1. The Alpha I Hate
Luna's POV
It is very difficult to process. Everything occurs in a flash. I can not even begin to imagine or comprehend how it all began, but I do recall that the first thing my brain registers is a thick dark cloud of smoke evaporating throughout the hut, making it difficult for me to breathe and catch my breath.
As I lay in bed, the stifling scent causes me to jerk up and cough incessantly, disturbing the rest of the slaves who are silently attempting to get a night's rest in the hut.
Everyone glances around, and I notice the dense black smoke covering the air.
Fear pervades my organs.
Something does not sit right. Why does it feel like something is burning intensely somewhere? I wonder to myself.
We slaves glance at each other with perplexity in our eyes as we eventually try to get to our feet, experiencing a rush of adrenaline in our bodies.
A piercing shout from outside the hut gets our attention, causing us to become alert as we gaze at each other, wondering what the hell is going on.
We soon hear stomping feet, as well as growls and groans coming from various areas outside the hut.
"Somebody help! It is an invasion!" We hear the voice of a familiar slave cry, forcing us to look at ourselves with horror on our faces.
Fear consumes our souls.
We are afraid beyond comprehension.
I and the other slaves in this hut are perplexed, unsure if we should go or stay. However, I am certain that if there is an invasion, it will not be safe here.
"We have to leave," I say as I move to grab my very small possessions, but one of them grabs my hand.
I look up and stare at the stunning pair of ruby eyes.
"It is not safe outside."
"Neither is it secure inside here; we do not have a chance or a choice; let us leave; we do not have time."
All of them appear hesitant, and I wonder what makes them believe that it is still secure within here.
I am about to make a motion when there is a very loud, sharp, busting sound, and we all turn immediately to see that the hut's door has been broken open.
Goddess, please aid us!
We open our eyes, horrified, to see a giant, tall-appearing man whom I have never seen before standing directly at the hut's door, looking as brutally terrible as ever in his half-wolf, half-human shape. His eyes are flashing blood-red, making us all shudder. His aura causes chills throughout the room, making it impossible for us to breathe.
We are done. I think to myself.
I gesture to the back of the hut. "Quick! "The back door!" I scream, and we all stumble swiftly, with just one thing in mind: flee and escape.
I must admit that I have never experienced such fear in my life. The person we are attempting to flee from is an extreme representation of the devil himself.
We know that some werewolf warriors who are particularly skilled at shapeshifting can morph into half versions of themselves, allowing them to become half-human and half-werewolf without fully transforming into their full werewolf form.
The sight of it can be horrifying at times, as it causes them to become incredibly vicious and intelligent in both their werewolf and human forms.
We are briskly making our way towards the hut's back entrance, terrified, when the door suddenly bursts open, revealing another terrible wolf warrior standing right in front of us, and he looks exactly like his other friend. They are both carrying their half-werewolf, half-human forms.
Terror like never before grips my bones as I glance between the hut's entrances, my breath hitching.
We are all stuck and have no possibility of escaping. We are all trembling as we move towards the center, approximately five or six of us.
"What the hell should we do?" I hear one of my companions say in a quivering voice as we both look at the two entrances, the werewolf warriors walking closer and closer to us, looking as dominant and terrified as ever.
Oh, we are so messed up beyond belief. What the hell are we going to do about it? Think, Luna, think. I am thinking to myself, and my mind is racing about in different parts of my head, expressing bewilderment.
I honestly do not know what to do. I mean, what should I do? It is not like I have superhuman abilities that can get us out of here in the blink of an eye.
I am not some sort of miracle goddess.
Oh, Goddess, we need you!!!
We are standing between two freaking, terrible, powerful werewolf warriors who, based on the embroidery on their garments, are not from our pack.
This is a legitimate attack. This is an invasion. How come we had not seen this from the beginning?
Oh, goddess, we need your help right now. This problem is completely beyond our capabilities.
It is not like we are even part of this pack. We are slaves taken from our original packs to serve the alpha and royals of the current pack where we reside.
The Blood Moon Howlers' Pack. A nasty, wicked pack, with an alpha that I despise badly.
Are we simply going to die and end our lives in an unknown land where we do not truly belong? Anyone who knows us will be unable to find our bodies. Nobody will be able to know we exist. People who have known us will simply pronounce us non-existent because no one will hear of us for centuries, if not forever.
No. I shake my head briskly. This is not the way things are intended to be.
We are still frightened, thinking of methods to escape our current situation, when we hear a violent growl emanating from a piece of the back door.
We see the werewolf warrior tumbling backward as a massive werewolf with brown fur rushes at him, sending him tumbling into another part beyond the hut and clearing the way for us.
Well, it appears that our werewolf warriors have already responded to the signal and are fighting back.
We watch and study as the massive werewolf transforms into his human form before turning to face us, his eyes shining bright green.
"Run! Now!" He shouts aloud, still pushing the person to the ground as we rush out of the hut.
Thank you, Goddess!
I look back to see the enemy werewolf, who had been standing at the other front entrance, charging at us in all his rage, surrounded by supremely intense black energy I had never felt before.
Anger. That is what I can sense emanating from him as we all rush out of the hut, screaming our lungs out in fear.
"Not today, punk!"
The werewolf fighter who had come to our assistance rose from his sitting position and leaped at the guy who was storming at us, quickly transforming into his wolf form in mid-air before hitting him and sending him crashing backward.
Wow!!
The rest of the combat scenario did not matter because we were already out of the hut, but the scene in front of us was complete pandemonium and disaster.
Everywhere is in disarray, and I do not even know where to turn, where to look, or how to proceed. My other slave companions are equally perplexed as we look about to see ruin, destruction, and dread everywhere.
