As a warrior of the Wheatstone park, waking up every morning, and carrying out my daily training wasn't a new thing to me.
During the night, I ensure to have a long and peaceful night sleep, to avoid being quickly stressed out for the next day.
It was dawn already, and all the werewolves of our pack came out for our usual training. I had already covered lots of laps, just to make sure I was able to end at or before 5mins, but I just wasn't able to do so even when father kept on encouraging me to do more.
I ran so fast, even faster than the others. After I had completed so many rounds, but wasn't able to meet up to my expectations, father decided that the training should come to an end, and at the spot, I stopped. I was completely exhausted, already soaked in my own sweat. I was breathless, and my heart beating faster than ever.
"How many minutes is it dad?", I asked father.
"Five minutes and six seconds", he said looking at the stopwatch he held at his hand.
"Good shot Esme, you did well", father said to me.
Out of exhaustion I sighed and fell to the ground, resting on my back. Father brought me a bottle of water from the cooler of ice blocks that was kept at the field. The mere sight of the cold, chilled water caught my eyes, and I didn't even wait for another seconds to consume it.
"I could have done better than this. I am just being lazy",, I said to myself.
"Covering 7 miles in 5mins is really impressive" father said.
"Not 5mins father, it's five minutes and six seconds", I said.
Father laughed out loud.
"You shouldn't be too hard on yourself my love, it's just a gradual process. After all, you were the first runner up in this training", father said.
I didn't want to change my opinion, I just knew I could have done better. It was time to go home, but I still wanted to rest a bit, for my heart was still racing. I closed my eyes, and just allowed the gentle moving breeze to rest on my body, while my sweat began running down from my face into the soft grass. Resting on the grass, I could hear the footsteps of the others as they were still finishing their lap.
"Ok guys, let's call it a day. We will continue tomorrow", father said.
I finally lifted myself up from the grass and began heading home. All I needed at that point was to go and sit under the fast running shower. Father gave me his hand, and I took it as a form of support.
"Tomorrow, I will finish in less than five minutes", I said to father as we headed home.
The Wheatstone pack house was a bit far from the training ground. It was a four storey building, that was meant for top pack members which were, the alpha and Luna, the beta and the pack top warriors. I was the third over all warrior in the whole pack.
My room was at the third floor with some of the other powerful warriors and the betas. I had recently moved into the pack after several years of staying at our separate home. And I could now use the bathroom in peace without an annoying pounding on the door by my younger brothers ,pestering me to hasten up and make way for them.
I headed to the bathroom, dragging my towel from the hanger. As soon as the shower water began resting on my body. I rested my head at the cold wall tiles in front of me and allowed the fast running water to descend on my blonde curls.
As I was trying to shampoo my hair, my wolf made a screech noise on my head, and it caused the hair at the back of my neck to rise. I was confused as to what was going on in there, so I called out to her, but got no response. I called out to her again, but still got no reply. I then shampooed my hair and quietly had a long, fantastic shower.
After showering, I got dressed up, putting in my short red gown that had lots of flower designs on it. both mother and my younger brothers weren't at home when I got back from the training. So after the cool shower, I rested on my bed and dosed off.
Tonight was actually going to be a ceremony and dinner night, to commemorate the alpha son who would be taking over the pack.
I wasn't in the mood to attend the ceremony, as I wasn't fond of the said Alphas son Dave as the new Alpha, for he was a guy I had never respected. Five years older than me, but he was cruel, immoral and an immature young man, who gains pleasure in nothing but down grading and hurting others both physically, emotionally and mentally. I had always been of the opinion that his father delayed his coronation as the new Alpha because of his silly attitude.
He was a cheap womanizer, who enjoyed sleeping around with the she-wolves of the pack, and the neighboring ones. Rubbing his birth given Alpha status on the noses of everyone, and using it to manipulate the vulnerable she wolves.
