Once upon a time—a long time ago—the idea of having Indigo as a mentor in my training would have been such a privilege for me. He trained Ajax, which made him the hunter and leader that he is today. Just imagining such a person teaching me sounded like a dream to me before, but now that it is happening, I couldn’t be the least bit excited—for very obvious reasons. Why am I being forced to meditate!? We’re currently in the middle of the forest on top of the highest mountain, where Indigo makes me sit under the shade of one of the great trees. It’s a quiet place that is perfect for peace or for sleeping. “Belle, concentrate. I said to meditate, not to sleep!” The one reason why I am tolerating Indigo speaking and raising his voice at me is because I still believe in him to give me some proper training. I pry my eyes open and let out a long, whining yawn. Any more meditating and I am going to sleep. In fact, it is so relaxing that I might hibernate here. My front legs are threaten
Indigo has no opening at all. No matter how much I try to outmanoeuvre him or use my agility, there’s just no way for me to strike up a single scratch. I meant no offense to him, but how can a man as old as he is be so agile and flexible? It’s been like this for two days. I am surprised at myself that I didn’t throw the towel already. I tumbled on the ground after receiving a kick to my side. It wasn’t a heavy blow, but it had enough force to just nudge me aside. Indigo lets out a chuckle, not bothering to hide the fact that he was enjoying toying with me throughout our training. “You’re still relying heavily on your wolf instincts. It’s too easy to read when you’re a werewolf.” He dusts his hands with the white fur from his fists that he used to punch me a while back. I grunt and sit on the ground, glaring at him. I’m not that smart of a person; I know that, so it’s no surprise that I am accustomed to using my wolf mostly for battle. “Is that it for today?” Indigo taunts. “
Perhaps it is really in my nature to be a rulebreaker—or someone who seeks excitement. I don't think that this is a werewolf or even a lycan trait. I think that it is just me. Sneaking to the location where Indigo told me Ajax might be, my heart races with excitement. I have the obsidian pendant around my neck so if there’s a werewolf or other supernatural being nearby, they wouldn’t be able to smell me. Which means that the only thing I need to focus on is how I hide myself. Hiding my pristine white fur under the blanket of the night isn’t exactly easy, so I still have my work cut out for me. I did roll on dirt to cover a bit of my fur, but it was a while ago. I’m not sure what my hair situation is now. I am almost certain that the dried mud must have flaked off, showing hints of my fur. Tracking the hunters down was harder than I thought. I could not rely entirely on my nose because they must have done something to mask their scents. After all, they were facing creatures with
I went ahead to run back to the human territory, leaving Ajax to gather the hunters back at camp. My fatigue from earlier seems to have gone as my mind only focuses on how I could run faster. Whatever the Lycans were planning, I have a feeling that it couldn’t be any good. Upon reaching my destination, I felt relieved that the walls were intact. I had this crazy idea in my head that it would have been shattered or destroyed. After catching a whiff of the air around us, I realized that it was no time for me to be celebrating. Just south-east of where I am standing, I managed to catch a faint scent of something that isn’t human. My wolf and my thoughts have aligned at that moment. Without hesitation, I ran in that direction, leaping and catching an orc offguard and swiftly biting off it’s arm while carrying a club. Purple blood stained my fur while the orc’s cries rang throughout the night. By now, I am certain that the noise alerted its companion, but it has also created an advanta
I don’t know much about what transpired after I lost consciousness, but one thing was apparent to me when I woke up—Ajax revealed the existence of werewolves. I was unconscious when it happened, and I was glad that I was because it seems like a lot of work to get by. I already had my fair share of struggles when I came out as a werewolf. I would not want to watch and reminisce about the feeling because it wasn’t pleasant. The news had come to me as gossip from the nurses that would come and go from my room. I woke up in my room and in bed. I was still in my wolf form, which caused my white fur to stick to the bedsheets when I got up. I couldn’t care less about it at the moment because I was still enjoying the soft surface of the bed. Indeed. Nothing beats the comfort of a human bed. My body stretches out on the bed, rolling in glee in such a way that I have no control over it. It was such a blissful moment that even the pain running through my body was easy for me to ignore. I mis
After I freshened up, Marian and Celine took me to the cafeteria to eat. The area was vacant since it was already beyond lunch hour and most of the students are in their respective classes. I heard the human women could talk and they weren’t kidding. Celine and Marian basically told me the whole story in just a span of ten minutes, long enough for me to finish my meal. From what I gathered through our conversion, Ajax, along with the other werewolves were held in separate buildings for a while. That was, until Ajax met with Holly’s father to talk about an alliance. The fact that Ajax already has a good background as he is already one of the rising hunters that Markov Belemeire sponsors. The fact that he was revealed as a werewolf didn’t strike as much of an issue as it did with mine because of my previous performances as the first werewolf hunter—at least one that was first revealed. I guess that it is a good thing that I was revealed because at least there’s a better impression abo
