The Rogue that Rejected the Alpha

Elijah POV Death is merciless and indiscriminate. It doesn’t matter how strong, how healthy, or how loved you are, when your time approaches, there is no escaping it. Being young and foolhardy, even though I was pushing twenty-five now, I had always thought death would come for me before it touched anyone I loved. It was at my father’s funeral that I realized what a fool I had been. Dead at fifty-two and leaving me with no mother, brother or sisters, Alexander Wilde had passed peacefully in his sleep. There had been no signs of illness, so when the former Alpha died and I assumed the role, I immediately called for an investigation. There were no signs of foul play- no poison, no drugs in his system. There was a hole in his heart, though. The doctors mused that he must have known something was wrong, but chose to ignore it, either out of piss-poor priorities or duty to his position. I tried not to take that personally, but it was hard. After all, if I had been a better son, a better Alpha candidate… “You have a speech coming on,” Jerome said. He’d been lingering around the corner for approximately five minutes, texting someone. I wondered if he was giving me time to finish my cigarette, or if he was busy flirting with some poor unmated girl from our pack. “Beta Garrison is about ready to pull his hair out waiting for you.” “Let him,” I replied, blowing smoke. “I won’t miss my damn speech.” Jerome didn’t round the corner, which opened a third possibility for his lingering. We had been friends since birth, pretty much. He knew how hard processing emotions was for me, and he knew that my father had been all I had. It was likely he was trying to give me space and companionship at the same time. To let me be alone without making me be alone. I preferred the idea that he was harassing pack girls. “Is that so?” he said, idly. I could hear a mobile game playing music, and the clashing of swords and cries of anguish as he destroyed someone’s base (or whatever). “Because your cue is literally playing out there.” “f**k!” I smashed the lit end of my cigarette and dropped it on the ground rushing off. 'Son,’ I could practically hear my father’s voice saying, ‘If you keep leaving those damned cigarettes laying around, you’re going to get the squirrels hooked on smoking almost as badly as you are.’ I slowed, then turned on my heel, picking up the butt and taking it with me. Jerome looked at me with a quirked brow, but didn’t push. We re-entered the packhouse through the back door. Any hope of going unnoticed went out the window as I made eye contact with Ariel, an omega woman. “You’re late,” she hissed. “Garrison is out there holding them off, but everyone’s anxious to hear from you!” “I know, I know,” I said. I couldn’t bring myself to apologize, even if I knew I should. After all, wasn’t being Alpha all about being the one in charge? Everyone else should be on my time, anyway. Though I couldn’t think of a single time that my father had been late to a speech. “Well, that’s enough out of me,” Beta Garrison said with a chuckle. Without hearing the context, I could already tell he was telling an old war story no one cared to hear. “I’m sure you’re all anxious to hear from our new Alpha. Alpha Elijah, would you join us, please?” I stepped up to the podium. The pack house ballroom was large and fancy and done up in gold and red- this whole room had echoes of my mother’s spirit in it. Even though she’d passed years before, they still decorated it in her favorite colors. It was at her insistence that we even had a ballroom. “Hello all, and thank you for joining us today,” I said, my words an echo of my father’s usual greeting. “Twenty-three years ago on this very day, my father and Beta Garrison decided to escape from the tyranny of a pack that saw its people like slaves. They brought with them others that did not want to live a life of subjugation at the hands of a cruel Alpha, and when the war was won, it was near unanimous that he was brought into power, not as a born Alpha, but as a chosen one.” There was a rippling of applause, and I let it subside before glancing at the paper left before me on the podium. I felt a tingle of joy when I saw, in pink gel pen, a little heart and a note that read ‘you got this!’ From Rosalia, my favorite cheerleader. “Every year we still gather to tell this story and celebrate the formation of our pack, but we’ve grown since then. We started small, weak- just a handful of wolves who dared to ask for a better life. Now, we are a haven of sorts- a place for rogues treated unfairly by their Alphas to start anew. A place of welcoming. Now, as I stand before you, I am proud to say that no one would dare call us weak.” Another ripple of applause. I swallowed the lump in my throat as I skimmed the last paragraph. “This last year has been a year of heavy losses for us. We lost three elders of our pack, including my own father, your former Alpha. Alpha Alexander led this pack with a quiet strength. He was not out for conquest - in fact, he advocated for peace more than anyone - but he never let anyone take advantage of us, not when we were newly formed, and not in his final days. He led by honoring two basic principles: honesty, which breeds trust and respect for the bonds of your family. This pack was my father’s pride, and I have no intentions of changing things. I