Alpha's Last Chance

THE wind was wild and the road was dark and rough. Despite that, it didn't stop the two black armored vehicles from driving hurriedly away from the crowded city. The journey is long and the old Alpha Quillion can't help but stare at the young girl he promised to protect no matter what.

His heart is in the right place and he is willing to carry on the task till they reach the safehouse.

Soon their armored vehicle moves to the border of the Gobi desert entering the dangerous and treacherous terrain.

Vulnerable to any attack from the blood-hungry hunters of the Black Order, whose main task is to kill the girl with him and everyone around her.

The silence of their journey soon ended when the old Alpha heard one of his Beta yell, "Hunters!" while pointing to the various cars fast approaching them.

The driver then mumbles, "I'm afraid we won't make it." While looking at the old Alpha in the rearview mirror.

The old Alpha cleared his throat, thinking of the best way to deal with their inevitable death. He is in a predicament, he wants to save his people while fulfilling his promise to a dear friend. Soon his phone buzzes, and hesitantly he glances at the message he received thinking it's from his son but it's not.

The message was short and it solved the problem he had. He smiled and then stared at the young girl dead in the eyes, then said, "No hard feelings." Soon, he opened the door and threw the girl out of their fast-moving van.

Her body bounced and rolled on the hard pavement. Her bones broke. Her blood gushed out of her wounds, barely breathing, she was left in the middle of the road to die.

PRESENTLY, a shuttle bus hit a road bump. Waking the sleeping Vesper from her nightmare. She immediately jolted back to her senses and then fixed the hood of her jacket to cover half of her pale face. "Dreams." She mumbles as she wipes the cold sweat on her forehead.

She noticed that the shuttle bus travels at 100 kph on a 40 kph road. The driver clearly doesn't care about the rules, the dangerous zigzag road ahead, or the thick fog covering the pathway, adding risk to an already unsafe trip, but his passengers don't seem to mind. Instead, they are filled with hopes, dreams, and security.

They are survivors from different packs. Seeking refuge from the dangers of the world. Some are from packs annihilated by blood hunters, some are slaves who finally got out from the claws of their owners. Some are dreamers, hoping that one day their kind will no longer be forced into hiding.

She stared outside. Even with the thick fog, her sight could clearly see that it was about to rain sooner or later. A sight everyone on the bus could perceive.

She sniffs the air and can feel the mixed scents of her co-passengers. All of them smell good, none reeks of malice, blood, or malevolent aura. Giving her a sense of safety.

Her eyes then landed at the ring on her forefinger then remembered what her friend said before they parted ways. "You need to always wear this ring. It will conceal you and protect you while you are inside the Citadel manor. I wish you the best of luck!" The voice echoes in her mind as she rests her head on her seat. She was about to close her eyes when she heard a child-like voice near her, "Hi, I'm Evie Vallister. Nice to meet you."

She lifted her gaze and met Evie's lively light blue eyes. She was smiling from ear to ear.

She smiles faintly at her then says, "I'm Vesper Miles. Nice to meet you too."

Hearing their murmuring, the driver scoffed, "We are 5 minutes away from Citadel, I will drop you off at the barracks where you will meet your temporary guardians." He yelled at them.

All five passengers glanced at each other and immediately gazed outside, searching for the manor.

"There... There it is..." Jolly yells gleefully as she points to the manor's location. The lights around the vicinity made it more noticeable to their wolf's sight.

Vesper observed how her co-passengers reacted, and it gave her an idea of how unfortunate their lives might have been to be this delighted to be part of this type of wolf pack. "Misogynistic, abusive, power-hungry organization," she said to herself.

Her train of thought was soon cut off when she heard Sander's low voice say, "Mother, I made it, I'm safe." She discreetly looked at him and saw him holding his locket tightly, his eyes were reddening like he was about to cry.

"Aren't you overdramatic," Sebastian said as he patted Sander's back. Both men grinned at each other.

