The Rogue Alpha’s Claim

Maddie had been training for an alpha; well, she obviously had the skill it took to be considered one, and all her training had been centered on being alert.

It was not surprising that she was the first to notice the strange happenings around the mansion. She has been trained to rely on her senses more than anything.

That was why, when her ears prickled from the rustle of the leaves far away, she knew that trouble was looming.

But it was too late; no sooner as she stood up to alert them of the impending doom, the explosive device struck the wall with a loud thud before detonating.

Screams went off as the blast ripped through the air, shattering windows and sending shards of glass raining down inside the room.

“Ariel!” Voices yelled for their Luna, but it was drowned out by the noise of another explosion, occurring almost simultaneously. The sound of the detonation echoed through their surroundings, their ears ringing from the sound that followed.

Ariel stood with wobbly knees, her body bathed in the sand that had been flying about. Her unsteady knees finally gave way as the building’s walls shook, its foundations trembling beneath the force of the explosions, and she collapsed to the floor.Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

Ariel shut her eyes closed, wrapping her arms around herself and tucking her in a protective covering from the debris that was scattered everywhere.

Tiny bricks cut off from the main building fell on her, cutting her up, and she was sure that would hurt as hell later, but she couldn’t care. All she was concerned about was making sure she stayed alive.

“Ariel!” She could barely make her name out of the chaos that was going on, but she refused to look up. “Ariel! We need to hide.”

She felt hands grab at her from every angle, pulling her up into a standing position, and when she raised her head, she was met with the worried look of Maddie.

She had been the worst hit; she was nearest to the door when the explosion happened, and she was covered in little scraps and bruises, but they were already healing right in her eyes.

“Maddie?” Ariel shook her head, coming back to her senses, and she looked around her, scanning the faces of the women around her.

“We need to hide now; the door is locked, but it is barely holding up, and it wouldn’t take long before they gain access.”

“Mmmm.” Everything was a blur to Ariel; she was still trying to process all that had happened.

“Liza? Denise? Claire? Dinah?” Ariel was listing the names of the people she would remember, their safety only coming first to her.

“Ariel? Are you even listening to me?” Maddie was glancing between Ariel and the door. Her ears could pick up their footsteps that were fast approaching here, and it wasn’t going to take long before they got to the door.

“Liza?” Ariel continued, craning her neck as she searched for her pack members.

“Ariel!” Maddie grabbed her by her shoulders, shaking her roughly to juggle her memory. “We need to hide.”

“Hide?” Ariel asked like it was a foreign word. “No, I need to be there for the pack; they need me. We need to fight and…” She staggered from the rumblings, but Maddie was quick to catch her.

“There is nothing you can do here. I understand that you are the Luna and that you have a responsibility to the pack, but even this is too much for you. No one would fault you for hiding.”

“No.” Ariel shook her head so hard that her hair was spraying the sand that had stuck to her. “I need to protect them; I need to…”

“Ariel!” Maddie’s firm voice cut her. “Look around you. I said, Look!”

Ariel angled her so she could have better access to the crowd; the air was still cloudy from the dust particles that hung about, and the falling wood and the stones had ruined the beautiful ambiance, but above all, they were fine.

“We are werewolves; we are stronger and heal faster than you. I am not mincing words when I say you are the weakest here and you will only slow us down; the only thing you can do is to hide.” One thing about Maddie was that she was blunt, and Ariel was just learning about it.

She was cringing with each word she said, but Ariel had to admit there was truth in it.

Bang!

The door exploded inward with a deafening bang, and the women all turned mechanical with bated breath as they looked at their downfall.

“They are coming; you need to hide now! Liza, take Luna, and hide.” Maddie was already pushing Ariel towards Liza, and the latter grabbed her hands and ran towards God knows where.

“No, leave me alone; I need to fight.” Ariel protested, slacking her body so Liza wouldn’t be able to drag her. “I need to help.”

“Ariel! You need to be reasonable now; you are only going to be a nuisance if you go out there and they don’t show mercy to you. We are better off hiding and letting the warriors handle it.”

The shock at which Liza had talked to her shocked her so much that she stood still, trying to process that this was in fact the quiet Liza.

“Here.” Liza was pulling her towards a room she had no idea existed. The stale air was covered with a layer of dust, indicating that it hadn’t been used.

But that wasn’t even surprising.

Liza was leading her towards a plain wall, and they stopped in front of it. Before Ariel could scold her for bringing them to a dead end, she kicked the wall.

“Oh my!” Ariel didn’t know when she released a gasp, covering her mouth almost immediately. She didn’t have time to recover before Liza pulled her inside, and the wall slid back to its position.

Ariel was very observant of an underground tunnel, but she has no idea that one has been sitting under her nose. They took the stairs, and with each step they took, the light flickered on, turning off when they were out of sight.

The stairs led to a dark room, and Ariel clutched Liza a little tighter. The air was damp and stale, quite unlike the room above, and it was heavy with the scent of damp soil and mold.

Ariel cast her eyes around the dark room, and she swallowed the saliva that had pooled in her mouth. She heard the whooshing of air around her, and she was shielding her face away as the light turned on.

There was nothing special about the room. The cold gray concrete was a contrast to the marble floor upstairs. Even the walls were unpainted, and the red bricks were very visible.

It was exactly as it should be-just a room for emergencies, and it had been stocked up with the essential things. She could see, from the corner of her eyes, bottles of water stacked high along with canned food and other edibles that could last a long time.

There were mattresses covered with a layer of dust and wooden chairs lying around.

If it were in another situation, she would have appreciated the thoughtfulness, but right now she was only worried about her packmates upstairs.

Ariel had never felt so helpless or useless in her life. They were upstairs, fighting for their lives and hers too, and she was running for safety with her tail between her legs.

Liza must have read her mind because she gently squeezed her hands, and Ariel looked down at the woman she had come to love.

“What do we do for?” The fear was visible in Ariel’s eyes as she looked at Liza, but the latter shrugged, trying but failing to be strong.

“I don’t know. We will just have to pray to the moon goddess and see.