All I wanted to do was to lay down on my bed, wake-up and enjoy my favorite snacks and banana fruit drink, avoiding the ceremony completely. But my duty as a warrior of the pack meant I had no other option than to attend the ceremony.
I thought I was actually going to wake up on time, but I ended up waking up very late. Seeing that I had woken up late, I felt my snacks might have to wait another day to be devoured. Sugary snacks has always been my favorites since I was a child. Even when father would always reprimand me against it, telling me how unhealthy it was for my body as a child, I never stopped eating them. The mere thought of sugary snacks would Begin to make my stomach growl.
"But on a second thought, I still have enough time before the ceremony begins”, I thought to myself.
So I went downstairs, and headed towards the large kitchen, and then straight to the giant freezer placed by the corner.
I began searching through, looking for any sugary appetizer to quench my hunger, and there I saw it; A big sized frozen pizza. Now this will hold my stomach, till I have dinner at the ceremony. Although I placed the pizza inside the oven to heat up as I waited anxiously for it, my stomach began growing violent.
Inside the pantry, I tucked myself behind the bags of cereals, hoping to have a quiet moment with my snacks. Silently, I opened the packaging of my favorite banana juice, careful not to make any noise. The taste was delightful, a little comfort to myself as I savored each bite of my snack. But before I could finish, I heard footsteps approaching.“Hey, what are you up to in there?”Startled, I looked up to see my mother’s face peeking around the corner, a knowing smile on her lips. My little brothers and father were just behind her.“You’re caught red-handed,” she teased, pulling me into a warm embrace.Her scent, like Jasmine, brought back memories of being comforted as a child. My father, however, shook his head, mockingly stern as he took the juice from my hand.“You know you shouldn’t be eating so much sugar,” he chided gently.I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. “Dad, I’m 20. I can make my own choices.”He laughed, and I knew his concern came from a good place, even if I wasn’t in
"Nothing is wrong, okay. You guys should go ahead, I will catch up", I replied as I was smiling brightly, with butterflies fluttering my stomach. My parents agreed and Left, as my brothers followed in toe. I bent down to clean up the mess from the slice I had earlier dropped. After disposing it in the garbage, I reached out to the sink and began to wash my hands under a warm running water. The sun was still peeking above the trees that covered our pack territory. It shined through the window in front of me, there by lightning up the entire kitchen. Like an alarm, Alaric began screaming. "Here!!, mate!!".The butterflies in my stomach turned into a zoo of animals. A strong scent consumed me, as I began hearing the sound of footsteps walking towards me. The smell was strong like a smoke. I turned around quickly, my hands still soapy and wet. My eyes widened as I met a familiar pair of dark emerald eyes.“Dave?”, It was actually Dave the soon to be alpha. Dave stood at the other sid
I sneaked in, making sure to be unnoticed, and sat down with my family whose table was at the middle of the stage."Where have you been?","And what have been keeping you up stairs?", My mother scolded, but I didn't respond.She couldn't ask further questions as she was in the mist of a lot of crowd. I wanted to make up a perfect excuse, but as I was about to speak, there it was again, "That scent that smells of smoke". Dave walked on stage and stood close to his parents. As he looked up, our eyes immediately caught each other. My wolf was howling, "mate!!, Mate!!", She whined. Dave altered a few words, while Mirabel encouraged him by rubbing her hand on his back. All this while Dave stood on the stage, we never broke eye contact as he grabbed the microphone into his hands, bringing it closer to his mouth.Dave stood confidently on the stage, holding the microphone. His gaze swept across the crowd, his eyes finally locking with mine. It was intense, penetrating. My heart skipped a b
