A COURT OF SHIFTERS AND SECRETS

S E V E N T E E N

NOVA 🌙

I growled muttering profanities to myself as I stomped back and forth across the space in the little zen garden behind the University that Jade dragged me too.

"I..." Jade murmured "I mean...that wasn't the worst I've seen her be to someone."

I paused, sending her a look "She gets worse?"

Jade nodded.

"One time, this girl I knew had to drop out of The Academy because Saoirse thought she was ogling Alpha Fenrir."

I gaped at her "She made someone drop out because she didn't like a girl looking at Phoenix?"

"And the worse part was that the girl wasn't even looking at him" Jade sighed "She just had a lazy eye."

I choked on a gasp "What the Hell?"

"Poor girl was bullied so bad that she became a Lone."

I stared at her in confusion "What's a Lone?"

She blinked at me "Sometimes, I forget how little you know for being an Heir."

"Tell me about it" I sighed "I feel like I'm always the last to know things."

"It'll get better the longer you're here" she said, her tone sympathetic "You have to remember that we were all raised around this lifestyle. It's a lot to condense nineteen years of learning into a few days of being here."

I sent her a smile "That's why you're quickly becoming one of my newest best friends."

"An honor I gladly accept" She smiled back at me "A Lone is a wolf who chooses a life outside of a Pack."

"Like a Rogue?"

Her lips quirked "How do you know about Rogues?"

"I read a lot of Supernatural Romances" I shrugged "Some of the authors liked to explain pack dynamics to their readers."

"Well then" she said "What do you know about Rogues?"

"Not a lot" I admitted "Only that they're usually the bad guys in stories."

"That's partially correct" Jade said "Rogues are the wolves who are thrown out of Packs after they commit unspeakable crimes. Wolves who were apart of packs usually suffer from withdrawals when suddenly cut off from their Pack and their Alphas. Rogues arise when the insanity takes over from being detached from their Packs for too long, causing them to lose all sense of rationality and moral righteousness. After a while, their humanity becomes non-existent as they're led by their predatory instincts, killing anything in sight without hesitation."

"Can they be cured?" I asked in curiosity.

She shook her head "The Penta's tried to figure out a way to tame them and reverse the psychosis but nothing they've ever tried has worked."

"So what happens to them?"

"They're usually put down."

"What?" I gasped "They're killed? And that's the only way?"

She nodded.

"And everyone's okay with that?"

"It may sound awful Nova but that's the way it is" she murmured "Because when it comes down to it, it's either us or them."