Alpha Roffe Barther seized the opportunity, using the distraction to his advantage. He quickly overpowered the weakened alpha and half-shifted causing his claws to extract and deliver the killing blow.
"I'm sorry. I have to go to him," Luna Dawn whimpered to Eirika,
“Mama, No!” Eirika cried quietly.
“I’m sorry. One day you will understand when you find your mate. He is my heart…” she said the last part in almost a whisper.
“Mama…” Eirika continued to cry.
"Run, my pet, never trust anyone" she muttered right before she pushed away from her daughter.
"Mama. NO!" Eirika cried.
Luna Dawn ignored her, shapeshifting into a fierce Lycan and letting out a loud vicious roar. Bullets and poisoned darts whizzed through the air in her direction with a few hitting her.
She leaped and managed to evade Alpha Roffe Barther from stopping her, scaling through the air at Bowyer. The treacherous beta looked stunned as Luna Dawn jumped him, swiping her claws against his chest, causing him to let out a pain-filled grunt.
About ten werewolves leaped to fight her and despite the bullets and poisonous darts in her system, she managed to tear twenty of them apart, fighting to finish off Bowyer. But the wolves didn't let her. There were too many of them and they kept getting in her way until she weakened and fell to the floor beside her dying husband.
"No!" Eirika screamed, drawing attention to her location. Several shots went off and poisonous arrows flew hitting their mark. Eirika let out a pain-stricken cry and then turned around and ran.
"Find and finish her off. Let no one escape!" Alpha Roffe Barther thundered.
He then walked up to Bowyer. The treacherous beta was seated on the floor with his back resting on the frame of the podium. He held a hand to his bleeding chest wheezing. Alpha Roffe Barther slowly took the poisonous knife from his grasp and gingerly examined it.
"We did it. We killed them all. Don't let that little shit get away… she must be killed," Bowyer said through gritted teeth, breathing with effort.
"Yes, don't worry. There will surely be a mass grave here tonight and your precious princess will be the cherry on top."
"Great," he breathed, grimacing in pain.
"However, letting a traitor who could betray his own alpha live would not be prudent, don't you think?" he said coldly.
"What?! W-what are you saying? You know you have my loyalty. I did this to stop that weakling from making that slip of a girl our ruler! He was soft … weak! H-he had to go!"
"Are you sure that was it? You would get a share of their wealth if I agree to put you in charge after all. Are you sure it was not just your ambition, Bowyer? Don't get me wrong I love ambitious men. I am one myself. I just have an aversion to hired help or servants thinking they have an opinion on how I choose to handle my affairs…"
"Alpha Roffe Barther, please, I promised you… I pledged allegiance to you…"
"Yes, you did. Just like – I am certain – you did to Mikain Aedelwulf. You were right. He was soft. Trust me, Bowyer, the problem is not you. It's me. I have trust issues and I also like to be the one drawing out terms. I especially hate being indebted," he finished with a cold sneer.
And without warning, he deftly buried the knife in Bowyer's chest. Drew it out and did it again and again, causing blood to splatter all over his face. Some got in his mouth and he licked the blood.
The other Werewolf's face stayed frozen in shock, in death, his supposed alley exacted his own brand of justice for the treachery that had occurred.
Eirika ran, stumbling through the dense forest, her heart pounding as she held a hand to her bleeding stomach and another to her chest.
She could hear the rival pack's howls and pounding feet getting closer and closer. She knew that if she didn't get away soon, she would be killed along with the rest of her pack. Branches and leaves lashed at her, sticking and tangling her hair and cutting her exposed face as she ran blindly crying in grief. Her heart ached painfully in recollection. The determination to survive continued to fuel her. A loud howl rented the air, startling her and she jerked her gaze backward while still running and then plummeted into a hole.
A silent gasp escaped her lips right before an iron trap slammed shut and jaws of iron dug into her leg.
