Blood-Stained Moon

BANG My foot makes contact with the door swinging it open wildly. My eyes slam shut when they look upon the dishevelled mess of a bed, my workmate/friend staring over a pair of opened legs hanging in the air. “JEEZ can you not spend one day in your bed alone. Get up we’re late for chores. Don’t make me come over there and drag you out”. I fumbled around and found a shirt hanging on a chair to my left, flung it over in the general direction of the bed and groaned audibly. I swear this happens so many times I should know better than to walk into the room with my eyes open.   “Aw s**t Remy, I’ll be out in a sec...” He paused to close his latest one nighter’s legs and haul the shirt over his head before motioning her to leave.”Sorry chick, gots to work, see ya after lunch if you wanna hang out some more, COMING NOW R” I hear a grunt and a thump, he’s probably tripping over the mangled mess of sheets he calls a floor. A half dressed female brushes past my shoulder as she hurries past, clutching the remains of her clothes and shoes. The stench of sweat and bodily fluids burn my nose but before I have time to react in disgust my friend hops through the door yanking up the last inch of his jeans. “Ryan, is there any unmated female here that you haven’t screwed yet? C’mon breakfast is burning.” I rush down to the kitchen, praying the eggs weren’t black, alpha hates his food overcooked. I’d hate to get my wages docked again this week thanks to the useless lump of a chef for a friend. “Stick the beans on and butter the toast would you? I’d at least like some help”. Cooking for 70 pack members wasn’t an easy task, especially when we only had a smallish kitchen and two chefs. As the lowest ranking Omegas it was up to us to keep the pack house clean and presentable and feed the ever hungry pack members. Other omegas helped out with the upkeep but we were the best at cooking, a promotion I gladly took as more work means more money, more money means more things, and more days off as I can afford to miss a days wages. I spooned the perfectly scrambled eggs into a bowl and arranged the rest of the breakfast onto plates and into the bain marie, weekends meant full English buffet style, and boy was it a lot of food. I glanced at the clock to make sure we were on time. Ryan throws the toast on and balances the beans on top. I wiped the sweat off my brow and he held the door as I pushed the trolley into the dining area. I was met with the stares of a very hungry pack, practically drooling in anticipation. But the alpha always gets first serving, and so we place the trolley at the head of the main table and take our seats at the back, along with the other omegas, due to hierarchy the alpha and his betas get first serve, then the gamma warriors, then the omegas, the end of the food chain. Our clan wasn’t exactly high up in the hierarchy either. We are clan Silver. A rather small pack, just above bronze, not very high up on the list. I can’t complain, the house is decent enough and our alpha keeps the pack ship shape. We live in a constant state of alertness though, our small size means an easier picking if other clans decide they want our territory. We’ve had run ins before with smaller packs like timber and copper, trying to climb their way up in the world. We lost a good people that day, including my father. I was only a child at that time, too small to be an effective warrior, but I keep up with pack training to make him proud.  Finally the trolley arrives and we wait patiently for the descending wolves to fill their plates before getting up. The trolley was a mess, but at least there was some food left. The bacon was gone of course, as always. I sit back down with my full plate and join the chatter. “So what’s the latest goss gals?” Ryan shouted, spitting eggs across the table. I nudged him back with my elbow to save my food from the egg shrapnel. Grace giggled and shrieked loudly “well when I was on hall patrol last night I saw Amarise and the alpha again, heading to the top floor together, wink wink. Still no mate yet then. Also, who’d you sleep with Ryan? Not Lisa again? Hope you used protection this time” she wagged a questioning finger over her plate. “How do you know everything Grace? Nosy fucker. Do you have eyes in the back of your head?” he retorted. “Paha, more likely the eyes in the back of her horns “Lisa interjected, standing behind me with an empty plate in hand.  