Soon the shuttle stopped at the Citadel barracks, a gloomy 2-storey building that looked like a dungeon in plain sight. Despite that, everyone seemed to be in high spirits.

"Get your bags and wait for Gamma Sevy in the shed." The driver suggested.

Shortly, lightning lit the dark sky followed by roaring thunder.

Startled, Evie gasped and hugged Vesper, almost choking her.

"I'm sorry," She says while her hands are trembling.

Vesper doesn't know how to respond and only hugs her back.

Evie smiled and hugged her tighter.

Soon, Gamma Sevy arrived. He is in his late 20s. He has dark brown hair, almost black. He has a brushed-up hairstyle that makes him look a bit older than he is.

He stared at them with scrutiny, then gestured to them to enter the barracks as it was about to rain.

*

*

Later that night, heavy raindrops started falling and Omega Alexis was running as fast as she could, not because she was afraid of being soaked in the rain. That's because it was already 10:50 p.m., and she needed to catch the final roll call at 11:00 p.m. Breathless, she stopped at one of the trees as the rain became too intense, the road too slippery, and unsafe to walk. She sat and leaned at the base of the enormous old oak tree.

Its thick leaves have become effective coverage from the rain and its huge roots perfectly cover her from rough wind that could make anyone's skin shiver. She took out a handkerchief from her pocket, happy that it was still dry, and wiped the dripping water from her face. She stared at the rain and then sighed deeply as she accepted her fate of missing the final roll call.

AT exactly eleven o'clock in the evening. Rain is still pouring heavily. The wind is blowing wildly. A group of people are gathered around the fireplace. They huddle around in circles to warm themselves.

"It's late and Alexis is still out. Has anyone contacted her yet?" Lestine murmured while shivering. Removing his soaking wet coat.

"I tried to call her, but she couldn't be reached. Probably her phone is dead again." Emily says while squeezing the water out of her drenched long blonde curly hair that matches the softness of her blue eyes.

"The guards will be here soon and do the final roll call. She'll be beaten with a whip for every minute she's late." He says with fright and horror in his eyes.

"It is not new to her if that happens. Maybe she ran away?"

"Don't be absurd, Magda. If she did, do you think they wouldn't find her?" Jacob intervened.

"Everyone knows that if you apply to be part of this you need to finish the month whether you want to stay or not." He added.

"Her being late or running away is a better option than...." Ben swallowed his spit slowly, and then the idea in his mind frightened him. He did not finish his sentence, but everyone knew what he meant.

From murmuring to each other, everyone became silent.

Shortly after, two guards entered the room.

One is holding a whip while the other is a list.

They started the final roll call for the day and everyone voiced their presence except one.

"Alexis Mar'tine"

"Alexis!"

"Last call Alexis Mar'tine"

Dimitry repeats.

Dimitry is a Delta. He is in his late 30s. He has brown hair and dark eyes. His face is on a default -tired and bored.

At the end, he marks her name with a red pen with the time the last call was mentioned, at 11:10 P.M.

"Another one in the dungeon, Dimitry," Gamma Sevy jokingly said while nudging Delta Dimitry on the side.

"Yeah. Another Omega, Alpha Cain, could torture or something else..." he mumbles.

Gamma Sevy made a low chuckle, then faced the Omegas. Shortly, he cleared his throat to get their attention. Then he proceeded with his announcement, "Before we let you in, there are new Omegas that want to join the pack. Be nice to them."

He then opens a small door and five more people join the group.

"Listen, newcomers". He yells as he addresses the new Omegas.

"There are rules here."

"Rule number one: Every day you need to wake up at five in the morning and be here before the last roll call at eleven in the evening. Anyone tardy will be punished. That punishment will be five lashes in the back and additional lashes for every minute you are late using this." He wiggled the whip in front of everyone.

