I stare at him, totally confused.

A war in Silver City? The last war happened not ten years ago, when Damian killed their father to take over the Blood Moon Clan! Why would another one erupt now? I thought the Black Brothers were unmatched in terms of strength, so why would anyone choose to start a war now? "Liam, I don't get it. I thought..."

"We were the untouchable Black Brothers? Well, that part is true. But a Moon Clan isn't all about its Alpha, Nora. Sure, Damian is the big bad wolf in town, no questioning that. If he had to single out any Alpha in the area, he would win. Easily. But what if he had to fight fifty wolves at once?"

He's right... The Black Brothers are feared by many because they win in terms of power, dominance, strength. No one would be stupid enough to force them into a duel. If anyone wanted to overthrow them, it would have to be in a massive attack, with enough people to attack not only Damian but the whole pack. I turn to Liam, worried.

"You're telling me other packs want to attack the Blood Moon."

"We are not popular, Nora. Our father's reputation did a lot of damage, and for most of the population, Damian is just as fearsome."

"But Damian is not your father! He is not looking to fight the other packs! He-"

I stop, realizing I started yelling a bit too loudly in the restaurant. A lot of eyes are now staring at us, and I mumble some apology before turning back to Liam. That i***t is smiling, mocking me.

"So cute... You are so prone to defend my brother; I'm feeling reassured now."

"Oh, shut up! Tell me, who wants to fight the Blood Moon?"

Liam takes three of the sauce pots, placing them in a triangle.

"Right now, the situation is like this: the three main Clans are ours, the Blood Moon, the Gold Moon Clan, and the Sapphire Moon Clans. In terms of power, number, and wealth, those three clans hold the most power. But those two are still behind us. The Gold Moon is large, but their Alpha and warriors aren't that strong. As for the Sapphire Moon, it's the other way around: they got strength, but they are not as numerous or wealthy."

"If those two are still behind, what is the problem, then?" I ask, confused.

I already know that through the Black Corporation he established, Damian made sure his Clan and the Velvet Moon had the most possessions in Silver City, maybe thirty percent of the total area, leaving the seventy percent left to be split between the other ten or so packs. But Liam suddenly moves several fries, placing them behind the sauce pots.

I observe his pattern for a while, before realizing. "The Clan alliances?"

He nods. "Exactly. The other Clans are not going to grow any bigger until years now. However, some of them started to understand that having allies might be much more profitable and efficient than waiting. Ironically, they took the idea from the Velvet Moon Clan. Unlike the Opal Clan, who is a branch of a bigger Clan, the White Moon, the Velvet Moon is its own entity, moving along the Blood Moon. Guess what the other Clans did once they understood that this was how Damian and Nate beat our father?"

"... They would start seeking alliances," I whisper. Liam nods.

This is crazy... Werewolves are usually secluded to their own packs. Outside of our packs, we may be "friends" with other wolves, but not only it is very rare, but it also doesn't involve any exchange, unless necessary. Like the Jade Moon and the Pearl Moon. I have always seen the two packs being friendly, but we never acted along them. They had their own fights, and we would never interfere. The most we exchanged was information about possible rogue attacks, but we never acted together against them. I turn to Liam. "How are things, then?"

He smiles. "You understand quickly. Actually, we weren't sure of anything, until two weeks ago. The only clear thing was that the Rising Moon Clan had agreed to ally with the Gold Moon Clan. But we had no idea about the others." "Until the fight against the vampires, right? All the packs had to react, so the alliances naturally showed."

I start recalling the events. That's right. The Blood Moon and the Velvet Moon rallied the White Moon and Opal Moon in the North, but the Gold Moon Clan headed south with the Rising Moon Clan, confirming those two are allies. Also, the Pearl Moon Clan moved to help the Jade Moon, so Vince probably has an alliance going with their Alpha. Then, I recall one crucial detail.

"The Sapphire Moon. They are the only ones that didn't move."

Liam nods. "Exactly. But the truth is, they are not the only ones. The Violet Moon also didn't make a move, while their branch Clan, the Purple Moon, came to help here, the Sea Moon."

"But the Sea Moon Clan is neutral, isn't it?"

"Yes. My guess is Lissandra acted against her father, the Violet Moon Alpha's, orders, to help old man Seaver. She is not one to miss the action, and I bet she didn't like being told to stay on the sidelines."

"If that's so, the Violet Moon and Sapphire Moon Clan are allies..."

Which means that their power would now be equal with the Blood Moon and the Velvet Moon Clans! The Jones family is a powerful line of Alphas, and their Clan holds a lot of people. too. Not to mention Lissandra's warriors! I've seen them in action, and they are real war machines. I try to make the maths in my head, but no matter how many times I try to think of it, the Sapphire Clan, if allied with the Violet Moon, really is more powerful than the Black Brother's Clans...

"....And they hate the Blood Moon Clan".

"Exactly, Nora. William Blue, the Sapphire Moon Alpha, had a long feud with our father, and it didn't die with him. He wants nothing to do with us and thinks Damian is not the right Alpha King for Silver City. So, he is waiting for an opportunity to overthrow us at any time."

