(This is what the Central Pack looks like above)
TW: these next two chapters contain heavy material dealing with both physical abuse, sexual abuse and torture. If you cannot handle said themes please wait till chapter 27 is updated.
"I often question whether I am cursed."
Lana's shaky hands grip the calloused rubber of the car tire. She swears she had never driven that fast in her life. She swerved and skidded so many times she wondered why every single policy car in China wasn't on her tail, threatening arrest with compact black revolvers. Lana's fists were clenched, knuckles a lighter shade than her usual jade skin. Her mouth was pressed into a thin line as her heart beating wildly in her chest.
"I often questioned whether I am cursed."
The words of a man she so wished she could forget rang true in her buzzing ears. The memory was fresh and prominent in her mind: she killed her first human that day. It was her worst birthday to date. She remembers herself, a lot healthier than she was now, still covered in lingering scars. Huddled in the filthy corner of an alley, with the remains of a human girl who looked to be around seven years old sprinkled on the edge of her quivering mouth.
"I often question whether I am cursed," he spoke, words and tone bitingly cold and lifeless.
"W-Why?" She stuttered, the brisk air of Macau city causing the hairs on her arms to raise.
"Because you are an utter disappointment," came his short reply, his eyes finally reflecting his disgust at her slumped figure. His words hurt and she bit her lip to stop the tears that threatened to gather. She was a disappointment. Why was she always so weak? Why did he always remind her that she was nothing--a waste of space, a mutant, a weakling?
"Duì bù qǐ," Lana begged, trying to control the waver in her voice.
"Don't fucking apologize!" He barked, making her jump. "Do you know how foolish you've been? While I was slaving away in some shit casino trying to gain back the money that you lost," She flinched at the memory of her losing their only savings in a fight, "You were out here trying to get us arrested! A human girl Zhenzhen, really? You can't even control your hunger for one goddamn minute?"
She really was sorry. And it wasn't like she meant it either. She was trying to book them a hotel but she hadn't eaten proper food in two weeks and her speech was beginning to fail her. Plus, the maitre d was being too condescending and uppity with her that she just lost it. She chewed him out and stormed out of the place, fuming. Her sight began to grown unfocused and her legs were shaking. She stumbled her way to the park right next to the casino that he was in. She crawled into the bushes, her growls growing to loud to be disguised. Her breath was shallow and she could feel the few visible scars of her legs throbbing.
She was so hungry.
And almost like fate, a small human girl stumbled into the thick bushes. "Guppy," she called out, her voice tinny and shrill.
Weak. Weak. Easy. Easy Kill. The words began to blare in Lana's head.
Her beady eyes meet Lana's crazed ones.
"You're not Guppy," The child states.
"I'm not."
"Who are you then?" Her last words.
A slasher smile graces Lana's face. "The big bad wolf."
In a flash, she had the girl's skinny throat in between her famished fangs. She spared no morality as she ripped the girl to shreds. Her cheeks, her shoulder, her underdeveloped muscles, her thin bones all slid down the wolf's gaping throat.
The girls tortured shrieks; "Mommy! Mommy!" go unnoticed as she chomps her way through the petite human form. The girl was still alive even after both her arms, legs and various parts of her body had been devoured. Tears ran slowly down the child's cheeks as she let out short, pained yelps.
Lana's eyes, now completely devoid of humanity, stare devilishly into the haunted eyes of the disfigured girl. "Mommy's not coming," she whispers softly. Deciding that she had let the girl live for long enough, one elegant hands grips the upturned ponytail of the child and swiftly pulls the head off the deformed body. Her eager fangs meet the soft, innocent skin as she cleaned off the rest of the unknown girl.
"Duì bù qǐ," she whispered again as the accustomed burn of shame flamed in her chest. His eyes flare at her repeated apology and he clenches his fists. His breathing grows laboured and harsh and he looks like he wants to rip her into pieces, slow and deliberately till every inch of her human form is scattered in a heap of flesh and rotting organs.
Finally, he lets out a burdened sigh. "Why do I even bother?" He muttered. "Everything you do, you fuck up. I tell you to go book us a hotel and you kill a child. A human child." His voice slowly increases in volume till he roars, "A fucking human Lana!"
This time she couldn't stop the tears she so painfully held back from flowing. The salty drops transformed quickly into heavy, heaving sobs. Being the ugly crier that she is, hiccups begin to brew in her chest as snot flew down her red nostrils.
The routine sting of his slap quieted her blubbering into hushed snivels. "Always fucking crying." He snarls and she knows that nothing she can do know will quell his anger.
"Always," He grabs her bobbed hair and tugs it till the roots stretch painfully along her scalp. She suppressed a shriek as his grip grows tighter.
"Fucking," he grunts, twisting the clump of hair causing her to let out a yell. He begins to drag into the shadowed end of the dirt filled alley. She knows what he wants to do.
Her screams grow louder as he pulls her further into the darkness. She could yell till her voice cracked but deep down she knew that it wouldn't make a difference. Nothing would stop Emhyr from getting what he wanted, not even the power of human decency. Her naked thighs began to burn from the edged and rough asphalt. The soft purr of a stray cat sounded from behind a dust bin. No one was coming for her. No one was going to help her. She was alone.
