FRAGILE

Chapter 31: The Breaking Point

He carefully lowered his hips, just touching the head to his fluttering entrance, when a low growl rumbled through the room. Levi's breath caught in his throat as Maximus's body tensed, his muscles rippling beneath the sheets. The growl grew louder, more dangerous, as Maximus's wolf sensed something was wrong.

And then, in a blur of movement, Maximus's eyes snapped open. He stared into Levi's wide, guilty eyes with a disoriented rage. His hands moved to Levi's hips with a crushing grip. He flipped them, quickly pinning the smaller male below him, eyes wide with horror as he realized what his mate intended to do.

Levi trembled below him, yet the omega still reached for Maximus's length, trying to guide it back towards his center, hoping his Master was only displeased with his position atop him. 

"I'll be good for you, please. Just close your eyes, and you can pretend I'm not filthy. Just let me be good." Levi was pathetic. He knew the Alpha was disgusted; he hadn't even prepared slick for the dominant wolf, he didn't think he deserved it.

He didn't know if he was even allowed to slick himself. What did his Master want? Did he want him to release the pheromone-filled liquid?

Thomas had liked the smell when he had first begun dominating him and forcing responses from his body. But then Thomas said it was bad, that a bad slave like 2197 didn't deserve to slick.

He would be good. 

Thomas liked it without slickness; it was better that way. It was tighter - until he tore. Then, it was the same mess; instead of clear slick, he had to worry about staining things with his blood.

Maximus was unaware of Levi's internal battle. Overwhelmed and ashamed of his body's reaction. His mate had been so close to doing something so awful, turning something meant to be shared among mates as a sign of love into an act of desperation—a desperation to serve Maximus against his will.

He couldn't do this anymore, and he couldn't handle it.

For the first time in his mate's presence, Maximus shifted.

Bones cracked and reshaped, fur burst through his skin, and in an instant, Maximus's wolf stood towering over Levi, massive and terrifying. Levi gasped, stumbling back as the sheer force of the Alpha's dominance overwhelmed him. His heart raced, panic surging through his veins as the wolf's eyes locked onto him, glowing with fury and command.

Maximus's wolf growled low in his throat, his teeth bared as he advanced on Levi, his massive form filling the room with an overwhelming presence. Levi trembled, his body shaking violently as he cowered before the wolf. His mind screamed at him to submit, to offer himself, but something was different this time.

Maximus's wolf wasn't there to hurt him.

The Alpha's wolf snarled again, a deep, guttural sound that reverberated through Levi's chest. He didn't want Levi's submission, not like this. He wanted something more, something deeper. He wanted Levi's wolf.

Maximus's wolf loomed above Levi, a powerful, hulking figure of raw strength and command. His fur bristled, black as the deepest night, his golden eyes gleaming with authority. With a swift, forceful swipe of his massive paw, Maximus knocked Levi onto his back, the air rushing from Levi's lungs as his body hit the floor. The force was overwhelming, not aggressive but undeniably dominant, leaving no room for argument or resistance.

Levi gasped, eyes wide, heart racing. The weight of Maximus's presence pressed down on him like a mountain, the sheer force of his dominance filling the room, tangible and inescapable. His body trembled under the pressure, every inch of him alive with the awareness of who—no, what—stood above him.

This should have terrified him. The Levi who had been trained and broken, conditioned to expect pain and submission, should have cowered. But instead, something else stirred deep inside Levi's trembling body.

It was faint at first, a flicker of warmth in the cold, numb depths of his mind. Something ancient, something primal. His wolf—silent for so long, caged and suffocated under years of torment—shifted within him, stirring against the darkness that had kept it buried. Levi's breath hitched, his chest tightening as the familiar presence began to push forward, demanding to be set free.

The room around them was thick with tension, the very air vibrating with the intensity of Maximus's growl, low and commanding. The Alpha's massive head lowered, his breath hot against Levi's skin as he nudged Levi with his snout. His intentions were clear: he wasn't here to harm Levi—he was here to unleash him.

Levi's mind raced in confusion and panic. He didn't know how to shift, didn't know if he even could anymore. His wolf had been locked away, trapped behind walls Thomas had built inside his mind, reinforced with pain and fear. Levi had learned to suppress it, to forget it even existed.

But Maximus's wolf wouldn't allow that. He growled again, a deep, guttural sound that shook Levi to his core, making his very bones vibrate with the demand to obey. The command wasn't verbal—it was instinctual, primal. Maximus's dominance was undeniable, but instead of crushing Levi, it was pulling something out of him, calling to the part of him that had been silenced for too long.

Levi's body trembled violently, his breath coming in short, gasping bursts. The walls in his mind—Thomas's walls—felt suffocating now, more oppressive than ever. They were meant to keep his wolf locked away, meant to break him, to make him obedient. But now, with Maximus's wolf standing over him, Levi could feel those walls beginning to crack under the weight of the Alpha's power. His wolf surged against them, claws scraping, teeth gnashing, desperate to be free.

Maximus's wolf, sensing the struggle within Levi, pressed his body closer, his immense warmth seeping into Levi's shaking form. His growl became softer, encouraging, but still firm. There was no backing down now. Maximus's wolf was demanding Levi's freedom, demanding that Levi let his true self out.

Levi's eyes squeezed shut as the pressure mounted inside him, building until it felt like he might break apart. The walls Thomas had built felt like iron bands wrapped around his mind, tightening, suffocating. But with Maximus here, so close, so powerful, the cracks in those walls widened.

Levi's breath hitched again, his body convulsing as he fought against the chains of his conditioning. His mind screamed with fear, with the memory of pain and punishment, with the relentless echo of Thomas's voice reminding him that he was nothing, that he wasn't allowed to be whole. But beneath that fear, Levi's wolf roared—a sound Levi hadn't heard in years. The part of him that had been beaten into silence was now clawing its way to the surface, refusing to be subdued any longer.

Maximus's wolf growled once more, this time louder, more insistent. The sound vibrated through Levi's chest, awakening something deep inside him, something long buried and desperate for release.

And then, with a final, desperate push, Levi's world shattered.

The walls in his mind crumbled.

Levi's wolf burst free.

A surge of energy ripped through him, violent and raw, flooding his senses with power and instinct. His body began to shift, bones snapping, muscles stretching, fur erupting from his skin. It wasn't painful—it was exhilarating, like breathing for the first time after being underwater for too long. His white fur, once hidden, now gleamed in the moonlight that filtered through the window, bright and pure against the shadows of the room.

Levi's wolf—small, white, and fragile-looking—stood beneath Maximus's towering black form, but it didn't feel weak. For the first time in what felt like a lifetime, Levi felt whole. His wolf was free, standing proudly, its golden eyes wide with awe and relief. The fear that had once gripped him so tightly began to melt away, replaced by a quiet strength, a determination that had been buried deep within him.

Maximus's wolf let out a soft, approving rumble, his massive frame lowering to nuzzle Levi's wolf. It was a gesture of acceptance, of protection, of reassurance. Levi's wolf responded in kind, nudging against Maximus's fur, instinctively seeking the comfort of his mate.