Chapter 119

Aurora's POV

The car ride to the Grand Assembly Hall felt like driving toward our own execution.

Kane sat beside me in loaded silence. We both knew what waited ahead—a carefully orchestrated political ambush designed to destroy us before we could expose the real threat.

"Remember the plan," Kane said as the massive stone building came into view. "Hit Raymond's accusations head-on but don't linger. Then pivot hard to the evidence. Don't let them drag us into endless personal defense."

I nodded. We'd rehearsed this strategy until dawn. Acknowledge the character assassination briefly, then hammer home the existential danger threatening every territory. Simple in theory. Probably a nightmare in execution.

The Grand Assembly Hall rose before us like a monument to werewolf tradition, all carved stone and towering arches that had witnessed centuries of pack politics. Today it felt more like a colosseum where we were the entertainment.

Walking through those doors was like stepping into a lion's den. Conversations died the moment we appeared. Whispers started immediately after. The energy in that room could've powered a small city, all of it crackling with hostility and anticipation.

Kane positioned himself close enough to provide backup without looking possessive. Professional support without feeding the gossip mill. His eyes swept the crowd with tactical precision, cataloging threats and potential allies.

"Luna Aurora!" Alpha James of the Eastern Pines called out, loud enough for half the hall to hear. "I heard you were indisposed. Mental health issues, wasn't it?"

The bastard didn't waste any time going for my throat. Several pack leaders turned our way with expressions that screamed they'd already bought Raymond's lies wholesale. Fantastic.

"I'm perfectly capable of representing the Alpha King's interests," I replied evenly. "Reports of my mental state have been wildly exaggerated for political gain."

Kane stepped closer without making it obvious. "The Luna's investigation identified genuine threats that traditional intelligence missed. Her analytical work has been exceptional throughout our partnership."

Alpha James's face soured like he'd bitten into a lemon. "Yes, we've all heard about your partnership. Quite the hot topic lately. Raymond's been very... thorough in his reports."

The way he said 'thorough' made my skin crawl. Raymond's fabricated evidence had clearly made the rounds before we arrived. We were walking into a rigged game where the house always wins.

"Evidence can be manipulated," Alpha Sarah of the Northern Reaches chimed in. Her voice carried the authority of someone used to being obeyed. "Especially when investigators become emotionally compromised."

More pack leaders drifted over like vultures circling roadkill. Their faces ranged from outright hostility to pitying condescension. Not a single expression of support in the bunch. Raymond's psychological warfare had worked like a charm.

"The Alpha King reviewed our methodology personally," Kane replied with icy professionalism. "He found our work thorough and credible. That's why we're here representing his interests."

"The Alpha King wasn't there for your midnight meetings," Alpha James shot back with a knowing smirk. "He didn't witness the intimate collaboration that supposedly produced your evidence."

Heat flooded my cheeks. They were turning our professional partnership into something dirty and corrupt. Reducing months of dangerous investigation to late-night gossip fodder.

Before I could respond, a commotion erupted near the main entrance. Raymond had arrived with his entourage. The room's attention snapped to him like metal filings to a magnet.

Holy hell. What had happened to him?

The Raymond who strode through those doors looked like a walking corpse. Gaunt. Pale. Eyes burning with fever-bright intensity that screamed unhinged. The magical conditioning had transformed him into something barely recognizable as human, let alone the boy I'd grown up with.

"Aurora!" His voice carried across the suddenly silent hall like a gunshot. "How wonderful to see you looking so stable. I was told you'd had a complete mental breakdown, but you seem remarkably composed for someone who's lost all connection to reality."

Kane shifted into protective mode without making it obvious. His body language screamed readiness for violence. Smart move. The artifact's influence had made Raymond unpredictable as a rabid dog.

"Raymond," I said carefully, projecting calm authority despite everything. "I'm here for the formal proceedings, not personal disputes."

"Personal disputes?" His laugh had an edge of hysteria that made several pack leaders step back. "Treason is a bit beyond personal. Using official positions to conduct illicit affairs while our territories face real threats, it’s not personal, it’s criminal."

His voice climbed higher, ensuring every leader in that hall heard every word. "I have recordings. Photographs. Documented proof of your conspiracy with this seducer." He jabbed a finger at Kane like he was pointing out a war criminal.

Murmurs rippled through the crowd like wildfire. Raymond's Alpha status gave weight to his accusations even though his obvious instability should've undermined everything he said.

Kane's response was controlled steel. "Alpha Raymond's allegations are based on falsified evidence created to discredit our investigation into threats affecting all territories."

"Falsified?" Raymond's eyes glittered with malicious glee. "Let the council judge for themselves when they hear the recordings of you plotting against me from day one."

My stomach dropped. He planned to play his manufactured audio during the formal session. Those sophisticated fakes would be almost impossible to disprove quickly, especially to an audience already convinced we were guilty.

"The real conspiracy involves forces trying to fragment our unity when we need it most," I said, desperately trying to redirect the conversation. "Every minute spent on personal accusations is time not spent addressing genuine dangers to our survival."

"Survival?" Raymond's laugh was sharp enough to cut glass. "The only threat to our survival is corruption from within. Represented perfectly by you and your paramour."

Several pack leaders nodded like Raymond was preaching gospel truth. They saw him as the voice of moral authority, not a victim of magical manipulation. The artifact's influence didn't show in public—it just made him appear like a betrayed Alpha defending traditional values.

The trap was closing around us with mechanical precision. Instead of evaluating evidence about the Rogue King's conspiracy, the council was focusing on manufactured scandals designed to tear werewolf leadership apart when unity was most crucial.

Alpha James stepped forward, clearly enjoying our public humiliation. "Perhaps the Alpha King's representatives should address these serious allegations before any formal presentations."

"The allegations are designed to distract from evidence about real threats," Kane replied with diplomatic ice. "We're prepared to address them briefly, but our primary purpose is presenting intelligence about coordinated attacks on pack territories."

"Intelligence gathered through compromised methods," Alpha Sarah observed coldly. "How can we trust conclusions from investigators whose judgment was clearly impaired by inappropriate involvement?"

Every attempt to focus on the real conspiracy got met with demands that we defend against Raymond's fabricated accusations first.

Kane and I exchanged glances. We both understood the formal session would be exponentially worse than this preliminary bloodbath. Raymond's manufactured evidence had succeeded in poisoning the well before we could present a drop of truth.

But we'd prepared for this during our sleepless strategy sessions. We'd acknowledge the character assassination directly but briefly, then pivot aggressively to the existential threat facing everyone's territories.

The formal session hadn't even started and we were already fighting for our political lives. Our partnership—the thing that made us unstoppable—had been twisted into proof of our corruption.

Whatever came next, Kane and I would face it as equals who trusted each other completely. Our partnership would either prove itself under ultimate pressure or get destroyed by forces specifically designed to tear it apart.

The real battle for werewolf civilization was about to begin.

And we were walking into it with targets painted on our backs.