The minute they reached the hallowed edge of the brick wall, he threw her in such a way that she landed in a vulnerable heap on the floor. Before she could get up, his giant hands reached towards the end of her qipao.
With silent ease he rips the fabric till it stops at the base of her breasts. If she was looking up from his point of view she would be able to see the bruising bite marks he left the last time underneath. His mouth covers her own forcefully and she knows better than to try and squirm. His slimy tongue slips into her slack mouth. His fingers, long and creeping, grip the front of her panties and rips them into two. Suppressing a shiver, he begins to slowly rub her clit.
Stop, stop, stop, she chants in her head to no avail. She closes her eyes as she can't bear another minute of watching this. She silently hopes she looks like she's enjoying it. The rustling and buckling sound of his opening belt causing her to scrunch up her eyes further. Her breathing becomes harsher and louder and only she knows why.
The panic starts out as thin cellophane, something her fingers can pierce breathing holes in. In another minute the panic is a deluge of ice water surrounding every limb, creeping higher until it passes her mouth and nose. That's when the attack becomes absolute, shutting her body down as fast as punching a biochemical reset button.
Silently enduring her anxiety attack, she lets out a pained yelp as he inserts himself into her. "Crying!" He finishes as her fills her up to her core, streching her inside to their limit. Wasting no time, he pumps away as the flapping of crows echoed across the night sky.
His meaty hand clamped over her mouth; an equally ghostly prick of adrenaline pierces her heart, unloading in an instant. Her ribs heave as if bound by ropes, straining to inflate her lungs. Her head is a carousel of fears spinning out of control, each one pushing her mind into blackness.
She wants to run but all she could do was freeze. Sounds that were near felt far away--his heavy panting, her soft whimpers, the honking of cars--like she was no longer in the body that lay paralyzed on the wet tarmac.
Lana skids the car to an abrupt halt, stomach churning and head pounding. She shuts her eyes in agonized silence and bites down on her lower lip till she draws blood. The sodium content of the blood trickle into her dry mouth, the cut on her lower lip stinging. She remembers that day very well. She remembers the punch her gave to her nose as he released inside her, the gushing liquid reminding her that she was his and his alone.
Banging a fist into the solid tire, she lets out a scream. "No!" Her voice is strong, resilient. "I am my own person--he doesn't control me any more!"
As the words echoed in her head, so did the doubt that festered in her mind. Are you? Her subconscious taunts. Are you really your own person? You belong to everyone but yourself, don't you think?
The Packs, the government, her past--they all seemed to have such strong holds over her psyche that she wasn't even sure if she really was her own person anymore. She was a protector, a mate, a daughter, a contract, a victim. Was she Lana Kane?
No time for this psychological bullshit! She barked internally. Hands clutching the tire, she speeds off into the distance. It's almost near. The scent of his blood grew thicker and thicker till she stopped at an abandoned U turn near a forest. Parking the car, she steps out and walks further till her eyes spot the unmistakable sight of a car crash.
Blood pumps wildly inside her as she sprints towards the wreckage, the scent of Marcus' blood cloying and horribly thick. She picks up another scent, an unfamiliar one. Bending down to view the smashed window, she sees a body burned to the crips. However at the edge of his neck, she spots an all too recognizable scar that wasn't affected by the burning.
Galdoni.
She swears out loud. How the fuck did they let a Kraken agent into their pack? And how did he become the driver? She wants to go back and retrace every step but she knows that she has no time for that. It's already been done.
She sniffs around the wreckage to try and pick up any more scents till a very very very faint smell stood out. It was what she called a transferred stench. Somewhere along this crash was another Kraken agent.
Another Kraken Agent laced with the unmistakable scent of Jenny.
It's like she was some sort of pesky bug. No matter how many times Lana flitted her away, always came back. This was just a way to throw her off, wasn't it?
Judging from the particular way the car was crushed, the vehicle was hit from the left. Since there was no actual road leading from that direction, she knew it was a planned attack. The driver must have tipped off the original directions and had agents attack the car. After she had given the get go to use a shortcut, a car came from the left and slammed into the jeep. This would make it look like Marcus had died. They must have found some way to extract his blood and pour it over the wreckage to make it more realistic.
Fucking hell. If she hadn't spotted Jenny's scent, she would assume he was dead. What she would have done after that she doesn't know.
She didn't have time to dwell on that now. Standing up, she walks away from the wreckage and stretches her hand into her back pocket and whips out her old phone. She swiftly types in the number of the woman whose help she needed.
The phone rings out into the silent air as Lana taps her foot on the tarmac impatiently. "Hello?" A voice emits.
"Olgierd. " Lana states, her voice bleak. "Where are you?
"In the pack obviously. It's not like I can go anywhere else. Why?"
"I need you here," Lana answered. "Now."
"And how exactly am I supposed to get past the Pack border?"
