||25||
The Hellhound
***
The Bloodlust Alpha
a/n: selene is lowkey scary.
no song cause i don't know what it would go well with.
___
Last 4 Months Ago On: The Bloodlust Alpha
Benicio must've wanted to get his ass beat cause he demanded Selene back to Nightwake. Everyone was like oh hell nah and went to the sacred pool (don't worry guys that would be the last time the damn pool will be mentioned) to prove daddy and Selene are actually mates. They are. Cause duh. Literally titled Bloodlust Alpha it would be awkward if he wasn't the male lead. So Benny boy was salt and hella mad and goes "how did it feel to lose a child" [I know I forgot "a" but I don't wanna fix it cause all the bloodthirsty comments on that line will be lost if I edit it :( ] and Selene got triggered. She went all mama mode and attacked him.
It's almost amazing how one thing can change everything.
How one smile can make someone's day.
How one "good morning" can lift someone's mood when everything seems to be going all wrong.
How a comforting hand to the shoulder can pry open the hurricane of bottled emotions of someone who got too tired of lying through their teeth to say, "I'm fine".
How one conversation can either make or break someone's impression of you.
It's almost funny how one little thing, one little gesture, one conversation can change everything in a matter of seconds.
"How did it feel to lose a child?"
It's funny how one act of stupidity can break years of restraint.
"Someone get her off!"
Sophie's shrill shriek rang down the cave, the sound of panic brewing alongside hers as tension quickly filtered through the air. Through the murky mess that was my mind, I could sense the turmoil in the thick atmosphere. The anxiety, the uncertainty of what to do, the confusion, the shock, the heavy weight of pressure and the fear.
Fear was the most palpable.
The abundance of it leaks from under me. The tensity coils around my neck, the power overwhelming me coursing through my veins. Madness and chaos and insanity pulling at the seams of my composure. And the trembling weight of anger fed into my thirst for blood.
So much so I could almost taste it on the tip of my tongue.
Amidst all the panic and chaos, and all kinds of murderous thoughts running through my mind, I was hanging on. Just barely, but I was. I was clinging to the last fragment of sanity I had left. I was half conscious. Half there and half not, slipping in-between reigning control over my enraged wolf or having it taken from me. For the first time in a while, my wolf had demanded control.
Control she was vehemently fighting me for.
The tug of war between us, however, was not enough to distract me from the terror in Benicio's eyes. The sheer fear rolling off of him in waves as my paws dug into his ribcage and canines pulled up into a snarl. The bloodlust driving my wolf into pure untamed resentment burns me at my core. Encourages me to do what could not be taken back.
It would be so easy.
So easy to end it all.
And as cruel and sadistic as it would be, the satisfying crunch of his bones under my claws stroked my interest. My wolf's ears perked. Her tail begins to swish with intrigue and I find myself having a harder time to hold onto those reigns. The reigns that was the only thing keeping me from ripping into him.
Warning growls resonate over all of us, a warning to those watching if anyone should interrupt, he would lose his life. Growls I recognized from Raizel. That deep, rumbling roar that would make anyone recoil in fear and submit dutifully. It was that split second where my attention went elsewhere. It was that sound of his fierce threat that pulled me out of my stupor. That elicited an emotion other than anger from deep down in the pit of my stomach.
But the anger was too strong.
My rage was unyielding.
And I finally gave into the temptation of killing him.
Of killing the man who shared my blood but was someone I could never recognize as my father.
____
"Don't just stand there! Do something!"
Hestia's helpless cry goes unanswered. She looks around, blue eyes wild and wide as she searches for someone to do something. Someone to help, to ensure Benicio wouldn't be killed. And when no one meets her pleading eyes and no one comes to step forward, she has to swallow down the bile in her throat. She can almost imagine it. Almost see it. She can almost see how her father's throat would be slit. Or how he would be mauled til his last breath. Blood would trickle down Selene's mouth, dark eyes bright with victory. The bloodlust surrounding her sister was all too strong for her to even hope her father would live.
Wolves, in the middle of bloodlust, was a helpless case to talk to.
Not when it was an Alpha's fight.
Not when it meant going against The Hellhound.
She desperately looks up to her mother, the female who was a wreck at the scene unfolding. Selene's dark figure moves like an enigma. Her frame much larger than she could remember when they'd shifted and played in the woods when they were younger. She reeked of an Alpha. Her presence undeniable and apparent.
Hestia felt a ripple of fear rock through her.
Where would this leave her?
Would she be roped into a fight as well?
How would her mother protect her then?
If Selene could throw herself into a fight with a well groomed Beta head-first, how could Hestia stand a chance against a damn Alpha?
She can't figure out what to do. Hell, what could she do?
