Raze {Wolf Rebellion II}

Chapter 8~Lions~

And you thought the lions were bad,
Well they tried to kill my brothers,
And for every king that died,
Oh they would crown another,

-Bastille, "Daniel In The Den"

Chapter 8~Lions~

I'm going to strangle Claret, damn the consequences.

My head pounded as I struggled to get up, to gain control of my limbs again. How many times can they knock me out with sedatives before something goes wrong? I had a feeling it wasn't that many.

Bright lights blinded me, and I had an awful idea about what was coming. I managed to push myself to my feet, just as I realized where I was.

"Trial one, phase three. Group C. One-oh-eight." The voice droned through the room, making me groan in frustration and anger. How many times would they put me through this? How many times could I do this before I was hurt-seriously hurt?

I'd never known Claret to do anything without a goal in mind. She wasn't one to waste time and resources for something pointless. What was her endgame? I already knew she was trying to force me to shift, but we'd already gone through this. Why?

I couldn't risk being stupid. If I took one step out of line, Kat would suffer. Get through it. Get through it and figure out how to survive long enough to get out. That was all I could do right now.

I waited for the knife to appear like last time, but the longer I stared at the wall, the more my stomach sunk to my feet.

Then the far wall began to slide up slowly.

Oh shit.

Adrenaline shot through me as I slid my left leg backwards, testing its weight. I still didn't trust that it was completely healed. I pulled my hands up to protect my chest, though I knew it'd be almost useless. I wasn't in good shape, and I had no weapon. Even in the field agents were never defenseless. Was Claret that ready to kill me?

I shook my head as I realized what I was seeing below the wall. Not paws, but boot-clad feet.

I let out a string of curse words as the wall slid up enough for the wolf to duck below the only barrier separating us.

Get ready.

I kept my eyes on the wolf as he took a step forward and cocked his head. "So little red, it seems one of us is meant to kill the other." His eyes darkened to black as he looked over me, and I wanted to wipe the smirk off his face with my foot.

I gritted my teeth, preparing to move the second I needed to. I couldn't waste precious energy playing keep away. Watch him. Don't take your eyes off him.

He chuckled, a deep raspy sound that made me want to take a step back. "Well, I trust you know it's nothing personal."

Then he lunged.

I jumped sideways, my body already two steps ahead of my brain. Is he allowed to shift? How far can he go?

Before I could get a hit in, the wolf whirled my way. My head screamed at me to move and I barely managed to jump back before razor sharp claws took a swipe at me.

A loud beep sounded and the wolf flinched, momentarily forgetting me. That was when I noticed the thin metal band circling his neck. A shock collar. Probably the only thing preventing him from shifting and killing me outright. Well, now you know he can't shift.

I took my chance before he could recover and shot forward. My leg shot out, catching his feet and tripping him. As he fell I leaned forward, my fist making contact with his jaw.