Chapter 3 - Shackles and Shadows
1020 Words
That stink. It hit me as soon as I opened my eyes. Like something dead had been left out for way too long. And then, this cold, heavy feeling on my wrists and ankles. Metal. Cold, rough metal cuffs. I tried to pull, but they were locked tight.
I was in a cage. Not a nice wooden one, like when someone got hurt in the pack. This was black metal. It felt…bad. Like it was sucking something out of me. There was this low buzzing sound in the air, made my skin feel creepy. Like the air was heavy and pushing down.
Around me were other werewolves in the same kind of black cages. Their eyes looked empty, like they didn't want to fight anymore. I saw a few I knew from my mother's meeting with other packs which I often accompanied her to when I was younger– Brenna from North Ridge, Gareth with the scar on his face from Blackwood. They looked so…small and sad. They used to be strong. Now…
Hey," a voice croaked from the cage next to mine. It was Brenna. Her voice was so low, I could barely hear it. "You… you new here?"
I nodded, my throat too tight to speak.
"Don't… don't give them anything," she said, her gaze fixed on the floor. "Don't let them… break you."
Easier said than done, I thought.
The Moonreapers. They walked around the cages, tall and quiet in their dark clothes. Their purple eyes, those weird glowing eyes, looked at us like we were just…things. Not alive. Just seeing them made me remember what happened, where I was.
I was no longer in The Human World. I was now in the world of Crida. The Hidden world. The World were magic and creatures of all types exist. Many werewolf packs had left Crida years ago because of the Moonreapers, according to the stories my mother told us.
The days and nights all felt the same. Always dark, always that bad smell, always the cold metal on my skin. The food they gave us was just enough to keep us breathing – dry and yucky. They treated us like dirt. If we even growled, they’d hit us with whips that zapped with that dark magic. It burned bad.
I learned about the Moonreapers. They were mean and quick and used that dark magic for everything. They didn't care about us at all. We were just things to use. And someone even bigger was telling them what to do. Big, shadowy figures with voices that sounded like rocks rubbing together. They’d come look at us sometimes, their glowing eyes staring, but they never talked to us. Just to the Moonreapers.
All I could think about was my old life. The wind in my fur when I ran. Mom’s warm fur when she hugged me. Even the thought of Vale’s touch made me feel sick now. That silver bracelet was still cold on my wrist. His “gift.” It just reminded me how he lied.
The Caelestis power inside me felt…quiet. Like it was being held back, not just by the black cage, but because I was so sad. That bracelet felt like it was working, keeping my power down.
Then they started making us do stuff.
One day, two Moonreapers came to my cage. "Alpha," one of them said, like it was a joke. "Our bosses want you."
They dragged me out, the cuffs hurting my wrists. My legs felt wobbly. They took me to a big room with torches that flickered and made the shadows dance. And then I saw them. Weird creatures. Some had too many eyes, some had shiny skin, some had really long teeth. They looked scary.
And I had to make them happy.
They made me wear these silly clothes – silky stuff that felt gross, heavy jewelry that hurt. Moonreapers pushed me. "Dance, wolf," one hissed. "Sing. Make our guests happy."
My throat felt tight. Sing? Dance? For these…things? I felt angry, but also scared. But I remembered the whip, the sad eyes of the others… I didn’t want to make things worse for them. Or for me.
So I danced. I felt stupid and clumsy in the clothes. I hadn't danced for fun since… before. Before everything went wrong. I tried to look at the floor, to not see the way those creatures were looking at me, the mean smiles on the Moonreapers' faces.
"Sing, wolf!" one of the creatures croaked. Its voice sounded like dry leaves.
I swallowed hard. My voice felt rough. I started to hum a song Mom used to sing to me, Kael, and Finn. It was quiet and shaky.
"Louder!" a Moonreaper yelled, pulling on the chain on my cuffs. My arms hurt bad.
I sang louder. The song felt full of my sadness.
"Cold wind howls my only friend,
Lost in shadows, world without end.
No familiar scent upon the breeze,
Just empty echoes through the trees.
A lone wolf crying, under a moonless sky,
Wishing for a pack, wondering why"
Some of the creatures looked…interested. Others just stared. It felt like they were taking away the last bit of me.
That’s how it went. They’d pull me out, make me do stuff for those scary creatures, then shove me back in the dark. The smell of rot was the only thing that felt normal. Every time, that bracelet felt heavier, that buzzing sound louder, and the memory of running free felt a little further away. Feeling happy felt like trying to grab a star – way too far to reach in all this darkness.
One evening, as the Moonreapers patrolled the cages, I saw him. He was younger than the others, his cloak a bit plainer. His purple eyes flickered over the werewolves, and for a moment, they met mine. He didn't look mean, not like the rest. There was… sadness in them? Pain? It was gone fast, replaced by the usual cold Moonreaper stare. He didn't say anything, just moved on. But it was… something. A tiny c***k in the darkness.
- Writer