Hestia gnawed at her lip, teeth digging into her skin as she tried to calm herself. This was a mess. A whole mess. Why couldn't she just die? Why didn't she stay away? She should've been gone from her life. Selene was never supposed to come back. And because she did, she ruined everything.
She stole everything from her.
The title she worked so hard to get.
The attention she strived to maintain.
She had risked so much and put in so much time and effort to be this perfect Luna. She pursued the Alpha-in-line, succeeded in wrapping him around her finger, spent years in building up her reputation as the perfect candidate, fed Landon supplements to mess with his system so he would never find his mate until she was sure she dug her claws into him so deep he would never think of leaving her, betrayed her sister to get him and had his pup to secure her fate. She had done so much and for what? To have it taken from her? That easily?
No. No, she won't have it.
She was always meant to rule. She was special, her father had said so.
It was her destiny.
But her damn sister had to take everything, as usual.
Landon being her mate was the first strike. Hestia was confident in Landon's love for her, so taking him off the supplements she'd gotten from her father would make no difference. Benicio had always encouraged her to keep him under watch. It wouldn't do well for him to meet his mate when she hadn't gotten under her skin deep enough to ensure his steadfast loyalty to her.
By the time she stopped feeding him the pills, it didn't matter if he found his mate. He already pledged his love to her. And Landon wasn't one to make empty promises. He spoke of giving her the title of Luna, having him stand by her with her rightful title. It was all too easy at that point. But of course, the day she decides to take him off the pills is the day he meets his mate.
And of anyone it could've been, it was Selene.
Really, she should've known. She should've realized there had to be some correlation to why Selene never met her mate even after coming of age. She should've realized Landon had to be hers. But, could anyone really blame her for not thinking of it as a possibility? Her naive, meek older sister, an Alpha's mate? What a laugh.
She could never be with someone so dominant and powerful.
No, not even being a Beta's daughter could secure her the title of Luna. She was simply too weak. She could never amount to being Luna. That was Hestia's role since the very beginning.
It's what her father has been training her to be.
But then Landon had cornered her, the day of Selene's birthday and tells her,
"I found her. My mate. It's- it's Selene."
And that cemented her sister's fate.
She couldn't have her ruining everything she worked for.
Why? Of anyone, why did the Goddess pair her up with Landon? The Alpha's son? It made no sense. Her sister who could never stomach the idea of killing another wolf- rogue or not- was worthy of an Alpha? She was worthy and not Hestia?
She had to push Landon harder. She had to mark him to truly make him hers so Selene couldn't wedge herself in her perfect little story. She knew Landon loved her. She knew Landon would never leave her for Selene -mate or not- but that didn't mean she was stupid. She was confident, not blind. She could feel Landon's wolf demand him to find Selene. She could feel his wolf distance himself from her, but most of all, she could see it in the way Landon had watched Selene drive away when they sent her away to Duskfall.
The day she left, she took a part of Landon with her.
She couldn't have that. Landon was getting distracted. How long would it last as a distraction until he finally decided he couldn't live without his mate? How long could she hold onto him when the mate pull was there? He would leave her. She was certain of it.
But... if he marked her... he couldn't leave.
She had to stake her claim.
It was only right.
After all, it was the Goddess's will.
Hestia wishes she could say she felt sorry when Selene desperately reached out to her the night Duskfall was attacked. She wishes she could say that she felt terrible about sending her out there even when she knew an attack would take place beforehand. She wishes she could say she felt disgusting when she succeeded in seducing Landon to mark her the very same night.
She wishes she can say she felt remorse.
But when the desperate probing from Selene's wolf quieted to nothingness, and Landon's teeth lodged deep in her throat, she didn't feel the horror any sister should have felt. The sadness of losing her one and only sister whose been there since they were young. Whose loved her like no other. Whose cared for her better than her parents had.
She didn't feel sorrow.
No, she felt relief.
Because now, no one could threaten her place in the pack.
Now, she had no rival.
The day she met Raizel Locksworth was the day Hestia realized she made a mistake.
She knew she was meant to rule, but she realized she latched herself to the wrong Alpha.
She settled when she could've had the best.
And Raizel Locksworth was the best.
How hard could it have been? To seduce the lonely, mateless Alpha who ruled over all? She'd done it with Landon, she could do it again. An Alpha was still a man. He would be no different from Landon. She simply had to pique his interest. Surely that wouldn't be a problem.
If she can catch his attention, losing both the baby and Landon would be of no difficulty. After all, Landon couldn't win against the Bloodlust Alpha. If Landon challenged him, Raizel could kill him and give her the best cover up of a "miscarriage". All she'd have to do was consume a little bit of wolf's bane after Landon's death and the baby would die. Raizel would take responsibility of costing a mother-to-be a pup and would take her in.
It was the perfect way in.
The poor, helpless widow with no one to depend on.
