[Dylan]
I saw the shock register on Avira's face as the pack's Alpha made the declaration. I followed the movement of her head, as she shot Beta Maverick a confused look. The Beta who had resumed his seat, was smiling now in victory, and I wondered what exactly was going on.
Rogue Wolf? I asked in my head, and shook my head slightly at the thought. There was no way Avira would be the rogue Wolf, and I wouldn't know. I mean, I was supposed to feel every pain she felt, the pain from shifting not exempted, but I didn't feel any such pain last night or any night before.
From where I sat in the throne room, I watched the pack's worthless warriors pull her roughly to the raised platform where the Alpha's seat was situated, and force her to kneel before the Alpha.
I alternated between watching her and the Beta who seemed to be enjoying the whole thing, and resisted the urge to openly defend her when one of the warriors struck her hard across the face, cutting her lip, and drawing it out blood.
Alpha Demian gave the verdict after some time, and it was death, just as I had feared. There was no way I would let Avira die for a crime she did not commit, and who the fuck passes a judgement without a trial?
"I hereby sentence her to death by the devouring hunt," Alpha Demian declared, and I sighed. This was no pack. Injustice was at its peak, and the Alpha was a sole perpetrator of it.
I peeled my eyes from him, and faced Avira instead, willing her to look at me for the briefest of time even, but she wouldn't meet my eyes even though I was sure that she could feel my gaze on her. She was scared alright, but mostly sad even though she was trying hard not to show it. Her eyes travelled at intervals to the Beta's direction, and somehow she had managed to not let any form of emotion show on her face, not even when the Beta mocked her to her face.
Just what is she made of? Steel?
Alpha Demian sent some of the warriors to retrieve the crown, and for reasons best known to him, Beta Maverick followed them, and to my own horror, Alpha Demian didn't find it suspicious. He must be one hell of a stupid fellow, I thought, and returned my gaze to Avira, who was now having trouble with keeping an emotionless expression.
Poor Avira!
I thought in my head. But how will I help her if the entire pack would chase her all at once? There was no way I would run so fast to get her, and not be joined by one or more bloodthirsty pack members.
I was still thinking when the warriors returned with the crown, and Beta Maverick quickly stepped back into his position.
"Where did you get the crown?" Alpha Demian had asked after examining the crown for a while.
"From her bedroom," Beta Maverick had replied in a voice that was way too loud.
How convenient!
Alpha Demian sent for the wooden box, and began to prepare the items necessary for the Shadowing rite, and I watched, waiting for the right time to strike. Then I saw it, and I felt my heart give way.
Among the items the Beta had brought out was the Lunar lock, as it was called in my pack. The Lunar lock was an ancient magical necklace that had the power to restrict the magical powers of whoever wore it. In this case, Avira's power to shift would be restricted, leaving her in her human form to outrun a few hundreds of wolves.
She wouldn't stand a chance. Not with her fragile human feet or weak human form, I thought dispiritedly but Alpha Demian didn't seem to care. It was what he wanted in fact but I will do everything within my power to stop it.
Alpha Demian ordered Avira out, and wore her the magic necklace after which he proceeded with the Shadowing rite.
The cloud shifted, and daylight was immediately replaced with darkness, and the moon crystal ascended gradually until it took its position above all of our heads. This was followed by loud cries as pack members who were within shifting age cried out in pain as their human form gave way for their wolves to surface.
I was not left out. I too shifted form and became a wolf but it was not so for Avira who all this while, was controlled by the Lunar powers but restricted by the Lunar lock which was around her neck. Her body kept hitting hard on the iron bars of the cage as the Lunar power controlled her but a spark would appear on the moonstone, restricting Avira from shifting.
Soon, every last one of us had shifted except for Alpha Demian and Avira, who as it seemed, had only just realized that the necklace around her neck was the reason she could not shift, and was now staring daggers at it.
