The bandits, moving with practiced speed, cut through a desolate industrial district near the docks. They carried the two small princes, their struggles muffled and quickly diminishing under the effect of the rough sedation. Lorcan still issued muffled, furious sounds of protest, but Aiden had gone silent, conserving his energy, though his small heart hammered with fear and adrenaline.They were not alone in the shadows. Prince Cassian, Kyon's brother and rival, maintained a secretive network of loyalists within the Western Capital, constantly monitoring Kyon's movements and preparing for war. Several of Cassian's guards, detached from the main regiment and dressed in nondescript, dark clothing, were positioned in the district, watching the flow of goods and illicit activity.
A small patrol of three of these loyalist guards was moving along the rooftop of a rusting warehouse just as the bandits passed below. They saw the whole transaction: two rough men carrying two small, well dressed children. Kidnapping for ransom was a common plague in the war-torn city, and their orders were strict: ignore local crime, focus only on Kyon's weaknesses.
"Just ignore it," the lead guard, a stern faced alpha named Sergeant Varrus, muttered to his men. "It's a civilian matter. We stay focused on the palace routes."
But as the bandits awkwardly shifted their burdens beneath a broken streetlamp, Varrus had a split-second, clear view of the captured children. His eyes swept over the first child, Lorcan expensive clothes, green eyes a clear, high value target. Then his gaze snapped to the second child.
Aiden's head had slumped slightly, and the rag over his face had momentarily slipped, exposing his features. The boy was half unconscious and half conscious , but the intense, striking color of his eyes the rare, luminous blue amber was a sickening, unforgettable shock.
A cold dread crossed Sergeant Varrus's body. The color was the spitting image of his disgraced, lost commander's features Lord Arion, the Dragon Slayer. But that wasn't what paralyzed him. Varrus had served directly under Arion for years, but he had spent the last five years spying on their shared enemy: Prince Kyon. Varrus knew Kyon's features better than his own.
The child was Kyon's image. The dark hair, the high cheekbones, the slight upturn of the lip it was Kyon, reduced to a miniature, four-year-old facsimile. But the eyes were Arion's.
Arion's child? The thought was impossible. Everyone believed Lord Arion was either executed or driven to suicide after his political disgrace. No one, absolutely no one, knew he had been turned into an omega or carried a child. And the child, a young alpha of four, was the physical fusion of the Dragon-Slayer and the Serpent King.
Varrus was frozen, the magnitude of the revelation striking him like a paralyzing blow. This child was the most explosive secret in the kingdom the living proof of Kyon's ultimate deception and the single biggest threat to his claim to the throne.
The guards continued to follow their orders, letting the petty crime pass. The bandits disappeared with the two princes into the labyrinth of the docks. Varrus remained rigid on the rooftop for a long moment, watching the emptiness.
He finally broke the silence, his voice a gravelly whisper. "Forget the palace route. Find out where those men took the children. Move quietly, and tell no one, not even the patrol captain. This is a secret that belongs only to Prince Cassian. We have just found the key to winning the war."
The Sergeant knew that Kyon's weakness wasn't his military strategy; it was his lie. And this child, this impossible alpha heir born of an enslaved omega, was the living embodiment of that truth. He had to report this to Cassian, but first, he had to secure the boy.
Sergeant Varrus moved instantly, shedding his military caution for the instincts of a tracker. He dispatched his two subordinates Alpha soldiers utterly loyal to Prince Cassian with curt, precise orders: "Find the hideout. Do not engage. Report the location." Varrus then took the lead, sprinting across the rooftops, following the faint trail of scuffed stone and discarded refuse left by the clumsy bandits.
The trail led him deep into the decaying dockyards, a desolate area of rusting cranes and empty warehouses. Varrus's gaze, honed by years of reconnaissance, spotted the barely concealed entrance to an abandoned shipping terminal. A single, thin plume of smoke rising from a vent confirmed the location.
