."

I nod, my head spinning to try to comprehend the enormity of what is about to happen. The forest, once my sanctuary, now becomes our last hope for freedom. Fleeing, leaving it all behind, is terrifying and exhilarating all at once.

"Alright," I say, my voice firm though my hands are shaking. "We will meet there tonight. But Alessandro, we must move quickly. If we don't, they will find out soon enough."

He nods solemnly. "I know, I'll be there. We must make sure that we are ready to leave as soon as possible."

While we conclude our plans, we are aware of the threat hanging over us. The forest, which has served us in the past as a place of refuge and seclusion, now promises us a means of deliverance. At last, with a resolute inclination of our heads, Alessandro and I separate, each to pursue his own preparations for the plan before us.

Night closes in, and with it, our chance for escape. The future is uncertain.

Amethyst’s Point of View.

I stand at the edge of the forest, bathed in a darkness barely touched by the cold night air that nips at my skin. My breath sets soft clouds into the frigid air, and the silence is all but oppressive around me. This is the night, our only chance to flee. I pull my cloak tighter around myself and scan the shadows for any sign of Alessandro. Anticipation and dread course through my veins, an excited flutter racing with its twin, dread, in my chest. He had promised we would meet here. He promised.

The day I was supposed to be presented to the Lycan King has come and gone, and now the forest, our refuge, feels like the last flicker of hope. My mind replays Alessandro's words, his agreement, his assurance he'd come. But as the minutes tick by in an agonizing eternity, my faith in him falters.

Where is he?

I look back in the direction of the stronghold, the dark outline of its walls barely visible beneath the dense canopy. The mere prospect of being dragged back there, of being handed over to Sebastian Ashford like an object, sends a shiver running down my spine. I won't let that happen. I won't.

But the forest is eerily quiet. Alessandro is nowhere to be seen.

Then, a sound. The crunch of footsteps on the fallen leaves, followed by the low murmur of voices. Relief surges through me as I turn, expecting to see Alessandro emerge from behind the trees. But instead, a group of men steps into the clearing—hunters, cloaked in darkness, their eyes gleaming with malice.

"Alessandro?" I call out in a hushed, quivering tone. But as they draw closer and closer, I see with a start of terror that this is not a group belonging to our pack.

My heart plunges.

One of the hunters sneers at me, his eyes glacial and scornful. "Waiting for your knight in shining armor, are you?"

Instinctively, I step backward and pull my cloak tight around me. "Who are you? What do you want?"

The giant of a man leading the group steps forward, a scar running in a jagged line down his cheek. Contempt fills every letter of his words. “You thought Alessandro would run away with you, didn't you? Poor little Amethyst. So naive.”

The words hit me like a punch to the gut. I can feel the blood draining from my face as confusion and disbelief swirl in my mind. “What are you talking about? Alessandro would never—”

"Would never betray you?" he interrupts with a laugh that sends shivers down my spine. "He sent us, you know. Told us exactly where you'd be."

My heart stutters in my chest. No. That can't be true. "You're lying."

"Am I?" He steps closer, his voice thick with disdain. "Alessandro's with his new fiancée right now. The princess of the River Pack. Did you really think he'd give all that up for you?"

The words seem to reverberate in my head, tugging at my heart. New fiancée? The princess of the River Pack? No. This is not real. Alessandro wouldn't do this. He couldn't.

"You're lying," I repeat, my voice stumbling. "You're just trying to scare me."

The hunter’s grin widens. “Believe what you want. But while you’re out here, waiting for a man who has already moved on, he is with the princess celebrating their engagement. You’re nothing more than a distraction, a pawn in this little game.”

I can feel my legs trembling beneath me, the ground spinning as the realization sinks in. Could it be true? Could Alessandro really have betrayed me? He promised we would escape together. He promised—

"No," I whisper, shaking my head. "I won't believe you. I need to see it for myself."

They exchange glances, the amused kind, as if my desperation is some sort of twisted entertainment. "Go ahead, then," the leader sneers. "See for yourself. But don't be surprised when you find him with her. Go to the River Pack’s territory."

I spin and run without a conscious thought. My heart pounds in my chest, my feet running me blind through the forest as the hunters' mocking laughter echoes behind me. I have to know. I have to see it with my eyes. Alessandro can't be with someone else. He couldn't do this to me.

I tear through the trees, and the branches whip across my face and the cold wind bites at my skin as I run, my breath coming in ragged gasps. The world is a blur to me now, and it's all I can do to focus on one thing: the burning need to get to Alessandro, to confront him, to prove this is all some terrible mistake.

But the more I run fast, the sicker dread claws at my chest.

I finally break through the treeline, and there it is, light spilling from the windows of the River Pack's territory, distant. I stumble toward it, my heart pounding in my ears as I approach the grand house. Through the trees, I can make out figures inside, and there, standing with his back to me, is Alessandro.

My breath catches in my throat.

Next to him is a woman—beautiful, regal, with black hair down to her waist and a gown that waxes into the candlelight. She stands next to him, her hand light on his arm, and he looks down at her in an expression I've never seen before. A softness. An affection that he's never shown me.

"No…" I whisper, my voice breaking.

It's true. Everything the hunters said is true.

I spin, my eyes blurring with tears, and race back into the trees. My heart's torn to shreds, my mind reeling with what I have just seen. Alessandro has chosen her. He's abandoned me to meet the Lycan King alone.

Again, the hunters' voices rise around me, closing in behind. Panic shoots through me, and I sprint faster, desperate to be free of them, desperate to be free of the ravaging truth of Alessandro's betrayal.

But I don't see the edge of the cliff until it's already too late.

My foot slides on the loose soil, and before I know it, I fall. The ground gives way under my feet, and I feel the rush of air against my skin as I hurtle down to whatever is below me. My scream is swallowed by the night, and for one brief second, I have nothing but cold, uncaring wind as I tumble through the void.

And then, nothing.