will continue to lead with respect for my father’s justice, and together, we will move forward into brighter days.” I waited for the last ripple of applause to peter out, then added a hasty, “Thank you. Enjoy the party.” I stepped off the podium, hoping I could elude the elder Beta. No such luck. “Good speech,” he said, leaning towards the same exit his mate had caught us sneaking in just moments earlier. “Maybe next year your heart will be in it.” I didn’t have the heart to say I doubted it. Instead, I replied, “We both know I’ll never be him.” Garrison nodded to the dining hall, and we slipped inside. With the party going, there was no one there. There was, however, a bottle of Jack Daniels and two tumblers with ice waiting for us. He poured the glasses and offered a cheers. Our glasses clinked, and I tried not to wince at the overpowering taste of alcohol. “Your father was a great man, Garrison said. “I never once regretted following him out of that hellhole. You’re a man now too, and I know without a doubt you’ll be great in your own way.” “But?” I asked, more than just a little familiar with Garrison’s usual speech patterns. “I’m old and tired,” Garrison said, stretching. “Your father and I were an inseparable team. We tackled all kinds of troubles together. As an Alpha, you need a strong bond with your beta. You need someone you can count on. Someone you don’t actively avoid.” I tried not to flinch at that last one. “You and I will likely never have that kind of bond,” he sighed, sipping his whiskey. “But you and my daughter…” I nodded, seeing where this was going. “You’re stepping down.” “I’ve seen you through the last three months since your father’s passing, and I think the turbulence has passed. But it’s best you get your cadre sorted right away. I wouldn’t normally advocate for a female beta, but you and Rosalia have always had a special bond.” I bobbed my head slowly. With any luck, Garrison had no idea how special my bond with Rosalia was. “I’ll always be here to support you both, but my time is over.” “I understand,” I said, unsure of what else to say. “We’ll start planning a small event then, maybe next week, and get her all sworn in. I’m assuming you’ve already…?” “She knows, yes,” he said. “She will accept the responsibility.” I sagged with relief. Honestly, I didn’t want to deal with Garrison any more than he wanted to deal with me, and Rosalia and I? Well. We made more than just a good team. If I didn’t find my mate soon, I would take her as my Luna. Ambrosia POV There was a celebration down the mountain, towards the pack lands. They’d always been noisy neighbors, so it seemed like there was always something going on down the mountain. Tonight, though, must have been a celebration. Fireworks lit the sky as I trekked my way up the mountain, holding a bag with a thrashing chicken inside . A being of pure shadow trekked along beside me, prowling, matching my pace but remaining just outside of my sight. Every now and then, I would hear her growl or hiss at something in her path, but she never strayed. As we approached the peak, there was a large stairway carved from stone. There were candles in glass plates on each step - white on the left, black on the right. As I stepped, the candle's wicks erupted in flame as I whispered my prayer. “I come to you under the light of the moon, free from bondage of society with an offering.” I rose to the top of the stairs and gazed upon my altar, and behind it, a disk of flat, black water. There was only one pool such as this in existence; a marriage of dark powers that didn’t usually mingle. The makings of a Luna Mirror and a Constellation Pool. Much like the white and black candles that lined the walkway, it married worship of the Moon Goddess Luae, matron of werewolves, and the Goddess of Stars, Aelia, matron of witches. I waved my hand over the candles on my altar, and much like the candles on the stairs, they lit. The being of shadow emerged from the woods. As soon as she passed the stonework separating my altar space from the woods, her form condensed down to that of a normal looking black cat. Well, almost normal. She was missing her front right leg and her right eye. She sat politely at the edge and groomed her remaining paw while I began my ritual. I stepped out of my sandals and untied the robe I wore, leaving them piled neatly behind the altar, leaving me standing naked in the moonlight. The bag, which had been dropped for the time being, continued to thrash, the creature inside crying out. I had no room in my heart for sympathy for a doomed creature. I pulled my athame from the altar and watched it reflect bursts of red, blue and green fireworks before I opened the bag and pulled the chicken out, driving my knife through its heart. I held the body over the pool and twisted the knife, opening an artery so the blood poured into the water, polluting it with red that spread like clouds in its depths. When the blood had been drained, I emptied another pouch, this one containing a mixture of pre-mixed herbs and petals into the water. Leaving the discarded chicken behind, I stepped in the pool and closed my eyes, relishing the swirl of energy that surrounded me. Down below, the wolves began to howl as the fireworks wrapped up, closing whatever their little ceremony had been about. Feeling good myself, I smiled, tilting my head back and joining them.