Battle Of Alphas

CHAPTER TWO

C R I M S O N V I L L E

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D A N A'S P O V

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Walking amongst Walkers has been the only thing I've found myself doing ever since I returned to the camp and was told Daniel hasn't returned since he left the camp last.

It is dangerous for me, just like it is for any other wolf out there, but I can't leave my brother alone out here. Daniel is the only family I have left in this world, and he is my responsibility as my kid brother. I can't remain in the camp in the name of trying to keep myself safe and leave my brother bleeding out where our enemies rule.

He is more of a lone wolf now, ever since he got bit by the Tiger Nathaniel Law. He believes he is no longer of use to the pack and he needs to go away, since his wound isn't healing. He is not too wrong by that assumption though, as no one in the pack cares about his where about ever since he got bit by Nathaniel, but that is the thing with family, I don't need him to be strong for me; I need him as a brother.

We all remain in the wilderness now, as this town is no longer safe for our kind. Daniel, on the other hand, has provided me with no other option but to leave the camp in the wilderness for just a few days to go in search of him. He is probably somewhere bleeding out, refusing to come back to the camp, and it is dangerous for him now more than ever to be here, out in the open at this time, that he is most vulnerable.

Nathaniel Law: The King of the Tigers and Katerina Hall: The Queen of the Panthers, both working with a code known as the CREED, has set themselves high up above the wolves, especially my pack which is the only surviving pack in this town.

Katerina, being Nathaniel's fiancee was never really into working by the CREED, she and her kind, the Panthers, were more of a neutral party, minding their businesses, having nothing to do with the wolves, but that was about 2-years ago, when she hadn't fallen in love with Nathaniel Law who has been obsessed with the code. Katerina and Nathaniel, together, are the only reason we can no longer walk freely amongst Purebloods. They have become our greatest fear.

I walk amongst these people and I try my best to keep my wolf's senses active inasmuch as I try to blend in amongst these purebloods in order not to attract negative attention of a Tiger or panther who may be close. My wolf's senses are my third eye, shutting them out to fit into the crowd of Pure blooded humans just so I protect myself from being detected by a cat, means I also don't get to know when I'm about to bump into one.

I drift from the crowd in the noisy street as I emerge into a corner where I can clearly see I'm the only one walking through the narrow walkway.

"Where could Daniel be?" I mumble as I continue to take the straight path. It gets narrower as I approach the end of the walkway, which leads to a different district.

I turn quickly as I suddenly hear footsteps behind me. My pupils light up blue as I catch the two different scents at once. Two Tigers.

The entire Tigers are United with the entire Panthers on this, to live by the code and to keep the CREED. This is how we are hunted, they are everywhere. Once a wolf comes out in the open from its hiding place, it takes just a few moments for the cats to become aware of its location. Their senses are way above ours and they can detect us from longer distances, unlike ours, which only detects them when they are at a reasonably close distance.

The scent keeps following me even as I can't see anyone yet. I know they are watching, just waiting for the right time to strike.

My heart beat quickens as I increase the pace on which I'm walking. I see a sidewalk flooding with purebloods ahead of me and I run into it as quickly as I can. At this very moment, I feel their scents drifting from me.

That is the only way Walkers can help us in the war between cats and dogs. Even though they are completely clueless about the supernatural aspect of this town, neither Tigers nor Panthers can come out openly to establish anything as the authority and everyone with a pure blood does not know about the paranormal.

I keep walking until I no longer feel their eyes on me, and their presence is completely not spotted by my senses. I take a deep breath as I proceed in looking for Daniel.

I spot a man with my amplified sight, sipping coffee out of a mug through the glass window of his office, and a thought springs up in my mind.

"Coffee," I whisper underneath my breath as I remember that Daniel would give up anything for coffee. If he is not at the camp, he is definitely somewhere with a cup of coffee in front of him.

I pause and I look around me. I think of the coffee shops I know of, I've lived in this town ever since I was just a kid, so has Daniel. I'm not really a coffee person, but I know just a few places. I make count of all the coffee shop I know of in this town and I discover there are just three of them.

Green's coffee, Coffee-Me, and Drinkers. I use my wolf senses to make rough calculations of the distances and I come up with the fact that Green's coffee shop is the nearest.

I can only hope he is there, so I can stop parading the street knowing fully well that I'm exposing myself to danger.

I exhaust not more than 35 minutes in locating Green's coffee shop, and after a moment of reading the huge sign at the top, I walk up to the glass door and place my hands on it.

I push open gently and it is full of Walkers. I need not to waste my time walking in the moment I fail to perceive the scent of a wolf. If there's no wolf here, it means Daniel can't be here, and apart from that, even if there's a wolf in here, I wouldn't even need to go in before knowing whether or not it is Daniel. I know my brother's scent more than anybody else.

I turn back quickly the moment the next coffee shop crosses my mind. Coffee-Me is the closest to here, and even though it is the least place, I expect Daniel to be, I can't exempt any of these places. Daniel hates to sit where there are just too many people, and Coffee-Me is the largest of the three and for this, it creates room for more customers.