"Or maybe worse, that depends on Alpha Cain's mood. Rule number two: all of you will work as servants to everyone with a higher position than yours. Since all of you are Omegas, you are bottom of the food chain. You will know our position by the color of our aura. As you know, your fellow Omegas are pale weak oranges, almost human-like.

Gammas, like me, are bright yellow.

Deltas like Dimitry are green

Betas are shades of light blue.

Alphas are deep dark blue, sometimes almost black. If you are having difficulties with that, we also have a pin on our clothes that shows what we are."

Everyone nods and uses their wolf's sight to see each other's colors.

"Rule number three: you can't pick a fight with anyone higher than you. Don't worry, it is only a provision. After one month you can do that, but only with a proper duel. Lastly, welcome to Citadel, home of the strongest and bravest wolf packs."

He added with a proud tone.

Delta Dimitry, on the other hand, continued the roll call to verify the five newcomers.

"Sebastian Claud (23)"

"Evie Ballister (21)"

"Jolly Emberville (19)"

"Sander Anderson (24)"

"Vesper Miles (21)"

Soon another door opened, and the newcomers were guided to their rooms. "Rooms. More of a glorified cell." Jolly mumbles under her breath.

"What did you say, Miss Emberville?" Gamma Sevy shouted.

Jolly's back stiffened.

"Nothing, Gamma!" She yelled back.

"That's your first offense," Delta Dimitry responds.

Jolly could only lower her head as she entered their chamber.

Inside the chamber lies two bunk beds that could cater to four people.

She was grouped with Evie, Vesper, and Emily. The latter has a two-week seniority with them.

Emily soon gave them the rundown of the organization only known to the outside world as Citadel Incorporated, a leading pharmaceutical company in the United States, with headquarters located at the heart of the city of Angels in California. But here inside it's a place for wolves like them. A haven for their kind where the Blood Hunters can't target them.

She sat on the bed then said enthusiastically, "This is the biggest clan with almost 1000 Alphas associated with it and the Manor where we are now is the center of research and the home of one of the elders of the clan who sits beside other council leaders. His name is Mauritius Carmichael, whom no Omega has seen."

Emily clears her throat to catch her breath and begins giving them details about the Alphas they will soon encounter.

"Inside Citadel Manor, there are five stationed Alphas;

First is Cain Fury(39), Alpha of the Crescent Lunar Pack. Handles the newcomers. Strict with rules and regulations. He has a towering height of around 6 '4, a bit chubby with a beard, like a lumberjack.

Then we have Zane Carmichael(29), Alpha of the Dark Eclipse Pack. The strongest-they say. Mauritius only living relative. Light brown eyes, clean-cut dark brown hair. He will look at you as if you are dirt. He already has a wife. A strong she-wolf, there's a rumor about her, but that's a story for another time.

Next is... Mercimer Marx (25) Alpha of Eternal Blaze Pack. The youngest Alpha here. Always calm and collected, he is also the nicest. He has reddish brown hair, blue eyes, and a freckled face. A look that could melt anyone's heart.

Then, Hercule Perrimont (34), Alpha of the Penumbral Sturgeon Pack. He doesn't speak much and doesn't entertain anyone: a silent type as the term says. He handles the pharmaceutical side of the Manor. He has shoulder-length wavy black hair.

Lastly, Qillalon Van Kirk (31), Alpha of the Blood Moon Pack. He is always outside at night patrolling the premises with his pack. Aside from that, he has a scar on his upper left eye. He has dirty blonde hair, dark gloomy green eyes, and he smells like lilacs."

"Van Kirk," Vesper mumbled under her breath with a hint of disdain. Her voice caught Evie's attention but was shortly brushed off as Emily continued speaking.