Everywhere seems like a scene from a violent, gory conflict. Werewolves and warriors are battling in separate regions, and many huts have already caught fire, sending thick dark smoke into the clouds.
I can hear my harsh breathing clearly in my ears. I blink rapidly, my limbs trembling as we all huddle in bewilderment, unsure where to go.
"What are we going to do?" I can hear Emerald's voice, one of my fellow slave friends says, her spine shivering visibly. The same can be said about every one of us standing together.
It appears that no matter where we travel, we will eventually meet our end. There is no denying that we feel confined.
We hear a loud howl and turn to our left to see an enemy werewolf in thick dark brown fur, looking as terrifying as ever, like a demon from the abyss leaping and coming at us with a fury that tells us the enemy is ready to kill our lives for good.
Oh dear.
Emerald yells as we all rapidly leave our positions and split in different directions, running for our lives.
We are all by ourselves now.
I am puzzled and do not know where to go. I can only hear the fearful voice in my head shouting, "Run, run, flee anywhere!!"
I start running towards a certain stone route that appears to be free when the body of a massive werewolf crashes in front of me with a thud that causes the ground to tremble.
Goddess!!
I take a step back, gasping in terror and sweating profusely as the werewolf rolls on the ground and suddenly rises with a start, coming face to face with me, its blood-yellowish red eyes gazing at me with infernal intensity.
Oh, my days!!!
The wolf is approximately a few feet higher than me, and the sight of it causes me to slump backward and lose my footing.
I feel little in front of this massive beast.
My eyes are wide open as I crawl backward against the sand, desperate to evade the calamity that is about to engulf me.
The wolf growls and howls into the darkness as it jumps at me, its claws ready to tear me apart.
Oh, no.
I scream in panic and immediately muster the energy to rise on my feet and begin running, hearing the werewolf's hard stomping foot after me and yelping and growling enormously.
My body is trembling and quaking constantly.
Another massive, brutal-looking wolf appears out of nowhere and collides with me, knocking me to the ground as it wraps its strong paws around me, holding me close to itself, and I know I am doomed.
Shit!!
It rolls against the ground, still holding my body, until coming to a halt and standing, releasing me.
Damn it all.
I am stuck between its massive-looking paws as it looks down at me and roars into my ears, drips of blood pouring from its hideous fangs down to my cheeks.
Being afraid is an understatement compared to how I feel right now. My life is flashing before my eyes, about to slip away in a matter of seconds.
The big werewolf above me had sharp, scary fangs that could easily break my arm in two with just one bite.
I am screaming and attempting to free myself when two more massive vicious wolves with identical colors to the one above me eventually appear and surround it, all of them staring at me with determined devil-like anger that warns me that this?? This marks the end.
I am suddenly encircled by three scary, hungry-looking wolves staring at me, each with a separate, horrible, dark energy growing around them.
I am screwed.
No. The term "screwed" is an understatement.
I am condemned.
"Somebody, help!" I start screaming with shaking nerves as they close in on me.
Why me? This is not meant to be my fate.
I do not believe another pack is orchestrating this invasion's approach. This appears to be the handiwork and aftermath of a decision made by rogue werewolves. An organized pack, led by an alpha, cannot simply storm into the slave portion of a pack and start maiming and killing individuals. Only rogue werewolves are capable of engaging in this activity.
The largest of the three werewolves around me grabs my legs with its muscular paws and proceeds to pull me towards it while a very loud howl reverberates around us, causing the earth to quiver. All of the trees and huts nearby are vibrating violently as if a great earthquake is about to occur.
The three werewolves around me are startled, and when they look up, all I see is a very quick, sharp blur, like the movement of wind, as the werewolf holding my leg is sent stumbling backward, hitting his back against a nearby tree, sending a sharp branch striking through its body.
It howls in anguish, and I can see it will be destabilized for a long time.
The other two werewolves appear bewildered, and before I know it, they have taken off from me, looking around as if perplexed by what is going on.
Perhaps the largest was their leader. Or was it?
Realizing that I am no longer in danger, I turn my head ahead of me, determined to get up, when I come face to face with a towering, well-built man as massive as the most skilfully trained, fearsome warrior I have ever seen. His muscles are sculpted, carved, and robust, and his fist is that of someone who has endured immense labor and hard struggle to get as strong and savage as he is now.
His face is completely different from the rest of his physique. Well-defined and pointy chin structures, together with a long pointed nose, give his soft-looking perfect lips the appearance of someone who has descended from heaven.
I can not dispute that he is as gorgeous as heck, even in war.
His wonderful, stunning, brilliant blood-red eyes pierced deep into my soul as he looked at me with an intensity as if trying to scrutinize me and find out what was going on within me.
Damn it.
Recognition finally dawns on me, and I find myself gripping hard against my fists, unable to control my rage. I have never been able to keep it under control.
A massive growl rings behind him, and I spy a strange-looking enemy werewolf charging at him from behind.
He did not even turn back to face the impending attack. With a single wave of his left palm, the werewolf behind him is sent spinning into the air and crashes into a nearby rock a few meters away, fracturing and breaking its backbone with a yelp.
He is good. That insidious voice from the depths of my psyche whispers.
His entire focus and attention is on me as he squats down to my level, wearing a peculiar smile on his lovely face.
He spreads his muscular, large-looking arms.
"Come with me," he says softly and calmly, and I grasp his hand without hesitation, moved by my intense anxiety and longing for safety.
Goddess knows that if not for the frightening battle and scenario around me, my next thought would have been to punch him in the face.
Because I know him quite well. He is the one who brought me to my current circumstances. He was the one who stole me and separated me from my original pack. He ended my parents' lives and brought me into his world, his pack. He is responsible for putting me in the position of being a slave in a pack about which I know nothing.
He is the only alpha I despise and would gladly kill if given the opportunity.