CH VIII

Ariya POV(wolf)

It was night outside, dark and gloomy. But I moved with a steady and fast gallop to my steps. I zoomed past all barriers in the forest to the welcoming change that would soon be ours.

Poor child. She had gone through much. I could help her then but I can now. I was always there watching and waiting as I was supposed to. Finally am free and I can help her and I DID.

Wohoo!!! She is finally free of her 15yrs of bondage. Let her rest her body needs it. After all that she went through physically, mentally and emotionally. She is strong. My Aria is strong.

Yes usually wolf and her human side have different names, but we are so one with each other from an early age due to the stress and turn her life took, we both have the same name. Aria.

She didn't remember any of her family, but I did and I was trying to locate with the power and knowledge I had to find them. I know they are not very far. Not her parents, yes they are gone. Torn and murdered by Joel, the one I just finished off of the Blackheart pack. as the name suggests, the pack was filled with people whose hearts were hard as stone and black as rotten meat. uggh....what lives. It was time for change and new beginnings.

Aria doesn't know the power we wield within us. She is too fragile to acknowledge anything at the moment. We have long crossed the borders of Blackheart Pack and reached no-man's land. The adrenaline was pushing me faster and faster to get to safer grounds. No-man's land was not safe it wa an open invitation for rogues and other creatures to attack anyone and anything moving.

Ans so I pushed ahead, moving at the speed of light. Avoiding trees and other obstacles. Suddenly the faint smell of food wafted to my nose. To which I suddenly halted and lifted my snout to the air. Mhmm a tasty hunt awaited us and I propelled myself in that direction.

Reaching closer to the mesmerizing smell off food i noticed it wa a healthy and full fat buck, roaming the forests unknown to the danger lurking within it at the moment. The predator in me took over and followed my prey and took it down in an instant. Enjoying my tasty and delicious meal, I lost track of time when I noticed it was getting dark. Immediately I finished off my meal to how much I can take in and leapt into action again following the path my nose was taking me.

I reached within my mind and noticed Aria was sleeping contently, so I didn't want to wake her up in her sweet slumber and continues on my journey to safer grounds.

Riya POV

Today was the last day of my punishment in the dungeons. A month had passed by with limited food and no access to social life whatsoever. Bruce had tried to sneak in many a times but was always caught and reprimanded. He too wanted to be put into the dungeons alongwith me. I thought that was the most sweetest thing anyone ever did.

Silver was injected into me in small amounts so I could not link with anyone either. My wolf Ailyn was enraged that her alpha would do this to them. But it was a month since I heard her voice and was panicking when I could not hear her today. I thought I might have lost her forever.

"Hey don't worry am here. You can't get rid of me that easily", she sassed slightly slurrily. I guess the silver would take time to leave our body and hence the effect i thought. "yep", she quipped.

I was happy I could hear her again. I tried to link Bruce and it was like a bad radio link or something and nothing was clearly audible. I waited patiently so that I could go home to him and hug him and tell him how much I missed him these 30 days. I heard footsteps and the jingle of keys to my door and I lifted myself slowly since I did not have enough strength within me, due to the lack of enough food to fill a wolf's appetite. It was part of the punishment.

A warrior walked in and roughly dragged me out of the dungeon. I was a little surprised at the treatment I was getting, although I was punished by dad, I was still the alpha's daughter so I didn't quite understand the treatment. He then turned me around when we were out and barked at me to return to my home and stay inside. I was adjusting to the light and change of air, when I heard him bark. My wolf and me were pissed at the treatment we were receiving, but held our lips, nodded our head and walked away.

It took me almost 30 mins to reach mine and Bruce's home. I was sad that Bruce did not come to pick me up from the dungeons. I was expecting him to be standing at the front door holding flowers and such for me. But there was none and the house had an eery silence to it. The lack of energy tired me out and my mind wrecking thoughts would not stop. I willed myself to stop and walked into our home.

Dust had settled on the furniture and everywhere. It was like none inhabited it since I was gone. I thought to myself probably Bruce could not stay by himself and might be in the pack house now since I was in the dungeons. But it still didn't explain why he was not here today. I put it out of my mind for now, thinking that I needed a change of clothes and a good hot bath first.

After a good scrubbing to get off all the dirt and grime from the dungeons from my body I got ready in my daily clothes and moved to the kitchen to get a wholesome meal after a month of slice of bread and milk. I made myself some good old pancakes, bacon, eggs and orange juice to drink it all down. After the hearty meal i thought I should get down to the pack house and pay my parents a visit. It was odd that none came to visit me. I swiped the eery feeling aside and started towards the pack house.