"You see the Manor is located at the foot of the mountain, the sun doesn't usually shine as bright here, and the climate is always dark and gloomy as if it's going to rain. Though, gated on every side. Still, a lot could happen, between one group of trees and the other. We don't know what lies there. But that's a story for another day. Every Alpha has one Beta and one Delta that is usually with them. You will know them soon. Then the hierarchy continues: Betas have a few Deltas under them, then Deltas have Gammas, then the Gammas, and everyone else has us the Omegas. Since we are still in the probation period, we are under Gamma Sevy, Delta Dimitry, and Alpha Cain. Mostly we will see Sevy."

Jolly then intervenes, "We're like Sevy's bitches." Her jovial tone matched the dimples on her small face and her dark brown bob-cut hair accentuated everything.

Everyone laughs.

"Sevy doesn't look that bad." Evie intervenes with her childlike voice while she swirls her long red hair on her forefinger. Soon her face reddened.

"None of them does," Vesper responded in a weak voice, almost cracking.

"After probation are we going to leave this place?" Jolly finally asks.

"Yes, exactly. Once the probation period is done, we pass the test, and we want to stay, we can move to the main building, nicer rooms, and nicer food. Everything is nicer. I know because I cleaned those rooms, and you will too."

"Pass the test? What tests?" Evie asks.

Both Jolly and Vesper stared at Emily waiting for her to answer.

"Every weekend from three in the afternoon till eight in the evening we have a training session that we need to do."

"Like what?" Jolly intervened.

"Like, running, climbing. Some courses the Delta has created for us. I think they want to know if we could be of help during an attack or something." Emily explains. "As long as we can finish the courses, we can pass and from there the Alphas will assess which of us will be part of which pack. But enough of that. I want to know why you want to be part of Citadel?"

"You mean aside from seeking refuge?" Jolly asks.

Emily nods.

"Well, for me, I want to meet other wolves and find my mate," Evie responded.

"What a hopeless romantic," said Emily.

Evie blushed instantly.

"Me, I want to be strong and make a difference. Being here is one step forward to that dream." Jolly says. "How about you, Emily?"

"Same as yours, be strong and build something for myself. How about you, Vesper?"

"I'm here because I need a stage so that my voice can be heard by everyone." She says.

Confused. Emily then asks, "So... You want to be a singer?"

"No!"

"An actress?" Jolly asks.

"No!"

"I know! I know!" Evie excitedly raised her hand. "A politician!"

Vesper laughs, "Oh, Goddess, no!"

"Then what?" Asks Emily.

"You'll know at the right time." She responded while giving them a peculiar smile.

Evie grinned and then said, "Then we'll wait for that time."

Vesper nodded, then suggested, "How about we sleep early? The journey we had was a bit tiring."

Everyone nodded, and soon the light was turned off.

*

MEANWHILE, in the middle of the night, Omega Alexis rested in one of the trees along the dark road, waiting patiently for the rain to subside a bit. She checked her watch, and it was 11:16 p.m. Though the rain is falling hard, the moonlight is still as bright as it always was. She tried to boot up her phone, but the battery was long dead. "I should have charged it before leaving the main building." She muttered to herself.

All of a sudden, she heard a loud rustling sound from the depths of the forest. The sound sent chills down her spine, and the hair at the back of her neck started to rise. She doesn't feel good about it. She tried to make sense of it, but the cold wind and the heavy rain did not help her situation. She sniffed the air but held nothing. She's afraid but curious at the same time. "What's making that sound?" She asks herself.

As if the moon goddess wanted her to investigate it, the intense rain became a soft drizzle. After what felt like an eternity, she finally summoned all her courage and followed the sound and that was the biggest mistake of her life!

IN THE dead of night, Alexis walked to the sound and saw someone she knew, but before she could utter a word... She was stabbed in the abdomen.

Her eyes widened in horror. She can't fathom why her friend would do such a thing. She could only stare at her bloodied hand as she stopped the bleeding. Fear engulfed her whole being she couldn't even react properly to the excruciating pain that she was experiencing.