Grace coughed w***e under her breath before locking eyes with me as Lisa stropped away. I knew what was coming, another Grace lecture. . I rolled my eyes and finished my food as she layed into me. “Remilda Hawcroft, don’t you dare roll your eyes at me. When are you going to find a mate? Or even a boyfriend? If you don’t you will end up like man slut Ryan over here, and we do not need more STD gossip from the nurses do we?” she glared at Ryan before continuing “You are nearly 20 years of age now, have you even had s*x? How am I supposed to double date if you have no mate! You don’t even leave the pack house for crying out loud. I am never going to get to plan your wedding and be maid of honor if there is no groom-“ my hand slaps the table loudly. “Grace for crying out loud I am 20, barely over my teen years and my s*x life is NONE of your business. Just because you found your mate easily does not mean I will find mine. Besides you found Leon here, in the pack house so you are one to talk! I am perfectly fine with staying and serving the alpha right here. Now is there any actual gossip or just the usual lecturing from you?” My hand kind of stings from the impact of the table but I was too pissed to show it. Ryan starts to clear our empty plates and I assist, hoping to steer away from more questions. Grace’s eyes nearly pop from her head at my backlash, but she soon helped. We learned from a young age that more hands means less work. After loading dishes onto the cleaning trolleys I headed off for some fresh air before the chores began.  Weekends were lazy, but still 70 wolves means lots of cleaning. Not to mention the house was falling apart around us, leaky pipes, , faulty electrics and damp walls. The perks of being a lower ranking pack I guess. The fresh air burst onto my face lifting all thoughts and work from my body. My inner wolf sniffed longingly at the open air, I could feel her pawing to get out. Be still wolfy, my clothes. I stripped  and left my clothes behind a tree before shifting. It’d been a whole week since she saw the sun last and her muscles were stiff. We stretched our paws in the mud, our claws sinking, turning up the grass. It feels so good to be free, to feel the sun on my fur she purred  we only have half an hour wolfy, no running too far We ran the border of the house, making sure to stay inside the patrol perimeters to avoid the guards. They weren’t exactly friendly people especially when it came to lower ranks. Must be freeing to stay in wolf form outside though I always wanted to be a fighter like the gammas. Shame we are second defense, I hope a fight never comes that far. I shiver at the thought. We shifted back and I dressed. 5 minutes to spare, good. I head back in to start the cleaning, saturdays it's polishing, sweeping and laundry, not that much to do then the rest of the afternoon to ourselves before serving dinner. Luckily lunch is cold as we prepped it yesterday to get a longer break. No need for a chef, I'm sure another Omega can serve plates onto a trolley.  The rest of the day goes quite quickly, we split up and assigned areas to clean for maximum efficiency, divide and conquer they say. With every nook and cranny inspected and dust/hair free I head down to prep and serve dinner before eating and heading to my room. A tasty yet simple pasta bolognese, filling and easy.  I open my door and welcomed the musty smell of my room. Mental note to get wallpaper I thought as I looked at the peeling paper and the dull plaster on the walls. My room doesn't boast much. I have a desk, chair and bed along with a small sink that only ran cold and an old mirror hung up above. My wardrobe was full of clothes and shoes at least. I don't get out much to shop, any free time I get I spend out with wolfy. I'm free in wolf form, no responsibility, no care in the world, nothing between me and the outside. My thoughts were of us running free and wild, the wind in our fur and the smell of fresh dewdrops on the grass. It was easy to fall into a deep slumber. The sound of shouts and running outside my door woke me. I bolt to the door checking my watch, it's 2am, what could it be? Alphas voice shouts in my head NORTH BORDER, ATTACK, TO BATTLE POSITIONS  Fear claws down to my stomach clenching its hand around in a tight grasp. An attack, who, where, what. I can't think, I just stumble into scared wolves, half dressed half asleep running to their assumed positions. This can't be a drill, I have to get to the south of the house and defend the position, we can't let them in, we stand between them and the pups. As I run to my position I pass pups cowering in the corridor, lost and too scared to move. I yell out to them over the noise of growling and panic "MOVE, take a left and up the stairs, don't stop here it's not