The pack grounds were again eerily empty, not even kids were out, given it was a saturday. I had a feeling that something was wrong but could not put a finger on it. I walked on to the pack house and entered through the back kitchen door. I could hear voices from the dining hall, the hearty laugh of my parents and bro. The next voice I heard made my blood boil in my veins. The snivelling voice of "JULIA - the leech". I barrelled my way directly into the dining hall and was stumped at the sight I saw in front of me.

Dad and mum were sitting to the right of my brother and he was at the head of the table with that leech to his left, were his Luna, his mate is supposed to be. I looked on confused and perturbed as to what was happening and why was she sitting next to him. The pack was also there may not be the whole but the most important and obviously her father Dram. I noticed that Bruce was not seen here too. My wolf was getting antsy seeing this situation and noting that something was not right here at all. There was someone else by Dram's side sitting next to him. She smelt different and looked wary of me.

I looked straight at her and then at all of Julia's family.

"What are YOU doing here? You are not expected here?", leech screeched at me. My eyes bulged out of my sockets. She was questioning me in front of my family without any hesitation. Leech just snickered at my reaction. I looked to my parents and brother and they were glowering at me.

"Didn't the warrior give you instructions when you were released?", my brother glowered at me. I was taken aback by his reaction. I was just going to respond when the leech cut me

"she never understands what is told to her. She needs to be put in her place dear", and she places her scrawny hand on my brother's shoulder. I see my brother visibly shiver at her touch and wonder "what was that?"

"Al what are you going on about? We are family. Why would I stay in my home and not come to see you all?"

"YOU don't question your alpha",leech bellowed at me. At this I lost it. I pounced on her with all the wrath I had in me for all I went through the past month and before and swiped at her. My claws had come out and had taken a little swipe at her plastic, make-up laden cheek. My wolf was just at the tip asking to be released. I held back.

"YOU BITCH DON'T TALK TO ME LIKE THAT. AM THE ALPHA'S DAUGHTER. KNOW YOUR PLACE" I roared. She flinched and showed her neck in a submissive manner, but If I had not been intently watching her every move, I would not have noticed the slight squeeze she gave my brother's shoulder and he immediately flung out at me in anger. It was like she was controlling him or something. I did not understand and have the time to either, cause in the matter of seconds, Al had me by my throat against the dining wall.

He linked the warriors and called them in. "GET HER TO THE DUNGEONS. SHE HAS TREASONED AGAINST YOUR LUNA AND TRIED TO MURDER HER. SHE WILL BE EXECUTED TOMORROW"

"What? Luna?", I incredulously looked at the leech who was now giving me a full blown show of teeth in victory. I turned to look at my parents who were looking at me with a mix of emotions. It was like they were fighting within themselves. I did not have the time to comprehend what was happening. I thought after a month of being left alone they would have missed me and it would be happy reunion and we will all hug and be together as a family.

First Bruce never showed up and he is not even here, then my family turns their back on me. My own twin brother. I felt cheated, traitors all and broken at the turn of events. But Ailyn kept reassuring me there's something off over here. They are not to blame. I swept my thoughts aside for the moment, as I had a bigger threat to decipher.

If what Ailyn said was true then I had to escape and find a way to save my family. "Together", I linked Ailyn, she purred confirming that she is with me. The warriors were just a few seconds away from grabbing me from Al, he relaxed his hold on me and I thought this was my chance and took it.

I felt sorry for what I was about to do, but in order to survive and save my family I had to do this. I felt my claws come out and in a blink swiped at my brothers hands. He let me fall to the ground, but I was quick and immediately let Ailyn take control. She lithely jumped over the warriors, turning back once to get a good look at the situation before taking off into the woods behind the pack house at inhuman speed. I blocked my mind from any links that they might try to get to me. I knew if I had any chance of survival I would have to leave the pack for now and become rogue and that is what I did.

Ailyn remembered the look on the leech's face and was satisfied at the look of terror she saw in all her family's faces. She also remembered the look of loss that floated across her parents and brother's face. This pushed her, to her she was the only chance to save them. Something kept telling her to go faster and faster. Soon she crossed the border and felt all the connection and link to the pack leave her. She felt crippling pain in her heart and soul and knew that her family would have felt the same. She was happy that they were still connected in some way though now not that much anymore. She will make it back, whatever she had to do, to get her family back.

She had to find out what had happened in her absence. But how was she to go about that was something she needed to decipher herself. No family, no money or clothes or anything with her and a rogue to add to the situation she was now in no-man's land. She was pushing ahead on pure adrenaline since she did not have much time to recover from her one month long punishment in the dungeons. She had a long way ahead is what she thought.

"Please help us moon goddess. Please show me a way to get my family back please i beg you." was her last prayer before the adrenaline rush was gone and she fell into the ever deepening darkness of a dreamless sleep.