Nova

Subject 5027

Nova's POV:

I couldn't help but roll my eyes with a snarl at Katerina, who was mumbling a bunch of inaudible words. Scratching profusely at my ears, a sharp ring makes its way through my canals. Another one of my bones snap, which is followed by a blood curdling scream. I'm quick to bury my face into the mattress, muffling my sounds.

I hunch over, breathing heavily, while I grasp my abdomen in an attempt to ease the pain, but it gave little relief. My body shakes and trembles, and I squeeze my eyes unbearably tight, as another surge of discomfort overcomes my entire being.

"You're doing good." Kat's voice distracts me from my suffering for a few seconds, before fading into silence. Everything goes black.

I stand, in the peaceful sea of darkness, tranquil and calm. There was no pain and no scrutiny, and yet my heart ached. It longed for the chance to bathe in the light just one more time. This didn't feel right. It all felt so soon, and rushed. Am I dead?

"No, Nova." I turn, towards the faint voice, met with the sight of two golden eyes. My breath hitches in my throat, as I take a few subtle steps back, away from the intensity of it's gaze.

The eyes begin to stalk towards me, revealing a small wolf. It was simply a pup, maybe 6 or 7 months of age. Its coat, painted an ivory, tints of white cascading effortlessly over it's broad physique. The beast, only a few feet from my quaking figure, places the front of it's body towards the ground, while it's rear remains high in the air. With a wag of it's tail, it pounces on top of my frame.

The pup's tongue lathers me in it's saliva, rubbing it's side repeatedly along my body. "Don't be alarmed." The voice had returned, stealing my attention almost instantly. I look around. "I'm right in front of you."

My eyes dart straight, meeting a wolfy grin from my

friendly attacker. Am I going crazy? This can't be!

"I'm your wolf, Nova." Her tongue lols, while I run my fingers repeatedly through her thick fur. She was soft against my palm.

"You can talk?" I ask, a bit confused about the whole ordeal.

"More like we share a collective thought. Whatever you think, I can hear. Vice versa."

"Where are we?"

"The back of our mind. You lost consciousness, but I'm happy to say, that we completed the shift." She hops off of me, as I stand to my feet. "You need to wake up."

Before I'm able to respond, a surge of light consumes me, pulling me from the darkness. Blinking a few times, I take in my surroundings. Everything is vibrant and alluring, the colors pop brighter than before.

I look over to the side, scouting out Katerina, who's looking down at me in admiration. She drops to her knees, wrapping her arms around the scruff of my neck. "I'm so proud of you, Nova, but now you have to go. There's a staircase down the hall, once at the top, there will be a wooden door, push through it with all your body weight. Then run straight, don't you dare stop."

I rest my muzzle on her shoulder, before backing up and dashing out of the small cell. Following Kat's instructions, I find myself throwing most of my weight against the thin wooden door, causing my body to tumble through to the other side.

Ignoring the snow, crunching between my paws, I push myself forward and out of sight of my own personal hell. The harsh wind in my coat, feels undeniably pleasant, and I can't help but stick my tongue out as I sprint through the vast forest.

"They're catching up." The wolf's voice pops into my head. The snarls and growls, grab my attention, and I find myself racing forward at a greater speed. "Let me take over. I'm faster."

I surrender my control to her, becoming a passenger in my own body. I watch as she weaves us, in and out of the trees.

"We're losing them." I chant cheerfully.

"No," She growls lowly. "We're in another pack's territory. They know better than to cross that threshold." I gulp, pushing my way back to the forefront of my mind, she doesn't fight it, but rather succeeds quickly.

I come to a stop at a small pond, lapping the water up into my mouth. It slides down my dry throat soothingly, and I can't help but lay down with my head towards the water.

"We need to keep moving." She's back in my head.

"I never got your name." I chuckle, standing as I begin to dart straight.

"Celeste." I mentally repeat her name, leaping over a fallen log. Mid-air, a large force knocks into my side, throwing me against the sturdy bark of a nearby pine.

My eyes meet those of the two light grey wolves in front of me. Both puff up their chests, with a snarl, causing me to roll my eyes as my hackles rise.

"They're stronger than us. Shift and explain our circumstances, come off harmless." Celeste explains, I inhale before painfully turning back into my human form.

The cold is quick to make it's presence known, as I shiver trying to regulate my body heat. My arms instinctively wrap around my exposed chest, and I clench my thighs tight together to show less skin off.

"I-I don't mean to intrude," I stutter.

"Then why are you trespassing?" One of the wolves had shifted, and began to wearily approach me. He didn't attempt to cover his manhood, which causes a blush to creep onto my face.

