Beta's Second Chance

Explode

Matthias and Rickon arrived at a dark forest close to the pack's tourist village. They stood before a large, thick tree with three large boulders in front of it. The Alpha mumbled a sentence, and one of the boulders moved to the side until it hit the other boulder next to it; it was an underground entrance. The underground entrance was dark, but thanks to their werewolf night vision, they could see what was beneath; they walked down a pair of stairs. It was dark; only a dim light was seen through one of the many slightly opened doors. Outside the door was a pack member who was at the scene. "Alpha."

"Did the hunter talk?"

"He refused to speak but would only do so until you arrived, Alpha." He opened the door; Matthias and Rickon entered. They were in a pitch-dark cell; the walls were made of concrete and metal. The room was a prison, which was one of many. The underground prison had twenty prison cells in each row, which could fit eight prisoners each. There were no windows, and the prisons had a single light bulb. The prison cells were barren; there was no bed or anything to comfort prisoners.

In the center of the prison was a dimly lit light bulb that looked like it would give out soon. Beneath it was the hunter chained on the prison walls; his appearance was slightly visible, but he looked beaten. The others bowed as Matthias entered. The Alpha glared at the hunter, who didn't look up. "Look at me, hunter." He refused to listen; Matthias grew his nails on his right fingers and dug them into the hunter's scalp.

The hunter groaned in pain as he felt the Alpha's nails deep in his skin; blood slowly dripped from the wounds. "OKAY! OKAY! STOP!" The hunter slowly lifted his head as he faced Matthias, Rickon, and the other werewolves. 

"We all saw the body of the werewolf you killed. Were you the one who killed the family of rogues?" The hunter's lower lip was trembling; Matthias still had his nails deep in the scalp. He slowly dug his nails deeper, and the hunter yelped. "I-I didn't kill the rogues, only this one!"

"Do you know who did it?"

"I-I can't say!" The hunter noticed Matthias's anger as his eyes glowed in the dimly lit room. "Y-You don't understand! I d-do want to tell you, but I can't! I-I will be killed if I say anything!"

Matthias and Rickon glanced at one another; the Alpha lessened his grip. "What are you talking about? Are you trying to say that you were forced?"

"Y-Yes! I-I am a hunter from the Atrim Family! However, I wasn't ordered by the leaders!"

It was silent, and Matthias had many questions. However, he did have suspicions from the Atrim Family, but there was a possibility that someone was trying to break the peace. "If you tell me who it is, I promise to keep you safe. It will be your choice if you wish to stay far from the Atrim Family until all is cleared." It was noticed that the hunter's body trembled; he let out low groans of pain. "Who is the one who ordered you to do this?"

"My head, it hurts."

Rickon stepped forward. "Talk, hunter! Who ordered you!"

The hunter breathed heavily, and his groans got louder. "My head! It hurts! He must have planted something in my ear!" Matthias felt something was happening with the human; he motioned his brothers and the others to walk back. Using his werewolf night visions, he noticed something trail down the hunter's ear. The Alpha took a quick sniff; it was blood. The man's groans then became screams. "My head! That son of a bitch planted it in my head! Please help me!"

Matthias and Rickon approached him, trying to stop the hunter from moving around. "What is going on with you? What was done to you?" asked Matthias.

"IT WAS-!" Then, the hunter's head exploded; blood and headpieces were splattered on Matthias, Rickon, and parts of the wall.

The werewolves were trying to process what occurred. Matthias, who stood in front of the hunter, was drenched in blood. His eyes widened in shock as he looked at the headless body.

"WH-WHAT the hell was that!? H-HIS HEAD EXPLODED!" yelled Rickon. 

One of the pack members went to the Alpha and gently shook him. "A-Alpha? A-Are you alright? A-Are you hurt?"

Rickon still trembled as he saw the hunter's body slump as blood poured down like a waterfall. Suddenly, Matthias slowly stood; his back faced the others. "I want you to send a message to the Atrim Family. I want a meeting with them tomorrow. They have until 11 am, or else; I will go to his territory with some of the pack," he ordered one of the pack members. He slowly turned and walked toward the door; blood made his face almost unrecognizable. The Alpha then looked at the other pack members, who trembled at his empty eyes. "Take the body and take it to the morgue. Make sure that the body is guarded and no one takes it."

"Y-Yes, Alpha." 

Matthias walked out of the cell and out of the underground prison. Matthias stood still as he sat on one of the nearby boulders and wiped out some of the blood from his face. The Alpha realized that their enemy was more formidable than he anticipated. He had to get answers as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, Jessica was in her guest room, lying on the bed, looking at the ceiling. She was tired of being in her room and decided to get fresh air. She left her room and went to the living room, where she saw Laura helping Waylen practice tracing words.

Laura heard Jessica get out of her room and looked up. "Oh, Jessica. How are you feeling?"

"I-I'm okay. If it's okay, I want to take a walk."

"I don't think it would be a good idea. The forest is vast, and you could get lost."

Jessica smiled. "I'll be fine. I won't walk far. I will return once I see that I am far from the house."

Waylen looked at the women; he was tired of doing writing practice and wanted a chance to go outside. "Hey, mommy. Can I go with her? I can protect her since I know the way back to the house." Waylen displayed his innocent look.

Laura knew that her son was trying to get away from writing, but he was behaving, and she would be comfortable with them knowing one another. "Oh, alright. Would that be okay with you, Jessica?"

"Of course. I am getting fond of the little one."

"I'm going to wear his sweater; you can wait outside."

When Jessica left the house, Laura went to Waylen's room and got his favorite red sweater. She knelt before him. "Remember what your father and I told you; don't say anything about werewolves. Jessica is human and doesn't fully understand our kind. Do you understand, young man?" she asked while putting the sweater on him.

"I know, mommy! I can't keep Jessica waiting!" Once done, he exited his room and left the house where Jessica waited. "Let's go, Jessica! I know a safe path!" Waylen motioned Jessica to follow him. Jessica giggled; Laura stood by the door, shaking her head. The duo walked on a path to the pack's left side; the trees were plenty, but not too much where the light was blocked. Jessica felt at ease as the trees surrounded her, but she couldn't help but feel amused with Waylen's excitement as he explained the forest and his favorite food. About half an hour later, they arrived at the end of the path, where a large tree blocked their way. "Come on, we can walk back to the other side!"

The duo were about to turn but stopped when they saw a woman blocking their path. Jessica couldn't believe she hadn't heard the woman approaching them. What made her anxious was the woman's state. The woman's hair was in disarray; the hair tips looked sticky. There were bags under her eyes, which also looked tear-stricken. Her makeup made her look gaunt and insane; her clothes were partially ripped and stained. Jessica got out of her shock and motioned Waylen to go behind her. "Wh-Who are you?"

"Y-You are the bitch that took the love of my life. I'm Andrea, and I'm going to kill you."