Let's make this fun. Let's see how fast her human legs can carry her." Alpha Demian added amidst laughter, and the others joined him by howling loudly. I breathed in relief as I saw a chance to come to her rescue. If only there was a way to communicate to her, and tell her what I needed her to do. If only…
"Run!" Alpha Demian called out so suddenly that Avira flinched. When she regained composure a few seconds later, she sprinted into the nearby bush as fast as her human legs could carry her while the others, following the Alpha Demian's lead, broke into howling to mock her. I had thought that their gasps and murmurings were a way to show sympathy towards Avira but clearly, I was wrong.
She was fast alright, but she was also human, and in my wolf's eye, she was only jogging. I willed her to find a hideous place, seeing how fruitless it would be for her to keep running, and silently thanked the ancestors for the Alpha's decision to have a little fun.
Their howling continued even though Avira had now gone out of sight. I looked around, noting that they were all engrossed in their howling, and weren't paying much attention to the surroundings so I followed my instincts, and noiselessly walked out of the throne room, and dashed into the nearby bush.
It was not the same entrance with which Avira had entered into the forest but it did not matter at the moment. The forest was interconnected, and all I needed to do was locate her, and it was super easy, seeing the bond which we already shared.
I stopped, and listened for her heartbeat which I was sure would increase any time soon. At first there was no sign from her as only the continued howling by the other pack's members was heard. Then I heard it, faintly at first, as it began to build up until I felt my heart banging against my chest as though it was about to burst out of it. The signal was from the East, and East was behind me, so I made a turn, and followed the path which was behind me with so much speed.
A sharp pain on my left leg told me that Avira was injured. The pain did not stop as I increased my pace, and I feared what it was. While my human was screaming snakebite, I was desperately wishing against it but the pain was ascending slowly so that I felt it in the lower part of my shin now.
After racing for about two minutes, and wondering how Avira had managed to cover so much distance within a short time, I emerged from a corner, and saw the unmistakable figure of Avira on the floor.
"Is she alright?" I asked in my head as I moved closer to her, panic-stricken. I got to her side after a few long strides to see that her eyes were shut and her breathing uneven. It was easy to notice the blood on her left foot. I was in my wolf's sight and as usual I had a perfect sight.
I needed to do something about the snake's bite as she was losing blood. I moved quickly away from Avira, and soon located a healing herb which was a common plant in the forest. I returned within a few seconds, and just when I squashed and applied the herb to her foot, I felt the ground reverberate beneath my paws, a signal that the other members of the pack were upon us. I couldn't help the panic that suddenly gripped me, as I searched frantically for a hideous place.
I carried an unconscious Avira, and made a run with her onto the forest while looking around for a place to hide as it was impossible to outrun the entire pack, especially now that I was pulling an unconscious Avira along.
Luckily, I discovered the hidden entrance to a cave, and, breathing with so much relief, I dashed inside inside, pulling Avira along with me. The entire pack ran past the cave a few minutes later, not one of them stopped to peer inside, and I was relieved. I took the herb which somehow had not come off in the process of pulling her along, applied it to the wound andthen I tied the upper part of her left shin with a piece of cloth I got from ripping the shirt I had on.
I thought of making a fire but I remembered that it was day, and there would be sun once Alpha Demian reversed the Shadowing rite, and there would be no need for a fire. Also, smoke from the fire may announce our presence in the cave, and we did not want that.
I stayed back for a few hours, until the cloud shifted back to display a scorching sun. This shift in the cloud was followed by a shift in my form, from wolf to human.
Avira was still unconscious when I left a few hours later. I needed to get my things since the pack was no longer safe for Avira, and by extension, me. It will take Alpha Demian nothing to have me killed alongside Avira should he discover that I had helped in hiding her.
Of course I wandered around the forest until I came out from the bush very close to the Omega's quarters. Luckily, no one was around when I got out, and I quickly slid into the building, to the corner where my backpack was kept. The others were already in their position, and to my relief, they were back to minding their business.
I needed to act normal for the rest of the day so as not to arouse suspicion or draw attention to myself, and the only way to do that was to sleep for the rest of the day, and it was exactly what I did.
When I woke up some hours later, it was already dusk, the pain on my left leg had reduced which was a relief. I discreetly packed my backpack, and sneaked my way into the forest, and headed for the cave where I hoped I would find Avira