"Why is it so lopsided?" Celeste asks, curiously. I mentally face palm, before replying to his earlier question.

"I was chased onto your land by a small group of ferals. I need to get back to The Crescent Moon Pack's territory. My father, Alph-" I'm quick to stop mid sentence, and refrain from disclosing such crucial information. "My father is probably worried sick about me."

Another male, who I assume was the other grey wolf, tosses me an oversized white T-shirt. I put it on, ignoring the burning gaze of both their eyes.

"Our Alpha will be having a word with you." He states, nonchalantly. "Mark escort her to his office."

Mark grabs me roughly by the arm, dragging me towards a large pack house. Members, mostly male, were swarming in and out of the large building, not even batting an eye in my direction.

I'm lead into a conference room, where a man, not much older than my father, sits eyeing me up and down. His seat was at the head of the table, whereas mine was off to the left side.

"Alpha Reagan, this is the intruder." Mark announces, breaking the awkward silence along with his intense stare.

With a loud hearty chuckle, the Alpha leans forward in his seat replying, "When you told me we had an unwanted visitor, I thought it would at least be a threatening one. Yet here before me sits a small pup, no older than 10, and a female, at that." He elaborates on the word 'female,'shooting me a smug grin.

"I'd kill to see his face shoved against the mahogany of this table, battered and bruised." Celeste chimes in.

"Same, but we have to play this smart, Cel."

"You're dismissed Mark, next time mind-link me when there's actual danger." Alpha Reagan, clears his throat, before directing his attention back towards me. "Now, what's your name?"

"Nova." My answer is quick and to the point. I didn't have time to waste, my homesickness was getting worse by the second.

"Which pack did you say you were from again?"

"The Crescent Moon Pack, but I'm positive you already knew that." I scoff.

"And why do you say that."

"Because I told both of your scouts, and I'm sure they had relayed you that information."

"You're very bright."

"So I've been told by my father and many others."

"Who's your father exactly?" My breath falters, as I rake through my mind for a proper response.

"Hendrick." I state, shifting my eyes to the right, before adding, "Now that you know all you need to know, may I please go home?"

"My father, the Alpha before me, told me something wise, as a young boy. Would you like to hear?"

"No bitch."

"Celeste, shh." I nod my head, not saying a word.

"If you're going to lie, whole-heartedly believe what you're saying, because an unsteady heartbeat will always be a dead give away." He stands to his feet, striding over to my chair. "I'm going to give you one more chance to answer honestly."

"Alpha Henley Alexander Lopez."

"An alpha female? How extraordinary?" He smiles, pulling me into his chest. "The Supernatural Council will be delighted to hear of such news. Maybe then I'll finally become recognized."

"Recognized as a total douche? Trust me, you got this in the bag, Alpha." Celeste snarls the last word, before pacing back and forth in my mind.

I pull myself away, growing impatient. "Listen here, you inconsiderate f**k face, there are more pressing issues than your so called 'recognition.' 32 females are held hostage outside of your pack's territory, being r***d and abused. They could of easily been your mother, or cousin, or anyone you know for that matter. So get off your high horse and get some troops down there, now." The assertiveness in my voice not only shocked Alpha Reagan, but also myself. I didn't know where this new found confidence came from, but ever since I met Celeste I've felt unstoppable.

"Who do you think supplies them with these women, and most importantly,the drugs they use?" He runs his fingers through my hair, before taking his seat at the head of the table. "Alphas all across the lands have written agreements with ferals, such as that small group you ran into. We give them young females and liquid wolfsbane, in exchange they leave us alone and unbothered."

I stand to my feet abruptly, slamming my fist against the table. "You're disgusting."

"Mhm," He shrugs his shoulders, eyeing the door as two pack members enter. "Please escort our little friend to her new room. I want two guards stationed outside of it. No one is to enter or leave the room, under any circumstances."

With a nod from the two males, I'm once again dragged out by my arms. "I can walk by myself." I announce angrily.

"So you're the True Alpha we all were so nervous about, for centuries? What a joke." He laughs.

"I'm not the True Alpha." I roll my eyes, unamused.

"Sure you aren't." When we arrive at 'my' room, I'm effortlessly thrown into it.

There were no windows, much to my dismay, and only two doors. One leading out, and the other to the bathroom.

"What a bunch of inconsiderate pricks." I climb onto the bed, laying my back against the headboard as Celeste spoke. "Hey, um Nova."

"Yes Cel?"

"I miss dad." Her whimper nearly shatters my heart and I can't help but feel a tinge bit of guilt.

"I do too." I'm quick to pull the covers over my petite frame, and drift into a deep sleep.