The sight of a werewolf getting thrown out of a building never fully registered in my head. My head was screaming that there’s danger that I drag Marian and Celine behind me, baring my fangs at the door at whatever caused a werewolf to get thrown. However, the tension disappeared when I heard the werewolf laugh when he got up. “That was awesome! Do that move again!” The werewolf dusts his body uncaringly and jogs back into the building like nothing happened. Huh? I know that we have sturdy bodies, but why does that guy act like getting thrown is a normal occurrence? “They’re going at it again, huh?” Celine shakes her head exhasperatedly while Marian nods in agreement. They were both acting like it was a common occurrence. “Again? What do you mean?” “Every since the wolves got their own place, they seem to be a little…well, crazy.” Marian looks behind me, urging me to look back. The hunter quarters have always been clean and tidy so seeing how messed up the inside of this build
“I’ll spar with Belle next.” “You’ve already practiced with her yesterday. I’m lining next!” The amount of werewolves arguing with each other on who will be my next opponent comes as a surprise for me. I don’t mind exchanging blades with the others, but if I entertained all of the werewolves with their deep interest in clashing swords with me, even I wouldn’t come out in one piece. I want to say something, but I am afraid that I will say the wrong words. Similarly, if I don’t say anything, they might end up fighting. What to do? I know that I have dealt with crowds before when I was with the Lycans, but that doesn’t automatically give me leadership skills. All I did was follow the orders of the Alpha. What to do? What to do? It was giving me so much anxiety that I started biting my thumb nail. “What’s all this noise?” I felt immense relief when I heard Ajax. If there was one wolf who could control the crowd, it would be him—the alpha. One look from his cold red glares made t
I run into the woods as fast as my four wolf legs can carry me. My run would have been more joyful if I wasn’t being chased by someone. ‘Too slow!’ Ajax’s black wolf form appears out of the woods to come and jump at me. I sidestepped and leaped to my left. In mid-jump, I change my form. My legs grew longer and my back became straighter, elongating enough to support my new form. I bounce on my two legs, jumping high up until I am perching on one of the branches of a tree. I smirk as I look down on Ajax. His cold glare doesn’t even look nearly as scary as when I am standing on the same ground as him. ‘That’s cheating, Belle! You are using your lycan form!’ ‘Don’t be ridiculous. This is just me using my gifts.’ I give him a toothy grin. I feel like my smile is scarier as a lycan than it is when I am a werewolf. ‘Get down from there.’ ‘Why don’t you climb up?’ I continue to taunt him, enjoying the way that his face scrunches as he frowns. I chuckle. ‘Oh, alright. Fine.’ I jump do
I can feel the Lycan soul in my chest shifting impatiently as I follow Ajax and Indigo to the lair. The loud noises of growling and howling were making me antsy. It was so loud that I could hear them behind the waterfalls. Through the noises that they were making, I can somehow hear their fear and anguish. There’s nothing worse for outgoing creatures like us than to be held captive, especially in their own home. “Are you alright?”Ajax pauses when he notices me clutching my chest. His forehead creases with worry. “How long have they been kept in there?”My chest hammers wildly as I anticipate his response. “For as long as you were out.” When he sees my bewildered expression, he adds, “but we do try to let them out as much as possible!” I appreciate what Ajax did, honestly. He also knows that lycans get claustrophobic if they aren’t out and running—they are just like werewolves. However, in their minds, they are prisoners, so I know that they would never step foot outside even if t
About three days later, I return to the academy, much to my mother and doctor’s disapproval. I could not stand being in a sick ward room for so long because of all the smells of sickness and medicines. They give the two wolves inside of me anxiety. Arriving at the academy feels more like home to me than it was before. Getting out and smelling the familiar field of the academy fills me with so much ease that I even want to curl up in the dirt and sleep. However, there is one matter that I need to address.... “No.” Ajax straight up tells me before even hearing me out. I just got into his office after setting my stuff back in my room. “I won’t allow it.” “You didn’t even try to hear what I was going to say!” Ajax looks at me before grabbing my hand and leading me to the sofa, where he sits right next to me. He is still holding my hand. “You just recovered. You need to have a few more days of rest.” “Your idea of rest is based on human bodies. I am a werewolf and a lycan. My bod
