Chapter 3: After the Fall

Serena hit the ground hard, pain shooting through her limbs as the crowd of trainees burst into mocking laughter around her. Ryker, her opponent, smirked as he stepped closer, hovering over her.

"You're wasting everyone's time, little runt," he sneered with his arms crossed over his chest. "You should've quit ages ago."

This had been Serena's routine lately as she trained with the other new recruits and refused to submit to the weakness of having no wolf.

Sparring with them helped her grow as it was different from training alone in secret.

She could test her limits because she knew they wouldn't show mercy just because she was weaker and lacked her wolf.

Serena ignored his words. They no longer bothered her as she had heard words that were more insulting than this before.

She forced herself to sit up ignoring the sharp ache in her ribs. Her opponent had hit her hard. She had to learn how to move faster and dodge blows before they landed. Otherwise, she would be seriously injured.

The other trainees murmured in low voices, though they were loud enough for her to hear. They mocked her for not knowing her place and insisting on coming to train without a wolf.

They claimed that she wasn't supposed to be there. Not without her wolf. But she refused to leave no matter how much they tried to push her out and ridiculed her.

"Get up, Serena," barked Jared, the senior warrior overseeing training.

"Get up or walk away." That was what they were all hoping for. For her to walk away like a loser. But she would not give them the satisfaction of seeing her leave in defeat.

Serena's hands dug into the dirt as she pushed herself up. She could feel every muscle in her body protesting. Screaming for her to stop, to get some rest but she knew she was different.

If she doesn't push herself more than the others then she will remain the disgrace they always called her.

Besides, she was not fighting to please others, but to prove to herself that she was better, stronger than they could ever imagine.

So, she met Ryker's gaze with cold defiance in her eyes.

"Again," she whispered after finally managing to stand up and wipe the sweat trickling down her brow with the back of her hand.

Ryker rolled his eyes. "Suit yourself." He took a step back and got into a fighting stance ready to humiliate her again.

Nevertheless, Serena did not falter and held her ground. She fought even more fiercely than a wolf. She would not hit the ground until she was completely spent.

After the training session, Serena lingered at the edge of the training grounds to catch her breath as the others left. They huddled in small groups laughing and chatting, ignoring her like always as they walked away.

It made her look like a small abandoned animal, but she didn't care.

Her parents, Zara and Leon stood off to the side, speaking quietly with Jared. They had always been loyal and strong warriors.

Respected members of the Bloodfang Pack. Unfortunately, when it came to their daughter, disappointment clouded every glance they gave her.

Serena approached them cautiously, hoping for at least a nod of acknowledgment for all the effort she had put in her training. But her father didn't even give as much as a cold glance.

Her mother, Zara's gaze on the other hand flickered briefly with an undetectable emotion. Serena could see the same quiet frustration she always carried when they faced each other.

"Go home, Serena," Zara said; her tone flat. "You'll just end up getting yourself hurt out here."

Serena's stomach twisted with pain. But she managed to keep her expression blank. "I'll be fine."

Leon sighed but didn't argue. "Suit yourself." He said and without another word, they turned away, leaving Serena standing alone.

Looking at her parents' backs as they walked away, Serena couldn't help but wonder if for them having a child was simply an extension of the glory they sought as warriors.

How could parents be so indifferent to the pain of their child? She was already hurting but they made it worse.

It was as if it was her fault that she couldn't shift. Had they ever thought that the fault lay with them? After all, they gave birth to her.

She clenched her fists at her sides, forcing herself to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat. It wasn't anger that she felt, it was just emotional exhaustion.

Her parents' constant disappointed expressions weighed heavily on her and it felt like a heavy rock was pressing on her chest.

That night, Serena slipped out of the pack compound like always. Her steps were as light as a feather as she made her way into the forest.

The woods had become her only sanctuary, the one place where the pack's judgmental gazes and her parents' disappointed ones couldn't follow her.

She reached a small hidden clearing where the moonlight shone through the trees. This was where she trained, night after night, pushing herself to become stronger.

She believed that if she couldn't awaken her wolf, she would have other ways to fight.

She started her secret training with sprints, racing through the trees until her lungs burned. Then she moved to shadowboxing. She imagined every punch and kick that landed on Ryker's smug face. Sweat poured down her skin, but she didn't stop.

After an hour of such drills, she pulled out her daggers. They were stolen from the training grounds, small but deadly, perfect for the kind of an assassin she wanted to become.

Thud. Thud. The daggers hit their mark as they were thrown and embedded deep into the trunk of a nearby century-old tree. Serena stood still to catch her breath. Her resilient heart pounding with satisfaction.

By the time she returned to the Bloodfang pack compound, the first rays of light at dawn were visible. She moved quietly through the yard, hoping to slip back into her room without anyone noticing. But as she rounded the corner, she came face to face with Kai who was standing near the entrance.

He was talking with Kira, his new love interest and the chosen future Luna of the pack.

A few warriors hovered nearby. Kai looked every bit the perfect future Alpha. His posture is confident with a commanding presence.

Serena's chest tightened at the sight of him. There was a time when she believed that they were meant to be together and they would spend their lives in the company of each other.

But that felt like a lifetime ago. She was no longer the naïve girl he humiliated in front of everyone as he decided that she wasn't good enough to stand beside him.

"Serena," Kai's voice called out, stopping her in her tracks.

She turned slowly and met his cold gaze with as much indifference as she could muster.

"Where were you?" he asked with a sharp tone. "You've been sneaking out at night almost everyday. What are you up to?"

Kira shifted beside him, her delicate features twisting into a look of mild concern. "You should be careful out there," she said. "It's dangerous for someone like you."

Serena smiled coldly. "Don't worry about me. I can take care of myself."

Serena hadn't realized that her nightly outings had been discovered. It looked like they just ignored her and let her be because they couldn't care less about the danger her life might be in out there.

She didn't care though.

Kai's expression darkened, but before he could say more, Serena walked past him and headed to her house. She didn't need his concern. She didn't need anything from him.

As the night fell over the forest again, Serena found herself standing at the edge of the forest once more. The pack compound behind her felt suffocating, its walls closing in like a trap.

She knew she couldn't stay here forever. The Bloodfang Pack had made it crystal clear to her that she didn't belong there. Not without her wolf.

However, Serena wasn't ready to leave. At least, not yet.

Her parents might not believe in her. Kai might see her as a failure and reject her, but Serena knew there was strength within her. Strength that was buried deep beneath what everyone could see..

And one day, they would all see it.

Turning to glance at the compound one more time, Serena turned and disappeared into the forest. The trees welcoming her into their quiet embrace.

Her time would come. And when that happened, the Bloodfang Pack would finally understand the power the girl they had cast aside carried.

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