She tried to run, but what can a weak Omega that was stabbed do? She cried as her friend walked towards her with a knife still in hand. She crawled away and cowered behind a tree, wishing that this was all a dream or a prank gone wrong. She pleaded, to her friend, to the moon goddess, to anyone --to please save her.

She tried to shout, but before she could, her throat was slashed. She could feel and hear her blood gushing out her throat, pouring like waterfalls onto the ground, soaking the green grass beneath her feet. She began to breathe with difficulty and her body became numb with pain. She hopes and prays that someone will come and see her.

"I... I... I don't want to di...e. Ple...ase someo..ne save me." She yelled internally. Everything was turning dark now and she could only mutter the question, "Why?"

She saw her friend's lips move, but she could no longer hear anything. She can only stare as tears and death blur her vision, but she doesn't want to close her eyes. She wants her friend to remember the look on her face and the burning hatred that she feels right now.

~

The weather was gloomy, a few rays of light entered the dark chambers. But none of the Omegas are in slumber, all of them are wide awake. Standing in a straight line in an empty worn-out assembly hall in two groups. Female on the left and male on the right side.

Waiting for the guards to tell them what to do. Shortly, Gamma Sevy entered the assembly hall alone. He looks pissed off with a mix of distress. Everyone is on heightened alert as he might put the blame on them and turn them into punching bags. Which has been a norm here.

Everyone was looking at one another. Then they heard Sevy sigh deeply. "Everyone!" He yelled.

"Today and for the following weeks, you will have a buddy system. No Omega should be left alone at any time of the day. If an Omega is missing you need to look for them as soon as you can."

Vesper glanced at the tenures among the group and all of them had the same grimace on their faces. Death. Mourn. Sorrow and regret.

Evie raises her hand and then asks in her childlike voice, "Sir! Is there something we need to know?"

Sevy sighed again.

"Alexis Mar'tine was found dead today around four o'clock in the morning. Details of her death remain confidential as of the moment. Only Delta and higher know, so don't ask me."

"Shit!" Vesper says to herself.

Some weep upon hearing the news but immediately compose themselves.

Vesper could sense sorrow, rage, and grief in the air. The atmosphere was suffocating, she felt lost, and her hand started trembling.

"Are you okay Vesper?" Emily asks. Her face shows concern with a hint of sorrow.

She nods.

"Gamma Sevy!" Emily yelled.

"Is it possible to be paired with my roommates?"

"You can be paired with anyone," he says, then assigns them their tasks.

Emily was assigned to clean the rooms.

Jolly and Evie will tend the garden and wash the laundry.

When it was Vesper's turn Sevy stared at her. Black frizzy hair, pale complexion, severely malnourished state, sunken cheeks, droopy gray eyes devoid of emotions. She looks like she's already dead. Despite that, she's a beauty in her washed-out way.

"As a newcomer, one of you should be assigned to carry trash bins out of the manor," Gamma Sevy says.

"You look so pale. I don't think you could carry things without breaking yourself in half. So I'm assigning you to the kitchen. Do you think you could wash dishes without breaking them or yourself?" He added with a bit of concern and mockery in his tone.

"Yes, Gamma! I can do that." She responds with a weak, low voice that matches how she looks.

From there, they rode a minibus that would carry them to the main building. The ride is almost eight and a half minutes long. The first day is tiring for the newcomers. Jolly is having difficulties tending the garden as the mud makes her want to puke. Luckily, Evie grew up on the farm, took care of most of the garden work, and let Jolly do the laundry.

Meanwhile, Vesper almost stumbles while carrying the plates, then one of the senior Omega probationers helps her and tells her to only carry a few at a time.

By eight in the evening, after the dinner of the higher class, they are relieved from their stations and free to roam around the manor or in the nearby town. As long as they go in pairs and will return to the barracks by eleven o'clock for the final roll call.

*

Emily, Jolly, and Evie went to town with others. While Vesper stayed in the manor and told Lestine that she'd travel back to the barracks with him. Meanwhile, Lestine rested in one of the leisure rooms on the first floor. He drinks beer while sharing stories with his friends.