My emotions are all over the place, even as I am in my room and fully dressed. Celine is no longer in the room, probably after she sensed that I was out looking for her with a murderous intent. The only one with me right now is Marian, who is helping me tie dry my hair after a shower. “Lay off the grumpy expression, babe.” Marian gleefully tries to cheer me up. “I am sure that Celine only said it as a sort of motivational speech.” “But I am motivated.” I reply. “I do hope that you don’t mean to strangle her.” I flinch, knowing that I was caught red-handed. “Belle, we all want to strangle her most of the time, so you might have to wait for your turn.” She smiles and gives me a subtle wink. “Belle!” The childish scream comes first long before the child behind the door enters. Holly enters, bouncing on her tiptoes as she heads right towards me. Her arms barely enough to wrap around my waist when she hugs me. I fumble with my words. I may not remember much, but I do know that I
I wake up feeling something in my skin. Soft beeping of machines is forcing my brain to wake and regain consciousness. I crack an eye open. My vision is blurry from sleep. It takes a while before my eyes settle, allowing me to see my surroundings. I am in a room that I am not familiar with, but based on the machines and the smell of the place, I am definitely in a hospital. My left hand moves to remove the oxygen mask from my face so I can get a clear sniff of the room. Yep. I am definitely in a hospital. But how did I get here? My head spins as I push myself up. Muscles scream at me for the abrupt movement. It has been a while since I felt sore and stiff. But somehow I sense that this isn’t the normal soreness that one would feel coming from overusing muscles. It comes from not using your muscles for a long time. A click coming from the door alerts me to my incoming visitor. My attention diverts in that same direction at the same time as the familiar scent of someone wafts i
I am a monster. To think that I harmed those I vowed to protect with these hands of mine. What I have aren’t even hands. They’re the hands of a lycan, the very species that I despise. How did it come to this? I am a werewolf just a while ago. Why did I become a lycan? These thoughts swirled in my head as I continued to run in the forest with no destination in my. The sense of smell in this form dwindles when compared to my own form, but I am feeling the physical enhancement on my body. One swing from my arm and I can break a thinking tree in half. It is something that I could never do when I was a werewolf. The immense strength scares me. No other lycan is this powerful—not even the late alpha. I broke another tree. I stare at it for long, feeling troubled when I cause another damage in the forest. My breath hitches as I walk backward to stare at the damages, causing my back to hit a tree. I got startled, and instincts kicked in. I claw at the trunk, sending splinters everywhere
I am filled with rage to the point that my mind is clouded. I am not sure what I am here for, but I want to wreck everything. Strong emotions are driving me to howl loudly. It was a loud howl that could even rival the howl of an alpha. The strong waves from my howl shook the cave and making my ears ring. A movement draws me to the closest target in front of me. He is a bigger looking lycan. I believe that he is the current Alpha of the pack—I forgot his name. Just looking at him is somehow igniting a strong fire of rage in my chest. I can’t remember what he did or what I am doing here. There’s one thing in my mind that was clear, though. It is to get rid of that lycan. I want to see him bleed. I want to see him in pain. A ferocious growl escapes my lips, and I find myself moving towards him. My legs feel heavy. I think I am moving slower than I originally do, but the strength that I carry feels like it is more than doubled. I wildly swing a claw at the lycan before me. The opposin
My ears were ringing when everyone was rendered speechless at my declaration in challenging his position. ‘Belle, what is this about?’ I can understand where Ajax’s confusion is. We talked about me taking over the pack before, and we deemed that it wouldn’t be wise if I am not fully committed to the role. ‘Don’t worry.’ I reassure him. ‘My intention for the challenge isn’t halfhearted.’ I briefly meet Ajax’s gaze, hoping my gaze can convince him of my conviction. As much as I hate the alpha, this is still my home. This is where I grew up. And although I didn’t have the best childhood, it doesn’t mean that I didn’t grow up with love. Not all Lycans rolled their eyes on us or made fun of us. Not all humans and werewolves are bad, just like not all lycans are. If that were true, I would have grown up to become rotten since my dad is a lycan. It’s just a matter of how the leader leads their colony. Ajax steps back. A proud smile seemed to creep on his wolfish feature. ‘You got th
Alpha Lupert gazes down upon me with a steady gaze. Even from where I am, I can feel the brewing hatred from him in his aura. I grew scared at first, but the fear soon subsided when the burning rage ate away all other fleeting emotions I had. If anyone should be angry, it should be me. The Lycan I am facing is the root cause of all of my hardships. He took away my family, my life, and now, he took Holly. “You gained a look in your eye while staying with the humans.” He comments. He was almost growling and chewing out the words while talking in his lycan form. He then snorted. “Though it doesn’t seem to stop you from being a foolish coward. I can’t believe that it takes us to take a human girl for you to show yourself instead of hiding behind human walls.” ‘I wasn’t hiding.’ Unlike the lycans, I cannot speak with my mouth when I am in wolf form. ‘I was contemplating something.’ “Care to share what a traitor like you is thinking about after murdering my son?” He is going to regre