Mirabel’s voice, once soft and pleading, turned ice-cold, her eyes burning with fury.“Esmeralda was chosen by the moon goddess herself, and you spit in the face of that blessing for some worthless girl like Eudora?” Her voice cut through the air, dripping with disdain. She took a step closer to her son, eyes hard.“It’s all because of her, isn’t it? She has you under her spell, making you forsake your duties as Alpha, making you a disgrace to this pack!”Mirabel’s hands clenched into fists as she continued, “I should’ve known it was her doing—the minute you started rejecting your mate, I knew! But mark my words, Eudora will never sit as Luna of this pack. If you won’t reject her, then I will banish her myself!” Her voice rang with the authority of an elder, her aura growing stronger, igniting the room with tension.Dave’s father, Nathan, sat in the corner, his face grim and tired. As the former Alpha, he had spent years guiding the pack with strength and wisdom, but this… this was di
“No! Not them!” I screamed with every ounce of strength I had left, my voice cracking under the pressure of my anguish.“I’ll go. I’ll leave the pack. Just—just leave my parents out of this,” I pleaded, finally giving in to the crushing weight of defeat.“No, sweetheart,” my mom whispered through sobs, her face already streaked with tears.I tried to stand, my legs trembling beneath me, and reached out to my father’s arm for support. Disoriented, I clung to him as though he were the only thing tethering me to this world. Nathan’s expression softened, and although he had released Dave, his son stood stiff and silent, watching me with cold detachment. There wasn’t even a flicker of empathy in his eyes.“I’m going to find a way to come back. I won’t stay away from my family forever,” I sobbed, my voice thick with emotion. “I love you all so much.”Father looked conflicted, his voice choked with emotion as he said, “I can’t let you go, my dear. If you leave, we all go.” He glanced at my m
"Just be quiet, okay? I’m hungry!" I yelled angrily, my voice shaking with frustration and exhaustion.The wolves growled, low and menacing, as I stepped closer to the carcass. Their glowing eyes followed my every move, and the largest of them, who I assumed was the alpha, stepped forward, baring his teeth. I froze, my stomach rumbling in defiance of the danger in front of me.The alpha's snarl deepened, his warning clear. I was invading their feast, and I had no right to their kill. Fear spiked through me, but my hunger was overwhelming. "Please," I muttered, my voice shaky but pleading. "I’m starving. Just let me have a bit... I won’t take it all."The alpha held my gaze for a moment longer before stepping back, his growl lowering in volume. The others, still wary, followed suit, reluctantly giving me space but keeping their distance. Finally seeing an opening, I took the chance. I grabbed the antelope’s leg and pulled it towards me, my hands trembling as I tore into the bloody fl
We finally got to our final destination, and I was brought off the truck. My eyes fluttered open slowly, as I began to realize the strange surrounding. It was so dark in there, and I could barely see myself, but I kept on perceiving a foul smell. The funk of defecates and urine made my stomach stir. My ankle and wrist were explosively painful as a result of the rough hands that were used on me. I suddenly noticed a faint flickering light peeking through the small hole at the large door in front of me. I began to crawl towards the wooden door, but I couldn't go too far; as I was chained against the muddy gravel floor beneath me with a rusted chain that shackled my weary ankles. The smell of a burning flesh began to spread throughout the entire room. I stood up slowly with a lot of energy, my whole body trembling in fear. I tried to find a way to open the door, but the door had no handle. Seeing that I was locked from the outside, and I couldn't do anything to open the door, I pee
Hearing this words suddenly made me go dump. I lay in complete darkness for hours, with my eyes wide open, hugging my myself and hunted by the struggling final breath of the she-wolf across me. She whimpered in pains and cries for death until she finally got choked on what I assumed was her body fluids. The voice kept on replaying in my ears, filling my body with goosebumps. Tears couldn't stop flowing from my eyes. I was caged in this empty room, swallowed in darkness, awaiting what so ever that was to befall me. I was feeling so much pains both physically and emotionally, and my body felt like it was doing to leave me at any moment. Seeing the torture this woman was subjected too, already made me realize that I won't be able to endure such a torture.All I could think of was my poor parents whose last image of me was my confused, and homeless figure being banished away from the Wheatstone pack. It was so sad that I couldn't even say goodbye to them or my little brothers. The