Rejected And Reborn As The Alpha King's Luna

Chapter 67: The Human Hunters

POV: Celeste

I had lived for twelve hundred years. I had survived wars between packs, witch hunts, vampire invasions, and the collapse of entire civilizations. But I had never seen anything like this.

Dr. Cassandra Vex stood in the ruins of our arena, surrounded by soldiers armed with weapons that hummed with unnatural energy. Her blue glowing eyes swept across us with clinical detachment, like we were specimens in a lab rather than living beings.

"Stand down," I commanded my wolves, raising my hand to stop them from attacking. "Everyone hold position."

"Wise decision," Dr. Vex said. "Though I should clarify, standing down won't save you. It will simply make the capture process less painful."

One of the younger pack warriors, a hot headed male named Derek, ignored my command. He shifted into wolf form and charged at the nearest soldier. Dr. Vex didn't even flinch. She pressed a button on a device at her wrist.

A high pitched sonic pulse erupted from the soldier's weapon. The sound was agonizing, pitched specifically to target supernatural hearing. Derek collapsed mid charge, whimpering, unable to complete his shift. His body flickered between human and wolf, trapped in a painful half state.

"Our sonic disruptors prevent transformation," Dr. Vex explained calmly. "Electromagnetic fields disrupt magic. UV lasers burn vampires at a molecular level. We've spent fifty years developing countermeasures for every supernatural ability known to science."

She walked closer, her soldiers maintaining a perfect defensive perimeter around her. They moved with military precision, well trained and disciplined.

"For decades, we've been capturing rogue supernatural creatures," Vex continued. "The ones who killed humans, exposed our world to danger. We studied them. Learn how your bodies work. How your powers function. And we developed ways to neutralize you."

Ravencrest, still standing near the center of the ruined arena, laughed darkly. "Humans playing with fire they don't understand. How typical."

"We understand perfectly," Vex replied, turning her glowing eyes toward him. "Vampires like you have killed thousands of humans over the centuries. Wolves have torn apart innocent people. Witches have destroyed entire towns. You're weapons, uncontrolled and dangerous. Someone has to bring you under control."

"And you think you're that someone?" I asked, keeping my voice level despite the rage building inside me.

"I know I am." Vex pulled out a tablet, showing images. "These are the families destroyed by supernatural attacks in just the last decade. Three hundred and forty seven dead. Children, parents, grandparents. All killed by creatures who thought themselves above human law."

The images were horrific. I couldn't deny them. Some supernatural beings did kill humans. Not all of us, not even most of us, but enough to make her point valid.

"So your solution is to capture and experiment on all of us?" Thelma said, her voice sharp.

"Not all of you," Vex replied. "Just the most valuable specimens. Alpha twins, for instance. Your genetic structure is fascinating. The twin bond creates unique cellular connections we've never seen before. You're worth more to science than any ten normal wolves."

She turned to Xavier. "And True Alphas. Your kind awakens through selfless acts, which triggers genetic changes that shouldn't be possible. We want to understand how emotion affects DNA structure."

Then to Ravencrest. "And vampire immortality is the holy grail of human research. Eight hundred years of cellular regeneration. If we can replicate that, we can cure aging, disease, and death itself."

"You can't replicate what we are," Ravencrest said coldly. "We're not genetic accidents. We're evolving."

"Everything can be replicated," Vex insisted. "Everything can be controlled."

She pressed another button. Her soldiers raised strange collar-like devices.

"Nullification collars," Vex explained. "They suppress all supernatural abilities through targeted electromagnetic pulses. Once collared, you're as powerless as any human."

"You'll have to catch us first," Theo growled.

"We already have."

Soldiers moved through the crowd with shocking speed, grabbing wolves who were still stunned from the sonic attack. They slapped collars on necks, and I watched as powerful warriors became helpless, their strength draining away.

I tried to rally a defense. "Council members, form up! Protect the young!"

But we were disorganized, scattered. The trial had left us separated and vulnerable. And these humans had clearly planned this attack perfectly, timing it for when we were weakest.

Within minutes, a dozen wolves were captured, collared, being dragged toward military vehicles. Including Finn.

Xavier's little brother fought and kicked, but a twelve year old stood no chance against trained soldiers. They collared him and threw him into a cage mounted on a truck.

"No!" Xavier shouted, trying to reach his brother. But three soldiers blocked his path, weapons raised.

"Leave the boy alone," I commanded, using every ounce of Alpha authority I possessed.

Dr. Vex simply smiled. "Alpha command doesn't work on humans. We're not part of your pack structure. That's what makes us so dangerous to you, isn't it? We don't follow your rules."

A soldier fired a sonic weapon at me. The pain was immediate and overwhelming. My knees buckled, and I collapsed, my ancient strength meaning nothing against this technology.

Through the pain, I saw Ravencrest moving. He grabbed Malakai and Seraphine, both still recovering from their earlier battle.

"We're leaving," Ravencrest announced. "This is a wolf problem, not ours."

"They're capturing all supernatural creatures," Luna shouted at him. "You're next on their list!"

