Seize your fate

Caging the Rougarou

Chapter 10

Adrien woke up, his head throbbing. He squinted and could see bars surrounding him. Was he in a cage? He was lying on the floor trying to understand where he was. He thought he recognized this place. It was the older part of the house, the part nobody goes into anymore. There is a big hall, tall ceilings and thick walls. In the center is the cage that burns to the touch. Off to the side is an enormous fireplace with a heavy, long wooden table in front of it. In the past the table had straps, but they were gone now. The floor was cold against his hot skin. He could sense his Bettas next to him. “What did you do to me?” he growled in a low, husky voice. They were silent. If this cage couldn’t hold him, he would kill them for sure. Adrien’s father walked in slowly. “Adrien, we had no choice. The Alphas were going to vote on putting you down. It has become known that you are a Rougarou.” Adrien bellowed a sinister laugh. “You can’t hurt me old man…” Adrien’s father turned and left. Adrien’s Betta’s sat beside the cage. “I am your Alpha; you have to do what I say. Now get me out of here.” They wouldn’t move, and his rage was growing. He would kill them all when he gets out of this cage, starting with his Bettas.

Sol was on Adrien’s bed. Her eyes were swollen from crying. She couldn’t understand what was happening to Adrien. Was he sick, had he gone mad? She heard her father yelling about Adrien being a Rougarou, but she had no idea what it meant. He had been a perfect gentleman, but he changed. She was still in her ball gown from last night, and her make-up. She came to lay in his bed so she could be surrounded by her husband’s scent. Sienna was sleeping on a big chair in the corner, her wolf at her feet. The pack had gotten used to seeing Sienna walking around with her big wolf close by. She was the only true wolf most werewolves have ever seen. The wolves usually steered clear of them. Sol heard the Blackhawk had a black wolf that travelled with him. It was nice of Sienna to stay with her through the night. Sol got up and slowly went to the bathroom, her body still soar from yesterday. Was it always going to be like this? Pleasurable highs mixed with painful bodily harm? Maybe it was like this the first time. Maybe that’s what it feels like with the Alpha. She was sad. Her wedding day was too bitter-sweet. As she sluggishly dragged her body to the bathroom, Sienna woke up. Happy to see that Sol was up, Sienna smiled at her. “I will go get you something to eat, and especially drink.” Sol nodded too defeated to answer, as Sienna walked out the door and down the long hall. 

