Hidden Essence Book I - The Bloody Moon

Chapter XIII

--------------------

Chase. The son of the Alpha of the Red Moon Pack. One of the strongest and biggest packs in the entire world. They're known for their numberous pack houses spread over the globe, their fighting skills, their dominant attitude and their prominent gold yellow eyes. He has lived in Canada with his parents in the head pack house for sixteen years and when he reached his golden age, he moved to South Carolina in one of the other pack houses with his friends and his cousin Drew. Packs usually live close together, because that's what makes them stronger, but the strength of the Red Moon Pack is so towering that they have developed a new way of living seperately, but still in groups. Chase is a healer, which means that he owns the basic abilities of an average werewolf which consist of superstrength, superspeed, a highly developed sense of smell and hearing and self-healing, but he also has the ability to heal himself and others faster than normal. He was given these powers by nature on his sixteenth birthday. His parents were really excited, because they weren't expecting that their son would have more powers than the normal wolves. Therefor his father delayed his 'birthday gift' which was becoming the next Alpha. He thought his son needed a little more training because of his new unknown powers. Chase had trained for two years straight, getting used to his healing and the effect it has on him and the ones he heals. After those two years he was ready, ready to become the next Alpha of his pack. Then one day he was playing with one of his best friends, Matthew. They were running around through the woods playing 'catch'. They were very rough, but because of their wolf-strength and self-healing they didn't mind. They did a lot of these 'catch and fight'-sessions to fulfill their wolves' needs, so this was no occasion. But then Chase bit Matthew a little too hard in his leg and Matthew lost conscious. He tried to heal his friend, but like he said: "Some wounds, you cannot heal." He brought Matthew to the pack's medico. The medico should've known what to do, but he didn't. He tried everything that was in his power to save Matthew, but nothing worked. Matthew was highly injured and it turned out that he was very weak to begin with. That day, Matthew died of blood loss. Chase didn't want to play anymore, afraid of hurting someone. The Alpha, his dad, then told him that he was not ready to succeed him. Even though he knew his dad was right, it hurt him deeply and it still does. He now only fights to kill, not to play nor to train, but to kill.

That's who he is. What he is. How he is. I've kept asking other questions about his dad and what his mother thought about all of this and about his other friends, but he didn't want to answer. We had a deal, so I did as promised and got into the car with him. I asked him multiple times where we were heading off to, but he always replied: "To safety." I'm kind of glad that I have someone with me that will protect me of current danger. It's like I don't have to worry about the other wolves or just anybody else anymore. We've built a kind of mutual trust by telling each other's life stories which is very relieving too.

My head is now pasted against the window of the passenger seat. We've been driving for what feels like days even though it's only been a few hours. I've tried to sleep, but I couldn't stop thinking about him for some reason. The ride has been very silent. I don't really know what to say to him and I assume he thinks the same about me. Or he's just not in the mood to talk. Am I even in the mood to talk? I used to never be in that mood. Sage, you're going nuts because of a werewolf. I shrug away the unfamiliar feelings and sigh. The sun is slowly going down now. This has been one hell of a week. First I get attacked by a weird blonde dude that eventually turns out to be a werewolf along with one of my co-workers, my boss and one of our usual clients. Then I befriend a wolf that turns out to be a werewolf as well. We both get ourselves locked into the basement of a pack house. We escape, find each other again, argue, I cry to the point that I just want to die. And now I'm here, in his car, going to I don't have clue where. What a journey.

"You okay?" He asks out of the blue and pulls me out of my thoughts. "Uhm, yeah? Why?" I ask sounding a little confused. Did I say something? "Your heart is beating too quickly." He plainly says. Oh my god, can he sense that too? Get used to it, dude. "Yeah that's what happens when you start thinking about life." I say with a deep sigh to follow. I hear a quiet chuckle escape his mouth. "You need to stop freaking out." He says. I look at him and see that he is still focused on the road. "You say that as if it's so easy. I have no home anymore, no job, no family, no friends... Nothing." I sigh even more and focus on the upcoming moon. "Hey, what am I then?" He sounds fakely offended. I look at him and see the 'fakely offended'-look on his face. It almost makes me laugh, but I am in no mood for such things. "My bodyguard." I state a little harshly, but no offence is taken as he smiles. "I can live with that." He says and I betray myself by snickering a little. "Ah, there it is, the little chuckle." He pokes my cheek and I playfully jerk away whilst snickering even more. "How in the world do you do that?" I ask and catch him off guard with that question. "What exactly?" He looks at me now. "You're making me laugh and stuff. How do you do that, because I honestly feel like dying inside..." I honestly tell him and he smirks. "I'm not the one doing that, it's you that wants to laugh." He explains and I nod. Do I really want that? I don't feel like I do, it must be him and his weird wolf powers or something. "How do I stop it then?" I ask and he looks at me confused. "Why would you want to stop laughing? Isn't that what you wanted? To be happy?" He says and my brain sighs. He still believes in happiness, how cute. "Happiness doesn't exist. If it's there, it's temporary and once it leaves, it hurts. I don't want to risk being happy, because I'm tired of being hurt, you see?" I explain as he nods. "But avoiding happiness is making you as sad as not having it, you know..." "I know, that's why I hate life so much." He doesn't say anything about that. I don't blame him for not understanding, no one does really. Everybody hopes, even I sometimes do, but then I betray myself. I lay back on my seat and admire the beauty of the moon. "I love the moon." I bring out. At this point my brain is just randomly generating stuff and propulsing them out of my mouth. As I said that the moon shone even more, that might've just been my imagination. I sound drunk. "Why is that?" He goes in on my randomness. "I don't know, it just looks so shiny. Like a diamond in the sky, it looks so precious." I ramble and he giggles. Damn, I just embarrassed myself. I feel my cheeks heat up and try to hide them with my hair. "Don't be ashamed, it's a... nice opinion." His hand brushes the hair away from my face and I take a peek at him. "Then why did you laugh?" I pout as I look at his wide smirk. He was laughing at me, the jerk. "It was just... random." I can tell he is holding back his laugh. "Don't judge me, I'm tired." Is my weak argument and that brings the laughter out of him. "Aw, poor you." He jokes and I punch his arm, but it makes him laugh even more. "Jerk." I mumble. This is weird, I'm having fun. What the heck is this all about? "Get some sleep, Raven." He jokes and something in stomach twitches at that nickname. He did not just call me Raven. I glare at him and when he notices he starts laughing uncontrollably. What is his problem? "I knew you were going to hate me for saying that." He says in between his laughter. "Well, you better not call me that again. It's annoying, dude." I scold him. "I think it suits your haircolor." He points out the obvious. "No shit Sherlock." I retort and he chuckles. "I like it when you're mad, you're like a cute little kitten when you do that." He pokes my cheek as he says that. I hate it when people belittle me and poke me, it makes me feel weak. "Says the dog." I snap and with that I mute his laughter.