Untamed

P R O L O G U E

Aurora

I couldn't help but sigh as I ran a hand through my shoulder length hair. There was this tenseness in the air, that was undoubtedly being emitted from all the Alphas who were gathered around the small makeshift stage I was sitting on-along with various other Pack Members.

The hairs on the back of my neck were standing upright in a mixture of annoyance and awareness as the Alphas stopped every so often to look at us. I disliked them. I disliked them with a passion.

They were all power hungry men who only cared about themselves and what was best for their Packs. Because Goddess above forbid it if their Packs were weak. My dislike seemed to be fueled by the fact that our Alpha was selling-yes, you read that correctly-us to other Alphas. It only proved my point.

Alphas couldn't stand having weak Packs. And mine was weak and to top it off, we were in a lot of financial debt. The Alpha had made the decision that we would be better off going to other Packs. Along with that conclusion came the decision to auction us off like antiques in order to raise the funds needed to pay all the debts that had been made.

The Alpha had given me strict orders to make sure that I was covered from head to toe, as it would leave the Alphas in the dark about my position in the Pack. The markings that covered my arms were meant to be a ‘surprise,’ hence the reason I was wearing a jacket, despite the rather suffocating heat.

The makeshift stage wasn't exactly small. There were stools in front of it and on top of it where various members of my Pack were seated. Those of us who had higher ranks in the Pack were sitting or standing on a higher platform behind the stage. I had heard various people voice their concerns on whether or not the stage would be able to support all of us.

The worst part of all this was that you could hear what everyone was saying. If they thought you were weak, they would say so. If they believed you would breed strong pups, they said so. The Alphas and Betas were ruthless in their discussions on who to bet on and who to leave.

I felt my head snap to the side as our Alpha cleared his throat into the microphone, the gravelly sound causing a chill to run down my spine.

“I would like to welcome all Alphas and Betas who have traveled from various places around the country and some even around the world. It is an honor to have you all here today and I would like to thank you for your much needed help during this dark time. Let the bidding commence!”

There was this odd feeling in my chest as I listened to the numbers the Alpha rattled off. He was auctioning off his Omegas first, knowing that they would go the fastest.

Our Pack wasn't one of the larger ones. We had about 237 Pack Members, including newborns and Elders. I was slightly thankful for the fact that we were only to stand if we were being auctioned, since I could tell that this was going to be a rather long affair.

The air seemed as if it was trying to suffocate us. It was a lot worse now that the Alphas were basically competing with one another. I seemed to loose track of time as all that was heard was the constant rattling off of numbers. When I became aware of the empty chairs around me, all of the Omegas were gone and so were most of the Deltas.

I couldn't help but frown as someone a few seats away from me was auctioned off and I became aware of the blood pumping loudly in my veins. I knew that it was undoubtedly because of the fact that I would be challenging one of the Alphas or Betas who now stood before me.

I was becoming aware of a lot of things. Things like the slowly setting sun, the darkening sky, along with the smell of rain in the air. Through the suffocating thickness of the Alphas auras, I became aware of a faint, yet distinct smell in the air. My nose twitched as I tried to compare the scent to something, yet there was nothing. The smell seemed to be putting my wolf on edge and I couldn't help but frown as I felt her restlessness.

Like many other people, my wolf was rather calm and rational. She didn't command control like many others I have heard of, but I believe that is to be blamed on the fact that she's a white wolf-hence the reason it was believed that I was so special.

It was no surprise that our Alpha believed that I would be the talk of the century-a white wolf without Royal Blood. And the fact that I had warrior markings would only make me so much of a better asset to any Pack with a power hungry Alpha.

“This might come as somewhat of a shock to many of you, but it is now time to auction off our Pack Warrior. I know from experience that no Pack welcomes a Pack Warrior without knowing what he or she is capable of, which is why we have a small demonstration to display Auroras skill. We'll need a volunteer?”

I let my eyes wonder across the crowd gathered before me and a hushed silence settled as I stood up and started making my way to the center of the stage. It came as no surprise when someone came walking forward and I tilted my head as I took a moment to breath in his scent. He was a Beta. I could tell that much.

As we had practiced, the remaining Pack Members slipped off the stage and settled themselves in the crowd. I walked to the edge of the stage, completely aware of everyone’s eyes on me as I kicked off my shoes.

The silence around us was starting to agitate me and I made quick work of pulling my hoodie over my head and throwing it on top of my shoes. I glanced up and noticed the way most of the Alphas tensed up as their eyes ran down my arms.

I pulled my hair into a pony tail and then turned towards the Beta who was standing on the other side of the stage. He was tall-something that was common among higher ranked males. There was a tattoo of Roman Numerals on this left arm and I realized they must be a date of some sort.

“Since there is not much time left before it is too dark to continue, there will be a fight in human form and a shifted fight. All battle rules apply.”

