"I've told you already! We can't kill Mali, he wasn't himself when he attacked Ruby and we all know that if he was influenced by some spell he'll only end up back here and we'll have the same problem all over again! What of that do you not understand? I swear men have grown more stupid since I last met one." Ruby could hear the frustration in Clemence's voice as she stood, squared off against not only Jonah but Topher as well.

"My question is, why do you want to kill Mali and what will it achieve in the long run? Revenge killing is frowned upon, you know that Jonah. You shouldn't be encouraging or supporting someone who doesn't understand our processes." Ruby butted in with no introduction, she was angered that Jonah would support the killing of a protector knowing the process that they would need to go through.

"Has he been formally interviewed? If not then I want that done immediately, there's more going on here than just a simple pack war. We need that alpha's meeting to happen in the next day or two, Ben and Oliver you two are now tasked with getting every alpha here. I don't care how you do it, kidnap them if need be but get them here. Jonah, Grey and Kenny go and interview Mali. Everyone else, carry on with your duties and tasks. We need to move faster than we have. Topher, Hollis, Amber and I are going to go and chat." Topher opened his mouth to protest but snapped his mouth shut when Ruby glared at him. She was in no mood to argue anything, she wanted to lay the plans bare to Topher and Hollis and only wanted silent nodding to be her only answer.

When everyone came into the room Ruby glanced at Amber, who stood at the doorway waiting as the two shifters moved to sit down. The atmosphere was tense, she wondered if Topher suspected something. Hollis looked at ease as he sat closest to where Ruby stood, the gesture didn't go unnoticed by either Ruby or Amber.

"Topher I know you're probably upset but when we die we don't actually die. We go to judgment, if they find that Mali was influenced he'll end up back here again and we'll need to figure it all out. The answer is not killing him, it's figuring out why he's trying to kill me and after that last judgment I have a clearer idea of who is behind all of this." Ruby died off as she remembered, Rebecca was part of all of this plot. Either sucked in or being made to do it, Ruby wasn't sure yet but she was going to get to the bottom of it no matter how many times she was killed.

"Whose behind it? Tell me so we can rid ourselves of them and you, I want our lives to go back to as normal as possible." Ruby couldn't meet Topher's eye, there were several reasons why. But she didn't have the heart to tell him that once the mission was completed and the prophecy fulfilled or stopped...their memories would be erased and it would look as if no outsiders had ever been there. The other being that Rebecca had been confirmed as being involved, how was Ruby supposed to reveal that to an overprotective brother and pack alpha?

She wasn't so sure she could.

"The two main suspects are Nyssa Shipwash and Charlotte Vawdry. We also now know that Rebecca is involved and that Jude was an experimental sacrifice as neither Nyssa or Charlotte know the prophecy well enough. Rebecca has likely been lured in and her emotions preyed upon by the two elder witches, having managed to trick the high council into letting her keep her powers...unfortunately, Nyssa is like a jacked up witch. Someone that old, with that much knowledge holding a grudge the size of Texas? It can only end one way." Ruby explained, aside from using every swear word in the vocabulary there was no other way of explaining things clearly so that Topher could understand.

"Amber is here to deal with Charlotte, that leaves me with Nyssa and Rebecca. Topher, we'll try to preserve your sister's life but if she has a death wish then I can't keep that promise." Topher nodded grimly, Hollis too understood what it all meant.

"Are my pack and I going to be of much help? After the alpha meeting, I wonder if you need us at all." For a few moments, Ruby sat and thought about the silent offer, evacuate the town of all shifters to minimize the casualties? She knew there would be casualties either way but could every day shifters offer anything to her cause? She wasn't so sure teenagers could do much in the heat of battle.

"No, I'll only ask for those that are willing to stay and fight. Who knows what Nyssa and Charlotte are planning, is there somewhere your pack can go until this is all over? I'll need the alphas to stay, you're more powerful...especially you Topher. We'll need your help during this." Ruby could see that Topher wanted to argue, she didn't blame him. She'd barely leaned on him in previous weeks but that was changing rapidly. She needed someone to keep the other shifters in line and there was no one better than Topher, maybe they had their own local hierarchy, their own big boss but so far Topher had all the makings to be a great alpha of all.