She grunted hard trying not to scream and took quick shallow breaths, adjusting her eyes to the darkness. The smell of wet earth, roots, and her own blood assailed her and she could feel her bone, crushing. She grunted hard, hitting the framing sandy wall with her palm in reaction to the excruciating pain.
Touching her chest she glanced down and saw her palm covered in blood. The sight of her legs made her shoulders shake as she cried. Her head felt woozy and her vision began to blur. She shook her head, summoning inner courage to fight, focusing on the injustice done to her Pack, and Bowyer's betrayer. Even from where she was deep in the ditch, she could hear the cries of her people being slaughtered.
War had come to them only they weren't prepared.
Fury surged in her bloodstream as she focused her rage on the image of Alpha Roffe Barther's face. Silently swearing that if she made it, she would not rest until she pay him back in kind. The thought of the retribution and her state of mind woke up the primal blood in her, causing an additional form of pain that was even more excruciating as her body started to metamorphose into her primal self.
And in a bid to keep quiet, she searched and saw a stick in the sandy hole, reaching for it she bit into it - dirt and all, as the pain of feeling every bone in her body breaking and reforming tore through her.
Arric and his ten gammas cautiously made their way through the dense woods, their senses on high alert as they searched for any survivors of the attack on the Ironbridge wolf pack in the region of The Grey Wolves. They were all wearing ski masks to conceal their identities, not wanting to be recognized, and carrying a backpack. As they moved deeper into the woods, Arric caught a fresh sweet floral scent added with the scent of freshly cut grass and earth. And then there was the damning smell of blood - a peculiar kind which made him and his beast; Steelclaw uneasy. He picked up speed, startling his men and they rushed after him as he ran through the forest, skipping dead and fallen logs and swatting aside branches, following the trail of the scent. Suddenly, he stumbled upon a deep ditch and came to an abrupt halt. One of his men almost collided with him from behind. Breathing hard, he looked inside the ditch and saw a bloodied, naked female lying sideways and curled up on the dark
"Good afternoon class," said Mr. Barmon; the physics teacher, as he walked into the class, causing all noise to cease. He dropped his folder on the desk, picked up a board marker, and started to write, deftly, on the whiteboard. "Today we're going to be revising one of the most fundamental concepts in physics: Newton's laws of motion," he continued as he wrote Newton's three laws on the board and began to explain each one in detail, turning to face the class, perching on the edge of the table, he folded his slim arms against his chest. "The first law states that an object at rest will remain at rest, and an object in motion will remain in motion with a constant velocity unless acted upon by an unbalanced force." The door to the class was pushed open, interrupting him. A tall young adult with hooded eyes and black hair peered inside. "Come in. Come in, Hartwell, a moment more and you would have missed the fun part," Mr. Barmon said in exasperation. The younger man walked in and to
Eirika slipped out of her hostel room window, her heart pounding in her chest. She knew if she were caught, she would be in big trouble. She crept along the edge of the building, trying to stay out of sight of the security guards. Her friends; Nina and Toby had texted her earlier and told her they were waiting for her outside the compound. Her heart almost stopped when she made to rush to the fence about four meters away from the dom fire escape exit and saw a guard just at the far end. With her heart beating faster than usual she hugged her back to the wall and slowed her breathing, trying to blend into the darkness like her father had taught her. Only that was supposed to be for hunting and not sneaking out in this unholy hour. Adrenaline surged through her bloodstream. She was never the type to break rules and it felt almost giddy to be doing it for the first time. After waiting for a few minutes, she peered down the side and saw that the guard was still there. She waited then
