Under The Crescent Veil

2. Unwelcoming arrivals

"What's your name?" was the first thing Nyx heard after an ice-cold bucket of water was thrown at her. She gasped, trying to get the water out of her face, only to realize her wrists were tied behind her back. She shook her head, feeling disoriented. Her memory was blurry, unable to remember what had happened.

Once she laid eyes on a couple of angry-looking werewolves in front of her, she remembered. There were three of them, all wearing mismatched uniforms. The only matching items were their khaki combat boots.

When Nyx noticed the boots, she realized she was lying on the ground. She quickly scrambled up into a sitting position, kneeling on her knees, ready to take action if needed—even with her arms immobilized. She scanned her surroundings and believed she was held in some kind of holding basement, as they were in a cell mostly surrounded by bars and rocky walls. She could see the hallway and who would come down the stairs. A preferable situation for a quick escape, she thought.

"I will ask you again. What's your name?" This time louder. The werewolf's eyes narrowed.

Nyx held her position and kept an inexpressive face.

The guy in the middle, who had asked her twice now, started to growl in frustration. The man on his left looked at him, and as they locked eyes, they communicated without talking. The guy in the middle nodded, giving permission for something unclear.

Nyx wasn't afraid of what was about to happen. She had been trained for this.

The man to her right grabbed her by her short hair and yanked her to her feet, tugging hard. "Spill, princess!"

Nyx laughed, a wild, almost maniacal sound. Then her smile vanished, and she slammed her head into the werewolf's face with all her strength. He staggered back, releasing his grip and causing Nyx to fall to her knees.

Recovering quickly, the werewolf turned back to her and, without warning, punched her hard in the face. Gasping for breath, he snarled, "You're going to regret that, princess."

For two hours, the three werewolves tried to get any information out of the HPS soldier, but she didn't budge. Even with her ribs and one cheekbone broken, multiple bruises, and a bleeding lip and nose.

"For the love of the Moon, speak already!" the middle guy screamed in anger.

Nyx couldn't help but provoke him; it was just hilarious to see three grown men unable to torture information out of a young woman. She spat out the blood in her mouth and said lowly, "Never." A sinister smirk settled on her face, prompting another punch to the face. She chanted again, "In the Shadow of the Moon, Our Watch Ensures Humanity's Safety!"

Nyx expected another blow right after that until, suddenly, a low voice boomed. A big man walked down the stairs and entered the holding cell. "Get her ready for transport," the new man ordered.

The three men looked even more frustrated if that was possible.

"Why, Alpha? We were just getting started," the middle guy questioned.

"Getting started to kill the girl," the Alpha reprimanded. "Anyway, the big boss wants to see her." He nodded toward Nyx. "He was happy to hear that we might have finally captured the Black Veil." He crouched down, leveling his eyes with hers. "Isn't that right, Nyx?"

Nyx tried incredibly hard not to show her surprise. She wasn't aware she had made a name for herself within the werewolf community.

The Alpha had a hard time reading the girl and eventually gave up. He stood up and spoke again, "Or not. He just wants to make sure before we give her a most torturous death."

The three guys sighed in agreement and roughly grabbed Nyx. They seized her by the neck and both arms, leaving no room for her to do anything conspicuous. Once outside, she did try, though, kicking the soldier on his right knee. For a second, she thought she could overpower them, but the Alpha, who had remained out of sight, pushed her hard. She fell hard on the ground and got kicked in her side. A small groan escaped her mouth.

"You are quite cocky, sweetheart, thinking you can handle four werewolves on your own, one of them an Alpha no less." The Alpha tutted.

A wicked grin settled on her lips. "I see no Alpha."

This ticked him off, and he grabbed Nyx by her hair and put his face close to hers. "Oh, I will show you, sweetheart. The big boss doesn't have time for you today, so we will get to know each other tonight." He threw her in the back of a jeep after his threat, and they made their way to the other pack.

The back of the jeep was filthy with mud and sand. It was an uncomfortable, tiny space, walled on all sides. Only a small window connected to the front of the vehicle, but it closed when they drove off, leaving Nyx in the dark.

On the way, she tried to distract herself by counting the time, hoping to get some sense of the distance between her and the headquarters.

Finally, after what seemed like two hours, they arrived at their destination. The jeep came to an abrupt halt, smashing her body to the back. Nyx cursed in pain and annoyance. She could hear the wolves laughing as they stepped out.

"You know, you're all cowards, taunting and hitting me while I am bound with my arms behind my back. Take them off and I will show you what I am capable of," Nyx told them, in an attempt to escape. She knew werewolves' egos could be big and fragile, especially Alphas.

They chuckled. "We have nothing to prove to you," one of them responded.

Maybe they were wrong during training, Nyx thought.

The werewolves dragged her out of the jeep and through the woods. The sun had set, and the sky darkened. This time, the moon appeared in the sky, no longer hindered by clouds.

Nyx tried hard to suppress a scoff. Now the moon was taunting her too, she thought.

She wondered if it all was real. If the supposed 'Moon Goddess' of the werewolves was real. HPS didn't know much about the culture of the wolves, but they did know they honored many gods, one primary being the Moon Goddess. Nyx thought it was nonsense and didn't pay much attention to it.

But right there and then, she couldn't help but think of her classes and question everything again, considering the possibility that the gods might be real. She didn't know why, though. It was a feeling. Maybe.

Or maybe it was fear. Fear of the unknown.

Nyx was snapped out of her deep thoughts by one of the soldiers. "This is our special place for people like you, for HPS scum." A concrete structure was emerging from the forest ground, resembling a bunker. The Alpha walked in front of them and opened the door, revealing a staircase leading down.

It felt similar to the holding basement Nyx had been in before, only this one was built. The other was carved out of rock. The cells here were completely closed off with concrete walls instead of bars. Behind some of them, Nyx could hear grunts of pain.

It reminded her of her own pain. Especially her ribs, which were burning and hurting with each step she took.

The Alpha opened the last cell door in the hallway and signaled to the soldiers to carry the female HPS soldier in. Once inside, her cuffs were connected to a chain hanging from the ceiling. Nyx could barely stand, her toes grazing the floor.

On her left, she saw a wall full of tools meant to inflict pain. It took a lot for her to hide her anxiety, but she kept telling herself she was trained for this and would withstand anything they threw at her. Literally.

The Alpha stood in front of the wall, his eyes wandering over the implements. He finally settled on a long whip.

He walked around her, playing with the whip in his hand, trying to intimidate her. Once he stood behind her, he said, "Let's get to know each other, sweetheart." And then he began.