"I'm staying, you can order me to leave Topher but I'm going to stay and fight." That concerned Ruby a little bit. Hollis, she should accept that he was going to fight, was going to stick around for as long as he could but the thought of him in danger unsettled her to the point she wasn't sure she'd be able to focus.

Looking at Amber, the silent question was there. The need for reassurance, that Hollis was going to remain safe if he did decide to stay. She only got a cryptic shrug from Amber, which didn't help settle things in her mind at all.

But when she looked to Hollis her mind was decided, Hollis had a hard look in his eye. Ruby wasn't sure if it was anger or determination but she wasn't going to question it if he wanted to stay and fight she needed to trust in him that he could get himself out of whatever mess he was going to find himself in. She just hoped he was ready for the storm that was coming, it was going to cost lives and it was going to be massive.

"Topher, I know you've had no choice in the matter but I hope you don't mind the alphas are brought here. We've also got more protectors coming in. At least another dozen, the same thing applies as before. Some are going to be shifters, not all will be werewolf. I need you and Hollis to sort through your fighters and find out who wants to stay and who doesn't. We're going to need to put excuses into schools and work, maybe there's some large scale waterborne virus in the air that needs the evacuation of the town, on this side at least." Ruby could feel her mind mending as she thought through excuses and situations that could lead to the clearance of Samson.

"Like you said Ruby, I have no choice. If this is where the alphas need to be brought then let that happen. But, I want to be treated like the rest. I need there to be no question from the alphas that this is being directed by you, not by me." Ruby nodded, she understood clearly was Topher was saying and looked to Amber for a little help. The witch though simply nodded as both alpha and beta went unconscious in the blink of an eye.

"I can see why you like the alpha, he is level headed and clever. He's open to change and though his power is being challenged constantly he is comfortable in knowing his position is not under threat. Time walker, go back to your time. You're safe here, no harm will come to your body or that of your beta." Ruby looked closer at Amber, her conversation had been so natural that if she weren't paying attention she wouldn't have seen the direct order given to thin air.

"Topher, time walking from god knows what time. He was a little confused, he seems okay now and is heading back to where ever he came from. Time walking has always been an interesting thing, don't you wonder how someone is able to walk through time like the rest of us are taking a walk down the street?" Of course Ruby had always wondered about it, time walking, though inherited could also be learned. If you had the right stuff to become a time walker it could be learned, otherwise, you spent your time trying to become something that just wasn't going to happen.

"Oh...oh!" Amber looked at Ruby with a wide smile on her face but said nothing further as both women left the study.

"You're not going to tell me so I won't ask," Ruby muttered as she went looking for Camden and a few others to help move Topher and Hollis to the holding area.

Hearing a phone ringing, Ruby went to answer it without a second thought and frowned a little when all she heard was muffled movement at the other end.

"Hello?" She asked forcefully down the line, after a few more repeated attempts to establish some form of communication the line went dead and the dial tone was the only thing that Ruby heard. Hanging up the phone she looked at the blank screen and realized it was hers, despite having been resurrected from the dead a day or so ago her phone had been charged and was in reaching distance of her.

Searching through the call history, Ruby realized that the call had been made from Jonah's phone. She'd give him another hour and if he hadn't rung her again she'd send someone to investigate what was going on, he must have had his hands full if he hadn't been able to mutter a sound.

When her phone rang again she answered without looking, "Jonah, I assume you have an update." She asked, unsure how to broach the subject.

The snort that came through from the other end though was decidedly not Jonah."Whoever you are, you're messing with the wrong alphas!" The last word was said on a scream that petered off, there was more muted shuffling before someone cleared their throat.

"Sorry about that Ruby, these Murray twins are a little more hard work than anticipated." She was glad to hear Jonah on the other end, he didn't seem phased by any of what had just happened and hoped that he had everything under control.