My phone rings as I'm just about to turn away from Green's, and I slide my hand gently into my leather pants’ back pocket, where I always keep my phone. I pick up the phone and I hold it close to my left ear.

“Dana, have you had any luck finding Daniel?” Marcus says to me.

“No, I'm still out here. I haven't seen a trace of him, and I haven't caught his scent in all the places I've been. It is just like he isn't even in Crimson Ville anymore,” Marcus says.

He is actually the only one in the pack who, along with me, cares about Daniel's where about.

“Do you think it is possible that he has gone that far?” He asks and I sigh as I proceed in walking forward. I just feel like time is running out on me, even as I have no idea what it is I should be doing or where I should be at the moment.

“I don't, Marcus. I can only hope he is somewhere. I really hope he is still somewhere in Crimson Ville,” I say to him softly.

“He is all I've got Marcus. I really hope to find him soon,” I say to him.

“You have me, and you know I'll always be there for you, right? Not just for you, but for Daniel as well,” Marcus says, and I close my eyes and exhale in relief.

“I love you,” he says to me.

“I love you too,” I say to him.

“Sweetheart, be safe!” He says just before I cut the call. I slide my phone back into my pocket the moment I arrive at a distance from where I can clearly see Coffee-Me. I move towards my left to take cover by the wall beside me, which belongs to a building that is directly opposite Coffee-Me.

I let my senses go hyper as I try to perceive their scents. There are two of them. Both wearing a white sleeve, a red tie and a pressed black suit.

“Nathaniel,” I whisper to myself as I perceive the scent of the two Tigers standing by the door. I can't really see through the glass door and have a clear view of what is happening inside. It's kinda dark to me, and for that I know a Tiger must be inside, whom I suspect to be Nathaniel.

What amazes me is why I've stood here for the past 10 minutes and haven't seen any customer leaving or going in. I think of it and I wonder why there's a closed sign up at this hour of the day.

Something is wrong, something is definitely wrong.

I light up my pupils by clenching my eyelid muscles and releasing them again. This amplifies my sight and helps me see through the glass door from the point I'm standing.

“Daniel!” I exclaim as I vividly see him being put through a table by Nathaniel Law.

I cover my mouth and my pupil leaves me no sight of what is happening at this moment after what I just saw.

I would be wasted in a matter of seconds if I try to walk up to that door. The Tigers outside will rip me apart even before I get anywhere close to that door.

I look around to see the other options I have and my mind drifts back to the fact that Tigers get temporarily blind by artificial light sources, and that is why there must have toyed with the power source.

I go around the block, and I take a turn around the entire street. I need to approach the back of the building and I need to access it without getting seen by the Tigers. The only way I can do this is to find another route through the next street that leads straight to Coffee-Me's balcony, where I know the light switch will definitely be.

I can only hope that Daniel will be able to last until then. I mean, one wolf is nothing compared to a tiger. Daniel, at this point, is an injured wolf, and it doubles Law's chances of getting him killed.

I look around me quickly and I see no one. I see that it is pretty quiet as most people who come here comes for coffee, and since Coffee-Me is closed, most people don't bother drifting towards this side of the street after seeing the closed sign from afar. The sign is large enough to be seen from across the road. I can't walk like a walker and reach there in time to Save Daniel. I need amplification. I need to move fast.

I light up my pupils again, and I feel my claws lengthen. Tense furs sprout all over my chin abruptly, and my facial muscles contract the moment my fangs protrude. I claw at the wall beside me and I climb onto the roof just by making a pull at it.

I hop from roof to roof and climb over buildings as fast as I can and at the same time avoiding been seen by Walkers and been spotted by the cats.

I move across the entire street to the neighbouring street by climbing and crawling. And the moment I arrive where I begin to see walkers, I shift back into my human form and I walk like every Walker does.

I succeed in arriving at the balcony and I find my way into a room behind it where I could see clearly the power source. The switch had been turned off. I waste no time pushing it back up. The moment light fills the balcony, I know it must have filled the coffee shop as well.

I kick open the back door that leads into the coffee shop the moment I hear Nathaniel scream in pain. I barge into the room and I see him lingering around like a blind man, and the sledge hammer in his hand falls to the ground. I see Daniel on the floor recovering from the last hit.

“Dana!” Daniel calls to me and cast me the sledge hammer Nathaniel wanted to use on him.

I catch it with both hands and I throw myself into the air, step on the table before me to give me a lift, and I crash the hammer on Nathaniel's left shoulder. He roars in pain, as I can feel his collar bone crumble underneath my hammer. Even if he's going to heal, it is going to take him nothing less than 24 hours.

Just as he wanders and staggers like a blind man in pain, Daniel gets up just at the right time and gives Nathaniel a kick to the chest, and it drives Nathaniel through the glass door, leaving shattered glass all over the floor.

The two Tigers grab Nathaniel and pull him up quickly, helping him into the Car and driving off.

They know it will be a waste of time for them to remain here, as the light will completely render them powerless before us if they ever try to come back in.

“Dana!” Daniel says, as he walks up to me and wraps his arms around me. I embrace him tightly.