safe." I grab the youngest by the collar and haul him to his feet, my hand on his back to let him know it's okay. I can't stop I have to keep going. The doors to outside are open, I look round to check there's no-one else coming and bar them shut behind me. I'm met by Ryan and Grace. She throws me a wooden cane "took you long enough, wolves, they think Timber clan attacking from the north, not many. Should be an easy fight for the gammas but alpha Roan isn't taking any chances." I nod, I'm prepared to defend the south should they try to attack from both sides. "How many gammas were diverted? We need to be ready" I look Grace in the eyes but I can already see the fear. "Roan sent most the gammas over to the East and West. There's only Karl and Michal on the border."  Not enough to defend if there's an attack you mean Be ready wolfy I warn. Footsteps in our direction, it's still dark I can't see much, I grip my cane tightly, but it smells like our pack. "Grace, Ryan, Remy. East and West are all clear, gamma Shirley sent us here to defend. Looks like half the timber wolves at the North, a few tried on the west but didn't get far. She swears she smelled some copper clan in the west though. If they both attack we're defenseless. Be ready"  We all nod in agreement and get into battle stance. "Who else is with you Marie?" I can't see and there's too many scents to tell.  "I've got Peter and Amal. We're all left to spare, a few broke the border on the north and got too close. A few got injured badly, but they're holding up defences." Growling in the treeline broke our conversation. My muscles freeze and I lock eyes on the forest. The blows the scent of blood and fur, wolfy growls and stands to attention. Many glowing eyes peer through the shadow of the trees. Too many... Alpha, south border many wolves SEND HELP NOW  I hope he gets my message. Three jump through the shadows and pounce on Marie and Peter, marie was prepared and used her stick to deflect it's jaws while dodging for a flank attack. The second misses her by a few centimetres and is knocked over by Amal, before receiving a crushing blow to the skull with the end of his cane. Peter wasn't so lucky, the third wolf caught him off guard and bit into his shoulder, his whimper and the crunch sounds aren't good. Ryan jumps in to help battle the wolf off as Grace shifts, ready to flank in defense. I jump in to help Marie, dealing blows to the wolf's hind legs to render them useless. Before we can even react another 4 come from the forest, growling and spreading out around us. Thank goodness the house was behind me or we would be totally surrounded. I shift into my wolf, I can defend better like this. Roan's growl fills my head Gammas on way to assist, hold positions DO NOT LET THEM IN  Good. Help is on the way.  Take the left, he looks smaller, weaker. Let me sink my jaws into his flesh I let wolfy take over, I trust her decisions. She lowers her head and charges at the advancing left wolf. Our head misses his by an inch and our head snaps round to his exposed neck, crunching our jaws down hard. His warm blood pools in my mouth and spills over, he tries desperately to shake us off howling in pain but we bite down harder, and harder until our tooth finds bone and breaks it. A small snap and the howling ceases, his body goes limp and I spit him out in disgust. Watch the right!  we spin round to defend but the oncoming wolf stops dead in its tracks and falls to the floor. Amal's bloodied stick comes from behind its head. I nod in appreciation. The growling gets louder, and gammas appear from the east and west, charging into the trees, chasing off the other attackers. we wait a few minutes and scour the surroundings before determining safety. I shift back and check with the others. Ryan throws me his bloodied shirt to cover my body, right, my clothes. Damn, I liked that nightie.   All clear, gammas case the borders, burn the bodies, kill any live ones. all injured and deceased to medical Roans instructions were clear. It's over. Peter, he was bitten, the fight "Peter, where's peter? Anyone else hurt?" Ryan shakes his head. I look round him to see Grace whimpering and pushing his limp body with her snout. he's dead, he's really dead. Marie and Amal walk over, he picks up peter as Marie unbolts the door to let him through, she then heads over to Grace, offering her hoodie and stroking her fur. I can't bear to look, I'm covered in blood, 5 dead wolves strewn on the lawn, one of them down at my feet. The adrenaline begins to drain from my body as the shock sinks in. My first kill, my first attack. My legs shake