——————

Upon waking up I notice I'm strapped to a chair, unable to move. My gaze swivels over the white room, landing on a black tinted window.

"Good, you're awake." A voice draws my attention, from the one-sided window. My eyes travel to a man in a gray dress suit, and denim jeans. A red tie hangs from his neck, neatly done, while his glasses fall slightly below the bridge of his partially crooked nose. A tape recorder and clipboard are clenched firmly in his grip.

"Where am I?"

"You're at our northern testing facility, Subject 5027."

"Subject five-oh-two-seven?" I await a smart remark from Celeste, but there is none. I could barely feel our connection. "Where's my wolf?" I struggle against the metal strap, wrapped around my stomach.

"Asleep for the time being."Letting out a low growl, I try harder to wiggle my way out of my confinement. "It seems Subject 5027 is a bit agitated due to the news of her absentee wolf." He speaks into the recorder.

"I want to speak to Alpha Reagan!" My voice raises, as disgust and anger leaks from each word.

"Subject 5027 demands to speak with Alpha Reagan." He stops for a minute, glancing over at the vitals on my monitor. "She has an increased heart rate, along with high stress levels." Stopping the recording, he pulls out a radio from his back pocket. "Go ahead and sedate Subject 5027."

Within minutes, I'm being pushed deeper into the chair, struggling as they pull out a syringe. I scream and kick, ignoring the sharp pinch in my upper forearm. Minutes go by, then everything turns black. I don't fight the darkness, instead I welcome it, gratefully.

——————

"Let's try this again." The man was back, tape recorder in hand as he speaks. "Subject 5027 do you know why you're here?"

"No." I groan out.

"It has come to our attention that you are a female alpha, and seeing as that's unheard of, we'll be running a few tests on you."

"Where's my wolf?"

"Subject 5027 seems to be suffering from mild amnesia." I roll my eyes, growing annoyed.

"I'm not suffering from s**t, you dense t**t. I'm confused."

"Levels are rising, go ahead and sedate Subject 5027."

——————

"Ok Subject 5027, we're going to withdraw some blood and run some basic tests."

"Mhm."

"It's just going to be a small pinch." A doctor walks toward me with a needle, I stare patiently while it pricks the surface of my skin. He goes to retract his hand, but I allow my teeth to elongate into canines, and tear into his flesh. Applying more force to the bite, he screams out in pain.

"It seems Subject 5027 isn't fully affected by the wolfsbane. Slight transformations exhibited." I glare up at my observer, sinking my teeth even deeper, hearing the wrist crack, of my victim. "Go ahead and sedate Subject 5027."

——————

"Weeks have gone by, Celeste. Maybe even months, I don't know. I've lost all my sense of time, and it's all blending into one. This life I'm forced to live is exhausting. Im not even living, I'm just...breathing. My day consists of morning vitals, tests, breakfast, then on to daily exercise, lunch, tests, observations, dinner, even more tests, and finally sedation. I need to get out of here. I need to get home. I-I need you." I end my mental rant, awaiting a response, but like usual there is none.

"Good evening, Subject 5027." Marvin greets me cheerfully. That's what I've decided to name my observer, Marvin.

"Why so happy?"

"We've been given the all clear to stop testing, and move along with more intensive studies."

"What do you mean?"

"Upon the Supernatural Council's request, we're going to run a few trials."

"Supernatural Council this. Supernatural Council that. The Supernatural Council can take their tests and their trials and shove it up their supernatural asses." Celeste growls in annoyance.

I jump up in my chair, shocked to hear her voice. "Celeste?"

"Yes? That's me." I roll my eyes, with a smile, unable to contain my happiness.

"Where have you been?"

"Marvin has been lacing our food with small traces of wolfsbane for the past 2 years."

"Two years!?"

"Yes, Nova. We're 15 now." I glare up at Marvin, who's smiling down at me innocently. It makes me physically ill, but I knew better than to get upset.

"I'll let them think they broke my spirit. s**t, I'll even walk around here like some submissive little girl, but the minute I get a chance, I'll kill th-" My thoughts are interrupted by an intoxicating fragrance. The smell of a smoky wildfire and mid-summer downpour floods my nostrils, enticing me. Two completely opposing aromas, colliding to create such a delectable scent.

"Our mate's here!" Celeste's paces back and forth, wagging her tail energetically.

"W-what do I do?" I ask, nervousness dripping from my question.

"We can-" It was gone. The smell was gone. His scent, lingering in the air was nothing more than a distant memory. As soon as he had arrived, he had vanished.

I groan out a string of cuss words, shifting anxiously in my chair.

