Onyx (boyxboy)

Chapter 3: False Alarm

CASPIAN'S POV

With the pack's safety in mind, I raced forward with my eyes targeted on a bouncy rabbit that was taunting my hunger. My appetite was tested with its white tail lapping upwards and downwards. When I finally caught up to the tiny figure, I sunk my canines in it and laid it down on the ground, not giving it any sliver of chance at suffering and withering.

I sniffed. This is old meat.

With my hunger still unfulfilled, I abandoned the carcass that no longer smelled appealing to me, and raced back toward the pack house. My tail bounced with every step, mirroring the rabbit that was once alive. My footsteps were rushed and heavy, creating distinct thuds as my paws landed on the soil. The leaves shuffled beneath me as I huffed and puffed.

As the pack house faded into vision, an unsettling feeling fell over me and I took in the ambience that was not relaying the usual scent and vibe the territory had. There was a vague stench of something almost too familiar. I anticipated the discovery but headed straight to my office and shifted, although ours is a more or less traditional pack, a sense of bashfulness is encouraged hence I still needed clothes for later. My Beta was informed of this through our link.

REGAN'S POV

My body jolted awake with the sound I recognized as Elfian's, the Beta, yelling "Oy! Good morning sunshine!" My body was still physically exhausted even after what felt like an eternity of sleep. It was like my system needed to cleanse itself and catch up on the rest that I missed for the past few years. The lethargy was making me weak, so I did not make any verbal response, just looked at him.

"Eat up, felon. Alpha is coming to see you and we don't want him thinking we starved our little princess." His eyes glinted. A slab of meat was placed on the ground as he unlocked the door, I figured because the Alpha was coming to see me anyway. I did not shift out of my wolf form but gladly devoured the food, it was odd tasting raw meat with the human tongue. On top of it, I had lived as a rogue for years hence more comfortable in that form.

The meat was all I need to fill my stomach slightly and replenish my energy. I was sick of running away, but the pack Beta on his own was not in any way kind so I was starting to count my blessings. I had been planning on escaping sooner or later so I thought this was the right time since I was already out of the cell boundaries. I knew there were two men guarding outside the dungeon walls, but none in this small compartment. I gathered all the drive I could within the limitations of my fatigue and in a flash, bolted out of the dungeon. I was thrilled with excitement as the chill of the wind blew through my furs and the scent of nature's earth entered my nose. I swerved in alternating directions and looked back and to my utmost pleasure, there was neither a human nor a wolf in sight. I presumed that I had been too quick for them to catch on and too puzzling in route for them to have trailed behind.

As soon as I felt I was distanced enough from the dungeon to not have been sensed, I slowed down to the smell of a dead prey and let my coat bask in the nonconformity. I shuffled toward it and recognized the bite marks that had been left on its neck as a fellow wolf's. Besides its death penalty, it had not been touched so I went deeper and took a whiff to find out why. It smelled old yet, endearing and comforting at the same time. I sniffed once more, how strange, the scent was almost familiar.

I dismissed that thought as lethargy taking its toll on me and dived into the meat. No prey was too old or too sick to be consumed, what a waste for the wolf that had left it. Savoring every strand of muscle the whole time, I was enveloped by the bizarre impression that I was ingesting my mate.

Still keeping the knowledge in mind that seldom wolves are born with the blessing in disguise of not being able to identify their respective mates. But ha, mate? Rabbit? Must be the overtiredness tricking me once again.

I snapped out of it when a howl broke through the woods. One that resonated and triggered something in me, I realized then that this was a warning as the wolf was about to hunt me down. I released the rabbit's flesh from my jaw and instantaneously dashed where my paws would take me. I was starting to get alarmingly aimless with my directions, but I kept on going in a random manner because I could feel the presence growing closer. The sound of my heavy pants and twigs scrunching underneath me echoed through the forest as I raced against my lifeline.

My safety and enjoyment as a rogue was thinning out as the days flew by, I felt truly dazed of my purpose in this world. Did I live just to run away and hide?

The presence had gotten further than before and I thought I had successfully outrun him maybe because my wolf figure was smaller and lighter. Splashes ruffled on the pool when I landed myself in a deep body of water in the middle of a clearing. The coast was empty so I could quench my thirst and wash my coat a bit, I thought.

I sunk deeper into the mass and rubbed my fur. My head felt lighter. I let my guard down and relaxed. I was living in the moment, I deserved this.

I let my head stay submerged in the water for a while but spontaneously jerked up when I heard leaves being crushed in the distance. Damn, the wolf must have caught up. I was dumb to have reacted so instinctively to the sound, should have just stayed under. It can surely sense me now.

I hopped out of the pool and immediately made a run for it.

A/N: hope to hear your feedback on this long-awaited update :-)