The voices in the study were loud. This had been going on all night. Adrien’s father had informed the other Alphas of what they have found, and the birth of a new Shaman. She had pleaded with the Alphas to include Shamans into their conversations, but for now they refused. The debate was around the Rougarou. It had been going on all night. Sienna walked into the kitchen to find Adrien’s mother sitting at the kitchen table. She was still wearing the cloths from last night. She lifted her eyes to see Sienna, the new Shaman, the one who replaced her father. Lines of sadness were apparent in her face, as the screaming voices trailed into the kitchen. Sol’s parents were furious. Her father wanted to leave, but Sol had convinced them to stay. She wanted to marry Adrien, Rougarou or not. “Are you alright?” Sienna stood near her. She looked at her wolf. Her father’s wolf was black and bigger. She truly was the Shaman of their pack. “It is hard. I wish my father was here.” Sienna knew exactly what she meant. “I wish he were here too.” She nodded as Sienna went to make some tea. Except for the loud screaming, the house was relatively quiet. No people running around. Sienna had only seen this house at parties. It was a massive home. The older part was made entirely of stone, and they added on to make it much larger. It was the size of a small palace, Sienna assumed. She was barefoot, and the floors were cold and hard beneath her feet. Her body was weaker today. She had noticed it become weaker every day. This morning she had trouble getting up. The housekeeper came in and helped her make the tea and organize breakfast for Sol. She insisted on carrying it herself to the room, so Sienna sat with Adrien’s mother. “I saw the way he was with you,” she spoke so softly. “He didn’t tell anyone about you, but he told me. He was excited. His eyes had changed color, I had never seen anything like that before. I told Blackhawk and he insisted the Adrien was in heat, like an animal. But he more relaxed with you. I could see him becoming whole, happy.” Sienna just sat and let her speak. “I don’t know if he is a Rougarou or what it means. He is my son and all I wanted was for him to be happy, and healthy.” She sighed. Sienna sat with her in silence. Her wolf was stirring a little restless. She had woken up restless. She stood by the door, as if she wanted to go out. Sienna got up and opened the door and she jumped out. She went to the study. It was a conference call, and she could see the other Alphas on the screens. They were so few. Adrien’s father waved her in. “I believe they should all come here, Shamans too. This is the original land of the wolf. The spirits are here. I think it is time we all sat together.” Adrien’s father nodded and the other Alphas sat quietly. They had never all sat together in the same place, like a summit. They were so far apart physically and spiritually. So different. Each pack with its own customs, only 3 more packs had Shamans. It seemed that the things that divided them were far more dominant than things that united them. She left the room and went to the old wing, to see the Bettas. They barely slept in days, and they were weak. She stood in the doorway watching Adrien lay on the floor of the cage. He was still on his back. Damien and Jacob were standing near the cage, with their backs to him. They came to her as they saw her. “He is changing Sienna. He is becoming more evil and darker with every hour.” She stood far from him. His scent was alluring, but his dark aura was making her nauseous and weaker. Damien and Jacob looked distraught. Lines of worry were visible on their beautiful faces, and they clearly haven’t slept. “Go eat something, please,” Sienna smiled at them. “Rest. I will watch over him.” Adrien was still on the ground, his hands and feet sprawled to his sides. Sienna sat as far away from as she could, while still able to see him. He wasn't moving. She lay her head against the wall, watching the trees gently sway in the wind outside the window. As a child, she daydreamed a lot, more than what was considered to be normal. As a child, her grandparents had her tested for different things, the doctor even suggesting she was autistic. She loved to detach and travel in her mind. It's why she came here, to be part of the team that studies daydreaming. She knew what was considered a normal amount of daydreaming a day. According to recent studies she should be experiencing severe mental problems, at the very least by now. It was becoming clearer to her, why she daydreamed so much. Her mind wandered as time went by. "Daydreamer…" a husky voice whispered. It was barely recognizable to her. She shifted her gaze to Adrien. She knew better than to engage him right now, especially since she wasn't sure what was wrong with him. The Alphas that were left in the world, were coming probably to give him a death sentence. A tear rolled down her cheek. She wanted to save him, but it seemed the only way was to sacrifice Sol to him, and she wasn't going to let that happen, even if he was to be the savior of the species. "Daydreamer please," he whispered licking his lips. His eyes were black as coal. "Get me out of here, I love you." He touched the bars and his hand recoiled back quickly. He licked his wound. He couldn't shift in the cage, as much as he tried. He knew the strength of his wolf could break these bars, but something about it was stopping him. He wasn't healing at all, and he was becoming weaker and weaker. Sienna wasn't even looking at him. For a moment that clenched his heart, but then his rage grew even more. His beast was going mad, and there was no relief. He remembered how tight Sol felt and wanted to feel that again and again. To get some relief. His beast was becoming wilder. Sienna sat there silently. Her wolf hadn't come back yet, and she wondered where she was. This is the longest that she had been away from her. Adrien kept growling in his cage, as the growling turned into roars. “I never told you, but I killed those three women who disappeared. I f****d them so hard, I tore them apart. Go ahead, ask the loyal Bettas where they are buried.” Damien and Jacob came back. They didn't look like they had rested. Sienna looked up at them, as their gazes fell to the ground. They heard Adrien. “You knew about this?” She shook with rage. Has everybody on this reservation been lying to her. “Sienna, he was in a frenzy. It wasn’t him. We saw his rage grow more and more and with it his s****l appetite, but we never thought anything like that could ever happen.” She was feeling weaker. Maybe she should eat something. “He didn’t remember any of it. I swear, it was like it wasn’t even him,” Jacob continued but Sienna had heard enough. Adrien roared again in his cage. Damien looked up at her, "Sol's parents are in the office. They are all waiting for you." Sienna sighed heavily. She didn't know what to do. 

There was a lot of yelling as she walked into the office. They grew quieter when she walked in. It was the first time their wives were in the office with them. Adrien's mother was crying into her hands. "I know what they are asking for," Sienna started. "I am afraid all I have is bad news." Adrien's mother was crying harder, and Sol's mother had her arm around her shoulders. "For now, the cage is holding him, and he can't even shift." She sat down. "But I have seen a mating and marking ceremony. Mating is exactly what you think it is, but marking is violent. The male's canines grow, and he bites his mate deeply on the shoulder. I didn't see what happened after that, if she survives the ceremony." Her voice trailed off. Both Alphas stood silently. How was any of this going to fix anything? Nothing was making sense. "I believe we just have to be patient for now. Let the other Alphas arrive, but especially the other Shamans. They might have more answers for us." Sol walked into the room running into her mother's arms. "I love him mother, I am his wife. I don't want him to die," she buried her head in her chest. His father caressed her long beautiful hair. The room grew silent. Adrien's father was the first to talk. "For now, we will keep watch over him, until everyone arrives and then we will see what we do." Sienna nodded, there really wasn't much more she could do now. She was near the front door, when someone grabbed her arm. She recognized that timid, shy touch. "Sienna please," she said quietly. "How do I save him?" Sienna turned to her. She knew Sol might try to go and see him and she was afraid that his pain would convince her to open his cage. "Sol I can't stress this enough. You can't do anything for him. If you try it would probably mean your death." Sol's eyes grew wider. How was this even happening to her? She was supposed to happily married now, trying to get pregnant. She was supposed to help the species keep going, by having pups, like her parents did. Sol felt defeated as Sienna left. 

