The Alpha and Her Beta

Chapter Forty-Two: Maimed

Chapter Forty-Two:

Maimed

Within a blink of an eye all hell had broken loose. I had charged him and in the split second before I reached him I shifted into my monstrous wolf form. Alpha Jackel fell to the ground roughly after I barreled into him, smacking his head against the grassy ground. Standing over him, maw bared wide, I didn't hesitate to tear into his thigh.

The sharp teeth that peeked out from my lips tore into his flesh far easier than my earlier form. Even as Alpha Jackel shrieked underneath me and writhed in pain, I couldn't get much enjoyment out of my nearing victory. The shift had torn my wounds further, making them bleed far more profusely and allowing the silver to spread quicker. Luckily, the silver dagger was still lodged within my upper abdomen. I would have to end this quickly if I didn't want the dagger to become dislodged during the scuffle.

Lost in my thoughts, I hadn't noticed that Alpha Jackel was preparing to punch me in the face until it was too late. A yelp escaped my maw as he slammed his fist into the wound he had carved into my face. Detaching myself from him I bounded backwards, trying to silence my low whines. My wounds ached horribly, and the silver poisoning them only made the wounds more sore and painful. His punch hurt far worse than I would have expected.

The mangled alpha climbed to his feet, and that alone was a feat I didn't deem possible at this point. With a shattered ankle, a chewed up thigh and wounded tendons I didn't think he would be able to stand up again. I took a moment to shake out my fur, as if I could shake off the pain, before I began circling him.

I was crouched lowly against the ground, prowling around him like a lioness on the hunt. My tail dragged against the grass, not swaying in the slightest. My ears were plastered against my skull, hackles raised with my lips peeled back in a silent snarl. I didn't make a sound, and I certainly didn't get any closer to him. I prowled around him endlessly, just to make the point that he was trapped with nowhere to go.

He looked nervous, and his anxiety only seemed to grow the longer I prowled around him. Sweat dripped down his pale skin, and that paleness came from either his blood loss or his fear. I scented the air after noticing a slight tremble to his hands, searching for the scent of his fear that I wished for. But, just as before, it was barely there.

I darted towards him, taking a swipe at his shins with my large paw. His blood painted the blades of grass before him as I ran past him, returning to prowling about. He teetered on his wounded legs, looking as though he barely had the strength to stand. Which would explain why he had yet to shift– he didn't have the strength to do so.

I darted back towards him once more, this time aiming for the ankle I had already maimed. Chomping down on it roughly I pulled his foot out from under him, shaking my head back and forth fiercely. Alpha Jackel shrieked, unable to stop himself as he felt his flesh tearing as I shook his foot while his tibia and fibula snapped under the pressure of my powerful jaws. A sickening sound of tearing flesh sounded as I tore his foot free of his leg, tossing it to the side without a care.

Alpha Jackels' shriek deepened into that of a bellow, his hands reaching down to grip the stump I had left him with. Blood spurted from the wound with a blind abandon, the blood flow not slowing at all despite his efforts. Taking a few steps to the side I got a view of his unprotected sides, prompting me to dart in and take a bite. The flabby flesh was soft and tore nearly without any resistance, leaving a bloody crater in its place.

I took a few mindful steps backwards before spitting out his flesh and the scraps of his clothes that I tore like it was spoilt food. There was a wild look in Alpha Jackels' eyes, the look of an animal that new its death was imminent. I returned to what I had been doing previously, prowling around him.

My maw was soaked in his blood, to the point where it dripped down in a steady trickle with every step I took. I licked my lips, staring at him as I prowled around him. He was visibly shaking, a tremor quaking through his whole body. Pain wafted off of him in waves, showing just how much I've affected him even though he tried to suppress his pain from showing on his features.

The next thing that wafted through the air nearly made me pause. Fear. The smell of it was so prominent that a few of the wolves witnessing the duel looked at him in confusion. It was weak of an alpha to show fear, so this was probably the first time the Jackel wolves smelled their own alphas fear. I couldn't stop myself from reveling in that scent, and I was barely able to keep my eyes trained on my prey. Wanting nothing more but to close my eyes and enjoy that bittersweet scent.

It was just as I had remembered it to be– the sweetness of a fine dessert wine but laced with the bitterness of tobacco aged to perfection. A scent to die for, just because you could easily tell just how rarely the scent was released from the aged aspects of it. And it was obvious that I wasn't the only one that took a liking to that scent. I could feel the demon waking up from its slumber.

That feeling of something slinking about in the depths of my conscious came to life. It started out as nothing but a slight movement, like it was stretching after a long peaceful nap. The feeling itself was odd, feeling something moving about within me when it was something I had no control over. But its little stretch was just the beginning.

It slowly crept to the surface, taking its time as if it wasn't all that interested. At that point I could feel it crawling up to the surface, almost as if it was scaling the depths of my conscious with curved claws. It was a somewhat ticklish feeling, and odd with how I could pinpoint how close to the surface it was.

Paying far too much attention to the demon within, I had stopped prowling about Alpha Jackel. Pretty much stopped paying attention to him in general, far more interested in the demon as it came to a stop just before the surface. Close enough to be aware of everything that was going on, of everything that I was doing, but not far enough to take control. Just as how I felt it crawl through my consciousness, I could feel it peering through my eyes. Smelling what I smelt, and tasting the blood that coated my tongue. As our senses melded I began to get that rush of power that I felt the last time we were in this state, a power that seemed far more addictive and potent than before.

At this point, wouldn't everything just be ours instead of mine?

"Y-you, your eyes!" Alpha Jackel gasped out, surprisingly close. "They're black!"

I stood a couple of paces away from him, far closer than I had been earlier. It seemed as though I had stalked towards him subconsciously. I tilted to my head to the side, curiously, not knowing what he was speaking of. Knowing that there wasn't much he could do at this point I turned away from him, looking over to where my family stood. The looks on their faces said it all, the shock and concern. Alpha Jackel must've been speaking the truth.

I turned back to Alpha Jackel, fully prepared to put an end to this farce. Only to face a skittish wolf submerged in its last throes of desperation before he met his end. He struck out, blindly, with his right fist. Almost as if it was second nature I dropped my maw wide and savagely caught his punch in my maw, crushing the bones in his hand with a few loud harsh chomps.

As fresh blood coated my tongue I could immediately taste the difference. The scent that had caught my attention so well earlier, flavored his blood just as much as I thought it would've. It was as if his fear and adrenaline seasoned his blood making it bittersweet, like dark chocolate.

At the flavor a euphoric feeling rushed through me, and I was shocked to notice that I was feeling the emotions of the demon as well. Something that hasn't happened before, the demon having emotions for me to feel. We both genuinely enjoyed the taste and had a delicious satisfaction from it, but what I felt from the demon was more of a blissful happiness. And that bliss sent me another rush of heart pumping adrenaline and power, as if to reward me for the treat I had given it.

I dropped his hand,licking my lips once more before diving in for the kill. Prompted all the whileby the gleeful demon within.