Treein

Kestrel was a beta, and an aggressive one that most folks didn't like much. The Empire had picked a future husband for her. This guy was pretty much perfect: born into a high-class family, good-looking, rich, nice, and the envy of everyone around.
People were quick to start whispering.
"Why did such a great guy end up with her? She can't even make tea right and she barely passed her cooking class."
"He won't be able to put up with her for long."
"Right, their love story is a train wreck waiting to happen."
Hearing this stuff over and over, Kestrel started to think that she and her guy, Tarian, were doomed from the start. So, when Tarian showed up with a sweet and pretty girl, Kestrel pulled off her engagement ring and tossed it into the gutter.
From that moment, Kestrel lived free and happy, like a bird soaring in the sky, a fish swimming in the wide ocean.
But a few years into her easy-going life, at a royal shindig, Tarian cornered her. His eyes were all red, and he confessed that he was sorry for everything and that he couldn't stop thinking about her. But Kestrel, wild as ever, wasn't interested in going back to her old life.
Tarian turned white, gritted his teeth and said, "I don't care what you're like, and I can handle your shortcomings. You won't find a more understanding alpha than me."
"Well, I already have a new alpha." To totally shake him off, Kestrel made up a name on the spot. She quickly thought of all the alphas she'd met on the battlefield over the years, and chose the name of a buddy she was tight with, guessing he wouldn't mind.
"He's a good listener, and we're a perfect fit. Plus, he really likes me and doesn't care about my mistakes."
Right after a bummed-out Tarian took off, Kestrel turned around and smacked right into the guy she'd just made up. This guy, a real war hero who'd taken down tons of enemies, turned a bit pink, looked away, and muttered, "You... when did you figure out that I have a crush on you?"

The Beta Dominates Alphas

At first, Kestrel could understand the bad words the creature was saying. But then the weird sounds got muffled, and she couldn't understand them anymore.

Kestrel felt like she wasn't the one who took down the Queen.

A bunch of times, when her psychic version was attacking super hard, the Queen would suddenly pause for a sec. Like, a kid's hand would reach out and grab her, or some alpha's face would show up and mess up what she was doing.

Everyone knew that the Queen had crazy strong psychic powers. She used to be a big deal in this world. Kestrel even felt like she was no match for her; even the Mantis Queen would only be even with her were she here.

The Queen, who had lived at the top of the Tower for hundreds of years, was basically beaten by herself. Her hunger for power turned her into its slave. She had sucked the life out of so many people to get super strong, and all the leftover feelings of hate and anger inside her finally ripped her apart.

The Tower Melted (1)