Fangless: The Alpha's Vampire Mate-Chapter 344: Hold Nothing Back

"You have to wake up. You can’t let Ol’gaz win! You’re stronger than this—how could you fall so easily?" The Fallen One’s voice echoed sharply in Riona’s mind.

And she understood exactly what he meant.

She was the Blood Moon child—the one born with the power destined to destroy the demon. The only reason she was losing now... was because she was holding back.

"You told me to save Florian. I can’t do that if I use the Blood Moon power," Riona thought, her voice tight in her own mind.

It was a small mercy that she could still speak to the Fallen One this way. He hadn’t been the most reliable companion so far, but with her throat clamped in a vice grip, just having someone to talk to—someone who heard her—was a comfort.

"And you won’t save anyone if you’re dead," the Fallen One snapped.

He wasn’t wrong. Neither of them was. Riona understood the stakes. If she died now, Ol’gaz would be unstoppable, and Florian... lost forever. But even with that knowledge, her heart refused to move. She didn’t want to hurt him. Not unless she had no other choice.

"I know exactly what you’re thinking," the Fallen One cut in, sharper now, louder. "But this is that moment, Riona. This is when you have to use your power. There won’t be another chance. You are seconds from death!"

As an invisible being, he was very persistent. But in this position, the only thing that held Riona back wasn’t only herself, but also the demon.

The Fallen One, sensing her thoughts, understood just how desperate her situation had become.

"I’ll give you an opening," he said. "I’ll channel my power into you—just like at the palace. You’ll erupt with it."

Riona winced at the memory. That explosion had nearly torn everything apart. It hadn’t ended well then, and it might not now. But she wasn’t in a position to argue. There was no time to hesitate.

Fine, she responded silently, giving a firm nod within the space of her mind. Do it.

The moment Riona gave her mental nod, she felt it.

A surge of ancient, unrelenting force flooded her veins—cold, wild, and blinding. The Fallen One’s power roared through her like a blizzard let loose from a cage.

"Hold nothing back." His voice echoed one last time. And then—

She exploded.

A shockwave of radiant crimson light burst from her body, obliterating the black dust that had wrapped around her like chains. The demon’s corrupting force vanished in an instant, snuffed out, scattered like smoke in a hurricane.

Ol’gaz didn’t even have time to react.

The blast launched the demon like a ragdoll, hurling him across the castle, destroying walls and cracking the earth beneath him. Even Puck, caught at the edge of the blast, was thrown backward, tumbling through the air before disappearing into the dust-choked distance.

Dust rose in a massive cloud, blotting out everything. Riona dropped to one knee, panting, heart racing, her limbs shaking from the sheer force of what she’d just unleashed.

She squinted through the haze. Vision, useless.

But she wasn’t done. She staggered forward, eyes darting, searching.

Where are you...? she thought. Ol’gaz... where did you go?

***

Charna had no time to think, let alone react. The attack came too fast to dodge—her only option was to strike back. Instinct took over, and in the chaos, she managed to wound the vampire king.

King Valentin, still ensnared in his nightmare, moved with a wild, erratic fury. His attacks lacked their usual precision, but the danger was no less real. The only saving grace was that, in this disoriented state, he couldn’t wield his most fearsome ability—his puppeteering power.

The other werewolves were just as occupied as Charna, fending off a wave of possessed vampires now launching a full-scale attack. It quickly became clear—they had been commanded to defend the castle. Anyone who ventured too close was instantly swarmed, torn apart without mercy.

These vampires had remained eerily calm when the werewolves and the king first arrived, but now they stirred with deadly purpose. The poisonous mist had consumed them all—there wasn’t a single vampire left untouched.

"What’s going on?" Trudy shouted, her voice cutting through the chaos just enough to reach Charna’s ears.

"I don’t know! It looks like they’re trying to stop us from getting inside the castle!" Charna yelled back.

Their exchange was fleeting, almost swallowed by the surrounding mayhem. Screams echoed, bodies hit the ground with sickening thuds, and supernatural energy cracked and hissed in the air, clashing like storms colliding.

"Hey—do we have to kill them?" Warren called out, dodging a frenzied group of vampires, many of them women and children. His instincts screamed against the thought. Violence had never sat right with him. "They just won’t stop!"

He wasn’t alone in his hesitation. Zane shared the same conviction—not because he was soft-hearted, but because he believed power came with responsibility. As a male werewolf, he saw himself as the stronger one, and in his mind, that meant protecting the weaker, even if they were vampires.

"This can’t go on like this," Warren said, frustration crackling in his voice. "We need to stop them without killing them."

But in a fight this chaotic, injuries were inevitable. Both vampires and werewolves were getting hurt. And then—someone noticed something strange.

Blood.

Where vampire wounds had mingled with werewolf blood, something had changed. The fog in their eyes began to lift.

"They’re waking up!" someone shouted, breathless with shock and hope.

The key to their victory revealed itself at last.

Everything seemed to repeat—chaos, combat, confusion—but this time, they had something the previous group hadn’t before: plenty of werewolf blood. Before this, the elders’ group only had Riona, Puck, and Thorin. But now, the whole pack was with them.

It would be enough to awaken every vampire fighting on their side... though, inevitably, a few enemies were accidentally freed from the mist’s control as well.

But once the fog lifted and the vampires regained their senses, the battlefield shifted. The first priority, shared by both sides, was clear: get the children to safety.

The younger vampires sobbed in fear, some fleeing blindly through the wreckage, getting in the way of the knights who were still trying to fight. It was jarring, surreal even, to see enemies momentarily united by something so human.

For a brief moment in the heart of the war, they were no longer soldiers. They were protectors.

Once the children were safely evacuated, the true battle began.

King Valentin fought near Lisbeth and Lady Maris, keeping the latter close—Lady Maris wasn’t a fighter, and the king remained near to shield her when needed.

Lisbeth, on the other hand, darted across the battlefield, offering aid wherever it was needed. Her heart swelled with pride as she witnessed her friends standing strong, holding their ground despite the overwhelming odds.

On the defensive line, Lumi held her own alongside Cielo, Margrave Nicholas, and the loyal knights of his household. Together, they formed a solid wall against the chaos.

But the Asvaldur knights lived up to their fearsome reputation. Even the Royal Guards struggled to contain them.