Alpha Val: His Secret Babies

The Descent

"The Skyhowlers?" The name itself was a chilling whisper among the human captives, a constant dread. They were the reigning warrior pack, a relentless force that swept through the land, destroying camps and packs, leaving fewer and fewer humans in their wake.

Issa's eyes widened, and the cool morning air, already biting, now felt like ice against her skin. Her chapped lips trembled slightly at the information she was hearing.

Lena, her face streaked with tears that ran freely, choked out, "They are close, they…" She swallowed hard, her voice barely a whisper. "They are coming for us. They are coming for our children."

Grom stood there, his eyes now wide with a mix of shock and fear. His breathing came in rasps, a low growl rumbling deep in his chest.

"What do you mean, human? Get your facts right! Are you drunk?" He tried to hide the tension building within him, forcing a show of confidence as he repositioned himself, his brow furrowed in a frown. "You must be stupid! Now get up from there, you swine!"

A murmur rippled through the other pack members, their activities disrupted by Lena’s frantic outburst.

"Get back to work, all of you!" Grom's voice was sharp and commanding, cutting through the rising unease.

Issa remained frozen. She couldn't believe Lena would make such a scene without proper evidence, without something truly terrifying happening. Lena was still clutching her side, clearly out of breath.

As she finally released her hands from her ribs, Issa's eyes immediately caught a glimpse of red. Blood. That was blood. Another shiver, cold and sharp, ripped through her body. Lena wasn't lying after all; it was true, and she had clearly been attacked.

With a soft gasp, Lena collapsed to the ground, a crumpled heap.

Then, the distant sounds began. Voices, rising in terrified screams. Loud, guttural growls that echoed from the surrounding forest. The air around Issa seemed to tighten, growing heavy with the stench of pine, fear, and something else—a metallic, visceral smell. The smell of impending c*****e.

Issa didn't think. She didn't have the time to think. She just quickly reacted to her legs. Straight to her cabin she ran that way, not the time for deliberations.

As she drew closer to the space she had called home for years, she burst inside.

"Aries! Athena!" she cried, her voice desperate and gasping.

The children came closer, and they huddled together, wide-eyed and terrified, their small bodies were already trembling. Over the past five years, there was a space right under the bed that Issa had dug. Every spare moment, every secret ounce of energy she had, she used it to dig out a space beneath their flat bed. It was covered beneath the bed with some board. It was a crawlspace she had dug to be very big enough for them. She knew a day as such would come.

She ripped up the flat boards, revealing the dark, cool earth below.

"Get inside! Now!" she urged, pushing Aries gently, then Athena.

They scrambled down into the earth, silent and quick, they already were understanding the gravity of the moment. She pressed herself down, close to their small, trembling body, her hand covering Athena's mouth, ready to stiffen any sound. She leaned in, kissing Aries’s forehead which was now damp with sweat, and then the same gesture towards Athena. She was tasting the salt of her children's fear.

Her voice was barely a whisper.

"Not a sound. Not even breath. Do you understand?"

Their wide, terrified eyes met hers, and they nodded. She replaced the flatboard carefully, then she shoved their bed over it.

Nice. She thought to herself. They were safe now. Her children. Their lives were now hidden beneath the bed.

She stood, her own heart rapidly hammering against her ribs, the roar of the attack echoing from outside was undeniable.

Then her mind flashed back.

Lena.

A fresh wave of cold and sharp fear cut through her. Lena was still lying there probably dead or maybe not. Issa's legs moved even before she did, not toward safety, but toward the chaos, toward the front of the camp where the screams were thickest. She had to find Lena. Lena, whose rib had probably been broken and was bleeding from the side—she had to look for her and help her.

Every instinct in her screamed at her to flee, and to save herself, but Lena’s face, how pale it had looked with the tears which were streaming down them, flashed in her mind.

From a distance as she approached, she saw Lena still lying there, still and silent.

Just as she was running towards the direction her mind was headed, a shadow fell over her. It was so sudden and chilling. Before she could turn, a clawed hand, brutal and immense, snatched her from behind.

It clamped around her arm, not gently, but with crushing force, dragging her backward, away from her current position, dragging her back into the heart of the fight.

She screamed, a raw, brutal sound, kicking out of her throat. She was struggling against the unbreakable grip. The sounds of the battle intensified, becoming a deafening roar right in her ears.

As she fought, her head twisted backwards and a terrifying image flashed in her vision. It was something on—a mask. It wasn't a face, but something cold. A wolf. And behind it… blue blazing eyes, burning with a chilling, predatory light.

What? Blue eyes? Her mind questioned, hazy and blurred, but it was already too late to interpret what she had seen.