Nigel Hartwell drew back with a quiet curse, running his fingers through his hair, and avoided meeting her gaze, he said, "I think that would do. You should stick with your friends. This place is not for pups to wander…" and then he was gone. It took Eirika a minute to catch her breath. She placed a shaky finger over her lower lip to feel the warm, plum flesh that had felt his touch. She then wrapped her arms around herself, feeling suddenly cold. Confused, and a tad upset that all that might just be him toying with her. She ran her fingers through her curls and turned around to look for Nina and Toby. She saw them dancing at a corner of the dance floor and quickly found her way to them. Nina beamed with a smile when she saw her, then pulled her into the circle and the three danced together. Eirika kept looking around for Hartwell but he was nowhere in sight. Her heart constricted. She sincerely wished he had stayed. Later on, they left the club to go back, and the same men who
The full moon illuminated the dark wilderness, casting an eerie glow over the rolling hills and dense forests. In the distance, a herd of antelopes grazed peacefully, unaware of the danger that lurked in the shadows. Suddenly, a low growl echoed through the night, causing the antelopes to freeze in fear. Three massive werewolves emerged from the trees, their fur standing on end as they bared their sharp teeth. The leader of the pack, a giant black werewolf with glowing blue eyes with a tinge of gold, let out a deafening howl, signaling the start of the hunt. Its fur was matted and its eyes glowed with a fierce hunger The antelopes panicked, scattering in every direction as the werewolves charged toward them. The black werewolf leaped into the air, landing on the back of an antelope and sinking its teeth into the animal's neck. The antelope let out a piercing sound before falling to the ground, motionless. The second werewolf; a grey and black mixed-colored one, chased after another
Alpha Roffe Barther was livid as he found out that ten of his guards had allowed a rogue wolf to stray into their territory and leave unharmed. He summoned one of his pack members and ordered them to fetch his first son, Arric.When Arric arrived, Alpha Roffe Barther didn't waste any time in getting to the point. "You will kill those ten guards," he commanded.Arric hesitated, watching his father with a cautious stare. Not that he was surprised. He was just curious how someone could be so dead inside that every punishment in his book must always result in a gruesome end. Fine, they were half-beasts and Lycans are a complicated bunch but he knew a few alpha werewolves with Lycan blood just like them that aren’t as bloodthirsty and in fact, treat their pack members with fairness and dignity. A voice inside him reminded him that those Packs are often swallowed by big Packs like theirs with a much more ruthless alpha – their world is a brutal one after all, but still, Arric believed the
Arric left the she-wolf sleeping in his tent with two of his gammas standing guard and went back to join his men. Trailing their scents, he met them in the woods on a hillside overlooking the black wolves' grounds. “Status?” he said, crouching low beside Bishop. “How is the she-wolf?” York; one of his gammas and good friends asked. “She will live,” Arric replied.“Great!” York said. “Who is she?” Jarom, another of his men asked.“No idea. I suppose we will find out when she wakes up,” Arric replied, taking a glance at the dark-haired werewolf and then reverting his gaze to meet Bishop’s.“Yeah … Status. There are still a significant number of the black wolves scouting the grounds…”“Doing clean up?” Arric asked, assessing the grounds.“Yes, and …” Bishop pointed to a secluded area of the grounds. And Arric could see about twenty heavily armed guards parading the corners.“We are still trying to figure out why they are there… I mean it looks like no one was speared,” Bishop added.