Sienna was standing with Clarissa back in the cabin. They stared at the boards and books, and Sienna told her what she had seen about the mating and marking ceremony. The pieces weren't fitting. "It's been a few days, let's take a break," Clarissa said. She pulled the bottle of Vodka out of the freezer and brought two tall glasses. "I think we need to calm ourselves down," she smiled as she poured a generous amount. They took their glasses outside, sitting under a thick wool blanket. Sienna's wolf had come back, but she wasn't alone. There was a black wolf with giant blue eyes with her. They were sleeping together on the porch, nuzzling each other. Clarissa looked up at the sky. "You know it really is pretty out here. You can really see the stars." Sienna looked up at the black sky, letting her mind drift as she stared at the stars twinkling in the night's sky, sipping her drink slowly. Hilda would be arriving tomorrow, with Gina the Shaman from the German clan. Maybe they would have an idea what to do. The fourth Shaman from Scandinavia couldn't be reached. Their pack barely consisted of ten werewolves, and their Alpha said that no body has seen him in months. 

The Alphas were arriving slowly, and everybody was busy, fixing up rooms and making sure there was enough food. They Lycans weren’t coming. They had never even answered the calls. Only their Shaman, Gina, was coming. Keeping so busy, helped the days go by faster. 

Sienna went to the mansion. Her wolf came with her. Her stomach felt warm from the Vodka, and it did help her calm her nerves. The house was busy, and she could hear chattering throughout the house. She walked to the old part. It was tucked away in the deeply in the back of the enormous monument. Damien was there alone. The fire roared in the fireplace, lighting the room. "Jacob is with Sol. He is helping to keep her away from here." She nodded. Adrien was sitting on the floor. He had shredded his cloths. He looked up at her. It was apparent he didn't recognize her anymore. He even seemed smaller in size. Sienna's heart ached for him, and for her. She couldn't figure out how to help him. The only answer she thought she had, was sacrificing Sol to the ancient ceremony, and she wasn't going to let that happen. "Sol kept coming down here. We were afraid she would try to let him out. He looks really bad." Adrien whimpered in pain. "He stopped talking, he is just making sounds now." Sienna nodded. "I will stay with him tonight. Go get some sleep. I can't sleep anyway." She had been feeling as though her energy has been leaving her more and more the past few days, and she wasn't sleeping at all. Damien didn't even argue, he just whispered, "thank you." He walked out and she watched Adrien in the cage. He was deteriorating fast. They wouldn't even have to actively kill him, it seemed as he was dying already. 

Sienna just watched the night outside the big windows. It had begun to rain. She wished she could will a daydream with the answer, but it didn't work like that, not yet anyway. Maybe in the future she could, but she really didn't know. The rain was heavier and louder, and she just watched it. She couldn't bring herself to even look at Adrien. 

Suddenly, she was watching the elders of the tribe arguing. "The humans don't have mating and marking ceremonies. It makes us seem vulgar. The elderly Shaman was standing to the side. "It has to be done," she said. "This is our way. We are not human." The elders barely took notice to her. "Old woman, we don't want to be animals running around in the forests. Those are the ancient ways, and we don't want them anymore." Some one hissed at her. It seemed as if she was too tired to argue. As if she had been arguing this point for far too long. "One mate can't live without the other. They will both die." The youngest man laughed. "Great. We don't want mates for life. We want to be free to be with whoever we choose. Just like the humans do." The elderly Shaman shook her head. "This will destroy our species." Now it seemed like the others were getting upset. They were standing in a garden, in front of a small stone build. "Enough!" The Alpha roared. "We don't want to be animals anymore. We want to be human. Now we are just monsters to them, and look around woman, they are in control. They are the true Alphas. If we don't change with the times, then we are dead." Sienna watched as their faces changed and the small build behind them grew. She was watching them speak, and time was passing. The small build was now the Alphas mansion. The man standing near him nodded. "Nobody cares about physical strength anymore. The way of the wolf is over. Now true power is money. Not mating in front of the tribe!" She could feel the Shaman's sadness as her control was slipping away. They were still arguing loudly. "Some of our children have already mated with humans, some are having human babies. They have started other packs in Europe. That is the new way." A loud thunder shook the windows and Sienna was thrown back into reality. She sat silently trying to comprehend what she had seen, and especially what this means for Sol. It was even worst than she thought. Sol was dead either way? She sat, her gaze slowly moving towards Adrien, who was still whimpering on the floor. He was to be a savior, but instead he is dying, and Sol was going to die as well? Sienna listened to the rain beat harder against the window. This world really was coming to an end, and there is nothing anyone could do about it.