Titan (prequel to Octavius)

nine | aftermath

Alejandra and I both freeze, terrified by the sight of my father in front of us. He towers over us in the doorway, his body backlit by the hallway light, hiding his face. 

But I know exactly what expression he's wearing. The same one he wears whenever I lie, or speak back to him. The one before the whips and chains. 

"Alejandra, please go back to your room." His voice is more dangerous than I've ever heard it, more like a snake than a human, too calm, too low. 

I am his prey, hoping that somehow, some god will allow me to turn back the time only a few moments, to avoid this. 

Alejandra stands up from the bed, her face as red as a rose, bleached with embarrassment, with a hint of fear. I know she's more afraid for me than for herself. 

I am able to nod to her slightly, and she runs from the room, closing the door behind me. 

And I am alone. The monster stands before me, seemingly growing taller by the minute, his eyes slits. 

"What were you doing?" He isn't asking. He's waiting for me to say the words. To give him permission to punish me. 

"We were just talking." I choke out. I don't know why I lie. I'll be in pain soon either way. 

My father chuckles, dark, like the rumbling of a train entering a station, and it's as if I was on the platform, and plummeted to the tracks as it reached me. 

I only wish that were the case. 

My father doesn't speak, and I close my eyes, preparing for the blow that will come. 

But it doesn't. I peek open one eye, and he's standing in front of me, a maniacal smile curving his lips, the line like cracks in a broken mirror. 

"Have I taught you nothing?" He asks, slippery. 

"What?" I croak, wringing my hands together. I don't know why he's delaying this. Any other time, he would have beaten me the a pulp by now.  

"You really are an idiot. So goddamn naive, so fucking stupid, to not understand what I've been trying to show you for years. Women are a disease. Telling us that love is what we need, what we should aspire for. They are simply breeders. There is a reason why the alphas are men. Why their mates are lunas. They are not alphas. They are weak, spineless. That girl will destroy you, destroy everything I've attempted to shove into your worthless mind."

"You're wrong." I bark out, and a surge of bravery comes over me. I begin to stand from my bed when the strike finally comes, the back of his hand colliding with my cheek with a sickening crack. 

I fall back to the bed, my face stinging as if a wasp had impaled it. 

"And you are a damn fool. You are no alpha. You are just as bad as your mother. You might as well be dead with her." 

Those words drive into my core, searing my heart. 

"Don't speak about her like that." I growl, my chest beginning to vibrate as my claws peek through my fingertips, piercing my palms. 

My father only chucks, and I watch as his eyes begin to glow red slightly. He's attempting to dominate me, to make me submit to my alpha. 

I stand up from my bed, my back straight. I can feel my wolf screaming at me to shift, to kill him, to finally get rid of the monster that hides in the dark corners of my life. 

"Look at you, attempting to protect a dead bitch. I thought that she would be worthwhile, giving me a son. But I guess she bore a bitch instead. You are never to see Alejandra again. You are never to look at another woman again without my expressed permission." 

And suddenly, I am filled with panic. It's an odd feeling, the fear of losing her. I've only ever been terrified of losing one other person. And I did. 

"You're terrified of being alone, Titan. But all men are alone. They should be. Our only purpose is to rule, to be feared, to carry on our bloodline. We are not loving creatures. You are a failure, but I will not let you embarrass me this way." 

"You can't stop me from seeing her, we live in the same pack. Her father is our guest." I snap, throwing my hands out to the side. 

"You greatly underestimate my abilities, Titan." My father says darkly, and with that, he leaves the room, leaving behind him a cloud of tension and horror that pervades my senses. 

And for a moment, I'm frozen. I cannot move. I don't know what to do. I don't know whether to fight, or to scream. 

So I let my body carry me, and shift. I let out a bloodcurdling howl as I barrel out of my room, throwing the door off its hinges, and leap through the nearest window, shattered glass clinging to my skin and fur and sending jolts of pain down my spine. 

I run to the tree line, snow buried under my paws and nails, but I suddenly can't feel the cold, the ice. I am simply running on fear. 

Trees fly past me like birds, tall and dark in the night air, the full moon shining silver down onto the ground, peeking through the patches between the thick brush of the forest. 

I don't know how long I run, but I don't stop until my knees feel as if they are at the point of snapping in half, and my entire body is numb with freeze. 

And I finally halt, looking around me. I am stuck in a circle of bushes and thick oak trees, the only source of light coming from the moon. 

And I let out another howl, and this one is filled with grief. Mourning for my mother, for myself, for the scars that still paint my back. For Alejandra. 

And I only stop howling when I feel fangs digging into my neck, and the last thing I see before I fade into black is the red eyes of the beast. 

Hello! So, as many of you know, I have been having troubles updating and finding motivation, but since a lot of you have been asking for an update, here you are! I know it's short, but I do want to keep Titan going for a little bit longer. 

I don't think this will be as long as Octavius, since it is just a prequel, but it'll be good, don't worry.