Chapter 8 - THE ROYAL EXECUTION
The High Council Hall of Obsidian Ridge was packed with over two hundred lords, chieftains, and generals from across the Northern Territories.
At the center of the marble floor stood a massive iron cage.
Inside the cage sat Lady Seraphina, her crimson dress torn, her silver hair disheveled, her hands bound in heavy silver-alloy chains that suppressed her wolf energy.
Beside her sat Lady Vane and Dr. Samuel, both weeping hysterically.
High above on the black obsidian throne sat Alpha King Lawson Cross.
He looked every inch the terrifying monarch—clad in full dragon-scale armor, his heavy broadsword resting between his knees, his golden eyes radiating lethal power.
Beside his throne stood a smaller wooden chair.
Sitting on that chair was Finn, dressed in a regal dark blue velvet tunic, happily eating fresh strawberries from a silver bowl. Beside him stood Abigail, wearing an elegant dress of dark forest green, her hair braided with silver ribbons.
The lords in the room couldn't take their eyes off the young prince.
He was no longer a dying, sickly pup. He was vibrant, healthy, his skin flawless, his royal alpha aura already humming with incredible potential.
Lawson raised his hand, and the roaring hall instantly fell into dead silence.
"Lords of the Northern Alliance," Lawson’s voice boomed across the marble arches. "Today, we pass judgment on those who sought to destroy the royal bloodline."
Lawson gestured to Beta Gideon, who stepped forward holding a heavy parchment scroll.
"Lady Seraphina of House Cross," Gideon read loudly. "You are charged with high treason, attempted murder of the royal heir, embezzlement of eighty million gold marks from the royal treasury, and conspiring with the Southern Syndicate to overthrow the throne."
"Lies!" Seraphina screamed from inside the iron cage, rattling her silver chains. "This is a setup! Lawson, you are being controlled by that witch of a maid! She forged those financial records!"
Lawson slowly stood up from his throne, grabbing his broadsword.
The sound of his heavy armor clanking against the stone floor echoed like a death knell.
He walked down the throne steps, stopping right outside the iron cage.
"You stole thirty-four months of my son's life, Seraphina," Lawson said, his voice dropping into a terrifyingly quiet pitch. "You watched him scream in pain every day, and you smiled because your bank accounts were growing."
"Lawson... please! We are blood!" Seraphina whimpered, backing away to the far side of the cage, her arrogance finally shattering into pure terror.
"My blood is sitting on that throne," Lawson growled, pointing back to Finn. "And you tried to spill it."
Lawson raised his broadsword with one hand.
With a single, blinding flash of steel, he sliced through the heavy iron bars of the cage and severed Seraphina’s silver chains in one strike.
"By the law of the Northern Territories," Lawson declared, "traitors of the royal bloodline are denied a trial by combat. Their punishment is total asset forfeiture, exile to the frozen void of the Northern Wastes, and execution if they ever step foot on alliance soil again."
The entire hall erupted into deafening cheers.
"Long live the Alpha King!" the lords roared. "Long live Prince Finn!"
Guards stepped forward, dragging Seraphina, Vane, and Samuel out of the hall toward the exile transport carriages.
Lawson turned back toward the throne.
He walked up the steps, stopping right in front of Abigail.
The vast hall fell quiet once more, every lord watching the King.
Lawson set his broadsword aside, dropping to one knee before Abigail in front of the entire royal court.
Abigail gasped softly, her hand flying to her chest.
"Lawson..." she whispered.
"Abigail Foster," Lawson said, his deep voice carrying to every corner of the room. "You saved my son when I was helpless. You brought light back into this dead castle. You fought rogues, climbed frozen peaks, and faced dark magic to protect my blood."
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He pulled a velvet box from his belt, opening it to reveal a magnificent ring carved from solid black diamond and glowing white Moon-Lily crystal—the ancient ring of the High Luna of the Northern Alliance.
"You are already a mother to my son," Lawson said, looking into her eyes with pure, undisguised devotion. "Will you be the Luna of my heart, my pack, and my kingdom?"
