CLAIMED BY THE ALPHA

CHAPTERTWO

Ares's POV

It started as a dull ache at the back of my head then it grew into siren sounds that rang in my ears, jolting me awake. Everything hurts my back, my head….oh, my head.

The scenery before me was white and clear. Slowly I realized I was in a forest, covered in layers of snow. I was cold, I was hurt. But most importantly, I was confused. I had no idea how exactly I got here or what I was doing sitting on a snowy ground with torn, messy clothes, or where I came from. Where exactly am I? What happened to me?

I tried to pick myself up from the ground, but I was immediately blinded by the light that was illuminating everywhere. I glanced up to see the bright full moon, it was dazzling. I had never seen the moon shine so brightly. I wanted to appreciate it a little, but I was not in the right state of mind.

I heaved a deep breath as I pushed myself painfully to lean on the bark of a tree, "you can do this, Ares." Yeah, I could do this. I could…. wait, what did I just call myself? Ares. Is that my name? It had to be if I subconsciously remembered it. Ares, my name is Ares.

I was glad to have remembered my name, but when I tried to remember other things, I found it very difficult. Instead, all I got was a deep sharp pain piercing my brain like a needle. I couldn't remember a damn anything. My brain felt heavy and useless, so I tried to use my other senses.

I sighed sadly as I took another deep breath, my nose tingling instantly at a strange fragrance. Whatever it was that wafted through my nose smelled wonderful. So damn terrific that I had to sniff the air again, but I couldn’t determine the scent until I took a deep sniff at my torn and messy shirt.

It was the scent of a flower, a rose… a wild rose.

But this scent didn't come from me. It was around me, but not from me, like the owner of the scent had been around me. I had a feeling it was the red-haired lady who had pushed away the snow from my body.

The sudden remembrance jolted my brain and it shocked my entire body. I recalled something!

It wasn't something from long ago, but a recent memory. Someone had been here, a vague memory of a young lady, with red and flowing hair. I couldn't make out her face, but I could remember her scent, the same scent that was tingling in my nose. Wild roses.

Who was she? Why did she help me? I was very curious to know about all these, maybe she knew where I came from or what I was doing here.

"Ahh!" I screamed when I felt sudden pain inflicted on me. My body was jolted forward, and I fell with both hands on the cold snowy ground.

My legs were wobbly as I groaned heavily. I tried to pick myself up, but I couldn't. It was as if my limbs didn't listen to me anymore. In my state of confusion, fear, and pain, I momentarily looked up to notice something strange in the sky, the moon. It was getting brighter and I could feel its rays on me.

I started feeling strange, I tried to shout but when I opened my mouth all I heard was a deep powerful growl. It was crazy! I’ve never felt like this before.

I was on all fours now, in a very strange position, and I knew something strange was happening to me. I just didn't know what it was or if I was possessed.

I felt my already torn shirt, bursting open, the rays of the moon strangely suppressing me, taking over me, and turning me into something I knew I wasn’t. I suddenly felt my canines elongating and tiny hair sprouting out of my skin. When I finally looked at it, it had no little hair. I saw a whole lot of hair, a dark golden color, it was fur!

I was going to scream my lungs out this time, but immediately, my throat felt dry, and my eyes were overshadowed by darkness.

My eyes snapped open. I looked around sharply, suddenly realizing I was still where I was a few minutes ago. But I wasn’t who I was anymore. I was a wolf! A terrifying one!

I felt strange, I felt powerful….I felt rage. A burning rage for blood. To slaughter. Anger, terrifying anger overwhelmed me.

The excitement that came upon me knew no bounds. I opened my mouth to yell my fury, but all that came out was a loud powerful growl and a bark. This time I couldn’t think about it. Heck, I couldn’t think about anything, all I could focus on was the maddening anger and raging bloodthirst that had thoroughly overwhelmed me.

