Chapter 4: Harsh Reality

The sun had barely crested the horizon when Landon was rudely awakened by a vicious kick to his ribs. Gasping, he instinctively curled into himself, only to be yanked upright by his hair.

"Rise and shine, omega bitch," Vincent Reed's gravelly voice grated against Landon's ears. "Time to earn your keep."

For a fleeting moment, Landon forgot his predicament. He opened his mouth to roar a command, to put this insolent Beta in his place. But the words died on his lips as reality crashed down upon him. He wasn't the Alpha anymore. He was trapped in Elara's frail body, at the mercy of wolves he once commanded.

"I said move!" Vincent snarled, shoving Landon towards the door.

Pride warred with survival instinct as Landon stumbled out of the cramped omega quarters. His stomach growled painfully, reminding him that he hadn't eaten in over 24 hours. But before he could even think about food, a mountain of dirty laundry was thrust into his arms.

"Get these clean before noon," Sabrina sneered, her perfectly manicured nails digging into Landon's arm. "And don't even think about stealing a morsel from the kitchens. Omegas eat last, if at all."

Landon's temper flared. "You can't treat me like this," he growled, his voice embarrassingly high-pitched in Elara's body. "I am your Al-"

The words were cut off by a resounding slap that sent him sprawling to the ground, laundry scattering everywhere.

"You are nothing," Sabrina hissed, looming over him. "Less than nothing. And it's time you learned your place."

What followed was a brutal lesson in omega life. Landon was kicked, punched, and humiliated as he struggled to complete his chores. His Alpha spirit raged against the injustice, driving him to fight back at every turn. But Elara's body was weak, untrained in combat. Each act of defiance was met with increasingly savage reprisals.

By midday, Landon was a mess of bruises and cuts. His stomach cramped painfully, and his vision swam from exhaustion and hunger. Yet still, the tasks kept coming. Scrub the floors. Clean the bathrooms. Prepare the pack house for dinner.

It was during this last task that Landon's control finally snapped. As he set the table for the higher-ranked wolves, the scent of roasting meat nearly drove him mad with hunger. Without thinking, he reached for a dinner roll.

"Well, well," a cold voice froze him in place. "What do we have here?"

Landon turned to find Vincent and several other Betas watching him with predatory grins. His heart raced as he realized the trap he'd walked into.

"I-I was just..." he stammered, hating how pathetic he sounded.

"Stealing food meant for your betters," Vincent finished, advancing slowly. "You know what happens to thieving omegas, don't you?"

Landon's eyes darted around, searching for an escape. But he was surrounded. As the first blow fell, he realized with sickening clarity that this was just the beginning of his nightmare.

Across the pack lands, Elara was facing a nightmare of her own.

She stood before the pack council, struggling to maintain Landon's usual air of confidence as she outlined her latest proposal. "By redistributing resources more evenly among all pack members, we can strengthen our—"

"With all due respect, Alpha," a grizzled Beta interrupted, "this sounds like omega coddling. We can't afford to waste resources on the weak."

Murmurs of agreement rippled through the room. Elara fought to keep her expression neutral, even as frustration bubbled up inside her. How could they be so callous?

"It's not coddling," she argued, trying to infuse Landon's voice with authority. "It's about utilizing every member of our pack to their full potential. If we invest in the omegas—"

"Invest?" another council member scoffed. "They should be grateful for what they already receive. This isn't like you, Alpha. Are you feeling alright?"

Panic flared in Elara's chest. She was losing them. Worse, she was arousing suspicion. She needed to say something Landon would say, something Alpha-like...

"Of course I'm alright," she snapped, injecting as much arrogance into her tone as she could muster. "I'm simply exploring all options to strengthen our pack after the recent attack. Or would you prefer I sit back and do nothing?"

The council members exchanged uneasy glances. Finally, the first Beta spoke again. "Perhaps we should table this discussion for now, Alpha. Focus on more pressing matters."

Elara nodded stiffly, relief warring with disappointment. As the meeting adjourned, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was in way over her head.

The rest of the day passed in a blur of confusion and mounting anxiety. Elara fumbled through Alpha duties she barely understood, making mistake after mistake. She approved the wrong shipments, offended an important ally with a thoughtless comment, and nearly started a border dispute with a neighboring pack.

By evening, Elara was a nervous wreck. She paced Landon's quarters, her mind racing. How did he do this? How did he bear the weight of so many lives on his shoulders?

A sharp pain lanced through her body, nearly bringing her to her knees. She gasped, clutching at her ribs. Phantom bruises bloomed across her skin—no, Landon's skin.

"What's happening to him?" she whispered, horror dawning as she realized the extent of Landon's suffering.

In that moment, Elara knew she couldn't continue this charade alone. She needed help. She needed Landon.

Across the pack lands, Landon had come to the same realization. He lay curled in a corner of the omega quarters, his body battered and his spirit nearly broken. The events of the day played on repeat in his mind, each memory a fresh wound to his pride.

He had been beaten, starved, and humiliated beyond anything he'd ever experienced. And the worst part? This was just one day in Elara's life. One day of the existence he had condemned her to with his cruelty and indifference.

For the first time since this nightmare began, Landon felt a flicker of something dangerously close to empathy. He couldn't survive this alone. He needed help. He needed Elara.

As the moon rose over Silver Moon Pack, two souls in borrowed bodies reached the same conclusion: They couldn't survive this ordeal alone. For better or worse, their fates were intertwined.

The time had come to forge an unlikely alliance.

Landon pushed himself up, wincing at the pain that shot through his battered body. He had to find a way to contact Elara. But how? As an omega, he was constantly watched, his movements restricted.

Then, an idea struck him. It was risky, but it might be his only chance. Taking a deep breath, Landon steeled himself for what he was about to do.

"I need to see the Alpha," he announced to the room at large. "It's urgent pack business."

The other omegas stared at him in shock and fear. Whispers erupted, some calling him brave, others foolish. But Landon didn't care. He had made his decision.

As he was escorted to the Alpha's quarters, Landon's mind raced. He had no idea how Elara would react, or if she would even agree to help him. But one thing was certain: things couldn't go on as they were.

It was time for both of them to face the harsh realities of their new existence and find a way forward – together.