Eirika could no longer feel the biting cold; the pain in her body was still there but was now bearable. She was wrapped in the warm embrace of someone or something and she could hear the rhythmic beat of their hearts. Strangely enough, she felt safe and the thought made tears pooled at the back of her eyelids. The horrific scenes of her parents' execution played in her head, causing her to jerk, fighting to contain the pain that ripped at her inside – over and over. She heard herself emitting a soft whimper. She knew she could never be safe again. "Ssh…" someone cooed close to her ear, "you are safe now. I promise," an unmistakable male voice whispered. The deep, husky sound seemed to soothe her to her very core, taking in a shaky breath she slowly relaxed and let the darkness take her. When Arric raised his head, he caught his men giving the girl pitiful glances. None of them could tell of the horror she had been through before ending up in that ditch. He could only hope they wou
Arric watched as the doctor continued to examine Eirika and then she breathed a sigh of relief. "See here … this hole indicates the bullet went through and did not dislodge in her stomach," she said, showing Arric a hole in Eirika's back. "This is good. You are very lucky, Luna, the bullet missed your baby, we just need to be sure it missed vital organs too." Dr. Michelle Riverclaw worked quickly to patch up Eirika's wound and stop the bleeding. Eirika was in agony, but she stayed still, knowing that the doctor was doing all she could to save her. As soon as Eirika was stabilized, Dr. Michelle Riverclaw said, "We need to get them to the clinic." Her voice was urgent. "And make sure they get the proper care." Arric nodded, his eyes never leaving Eirika and their newborn child. "I'll take care of them," he said with determination in his voice. Arric called out to Danny who was waiting by the door with the others. "How are they? Luna and the pup?" Bishop asked eagerly. "They are
"So… another defenseless victim, huh? That's a surprise," she said and continued to laugh almost hysterically now. Mauro came to stand beside her and pulled her painfully by the hair to force her to lift and tilt her face upward and stopped laughing and also to get her close enough to stab her stomach. But Eirika could not be deterred. "Seriously, Mauro, tell me… I'm going to die anyway right? There must be human blood in you somehow," Eirika taunted still. "You fucking bitch!" He snarled. "Soo that's a yes… I thought so too," she said and before he could react, she plunged the knife she had pulled from the rack earlier under his armpit, pushing it deep enough to puncture his heart. His eyes widened in shock. When he tried to stab her still, she gripped his wrist and with a loud growl continued to push the knife through his body with every strength she could muster, shaking from the effort. "You must be dense to think I would be that easy to kill," Eirika snarled, "I killed your
The night was cold and crisp at Narrow Creek Manor - the perfect weather for the Lycanthropes to come out to play. At the back of the imposing building, a bonfire was roaring, casting flickering shadows across the clearing where the makeshift dining table was set up. The table was long and sturdy, crafted from a thick slab of oak. It was surrounded by rough-hewn log benches and cushioned chairs, where the guests sat. The aroma of grilled meat and roasted vegetables wafted through the air, making everyone's mouths water. Arric sat at the head of the table with Eirika. Beside them were their guests: Aricel and his human girlfriend, Gwenna, Shadowclaw and his son Nigel, Zenesha and Arric's regular crowd: Bishop, Craineghis, Jimothy, Danny, Jeff, Jarom, and York, who was still recovering from his injuries with his mate; Dr. Michelle Riverclaw. There were also other alphas from smaller packs and black guards who were now the founding members of the enforcers. Arric raised his glass of w
The summit venue was decorated with colorful banners and flags representing each region and all packs. In the center was a circular stage, elevated to provide a better view to all attendees. The seating arrangement was divided by region, with each pack occupying a designated area. The Northern Packs were situated to the left, with Arric and his entourage taking up the front row. The Black Wolves, who controlled the transition zone between the North and East, were seated to the right. Alpha Aricel, who had taken over the Grimtooth Growlers Pack, and The Swiftfang Walkers Pack, occupied the second row, representing the West. Alpha Shadowclaw, who represented the Silvertooth Nightstalkers Pack and the South, was seated in the third row. The other smaller packs who wished to serve as witnesses were seated behind them. The expansive space was equipped with all the necessary amenities. There were comfortable chairs for the attendees, refreshment stands that served a variety of drinks