Almost like a buffet to a dominant Alpha who has it in his blood to take care and pamper his female.
She just had to play the part.
Only, she didn't expect to be rejected.
But that didn't faze her. Not even in the slightest. All that meant was that he was a man worth the effort. A man far better than Landon could hope to be. She'll break down his walls one way or another. If she could do it once, she could do it again.
It was only then that Hestia felt any form of remorse in the loss of her sister.
If she was here, getting rid of Landon would be so much quicker.
Hestia knew fate worked in mysterious ways. It was unpredictable just as much as it was persistent in trying to derail her plans. Because of course, her dead sister wasn't so dead after all.
And what's better?
She's an Alpha now.
It'd be a lie to say she wasn't worried. Selene may have gotten an Alpha title, but that didn't mean she was any different than she was four years ago. She told herself this, but she knew better than anyone that it was a lie. Though when Selene showed no interest in killing her, her worries began to lessen.
And in its place sprouted hope.
Now that she was here, she could take Landon back. The pack members wouldn't be opposed to it seeing as she was an Alpha now and had land to her name. All she had to do was put things in motion. She simply had to push her in Landon's direction and everything will fall into place.
Why remain the Luna of Nightwake when she could become Queen?
She deserved the best of the best.
Her sister didn't seem to want to get with the program. Her vicious glares and stone cold tone whenever she even looked or talked to any of them spoke volumes of her feelings. Still, that meant she felt something. Whether it be anger or hatred, feeling something was better than nothing.
Hestia could work with that.
Though it seemed Selene was insistent in taking everything from her once again.
Raizel Locksworth, who hardly showed any interest in her was smitten with Selene.
Why?
Why was this happening?
What did Selene have that she didn't? Why did everyone want her sister and not her?
Why was she ruining everything?
Wasn't she the special one? The one destined to be great?
Hestia had put everything into getting to where she was now and Selene of all people, was the one to destroy it all?
To have her wallflower sister pull the rug right under her feet?
It was supposed to be hers. Hestia was always supposed to be better but now, watching her sister play with her father like he was a chew toy- she couldn't deny it. The difference in Selene and Hestia was strikingly clear.
Elongated teeth broke the skin at Benicio's shoulder- taunting him to shift and fight her when both knew just who would come out alive in the end.
It would've been smart to stay down.
But then he shifted, giving into the taunt of his eldest daughter.
Hestia begs her father in her mind link for him to submit and comply with her sister.
She watched as the two wolves danced around each other, jaws snapping in both warning and intimidation. She could feel herself shaking her head, not wanting to see what happens next but too invested to turn away.
Please let her die. Please kill her. Goddess, please, let him cut her down.
Her prayers, like they'd been before, had gone unanswered. Selene's wolf moves gracefully against their father, her wolf swift and agile and evading any and all attacks her father makes. Teeth meant to grab hold snap at air and claws meant to cut deep swipe at nothing. She feels him get angrier and aggravated. She feels him losing his temper and abandoning all forms of logic just to get one hit on her. Hestia feels him lose concentration.
It was his downfall.
Selene stops playing around, much like how cats would play with mice and was quick to dig her claws into his side. Her father roars out, moving away as quickly as he can but fails to move farther enough away. Selene was back on him instantly.
She knows the end is near. Her father's time is running out. Hestia takes her eyes off the two and stares at Williams. She shakes her head, voice breaking as she cries out,
"Why won't you do anything? Stop her!"
The Chancellor merely raises a brow and looks back at the two wolves,
"Your father has just outed himself as a traitor. He taunted a full fledged Alpha knowing exactly how dominant and dangerous they are when provoked. You want to stop justice? Be my guest. Go on, Luna. Stop her."
Hestia's mouth hangs open and all she could do was turn back.
She wouldn't kill him, would she? She wouldn't , right? Not in front of all the Alphas and most of all, their mother. That would be taking it too far, right?
But then Selene's jaw unhinged and her tongue came out to lick off the blood painting her sharp teeth and the feral glaze in her eyes confirmed her thoughts.
Nothing was "too far" at this point.
Anyone else who got involved and got hurt in the middle of all this was inconsequential.
Any trace of hope died on her tongue as she watched in horror, Selene bite down at Benicio's arm and rip the limb right off his shoulder.
The scream was stuck in her throat.
The unbridled fear and cries of surprise burst all around them and Hestia knew right then and there, she would be next. Goddess, she would be next. She sucks in a shaky breath, her hand lifting aimlessly up toward her mother -when had she fallen to the ground?- and tries to shake herself out of her shock.
Blood.
So much of it.
Red.
So much red.
This wasn't supposed to happen. This wasn't her destiny. She was supposed to be one who ruled all.
Isn't that what Ivory said?
***
a/n: wOW she's alive? I know, how surprising.