"No worries Jonah, once they're secure have them transported back here. I hope you've launched surprise assaults on all alphas across the swamp otherwise we're going to be in for interesting times." Ruby knew Jonah, she knew he wouldn't risk the element of surprise by trying to get to every pack territory himself.

"Yes, we've sent teams of 1 to 5 our to retrieve the remaining alphas. Layken is the only single and he's working across the river to grab Dane, I figure if he runs into any trouble then either you, Amber and Gray can help or Kenny and I can help. I haven't heard anything so I'm assuming he's fine." Ruby didn't like the sound of that but didn't question Jonah, if he had confidence in who he placed around the lake then she was going to support that.

She just hoped that once they all came to that there wouldn't be a third world war amongst the alphas. They'd all be restrained for their own safety, lord knew the testosterone in the room was going to be its peak...especially if alpha mates were involved but it had to be done.

"Strap them to the beds, doc I need you to keep your cool over the next few hours. Topher and Hollis are safe, nothing will happen to either of them. But over the next, while we're going to begin bringing the rest of the alphas in...if all goes well. They'll be unconscious, I need you to check them over to make sure there are no injuries and that they're all comfortable because there'll be hell once they're all awake and realize they can't break out of their restraints." Ruby needed to make clear that if the doctor began to waver he would be replaced and likely end up restrained elsewhere in Topher's home.

"We'll mask your scent so that you smell like one of us. I don't want this pack and Topher to be implicated in anything once this mess is sorted out and we're all gone." Ruby knew that there was a good chance the other alphas would target Topher and the Caversham Swamp pack once they were all out of the picture. She would need to put it to the council to make sure surveillance and intervention were in place before they left the area.

"Alright, you're the boss." Ruby couldn't help but feel bad, he was likely torn between staying loyal to his alpha and listening to the last order he'd likely been given about following Ruby's orders. Either way, she stepped aside and allowed the doctor to make his first two patients comfortable.

Layken came in not long after with an unconscious Dane Fysher slung over his shoulder, he gave Ruby one side glance before dumping Dane on the floor.

"Next time there'll be three of us, he put up a damn fight that would make a stray tomcat proud." Ruby smiled despite Layken's serious tone. She could imagine the tall and lanky Layken coming up against the broad-shouldered, stout guy that was Dane. It would even have been worse given that Dane would have been fighting to stay in his pack territory, Ruby didn't want to know what Layken had to do to get Dane unconscious.

"Put him down with Topher and Hollis, try not to drop him either. Did you get the beta?" Layken was already motioning towards the main entrance before Ruby had finished asking the question. That was probably why it took him a while, she just hoped that aside from Jonah and Kenny the others were getting along well enough.

Ruby answered her phone as soon as it began to ring again.

"Ruby, we've got Noah and Alice Gavriel, along with their beta pair Maxie and Ilara. They've come willingly and seem to trust us well enough, we're en route to Topher's pack house. Have you heard from others?" This surprised Ruby the most, but then Topher had said that the Gable forest pack had some of the best alphas to lead them.

"Good, reassure them that no harm will come to them or their territories while they're with us. Sounds like most of the others are having issues, we already have Dane and his beta subdued, Topher and Hollis are both out cold. So as long as there are no other hiccups we should all be here talking by dinner." Ruby hung up and went out to Layken's truck to check on the beta, she was annoyed to see that he was sitting upright in the passenger seat.

The closer she came to the truck the more she realized he was gagged and had a gash on his forehead...in plain daylight.

"Sweet baby cheese," she muttered as she came to a standstill outside the passenger seat, looking into the eyes of an extremely angry shifter.

A/N: This update has been a long time coming, I'm writing to finish this story off so some things may be rushed/ underdeveloped.

You may notice inconsistencies or 'oddities' from here on out. Apologies, but this story has been grating on my nerves all year and I want it finished by any means necessary.

Happy reading!