I kicked my sharp paws in the snowy ground, and I started running. Momentarily, I was shocked that my body flew like the wind and I wasn't even tired. It was as if I was one with the wind as it caressed my furs. Surprisingly, it didn't in any way relieve my raging thirst for blood. It was the time of night, but my vision was sharp, and I could see things from far away. I saw a huge house in front of me. It was the first house I could see after leaving the snowy bush. It was surrounded by other smaller houses.

There was a celebration. I could easily tell with the large crowd around the house, and by the sounds coming from it. As I neared the building, I saw bright lights and decorations, there were sounds of cheerful music, and numerous people entering and leaving the house. They all had smiles on their faces, smiles that somehow infuriated and increased my blood thirst.

As I edged closer, I saw something strange, some of those people were turning into wolves…wolves! Before the sane part of my mind could start wondering, the immense rage hit me even harder than before, and without reasoning, I galloped into the house at a very high speed.

It took a few minutes before anyone realized my presence. Their concentration was on the huge cake that was being rolled into the middle of the vast room.

"Amazing," someone said. Soon enough, I heard the sounds of heels matching over the sight of the cake and that infuriated me.

"Now, let's call out the beautiful celebrant to….hey, who are you?"

Finally, they saw me. The thought was appealing to my bloodthirst.

I didn't wait for my presence to register in their heads before I growled, and bounced on the nearest person. I instantly tore him apart with my sharp claws and watched him wriggle as blood dripped out of his slit neck.

Blood.

I wanted to see more blood! I began pouncing on anyone and everyone. Their harsh screams penetrated my ears, but it didn't stop me, it only made me thirstier.

A handful of them were down in a few minutes, and some of them started turning into a similar figure as mine. I felt intrigued and dared. How dare they think they can battle with me?

I noticed there was a bigger one among them, it was a large gray wolf. I could remember he was a big, averagely tall man before. Even as a wolf, he still stood to protect the woman beside him. No man or wolf was beside him. I had killed them all.

The wolf may seem intimidating, but not to me at all, it was probably because of the power that was currently possessing me. I snapped and growled, then jumped on him. He battled me, I could give him that, but it didn't take long before I snaked past him, and slit his neck with my sharp claws. I watched him fall heavily on the floor, and a satisfying growl escaped me before I picked the small woman up, and tore her apart like I did her protector or perhaps her lover.

Any sense of humanity had left me. I couldn’t feel any remorse. If at all I could feel a thing, it was satisfaction as my dark eyes roamed around the house that was now filled with stinky blood smell and wounded bodies.

I was about to let out a strangely satisfying growl when I smelt it, the scent of wild roses. It was her.

As if finally calmed, I felt the powerful urge that chaperoned my bloody thirst leaving my body. It began to change, my canines finding their normal position and the lots of hair- finally leaving my body. My bones started cracking and straightening, and as soon as I could stand on my two feet again, that was when she walked in.

Her hair was just like I remembered, though it was redder. Her skin glowed under the light as her body swayed elegantly into the room. I took two steps towards her, but before her lovely green eyes could reach me, they swept across the room. Her sharp eyes widened in shock as she let out a loud gasp, and then screamed.

Her scream resonated deep within my eardrums, making me grit my teeth at the screeching sound. I watched, rather keenly, the expression that played on her lovely face, the smile that she had on earlier when she stepped into the room had vanished leaving an expression of pain and despair.

"No…" I heard her say before she collapsed slowly to the ground. Her elegant long hands were raised to cover her mouth. Tears had started spilling from those emerald eyes. Lord, she was beautiful!

She didn't seem to notice me yet, I didn't mind. I was content in watching her, her every move. Her next move, which was rather surprising to me, was when she crawled or rather dragged herself on the blood-filled ground to the bodies of the huge wolf who had tried to threaten me and the smaller one he had tried to protect. When she had reached them, she touched their lifeless bodies, and let out another shriek, a pain-filled sound from the back of her throat. She was hurt, though I couldn't imagine why, and some unknown part of me didn't like to see her hurt.

"Mother…father.." she cried, shaking the bodies lightly, holding their bloody bodies in her arms.

I looked closely at the bodies. Were those her parents? I had murdered her parents?

