Targeted
1386 Words
Vekra.
My mother is dead, my father is a traitor. I’m stuck in a nightmare that only gets worse.
“As for the rest of the Olive pack,” the leader of the Sentinels continues like he didn’t just murder my mother.
“By the law, the entire olive pack has been outlawed. You are no longer under the protection of The Agreement.”
No... if I thought it couldn’t get any worse, I was so wrong. It’s not enough that the Luna was killed, they are ensuring that my people will die one by one until there’s no one left. My hands curl into claws and I dig them into the ground. I will kill him, the leader of the Sentinels, even if it is the last thing I do. A sob diverts my attention and I see my pack members’ faces. I see the children on their knees around me, as everyone slowly realises the desolation in our situation. We’ve lost our Alpha and Luna, what we need now is a miracle. I don’t know where I find the strength to stand and fall at his knees.
“Please. Pardon us this once.” I beg. I look into the eyes of my mother’s killer and I beg.
“Just this once, have mercy on us. Please, our pack is going to go rogue.” I grab the ends of his pants and he kicks me up.
“Vekra!” Avril rushes forward and helps me back up and my side flares up with pain.
“Your sentence is effective immediately.” He says with finality.
I feel it, almost like a sword pierced my heart and spilled my life’s blood on the ground. I clutch my chest as my pack members scream and writhe on the ground, clawing at their chest. Our bond to the rest of the werewolf community has been severed. We are all as good as rogue, dead. I fall on my ass and stare at the floor in shock, going numb.
The Sentinels move around, setting our roofs on fire, bent on destroying us to the last and I can do nothing. Protect my mother, my father said but I failed. I failed in protecting both my mother and the rest of the pack, while he created the mess we’re in. How could he? My father would never in a million years murder the male he respects the most.
“Vekra.” A hand shakes me, the feeling marginally annoying. I ignore it, I have nothing more to give, not a single drop.
“Vekra.” Avril hisses and shakes me again “Get a grip on yourself.”
“Why?” I ask him, not even looking up. “It’s all over. We’re all going to die.”
He shakes me again.
“Listen to yourself, will you? Are you giving up so soon? That is not the female I know.”
It doesn’t matter. I’m sick of people having bigger ideals of me than I truly am.
He grips my face and raises it up, forcing me to look at him.
“Look at our pack, Vekra, your pack. These people need you now more than any other time.”
Tears sting my eyes again and I avoid where my mother’s pieces lie. The Sentinels are gone. Olive pack members shiver together on the floor, overwhelmed with the death they have witnessed today. Around us, our roofs catch fire and crackle.
“They are broken.” Avril whispers. ”You must help them, Vekra, it is your duty.”
I wipe my eyes and get to my feet. He is right, my father caused this, it’s my responsibility to fix it.
“Listen up, males and females of Olive pack.”
Slowly, everyone’s attention comes to me. “On behalf of my father, I apologise. I know how you feel, the losses today are overwhelming and we will not recover from this for a while. Now, we need each other. Now, we need to work together to survive this. Our roofs are burning down around us, we must start with putting them off.”
“We are going to go rogue.” A woman cries. “Who cares about the damn houses when our children will go rogue and be hunted down like cattle?”
Wails rip through the air and the chaos resumes. The bond holding us together as a pack is no more, and fights break out amongst us, some going so far as to throw punches at each other. The noise is deafening.
“Stop!!!” I scream, getting through to most of them who reluctantly separate. In front of me, my pack is going to hell.
“Please! We are all we’ve got now, we have to stick together, not fight each other. The Alpha promised me he would come back. I’m sure this is just a huge misunderstanding and when he does, he will clear everything up. We just have to survive until he does.”
“How dare you stand there and feed us lies?” Xale, one of the pack members steps forward with a sneer on his lips. “Your Father is the one who put us in this mess in the first place.”
His words hit a sore spot and I swallow hard.
“Which is why I’m trying to make this right.” I say. “If we don’t put out these fires now, we’ll have no homes to sleep in.
He laughs humourlessly and crosses the distance to me, shoving me hard and making me stumble backwards.
“I don’t take orders from a toothless mutt like you, bitch.”
Avril slides between us and glares at him.
“Back off.”
“Why are you protecting her? Can you not see what she and her family have done to us?” He says, advancing.
“I said, back off!” Avril pushes him back and Xale snarls. He turns to the pack.
“I have an even better idea. Why don’t we kill the traitor’s daughter and wipe out the cursed blood entirely? She should die with the Luna to make it fair.”
“Yes!” The pack yells back. I stagger back, shocked.
“The traitor’s blood must be spilled!” They scream.
“Kill the little traitor!” Another screams.
I watch in horror as the pack takes up the chant, baying for my blood.
“What the f**k is wrong with you? Have you not seen enough bloodshed in one day?” Avril snarls, furious.
They ignore him and bay for my blood, their eyes fixed on me. Familiar faces are contorted with bloodlust for me and I shiver and take a step back. I don’t recognise any of them.
“Stop. What do you think killing me is going to achieve? I ask.
“Die, you little traitor!” Xale screams and advances on me. Avril moves to stop him but he’s not the only one. My pack members are also advancing on me and he can’t stop everyone. This can’t be happening.
Alec runs forward and steps in front of the advancing crowd, holding her arms out.
“You will get to her over my dead body.” She snarls. Marina joins her a moment later, arms out. Soya, Alec’s mother joins her, along with her father, and Marina’s parents.
“If you want to kill her, you’ll have to get through us first.” Soya snarls.
Inan, the pack omega steps forward and joins them.
“There has been enough bloodshed for one day.” She says quietly.
A few more people join them, holding out their arms to block me from the surging crowd.
“Why the f**k would you protect her?!” Xale yells, eyes red with bloodlust.
“Because she is a member of the pack.” Inan says. “And the day we turn on ourselves is the day we all perish.”
“What pack?” Xale scoffs. “We are all as good as dead.” He says and spits.
But he does back down, sending me one more look promising death before melting back. The disgruntled pack disperses, and I release a shaky breath and collapse to the ground.
- Writer