Varrus didn't wait for his men. The urgency of the moment the existence of Arion's son and Kyon's heir demanded immediate action. He slipped into the terminal, moving through the gloom like a shadow. Inside, the vast warehouse was lit by a single sputtering lamp. The two bandits were arguing over the potential ransom, their voices loud and greedy. The two boys lay huddled on a pile of dusty burlap sacks.
Prince Lorcan, though tied, was still struggling, his muffled whimpers of aristocratic indignation audible even across the large space. The bandit watching them knelt beside Lorcan, not to comfort, but to ensure the valuable prize was secure. "Quiet down, little lord! You'll be back to your silks soon enough, once your Daddy pays up."
The sight of the criminals manhandling the children snapped Varrus's control. He moved.
The fight was swift and brutal. Varrus was a seasoned alpha soldier; the bandits were common thugs. Varrus dropped from a high beam, his dagger catching the first bandit in the throat with a wet, sickening sound. The second bandit spun, drawing a rusty knife, but Varrus met him with a devastating kick to the chest, snapping the man's ribs before his blade found the bandit's heart. It was over in seconds.
Varrus didn't waste a glance on the corpses. He rushed to the captured children, his face grim.He knelt by the boys, quickly sawing through the thick rope binding Lorcan's wrists. He immediately noticed the difference in their demeanor. Lorcan was hysterical, gasping for breath now that the rag was off his face, his sweet, strawberry scent spiking with intense terror and relief.
"My pin! My silks are ruined! You must take me back immediately! My father will hear of this atrocity!" Lorcan demanded, his usual arrogant tone returning instantly, despite the recent danger.Varrus spared the omega prince a curt nod, his actions instinctively soft and controlled toward the noble child. "You are safe, Prince Lorcan. We will ensure your return to your delegation."
Then, Varrus moved to Aiden. The boy was unconscious, still breathing shallowly from the effects of the sedative rag. Varrus pulled the gag away and cut the bonds. As he lifted the child, he saw the faint but undeniable blue amber eyes fluttering open. The gaze was unfocused, but the resemblance to Kyon was undeniable, chilling Varrus to the core.
"Hey!," Varrus murmured, his voice rough. He wasn't gentle; he was brutal in his efficiency. He checked the boy's limbs with hard, probing fingers, treating the child not as a fragile prince but as a piece of crucial, military intelligence. He quickly confirmed the boy was physically sound, merely sedated.
"You will be silent," Varrus ordered, his tone sharp and demanding, placing his strong hand over the boy's chest. "You are coming with me. Do not make a sound, or you risk the mission." The coldness in his demeanor was intentional; he needed the Dragon Slayer's son to respond like a soldier, not a frightened child.Aiden, though groggy, recognized the tone. He nodded once, a faint, tiny gesture of obedience that spoke volumes about his training. He instinctively curled his small body into the strong, unfamiliar alpha's embrace, recognizing the scent of a true soldier.
Lorcan watched the exchange with astonishment. "Why are you being so rough with him? He's younger! Who is he, Varrus? are you a soldier for the Royal House?"
Varrus ignored the omega prince. He tucked Aiden securely under one arm, hoisting the boy onto his hip in a practiced military grip. He addressed Lorcan with the polished deference reserved for diplomatic nobles.
"Prince Lorcan, I am taking you to your delegation now. You will tell them only that bandits kidnapped you. You will not mention this boy, his eyes, or the specific features of the men who rescued you. Is that understood? This is a matter of state security."
Lorcan, finally realizing the severity of the situation, nodded sharply. "Understood. But you will have my father's full gratitude for this, Varrus."
"I serve Prince Cassian," Varrus stated, his loyalty absolute. "Your gratitude is unnecessary."
Varrus quickly secured the warehouse entrance, leaving the bodies as a gruesome message to the city's criminal element. He then hoisted Lorcan onto his shoulder and moved out, carrying the two captured princes one a pampered, outspoken omega, the other a silent, lethal alpha heir straight out of the shadows and into the heart of Prince Cassian's hidden intelligence network.