The pieces of the puzzle are finally assembling, letting me see the larger picture. I can't believe I didn't know any of this earlier. How could I be so blind?! Seeing all the packs work together to fight off the vampires, I had no idea so many people were making their moves in the shadows. I look up to Liam.

"So, the Gold Moon wants to ally with Damian?"

He frowns but nods, eating the fries he had left on the table.

"Exactly. They were the second most powerful clan after us, but now, the Sapphire Moon bested them by allying with the Violet Moon, and the Rising Moon is nowhere as good as the Jones. So instead, they came to Damian with this proposal."

I finally get it now. If the Sapphire Moon is after them, they have to change alliances quickly and assert their position to avoid a war. But why an engagement for that?! I'm still so mad! I understand that the Gold Moon Clan would be the most powerful Clan to ally themselves with, but this condition is... Gosh, I'm annoyed just thinking about it! My wolf is furiously growling, too. I'm not okay with this! We are not fine with any of this! I wish I could... "Hey, hey, Nora, calm down. Your Alpha aura is scaring everyone, girl," whispers Liam.

I look around. Oh, he's right... Everyone is staring at us, and some people instinctively backed away a few steps from our table. Did I do that? My wolf was really angry, but I never noticed I could let others feel it... I calm myself down a bit, really embarrassed. Liam, however, is laughing.

"Wow, first time I see you acting like an Alpha. Except for that time with the Jade Moon weakling Alpha, I mean. Girl, you do have fangs after all!"

"It's not funny, Liam! I don't even know how I just did this..."

"It's an Alpha thing. If our wolf gets mad, other wolves will feel it and react to it. But it's funny, even I felt it... other Alphas are usually immune. Guess it's your Royal side acting up, too." "We are not sure I am a..."

"Oh, stop it, Nora, you know damn well you are now. Who needs those stupid tests?"

I shake my head. I'm not having this discussion now, and we have more important matters to discuss. I try to think calmly about this alliance with the Gold Moon Clan. Wasn't there any better option?

"What about the other Clans?" I ask.

But Liam shakes his head. "We tried, but those who don't fear us, hate us. A lot of the Clans will choose to remain neutral, but honestly, it's better they do, because otherwise we probably wouldn't be their first choice anyway." "What about the White Moon Clan?"

"Same, Nora, they want to remain neutral. They were grateful we helped them, but they have a long history with the Sapphire Moon, and they are not going to betray them. And they hate the Gold Moon Clan, too."

I can't believe it... This situation is impossible. I try to think it over, but for now, I don't see any way to help Damian. The Jade Moon Clan is nothing compared to the others, and I won't bring Damian any help with this.

"So, you're telling me their only way out is for Damian to marry that... girl?"

Liam growls, annoyed. "I don't like it and Nate doesn't either. We tried to talk Damian out of it, and trust me, our brother doesn't want it either."

"Why didn't he tell me then?!"

"Because they were already engaged when we finally found you, Nora! And Damian doesn't want you to throw you in the middle of this mess! If the war explodes, guess who they will attack first to hurt Damian?"

His Luna. That's who they would attack first, to weaken the Alpha, especially if that Luna is his fated mate; it will hurt much more. I'm stunned. That explains his words... "You won't be my official Luna". He didn't mean to have me as his mistress, but to hide me from people who would want to hurt him. I'm... I'm nothing but a weakness to Damian now! My wolf whimpers, too sad from this thought. Why are we so powerless?!

"I told you everything, Nora, because I don't want Damian to make a decision he would regret. And because even if he doesn't want you involved, I think you might be the solution to all this."

I look at Liam, dumbfounded. The solution, me? I'm just a powerless mate! I only have ownership of one of the weakest clans around, what could I possibly bring Damian that he doesn't already have?

Liam clenches his fist and looks at me right in the eye. "Nora, I know it's hard. But my brother loves you. He has loved you, and only you, for ten years....Ten years ago, one night, my father came home really, really drunk and angry. He started hitting Damian. Harder than he had ever hit him any time before. I was terrified. It was so bad that Damian told Nate to run with me. As always, Nate obeyed, and even if I struggled to stay, the last thing I saw behind Nate's back was my oldest brother being beaten to the ground by our father. I was certain he would kill him that time, Nora. I cried so much because I was sure, so sure my brother was going to die back there."

I see him looking infuriated for the first time, clenching his fists. "When we came back, our father was gone. But Damian was gone, too. All was left was blood, all over the floor, so much blood. We thought he had been killed. Nate panicked; he couldn't feel our brother's wolf anymore. I remember I ran, went through every room of the apartment, yelling his name. He was gone, Nora, and I was terrified."

He stays silent for a while and, to my surprise, a gentle smile suddenly appears. "For a full week, Nate searched for him everywhere. Even for his body. He went through all the territories, despite the risks. Our father didn't come back either, and we had no idea what had happened. But suddenly, after eight days, Damian reappeared. And he was perfectly fine! No wound, not even scars. I thought he was a ghost, but honestly, I didn't care. My brother was back. But you know what was the first thing he said?" He raises his eyes, looking into mine, smiling.

"He told us a little princess with the most beautiful blue eyes had saved his life."

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