Strangely, this realization did nothing to my conscience. I felt nothing, no regrets whatsoever. I honestly couldn’t feel a shred of sympathy. It was like my empathy was dead to everyone, and anything except her. All I could feel was the aftermath of the rage, still burning in me but fulfilled, for now.

I'm sure wherever my conscience was, it had better things to do than make me feel bad. It was probably clinging to my eyes, as it watched with me in absolute memorization, this alluring red-haired beauty seated on the ground and crying her heart out.

I wouldn't be lying if I said I could watch her all day. She was still crying when she raised her tear-filled eyes and finally looked up at me.

"You…." Finally, she noticed me.

Her silky voice trailed as she stood up slowly. Her legs wobbled, but she still managed to stand. I watched as her hips swayed gently as she stood up then she approached me, not standing too close or too far away.

"You were the man…in the forest…." her voice trailed off as it continued to look at me. Her green eyes which were bright with tears roamed around my body, and then they hardened.

"You….you did this!" She yelled at me, the braids in her hair that I hadn't noticed before loosening as she trembled.

"How could you.…" her words broke off as she gasped for air, she grits her teeth as her now bloody hands folded into a ball, "how could you kill them? After I saved you!"

As she screamed, her rosy lips trembled and I watched, barely listening to a word she said. Even if I wanted to answer…which I didn't, what would I have said? Did I know why I killed them? No, do I even care? No.

"You murderer! You bastard!" She launched herself forward to hit my chest continuously with her frail hands. I would be lying if I said I didn't like the fact that she was this close to me, I could smell the scent of wild roses on her skin and the urge to grab her and sniff that velvety pale skin that was showing beneath the material of her dress was overwhelming. I was just about to heed my demands when I heard someone's footsteps.

"Heavens!" The person exclaimed and I turned to see who it was. Standing by the door, gripping its frame was a tall young man. Quite good-looking to be honest, dressed very smartly. Dark green suit embedded with a golden crest, long dark and neatly combed hair, and wandering green eyes that hovered around the floor in shock.

"Alpha...." his voice cracked, "Luna.." he raised a palm that clung to his neck as he looked around in horror.

"Randolph..." I heard the lady say and her frail hands stopped hitting me and she collapsed to the ground, turning around, one hand reaching out to the man at the door.

"What happened?" His dark eyes still wandered around before they finally settled on me. I don't know but I think all this while I've been carrying a nonchalant expression on my face—maybe because I didn't care about what was happening here. The only thing or person I cared about was the crying angel at my feet who was reaching out to another man! Another man!

"He killed them…" I heard her say, her voice low as she sniffled. "This…monster, killed them!"

I was no monster. I frowned. I honestly felt possessed by something and they didn't understand, and neither did I.

All the while she was talking, my gaze was locked with this Randolph, when he heard what she had said, I noticed a gold glint that passed through his green eyes and he let out a deep low growl.

Ha! Was that his form of intimidation? How pathetic.

I let out my growl. The sound was shockingly frightening even to my ears and the sight of him flinching was satisfying to watch. He wasn't the only one who flinched, she did as well.

The expression on their faces; one of fear and the other of submission was appealing to watch. This man was smart enough to know not to try to oppose me if he didn't fancy his head being pulled off his body. He was aware that I had single-handedly caused this much havoc in their village. I had gone as far as to kill this girl's parents which I very much assume was their Alpha and Luna. He must have realized that standing against me would be utter stupidity.

"Feodora, come." He said, his green gaze shifting to the lady on the ground whose tears had stopped flowing but whose expression looked utterly lost. "Come, Feodora," he called again.

Feodora. Was that her name? It sounded beautiful and suited her perfectly. Feodora.

Gradually, she moved. Half crawling, half gliding towards Randolph who had given her his hand. Wait. Hold on, where was she going? The annoyance had started building up inside me again. How dare she try to run into the arms of this obvious weakling?

I frowned and took a step in front of her, blocking her path. She looked up at me, I saw my reflection in those eyes and my expression softened. But I said, "Where do you think you're going?"