"Don't worry about that. Just walk down to the garage and keep me on speaker. If anyone tries to stop you just pass them your phone." A weary sigh escapes the speakers. "Alright."
Olgierd doesn't speak but the sounds of her shuffling and walking allow Lana to know that she is following her orders. The sounds continue without change till the authoritative bark of a guard rings through the air.
"Hey!" The guard shouts. "Where do you think you're going?"
"I have permission from the Alpha to leave the pack."
He laughs. "Sure. Do you think I'm an idiot?"
"She requested my help," Olgierd retorts.
"Please, your-"
"When an order is given," Lana's voice rang clear and powerful, "I expect you to follow it." There was a brief pause before the guard began again, this time stuttering slightly."A-Alpha---"
"Let her through." She demanded.
"As you wish." He says, suitably subdued.
Olgierd huffs and Lana hears her walk towards the garage. She better bring her A game, Lana muttered in her head. I need her more than ever.
"I'm in the car," Olgierd states after a prolonged silence.
"Good. Drive out of pack territory into the human market square. Take a right and drive to Shangrao. From there I want you to follow the route to Dali. At the fourth turning, instead of going straight go left till you see a car crash. You'll find me there."
"Alright." The Alpha's fingers press the end call button and she returns the phone back into her pocket.
She practiced slow, heavy exhaling to help calm her frazzled nerves. She wanted to shift. She wanted to shift into the biggest most brutal Galdoni and rip every one who laid a hand on Marcus to miniscule shreds. But she couldn't--that was exactly what Stamos wanted. By attacking her mate he could lure her in. Enrage her. She'd attack. He'll use the moment to capture her and toss her straight into the Trial once more.
She had to give it to him. She was one of the only two people on this Earth who could affect her so negatively. He was the first person who violated her trust and humanity for his own purpose. The next--and undoubtedly the worst--was Emhyr. There was no one on Earth she wanted to kill more than the General. And the worst part was that she never thought that she would be able to.
He always outsmarted her. He laid low when she was calm, he sprung when she was agitated. Every scar on her body, every sleepless night, every aching ligament was all a reminder of the power he still had over her. She couldn't shift because of what he did to her. She couldn't be a wolf because of what he did to her.
She was, in some way, to blame for the way they lived now. Hiding their nature, suppressing their wolves. All she wanted to do was keep the community safe and anonymous from danger, was that so horrible?
She dragged Marcus into her mess. Her problem. Even if he was safe and sound, she would never forgive herself for her mistake. Shaky fingers reach and clasp clumps of black hair as Lana rocks slightly back and forth. "My fault," she rasped softly. "My fault."
The painfully familiar burn of anxiety began to fester in her chest. "No..no..no.."
Her words choke out in soft, tortured gasps. A slow whine echoes in her ears as her head bangs. The thoughts accelerate inside her head. She wants for them to slow so she can breathe but they won't. Her breaths come in gasps and she feels like she will black out. Her heart hammers inside her chest like it belongs to a rabbit running for its skin. The room spins and she squats on the asphalt, trying to make everything slow to something her brain and body can cope with.
"Alpha!" A worried yell brings her back her focus.
Her neck turns so quickly that it should have snapped. Tear filled eyes meet the uncertain ones of Olgierd.
Noticing her frazzled state, she picks up her pace and runs to the squatting Alpha. "Are you alright?"
"N-N-No," Lana breathes. "I'm not."
Olgierd studies the unsettled Alpha. "Anxiety attack."
Her eyes clench as she nods slightly. "You'd be right about that," Lana admits in a rasp whisper.
"You need some water. Hold on and don't move. I have some in the car." Lana watches her short, shapeless figure rush towards the inky jeep. Her vision grows clearer and her breathing grows more even as Olgierd grabs a compact bottle from the side of the driver's seat.
Running back towards the calming Alpha, she hands her the wet bottle. She rips greedily out of Olgierd hands and gulps it down in one go.
"What is it you wanted me for?" Olgierd questions the now stable Alpha.
Standing up, Lana leads the two of them to the car wreckage.
"I need you to help me lure out your ex husband," Lana states simply watching the woman next to her flinch. He was a sensitive topic for Olgierd. Well, same for me so I guess we'll both have to deal with it.
"I can't do that. I already do too much for you as it is."
"Oh?" Lana sneers, her face twisting into an irritated scowl.
"I said what I said. Don't make me say it again. Who are you to tell me such things?" Olgierd hissed.
"I am an Alpha. I am the Alpha. Don't forget that I saved you from your own husband. I saved you from your own death."
"So if you ever," her voice dropping to a harsh bark. "Ever threaten me again so help me God I will twist every single brittle bone in your useless, weak body till you beg for me to kill you."
Olgierd remained silent, the movement of her terrified gulp sliding down her throat prominent. A silence soon follows afterwards until Lana speaks again.
"Besides, that isn't the whole plan. I have another job for you." She thinks of how to phrase her plan to Olgierd all while a familiar and very fresh memory rings true and painful inside her:
You are weak and you are lost.
. . . . . .
important question:
>who's your favorite character and why? What do you like about them?
>who's the character you hate? Why do you hate them?