Vesper made her way to the second-floor library area. She stared at the mountain of books in front of her. Then she moves her way to the history section, where she pulls out a book titled: Wolves 1900. It shows a summary of the life of werewolves in the 1900s and how they protected themselves against the blood hunters.

She got another book titled "Vanishing Wolf, a Memoir"

Her eyes start to widen as she reads the book.

"The year is 1947, the world is changing drastically after World War Two. It is as if the moon goddess is distancing herself from all of us. At first, the changes were subtle, no one could even tell, but as the months and years went by, it became clear. The wolves inside us are vanishing. I can no longer speak to mine and do so like others. The silence of the wolves is followed by the kids changing to a wolf state uncontrollably. Kids not teens. Kids as young as five years old. Now they no longer need to wait for the right age or the full moon. They have just transformed, and it is a problem now that the hunters of the Blood Order can easily detect our younger generation.

The last one to go is our ability to smell and feel when our mate is nearby.

Now there's no way to tell which is your fated mate. You can mark anyone you like to assert dominance and tell others that that wolf is taken. No difference to a dog marking his territory. I wonder if the moon goddess will one day let us speak to our wolves again."

-

"I wonder if some of these things are still here today. Wouldn't that be amazing if you had the ability to know who your soulmate is?" Vesper asks herself.

While she was reading she couldn't stop hearing a buzzing sound. Murmurs of men. The smell of sorrow, disgust, and rage.

"Another one", says the man.

"The third one this month." Say the other one.

"Does the council know about this?"

"Not yet."

"The Alpha Elder forbade the leaking of the news."

"How many more Omega needs to die?" asked the third guy. His voice filled with sorrow.

Upon hearing that, she felt uneasy. "Why am I hearing them? Where are they?" She asks herself. She gently closed the book and was about to leave when suddenly a gust of wind blew towards her location and two men appeared before her.

"Where did these guys come from?" She asks herself. Startled, she stood still and stared at them.

"Newcomer?" one of the guys asks.

She nods.

"You're not allowed in here. This library is for Gammas and higher only." The other guy says.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know." She mumbles weakly. Her head is lowered, and she discreetly glances at their pin. Light blue and dark blue.

Then look at the man with the dark blue pin. Reddish brown hair and freckled face. She remembers who he was.

She bows her head and then says "I'm sorry Alpha Mercimer."

"You know who I am. That's nice. How about you? What's your name?" He says while smiling. A beautiful smile. Youthful. Gleeful.

"Vesper Pierce. I arrived here yesterday, Alpha."

"I can call Dimitry. To teach her a lesson in rooms she can't enter."

"She's new, Valdor. Give her a break. Just next time read the signs," Alpha Mercimer says while pointing to the door, which clearly says no Omegas are allowed.

"Of course. Alpha!" She bows again.

Mercimer gestures for her to leave. Which she did immediately. She was in such a hurry that she did not notice a woman walking in her direction.

SPLASH!

The woman's wine poured onto her white dress. Her face is livid. Vesper glanced at the woman's pin. It's green. "A Delta." She said to herself. Her face paled as the Delta walked towards her. She could feel that the woman had a strong aura, her scent giving out malice and rage.

"Someone please stop her," she mumbles under her breath.

The delta was about to lunge at her when suddenly a tall figure held her hand and said, "Selene, what are you doing?"

Selene's face paled, her hand almost trembling. "Alpha Qillalon. I... I'm just teaching this Omega some manners."

"Van Kirk," Vesper said to herself while glancing at the Alpha in front of her, staring at him with resentment. The way she stared at him was far worse than how she looked at Selene, which Alpha Qillalon noticed immediately, but he shrugged it off as he smelled her fear in the air and gestured for her to leave.

"Peculiar," He says to himself as he takes a mental note of her weird reaction and scent.