I watched as the Beta pulled off his shirt and carelessly threw it to the side of the stage. I looked down at my grey sweatpants and white socks and momentarily wondered whether or not this was suitable battle attire. I wore a white tank top and I knew that I didn't look like I could so much damage.

“We welcome Beta Derek Pierce from the Blackthorn Pack and Warrior Aurora Stone from the Blue Blood Pack. May the best fighter win.”

I let out a started squeak as the Beta leaped towards me as soon as the Alpha had finished his sentence. My heart raced wildly as I stared at the Beta who I had narrowly sidestepped. Was that even allowed? No one said we could fight.

He turned back to me, clearly surprised that his attack hadn't been successful, and I took a few steps back as I tried to put some distance between myself and him. I kept my eye on his movements, knowing that I would have to estimate his next attack. His left leg kept twitching in a manner that suggested he was undecided on whether or not to attack again or wait for my attack.

Deciding to humor myself, I jumped forward slightly and watched as he jumped backwards, clearly ready for any attack from my part. I watched as a frown covered his features as he realized what I had just done.

I bent down and started pulling up my socks, feeling the corners of my lips tug upwards as I heard the thud of his footsteps nearing.

He grabbed a hold of my neck-something that I had expected-and swung me over his back. I grabbed a hold of his wrist, and as he let go of me, I swung myself around and wrapped my legs around him from behind.

I didn't make much of the rather nasty comments that were being made by the Alphas and wrapped my arm around his neck, starting to suffocate him. I let out a rather loud groan as he jabbed me in my stomach with his elbow, but I refused to loosen my hold.

“Now, Aurora, you don’t want him to pass out before your shifted fight.”

I let out a sigh as I let go and dropped to my feet, only to have them kicked out from beneath me rather viciously. I let out a groan as my head banged against the floor and I felt the Betas hand wrap around my foot.

I felt my heartbeat start to accelerate as I felt his claws digging into the skin along my ankle. I felt a few splinters bite into my skin as he dragged me towards him. Clenching my jaw against the wave of dizziness threatening to wrap itself around me, and angrily pushed myself into a sitting position.

I opened my eyes and felt the corners of my lips tug into a sly smirk as I made eye contact with the Betas wide brown eyes. The hushed silence that had settled around us reached my senses. I glanced down and saw that there was indeed blood running down my fingertips from where they were hooked into his jugular. One wrong move and he was dead.

“I hate to admit that I'm not surprised that Aurora won this round. And I have faith that she'll win the next one too.”

A sudden flash of guilt shot through me and I reached up with my other hand to steady the Betas neck as I removed my claws. I watched as he moved to the opposite side of the stage and I pushed myself upright as the familiar snapping sound filled the air.

I watched as he shook out his sandy colored fur and then turn towards me expectantly. I turned towards my Alpha and he nodded towards me before he stepped in between us and let his eyes wonder around the crowd formed before the stage.

“This might be a rather unnecessary announcement, but Aurora is a rather… unique wolf. It would make the whole ordeal a lot better if you were all to take a few steps away and remain where you are.”

I turned back, and as we had practiced, William-a Pack Member-was standing a slight distance away. I watched as our Alpha made his way off of the stage and I turned to the crowd, feeling their eyes burn holes into my skin.

I turned towards William and ran, doing my best to put my trust in the rather weak Pack Member. I felt my leg go numb as I landed on his outstretched hands and he flipped me back towards the stage. I let out a menacing growl as I shifted in mid air, landing on the stage on all fours.

The crowd seemed to growl in unison and I turned my head towards the Beta, feeling his already damaged confidence falter. There was no doubt in my mind that he had started doubting himself, but despite this, he charged towards me.

I sat down and watched as he bounced against a seemingly invisible wall. He let out a strange wolf-like yelp and I laid down on my front paws and let out an amused whine as he got back up. I sat back upright as he steadied himself and let out a growl that snapped me out of my revere.

It became rather obvious that he didn't like the fact that I was making a fool of him in front of almost every influential werewolf in the country.

I watched as he took rather slow steps towards me, clearly being careful of any more invisible traps that I had. He was a few steps away from me when I leaped and clamped my jaws around his neck.

He started withering around and I clamped down harder on his neck. I resisted the urge to gag as the metallic taste of blood flooded my mouth. I let out a warning growl, knowing that he was endangering his own life by struggling.

I applied some more pressure and then felt his neck muscles tighten as he tilted his neck to the side, submitting to me. I sat down, my tail wagging, and watched as he sat down too, whimpering slightly as he waited for his wolf to heal him.

The Beta started walking off of the stage and I playfully nudged against him, hoping that we wouldn’t have any hard feelings between us. He turned to me and gave me a playful nudge himself, before walking off the stage.

The crowd remained silent as our Alpha made his way back into the stage and then took a few moments to run his hands through my fur.

“I take it that you'll all agree that starting the bidding at $500,000 will be pretty reasonable.”