Ravencrest paused, his red eyes meeting mine across the chaos. For a moment, I saw genuine calculation in his ancient gaze.

Then, surprisingly, he changed direction. Instead of fleeing, he moved toward a group of young wolves about to be captured.

"Fine," Ravencrest snarled. "Humans are everyone's enemy. Even I can see that."

He and his vampire champions began fighting the soldiers, pulling wolves to safety. It was the first time in twelve hundred years I'd seen vampires and wolves fighting on the same side.

But it wasn't enough. The humans had superior numbers, superior weapons, and superior planning. More wolves fell. More were collared and captured.

Dr. Vex walked through the battlefield like she was strolling through a park, completely confident in her victory.

Xavier saw a soldier aiming a large weapon at Thelma. Without hesitation, he threw himself in front of her. The sonic blast hit him full force. Xavier's scream of agony cut through every other sound. He collapsed, his body seizing, unable to move.

Thelma dropped beside him, cradling his head. "Xavier! No, no, no."

"Even without memories," Xavier gasped through the pain, "my body knows to protect you."

Tears streamed down Thelma's face. "Come back to me. All the way back."

I struggled to my feet, forcing my ancient body to obey despite the pain. "Fall back!" I commanded. "Everyone retreat to the safe houses!"

But where could we retreat to? These humans had breached our strongest defenses. They had technology we couldn't fight.

Some wolves began arguing amongst themselves.

"We should surrender the twins," one older wolf said. "Trade them for the safety of the pack."

"Never," Theo snarled. "We don't abandon our own."

"They're not our own," another voice argued. "They're Tee packs. Why should Silver Moon wolves die for them?"

The Council was fracturing right before my eyes. Fear and desperation were destroying the unity we'd maintained for centuries.

Ravencrest appeared beside me, blood staining his elegant clothing. "I'm offering sanctuary. Let me take the twins into vampire custody. For their protection."

"They'd be your prisoners," I said.

"But alive," Ravencrest countered. "Better prisoners than dissected in a human laboratory."

Before I could respond, Dr. Vex's voice echoed across the battlefield, amplified by technology.

"Enough. No more negotiations. No more chances."

She pulled out a larger device, something that looked like a mix between a weapon and a broadcast antenna.

"I'm sorry for what's about to happen," Vex said, and she actually sounded regretful. "But you've left me no choice."

She activated the device. An electromagnetic pulse erupted from it, spreading outward in a visible wave of blue energy. It hit every supernatural creature within a mile radius.

The pain was beyond description. It felt like my cells were being torn apart from the inside. Every enhanced ability, every supernatural trait in my body, was being attacked simultaneously. I screamed, unable to stop myself.

Around me, wolves and vampires alike dropped to their knees, shrieking in agony. The sound of hundreds of supernatural beings in pain was horrific.

Thelma, Theo, and Xavier suffered worst of all. As the most powerful supernatural beings present, the pulse targeted them specifically. Their screams were raw and desperate.

Through my own agony, I watched them collapse, their bodies convulsing.

Dr. Vex walked through the field of writhing creatures, her expression sad but determined.

"I'm sorry for the pain," she said, her voice carrying across the battlefield. "But this is necessary. You're not people. You're weapons that need to be controlled. And I'm the one who's going to do it."

She increased the EMP intensity.

The pain doubled, tripled. I couldn't think, couldn't move, couldn't do anything but scream.

Thelma's vision was fading. I could see her struggling to stay conscious. Her eyes found Finn's cage where the boy was reaching through the bars, crying.

"Xavier!" Finn sobbed. "Sister! Please help!"

Thelma tried to reach for him, but her body wouldn't obey. The EMP was shutting down every supernatural function in her body.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, though I don't think Finn could hear her. "I'm so sorry."

Her eyes closed. Theo collapsed next to her, unconscious. Xavier lasted a few seconds longer, fighting with everything he had. But even True Alpha power couldn't resist this technology.

He fell, his body still twitching from the electromagnetic assault.

All around me, wolves and vampires lay unconscious or barely conscious. An entire battlefield of the world's most powerful creatures, defeated by human science.

Dr. Vex stood in the center of it all, looking at us with something like pity.

"Collect the priority targets," she ordered her soldiers. "The twins, the True Alpha, and the vampire lord. Transport them to the facility. The others can remain for now. We'll come back for them later."

Soldiers moved through the field of bodies, checking tags on their tablets, selecting the most valuable specimens.

They dragged Thelma toward a transport vehicle. Then Theo. Then Xavier, still unconscious.

Ravencrest, even in his weakened state, tried to fight. But a collar snapped around his neck, and his ancient strength vanished instantly.

"Restrain the vampire lord," Vex commanded. "He's the highest value target we've ever captured."

My vision was fading. I was too old, too injured. The EMP had nearly killed me.

As darkness claimed me, my last thought was simple and devastating. After twelve hundred years of survival, of protecting my people through every danger imaginable, I had finally failed. The humans had won. And the age of supernatural dominance was over..