Then, before courage could fail him entirely, Alex stepped onto the bridge.
Alone.
The ancient logs groaned under his weight—a sound that seemed impossibly loud in the sudden silence that had fallen over the river. Two hundred wolves had gone still as stone, every eye tracking his movement. The only sounds were the rush of water below, the whisper of wind through bare branches, and the measured tap-tap-tap of his ironwood staff against worn wood.
Alex kept his eyes forward, fixed on Lucas.
The chief hadn't moved. Hadn't even blinked. Just watched with those unsettling pale blue eyes as Alex closed the distance between them—ten feet, then eight, then five.
Close enough now to see details.
Lucas was massive even by beastman standards—easily seven feet tall like Leo in his humanoid form, with shoulders broad enough to block out the sun. His hair was thick and silver-white, pulled back in a warrior's knot that revealed sharp, angular features and a jaw that looked like it could crush bone. A pair of wolf ears on his head flickering with every sound of his surrounding.
Dark black and blue tribal tattoos all over his shoulders and arms, enhancing his fierce appearance.
Small scars crisscrossed his exposed torso—old wounds worn like badges of honor.
But it was his eyes that held Alex captive.
Pale blue, almost colorless, like winter ice over deep water. They tracked Alex's approach with predatory focus, cataloging every detail: the hand resting protectively on his stomach, the slight tremor in his breathing, the white-knuckled grip on the staff.
Reading him.
Assessing.
Deciding.
Alex stopped three paces away—close enough to be respectful, far enough to maintain personal space. His heart was trying to escape through his ribcage, but he kept his voice steady.
"I am Alex," he said, the formal words feeling strange on his tongue. "Bearer of the Black Crystal of the Serpent Tribe and the Golden Stone of the Lion Tribe. I seek audience with Lucas, leader of the Northern Wolf Packs, to discuss a matter of mutual benefit."
Silence.
The river rushed below.
The wind carried his scent—citrusy sweet and pregnancy and nervous sweat—directly to the Lucas's sensitive nose.
Then Lucas spoke, his voice a deep rumble that seemed to resonate in Alex's chest.
"You walk into my territory. A male. Weakling. Marked by serpent and lion." His eyes flicked briefly to where Naga and Leo stood rigid at the bridge's entrance, then back to Alex. "And you ask for audience as though you have the right to make demands."
It wasn't quite a question. More like a statement of fact that invited challenge.
Alex eye twitched at the mention of the word 'weakling'.
Deja Vu.
Alex lifted his chin slightly. "I make no demands. I ask. There's a difference."
One of Lucas's seconds—Storm, if Alex remembered correctly—made a low growling sound. The massive gray wolf took a half-step forward, hackles rising.
Lucas held up one hand without looking away from Alex.
Storm subsided immediately, but the tension in his posture screamed barely-contained aggression.
"You smell..." Lucas paused, nostrils flaring as he inhaled deeply. "...impossible. Male. Pregnant. Carrying multiples." His eyes narrowed. "How?"
"Long story involving interdimensional mishaps and a system with a twisted sense of humor," Alex said, then immediately regretted the flippant tone when several wolves growled in unison.
"What??" Lucas asked, clearly confused and having no idea what interdimensional or system even means.
"But the short version is: I'm an omega. From another wor_tribe.... A very weird and secretive tribe where male also can get pregnant.
" I'm Currently expecting six serpent hatchlings and trying to collect seven sacred stones so I can potentially save the world."
"Six," Lucas repeated, something almost like wonder flickering across his features before his expression hardened again. "You carry six lives and yet you walk into wolf territory alone. Either you're incredibly brave or incredibly stupid."
"Can't it be both?" Alex asked, then added quickly when Storm's growl intensified, "I'm here because I believe we can help each other. You need something. I need something. We negotiate. Everyone walks away better than they started."
Lucas was quiet for a long moment, studying Alex with those pale, predatory eyes.
Then, unexpectedly, he smiled—a flash of too-sharp teeth that was neither friendly nor hostile. Just... interested.
"Bold," he observed. "Most who enter my territory do so with packs at their backs and weapons in their hands. You walk up alone, pregnant, and propose negotiation." He tilted his head slightly. "Tell me, bearer of stones—what makes you think you have anything I want besides the obvious?"
The way he said 'obvious' made Alex's skin crawl, but he held his ground.
"Because the Slivery fang isn't working," he said bluntly. "Your pack is dying. Three generations without a mate-bearer, bloodlines weakening, fertility dropping. The sacred stone that's supposed to save you just sits there doing nothing because it needs someone capable of bearing young to actually activate its full power."
The temperature on the bridge seemed to drop several degrees.
Storm snarled—a real snarl this time, full of threat. "You dare—"
"I dare because it's true," Alex interrupted, surprised by his own boldness. "And you know it's true. Otherwise you wouldn't have offered to claim me yesterday. You're desperate. Not because you want me specifically, but because you need what I represent—the possibility of survival for your pack."
Lucas's expression was unreadable now, locked down tight. But his fingers had curled into fists at his sides—the only tell that Alex's words had landed.
"Careful, little male," the Alpha said, his voice dangerously soft. "You walk a thin line between negotiation and insult."
"I'm not insulting," Alex said, forcing himself to maintain eye contact even though every instinct screamed to look away from those pale eyes. "I'm being honest. You can't afford pride right now. Your pack is dying. "
" The stone isn't saving them. And claiming me—even if I agreed, which I won't—would only be a temporary solution. I'd bear young for you, yes, but I'm one male. How many litters could I safely carry before my body gave out? How many years before you're right back where you started?"