"Subject 5027, please follow me to the next room." Marvin, undoes my restraints, guiding me down an endless set of halls. "Ok. Go ahead and have a seat on the bed, Subject 5027. A doctor will be with you in a moment to begin the ECT procedure."

"What's ECT?"

"Electroconvulsive Therapy. We're going to be sending joules of electricity to your brain."

"Sounds shocking." Celeste snickers.

"How can you make jokes about us being electrocuted?"

"Dammit Nova. This is how I cope with stressful situations."

I roll my eyes, climbing up onto the bed. Marvin straps me in, calling for a doctor.

A female enters, eyeing me suspiciously. When she's close enough, she leans over, whispering as she secures my strap, "There's a rebellion brewing amongst the werewolves. We need you at the forefront of this uprising. We're working to get you out of here, Alpha."

I stay quiet unsure of how to respond. She shoves the oxygen mask in my face, then wraps a blood pressure cuff around my ankle. The cuff tightly restricts around my bone, as I inhale.

"Just breathe." She explains in a normal volume. "Ok, the heart monitor patch is attached and connected to the computer." I shift my head to the side, taking note of the large Dell sitting on the desk.

"Now applying 12 milligrams of Cyclobenzaprine." She gives me a reassuring look, while my muscles begin to loosen. "I'm going to add the Propofol in small doses, periodically." Her voice melodious and soothing, as I sway in and out of consciousness.

"Running 100 joules of electricity." I hear a high pitch ring in my ears, before passing out.

——————

It hurt, everything hurt. These trials grew more and more intense by the day. They'd give me copious amounts of wolfsbane, to test how fast my metabolism and healing was. Put me through different forms of my fear, to try and trigger my fight and flight response. They wanted to see me scared and afraid...They wanted me to coward in the back of the room, weak and defenseless...They wanted to break me, no they wanted to destroy any hope of me regaining strength both physically and emotionally. My submission wasn't enough for them. They had to be 100% sure I wouldn't fight back.

And yet through all this torment and torture, I grew strong. I learnt how to block the pain completely out. I could hardly feel it, but I feigned agony, so they didn't catch on. But they did, and that's how they discovered my weak spot. It was slightly below my left armpit, along my 2nd rib.

"Is that all you got?" I breath out heavily, as one of the guard dunks my head back into the tank of water. He holds me there, as I squirm, waiting a minute or two before pulling me back up.

"You stubborn b***h!" He growls out in frustration.

"That's not very nice."Craze chuckles. "He could of held us down longer."

Oh yeah! Celeste and I have welcomed a new resident into our head. She kind of just showed up on the doorstep, much to Cel's disapproval. Her name is Craze. I don't really know what she is, but I refer to her as my little psycho, some twisted conscious.

"Now that we've finished our trials, it's been decided that you will be publicly executed in front of the Supernatural Council." Marvin explains sadly.

"I've always wanted to perform in a public execution!" Craze cackles. "Just not on the receiving end. Imagine slicing someone's jugular vein with a sharp metal blade laced with silver. Then them falling face first in a pool of their own blood, clawing and trying profusely to cover the wound."

"What the f**k is wrong with her, Nova?" Celeste rolls her eyes.

"Yeah, what's wrong with her, Nova." Craze asks, oblivious to Cel's smug comment.

"Cel." I'm quick to reprimand her.

"What!? This is not normal!"

"What even is normal? We all try so desperately to fit into a world that wasn't normal to begin with. It's an illusion, merely based off of someone's perception." Craze replies.

"Can you shut the f**k up, for two f*****g seconds?" Celeste growls in annoyance.

"Both of you knock it off!" I sever our connection, ignoring their bickering, as I give my attention back to Marvin. "You guys took 7 years from me. Experimented on me and tortured me, and now you're going to kill me? How heartless are you? I was 13, nothing more than a child!"

"It's already been decided. 8:30 tonight at a remote location it will be done." A masculine scream echoes through the building, as a body flies through the one-sided window. I gasp out, looking through the cracked glass.

There, before a trail of blood and bodies, stood multiple wolves, 40 maybe even 50. They charge for me, as I pull on my restrictions trying to get out.

"Get Subject 5027 out of here!" Marvin radios, but by the time he had finished, his head was tore from his spinal cord. I close my eyes, looking away, as a female shifts into her human form. She was the woman doctor that had told me briefly of my rescue.

"So we meet again, Alpha." She smiles, carelessly grabbing the keys from inside Marvin's pocket, getting me out.

"As it seems."

"Let's get out of here." We both shift, dashing into the forest, followed by the other females.

So this is it? I'm finally free? I can get used to this.

Except a rude awakening was about to slap me across the face, real soon.