uncontrollably. "c'mon girl, let's get cleaned up" Ryans arm embraces me, directing me through the doors to the house. I look down at my feet, shuffling forward, numb. the ringing in my ears muffle the noises around me. The voices. I end up in the kitchen, Ryan sits me at the counter and sorts us a hot coffee. "You need some sugar, hell, we both need one. What the f**k happened, Peter, timber and copper together. First fight and all. Last time they broke through to the house..." He broke off suddenly. My voice was cracked and hoarse as I replied "Last time they killed my father" I shudder at the memory, 13 year old me, hiding in a closet hearing the screams, smelling the blood, smelling my father... clambering out of the cupboard to find his body lifeless, slumped on the floor next to his killer, the fear forever etched on his face..... We sit in silence over our drinks. It felt like hours passed. I check the clock to see it's 5am. I know Sunday is our day off cooking/chores but everyone must be tired and hungry. I didn't even need to communicate with Ryan, I just get up and get busy making some breakfast muffins. I barely notice him moving around until he shoves some crumpets near me for my approval. "some fruit too, it'll help replace energy from healing", he grunts in response. We are just starting to load the trolleys with food and a few plates for the med room when the kitchen phone rings. I quickly pick it up "Chefs, prepare food for the pack, you have one hour" he barks down the phone, sounding tired and agitated. "Alpha we have already prepared breakfast, it will be ready in 5 minutes" *click* he hung up. He's not one for words. I offload the trolleys to the dining hall and Ryan heads off to the medical room with a few plates of muffins and crumpets. Should be enough to feed a few nurses and injured. It doesn't take long before the room fills with hungry scared wolves. The room is deadly quiet, even before Roan and the betas walk in. They must have been in the meeting rooms upstairs discussing the attack. Ryan takes his seat next to me and Grace joins us with Leon and Amal. Lisa is sat across from us with the pups. Her eyes are puffy and red, she must have heard about Peter, they were close friends, known each other since they were young pups. The only friend who stuck by her. The youngest pup clings to her arm. Lisa is their guard, she must provide them a lot of comfort right now. Usually there aren't many pups in the pack house, Roan takes in the orphans but when pack members settle down to start a family they usually retire and live near the city in a house. The only gammas living here with pups are Neal and Leanna, I notice their twin boys are sat with them. Neal looks beat up, his arm in a sling. Leanne is sporting a black eye and cut to the head. at least 3 gammas are missing from the table, must be in medical I guess. Shirley is sat opposite Leanne trying to distract the pups and get them to laugh.   Alpha stands up at the table, forks clatter loudly to plates and all eyes are on him as his voice echoes through the hall. "Many of you are aware that last night both the timber clan and copper clan attempted an attack injuring several of our wolves. We believe this was a test of our defences. Tonight the council will convene here in Silver house, to discuss how we will proceed forward and bring the attackers to justice.  I will expect every wolf to remain in their rooms or on patrol" He looks at the gammas before proceeding "Until further notice, nobody is allowed out on the grounds or in the forest". "Last night I am sad to say we lost a few members. Gammas Paul and Vera and Omega Peter did not make it. Gamma Lucas will be out of action for the next few weeks. Many of you have been injured. You all defended your pack and your home. This morning we mourn our losses. This afternoon four new Gammas will be arriving. Please prepare the empty rooms. Any personal belongings will be stored in the office. Family will be contacted to arrange funerals. Thankyou" He swiftly leaves, the room begins to buzz with chatter and questions. The omegas are assigning their chores. There will be a lot to do. I look to Lisa, we don't get along much now since she slept her way through the pack, but I've known her since we were pups. I should comfort her. She meets my gaze, fresh tears are falling down her face after hearing Peters name. I open my mouth to talk and reach out my arm but she shrugs me off and escorts the pups out. Grace calls my name to discuss our area of chores, I'm barely listening though, today has been too much already. My mind is like a hurricane.