Blaze

Two

​I growled in warning and turned around. There stood a wolf with black fur and silver streaks all over his body.

​I crouched down low and growled in warning once again. From the smell, I could tell he was a rogue. Rogues don't smell horrible like werewolf books make them out to be. They just don't wear any pack's scent; they carry only their wolf scent, which is why they are called rogues or lone wolves.

​I didn't want to kill any rogue unless they harmed me or my pack in some way, hence I gave him another growl in the hope that he would back off. But the wolf had something else in mind; he leapt toward me, baring his teeth as he attacked.

​I ducked down, causing his body to crash into the tree behind me. He whined in pain but stood back up to fight me. I smirked as I watched him running toward me with a broken leg.

​I didn't want to cause him unnecessary suffering, so I killed him with one blow to make it less painful. I gripped his scruff and pinned him down. He whined as I applied pressure to his throat before sinking my canines deep into his veins. His body went limp after a minute, and I retracted my teeth.

​After digging a hole in the ground big enough for his body, I dragged him into it and buried him. Even though he was a rogue, he deserved a proper burial. I let out a sad howl and returned to the pack.

​Beta Isaac sneered discreetly at me when I ran past him. Ignoring his blatant disrespect, I made my way into my room, which was across from the office. I entered the bathroom and washed my body thoroughly, removing all traces of today's unfortunate event.

​I sighed and placed a hand on the shower wall as warm water trailed down my back. It felt like heaven after that run.

​I wrapped a towel around my body and exited the bathroom. Slipping into some comfy clothes, I made my way to the dining hall for dinner.

​Every pack member was present, and they stood up to bow before me when I entered the hall. I nodded at them and took the head seat. Once again, I ignored the sneer on the Beta's ugly face. That bastard hated working under me, a female Alpha. According to him, women were meant to be used only for breeding and pleasure, and they were beneath men. I wanted so badly to rip his head off, but I was just an interim Alpha until Dad came back, and I didn't think he would be very happy to see that I had killed his Beta behind his back. He would take it as a challenge, and it could create an unwanted misunderstanding between us.

​Even though Dad and I were extremely close, rules were rules, and disrespecting the Alpha was equivalent to death. Killing the Beta myself would be utterly disrespectful to my father's authority, so I sucked it up and ignored the disrespectful sneers he was sending my way.

​I put some food on my plate and ate distractedly. My mind was still trying to figure out why my wolf, who was usually more mature than me, had put us in such a dangerous situation. I tried to come up with an appropriate reason but found none. I tried to contact her, but she blocked me out. She was still grieving in self-guilt for putting us in danger, and I felt bad for her.

​I tried to talk her out of it, but her mental barrier stopped me from reaching her. At last, I had no choice but to retreat and leave her alone until she felt better, which could take days or months. I sighed, imagining a few months without her; it would be unbearably lonely. I whined sadly inside my head, hoping she would feel it and come back out.

​When she didn't appear, I sighed and gave up. I had to give her time; she would talk to me whenever she was ready. It wasn't like she could keep the barrier up her whole life; we had to live depending on each other, and sooner or later, she would have to talk to me. So with that thought, I left her alone. I didn't want to force her.

​Once I finished my dinner, I went back to my bed and lay down. Tired from all the activities since morning, I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.

​I ran as fast as I could, dodging every attack thrown my way. Screams of terror echoed in my ears and nonstop tears flowed from my eyes, as I prayed to the Moon Goddess that this was just an ugly nightmare.

​I whimpered as I felt the connection break one by one from my pack members, indicating they were dead. I was shocked by how fast they were dying. The pack grounds were tainted red with the blood of its members. There was chaos everywhere; the dead bodies of pack members littered the ground all around the trees.

​I whimpered as I ran past the corpses. Unbearable guilt flowed through me; I had failed to protect my pack.

​The sinister laughter of the attackers flowed through my ears, causing my body to shudder in disgust. How could anyone be so cruel? They were laughing at our misery.

​I yelped when a wolf suddenly lunged at me. I shook my body to throw him off, but his tight hold on my flesh didn't loosen, so I had no choice but to fight back.

​I gripped a large chunk of his fur and yanked it out of his skin along with his flesh. He howled in pain and let go of me.

​I crouched down in a low position, ready to fight the wolf off. He growled at me in anger and attacked once more. I tried to dodge, but I didn't manage to move in time, and his claws dug into my flesh, leaving a deep cut down my back. I cried out as an excruciating pain numbed my senses for a second. This gave the wolf the advantage; he attacked me in my vulnerable state, his canines digging into my flesh as he tore a piece out.

​Blood coated my platinum blonde fur. The rate at which I was losing blood was terrifying. I could die if he managed to harm me once more. I didn't want to die yet—not before I made them pay for their sins. With that thought, I stood up and, with every ounce of strength I could muster, rammed my body into his. He flew a few steps back and collided with a tree. Using my claws, I sliced his neck before he could regain his senses.

​I then leapt toward my father. I was only a few steps away from my dad, who was fighting a massive wolf. The wolf fighting my dad sent blow after blow, and my dad was barely keeping up with him. I decided to help him, but just as I took a step forward, the wolf ripped my dad's head from his body.

​"Nooooo!" I howled in pain.

​"Nooooo!" I woke up in a cold sweat. I frantically looked around and sighed in relief that it was only a dream - a very ugly nightmare.

​"Alpha, the trackers sensed five rogues making their way toward our pack lands. According to them, it's the Rogue Alpha, and his next target is our pack," head warrior Josh's panicked voice sounded through the mind-link.

​"I'm coming. Tell the warriors to protect the border," I ordered and leapt out of bed. Adrenaline coursed through me as I ran toward the pack border at a frantic pace, faster than I had ever run before, the lingering horror of my dream pushing me to move faster.

​As I neared the border, five vicious howls echoed through the forest. One howl, in particular, sent a shiver straight down my spine.

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