Prologue

I was born in a land controlled by Alphas. Everyone below the status of a delta is already deemed omega, the lowest of lows. Fortunately, I am the Alpha's daughter, but on the other note, I am the least favorite. Living a life of nothing but unfairness fuels my morale and sympathy for those who share the same experience as me.

"Run," I ordered the rogue after releasing him from his shackles.

This is the first time I've pushed myself over my limit. Rogues are our enemies. It is as though I am bending my morale and pride by releasing it. But I couldn't give a damn. The thought of this man's probable fate made my stomach quiver.

Death.

That is the only course he will eventually take. Alpha Luke is unforgiving: he strictly adheres to our domain regulations. He's not going to make any exceptions. Once captured, rogues are doomed to death. It’s their fate. Some willingly chose to take that path, while some were forced to. Something that I could relate to.

The rogue cast a dubious glance at me before fleeing. He was skeptical. That is understandable. Ironically, I was the sister of the now-Luna of the pack. I should have followed the rules established by the pack's ruling officials. But something inside of me refuses. My parents had been disappointed with me for a long time. There's no use in proving something if I'm still going to get the same reaction.

I hate to admit that rebellion is my form of comfort. At some point in my life, I was able to alleviate the injustice meted out by releasing the aggrieved. It was not the right way but there's no other way. Not in our realm. For only when you have power will justice be served. 

"Aria Summersault!"

I was brought back to reality when I heard a shout followed by the screeching sound of a metal door as if someone had forced their way into the station.

"Did you let the rogue escape?" Alpha Luke's thunderous voice booms as he walks in.

His aura screamed rage, one that is unforgiving. "Did you?" he reiterated.

I swallowed anxiously. This reaction from him was what I had expected before doing such a thing.  But now that I've seen him up close, terror has taken over my body. Fear lurks behind my strong façade, which no one has yet revealed. His Alpha power made my knees weaken, but I concealed it with a scowl.

"I did, Alpha."

As expected, without wasting a second, his feet landed squarely on my abdomen, causing my body to fly straight toward the wall. When my back crashed on the hard concrete, I growled in agony, dropped to my knees, and coughed up blood.

Fuck!

"You fucking rebellious bitch!" he shouted.

I tried to conceal the discomfort by wearing a blank expression. Showing any sign of weakness in front of him is humiliating. Although deep inside, I'm writhing in pain.

"I just delivered him justice!" I argued. 

Death is a harsh punishment for them. They are redeemable. It made no sense to kill them just because they were stereotyped as wicked werewolves. Every one of them has a reason for being in that situation. We couldn't just end their lives as if that's what they deserved. Nobody was murdered by the rogue I let loose. He had earned the right to live.

"You still haven't learned anything, Aria! Everything isn't a fairytale, you stupid bitch!”

Alpha Luke walks straight at me. He took hold of my collar before striking me in the face. The intensity of his smack feels like separating my flesh from the bone. It was painful.

"The urge to kill you is on the tip of my fingers, but I know Mysha would disapprove," he clenched his teeth. "You're lucky because you're my mate's sister; else, you'd be dead by now.”

He shoved me back to the floor before leaving the place with his beta. When his presence was no longer around, I screamed in despair. I felt like I'd fractured a rib from the intensity of the prior kick. I know it was partly my fault, and I have no choice but to embrace the consequences.

"What happened to you?" our resident physician inquires.

"I fell on the stairs," I lied, hissing in pain as she treated me.

I can't tell her the truth. This crisis I'm dealing with the Alpha stays between his official and us. Nobody else needs to know. Fortunately, Maia seemed to believe me. Or maybe not, but she decided not to ask further.

"Everything is good," she added, "there's only a tiny fracture on your ribs, but it's not too bad."

I heaved a sigh of relief, offered Maia a genuine smile, and then thanked her. My body feels a lot better now. Perhaps it's because of the ointment she applied earlier.

"I can still do my usual routine, right?"

Maia nodded, "you can, but you have to rest for two days."

After settling everything, I left Maia's consultation room and went straight to my friend's mini-bar. I don't dare to return to the packhouse and face Alpha Luke. My disgust at seeing him is still at its pinnacle. I need to unwind a little.

"What brings you here, my dearest Aria?" Asaiah inquired as I entered her mini-bar.

She walks with me to the stools. And instead of responding, I proceeded to make my order. "Give me a glass of tequila." When she didn't get an answer, Asaiah rolled her eyes and started making me a drink.

"Don't tell me you oppose the Alpha again?" she implores, giving me the drink. Asaiah knows me too well.

I inhaled some air and then sipped the alcohol. It has become a habit of mine to oppose Alpha Luke. However, this is the first time he has ever hit me. It seems like I overstepped my bounds by unleashing that rogue.

Seriously I wouldn't have done it if it weren't for pity. It just so happened that my feelings took control. They have caused so much harm to that poor creature that I felt the need to rescue it.

"What did you do this time?" she inquired once more. Asaiah seemed to be quite insistent on getting the truth from me, else she wouldn't stop grilling me with questions. 

So, I eventually told her everything.

"OMG! Aria, that's extreme!" she exclaimed, both hands on her mouth covering it.

Is it?

I never actually cared about everything. My sister frequently intervenes whenever I am subjected to punishment. Mysha puts up with my wayward behavior. It's most likely her way of easing the anguish I've had with my parents. When my sister is around, the punishment becomes less severe. I got used to it.

"What if that rogue returned to get his revenge? You should have thought about everything before intervening."

Parallel to what Asaiah had predicted, later that night, while I was assisting Mysha in setting the dinner table and struggling with a confused thought, a commotion intermingled with howls, growls, and the foul smell of blood arose.

"What was that?" I wondered, though part of me already had a hunch of what was going on.

"This is what I am talking about, Aria," Mysha heaved a sigh, looking calm despite what was going on outside. "I know how much you despise injustices, but this world is far from fair."

"Rogues are dangerous: a creature we must not simply release out of pity. They are a walking danger, and who knows how many lives they have already taken?" she nagged.

I admit, she had a point. Every decision should be weighed out, but I fall short in that area. I let my emotion take over and not my rationality.

Before Mysha could add more to her lecture, someone unexpectedly entered the kitchen, refining my hunches.

"A certain pack has attacked us! Send the vulnerable to the safe house immediately," Angelo, the pack's beta, declared.

It was indeed an attack, but from which pack? We had encountered a couple of invasions in the past but to no avail. This one, for sure, won't shake our foundation.

I was trying to process the situation when Mysha uttered something in a low voice, just enough for me to hear it.

"I never expected them to attack right away."

Who?

Mysh stared at me, and before I could react, she pulled my hands. "Let's go."

Although bewildered, I accompanied her as she hurried to bring the weak to the designated safe location the officials had prepared for them.

"Faster!"

Every senior who could no longer fight and all minors who weren't yet able to do so entered the safe house immediately. After putting them there, we immediately went to where the battle occurred. And just before reaching the field, I ran across Asaiah, who was also confused.

"What happened?" she inquired, concerned.

"

There's a fight. Someone attacked us," was all I could say when a giant black wolf appeared in front of us. It has drooping saliva and bloodshot eyes as though ready to attack us at any moment. The adrenaline rush in my body increases as Kaia, my wolf, takes shape.

"RUUUUN!" Asaiah shouted in horror, and before I could think clearly, blood spilled on my face, followed by a nerve-wracking pain.