Bishop filled Arric in about the extent of York's injury. The stab wounds had caused severe damage to his kidney and thus had to undergo major surgery. Arric listened as Danny transported them to the East, his face lowered and his elbows resting on his knees. "Did they say how long it would take for him to get back on his feet?" Arric asked. "The doctors said a few weeks but then he is a werewolf," Eirika replied. Arric nodded. "He is going to be fine, Alpha," Bishop added. "He must, Bishop," Arric replied almost to himself. Everyone on the craft studied him with a compassionate gaze. "How did you two meet?" Eirika asked. "I met him not too long now… like four months? And it feels like I have known him my whole life…" Arric chuckled despite himself. "I met him when he was three years old," Arric replied. Eirika gasped. He nodded, giving her a side glance. "Now you know I'm an old man in a young man's body," he added. Aricel laughed. "That is something…" Eirika said with
"Tell me please…" he added in a fervent plea. "He is not out of the woods yet, but he's fighting, everyone is keeping vigil, praying…" she whispered against his chest. Arric let out a low growl. "I can't lose one more brother…" "I love you so much, Arric," she whispered. "I can't lose him too. The doctor said he could hear us, so I forbade him to leave us. I could almost hear him laughing, and teasing me," she said and then burst out crying. Arric tightened his hold around her, pressing a kiss to her hair. "Shh… it's okay, baby," he cooed, crying quietly too. Arric hadn't expected Bishop to be so daring to let her come to the blackguards' pack. He couldn’t believe that he would so blatantly disregard his orders but then having her there with him, holding her – his sweet, beautiful mate, and knowing she felt as strongly about his men as he did, made him feel happy. The storm that had been raging in him for the past hours calmed. He was almost in shock at her effect on him. "Why
"Get him out of here and take him to Councilwoman Charlotte Chapman!" Arric growled, not bothering to look at York. He had seen the blood and it kept streaming. He need not be told it was bad. He could feel it. "Boss," Bishop started to protest, torn between leaving him behind and trying at least to save York even if it was possible. "That's an order!" He yelled. His men exchanged glances and Bishop gestured to Dan to lower the craft. The five of them carried York's lifeless body into the aircraft. Arric caught Dan, looking at him through the side window. He turned away and faced the black guards. "Six… six fucking fighters was all it took to take down twenty fucking blackguards! None of you are leaving this ground until morning!" He yelled, compelling them to face off with him. As the aircraft lifted in the air, he blocked out the sound, allowing the sight of York's blood to fuel him as about ten black guards circled and rushed at him. *** Arric strode towards his old den,
"Zenesha…" Eirika tried to intervene, seeing the she-wolf was scaring Gwenna. "She needs to know, Luna. She needs to know the kind of life she would have. The kind of life she would be subjecting her pups to. If you ask me, I think it is irresponsible to get involved and have a family that would outlive you," Zenesha said, the pain and anguish in her voice were palpable. "Zenasha stop it!" Eirika snapped. The she-wolf startled backward as if just realizing she had said too much. "I - I'm sorry, Luna, Gwenna… I… " she said and started to stride away. "Stop!" Gwenna cried. Zenesha halted her strides with her fists clenched by her sides. Gwenna hurried to stand in front of the she-wolf, searching her gaze, and added, "Your mother was human?" "Yes, she was human," Zenesha replied with gritted teeth. "What happened? What happened to you?" the human asked in a soft, empathetic tone. The grounds grew quiet and Eirika thought the she-wolf wouldn't answer but then she said in almos
"Hey," Gwenna called, hurrying to join Zenesha and Eirika on their walk. The two had decided to go outdoors after a rather tense dinner with Alpha Aricel, and Marnet Darnald. Gwenna had chosen to eat in her room, sending one of the pack omegas to let Aricel know. Eirika wasn't completely sure of what was happening but she knew the redhead must be in the middle of it. Eirika exchanged glances with Zenesha, before reverting her gaze. Zenesha. who hadn't gotten over the human's betrayal, openly glared at her. Gwenna wore a long hooded cloak and her hair was packed up in a bun atop her head. A bandage covered her forehead and temple, wrapping around her head. There were ugly scratches around her neck and her throat was covered with a thin band-aid that was about four inches long. The thin strap matched her skin color, blending with her olive skin tone. One side of her face had turned blue-black, her left eye had a purple ring around it and she had a swollen and cracked lip. Eirik