Amara: The Cursed Blood

AMARA could smell the scent of her blood. She gazed around the refined baroque-Esque place of a high-ranked werewolf, hoping to see familiar eyes that she could ask for help. The house was spacious and cold, and there was a lounge where the owner usually accepts her guests. It was the same place where she was being tortured in pain-her eyes are the only part of her body that was still intact.

"Wake up, disgusting half-blood!"

Surrounded by loud screeching voices, she felt a solid blow to her stomach. She groaned in pain, choking up a bit of blood at the same time. All she could do was embrace herself, holding into her fractured arms while laying on the cold ceramic floor. She could not get up. Her body felt so numb. She was too weak to move, and she realized that it was merely impossible to protect herself anymore because of the excruciating pain all over her body caused by the group of full-blooded werewolves who jumped on her out of egoistic purpose and pleasure.

It was one of the usual things that kept happening throughout her life with the Crimson moon pack. These full-blooded werewolves were attacking her anytime they wanted.

As a part of Omega-who were treated as slaves all the time-, Amara became the most unfortunate creature in their territory, not only because her father was born as an Omega, but also her mother was a mere human, and so, this made her a half-human and a half-werewolf. The higher ranks in their community were despising this and thus, considering it a taboo.

The lightning struck out of the dark sky, followed by heavy rain. Amara heard them laughing till they snorted. Those groups who came from higher ranks had been bullying her for years already. Gasping for thin air, she knew she was already out of breath and could no longer scream. Her eyes were shut, and she felt that anytime soon, she could be dead.

Amara ought to take revenge. Though, she knew she was weak enough to throw a jab. Her consciousness was slowly drifting away. Her visions were gently going to a long dark tunnel as the memories flashed before her eyes.

She saw a small kid. She realized that it was her; that small suburban girl wasn't born and raised to fight. Her old man, who seemed to be the kindest creature she ever knew, taught her that their strength shouldn't be used to harm someone and to take vengeance. She was taught that a werewolf's power was a gift from the Moon Goddess. Amara knew that it is wicked to seek revenge, but deep down in her heart, there was a small voice declaring she wanted to fight. Amara's eyes opened as the loud rumble of the thunder echoed in the darkroom.

"Why don't you stand up and entertain us?" She quickly recognized Sierra's grating voice, one of the higher ranks' daughter and the keeper of the place, who kept bullying her ever since she was a child.

She remembered her dark past wherein delivering blankets caused her a lifetime trauma when she was a child. Her old man worked as a slave in the pack house and asked her to provide the new blankets for the full blood. She was invited to come and play at Sierra's place and then, later on, uncovered the start of her brutal nightmare.

"What do you want from me?" She couldn't even breathe properly because of the blood flowing in her nose. Her rib cage was broken, her face was pale, her lips were covered with blood. However, she was determined not to die and still hold on for her dear life.

"Oh, no! We're just bored," said Rose-daughter of the most praised warrior, and then laughed devilishly. "Don't you have a little strength to fight back? It's going to be a good match if you just knew how to fight!"

"She's a weakling. What can you expect from a cursed child who didn't get any of those magnified senses from our goddess?" Sierra commented.

She felt a sting of pain inside her chest. These words were like knives that were slowly cutting her through the bones.

Amara thought she had accepted it a long time ago, that it wasn't a big deal if she wouldn't get those enhanced abilities and wouldn't shift to a wolf at all... but maybe she was wrong, that deep down in her heart she wanted to shift... and these thoughts will forever haunt her of wanting to become one. Even if it was too late to shift, this would be her only chance to escape in hell, to prove to them that she wasn't cursed.

Girls her age had experienced shifting into their wolves as soon as they turned thirteen. Even some of the half-bloods in the Omega had shifted for the first time around the same ages, but that opportunity didn't happen to her. Werewolves came up with a reason why she never shifted, and that's because she was a cursed child.

And perhaps she certainly was...

"A cursed child, indeed!"

"Poor, Argus. Your stupid father made a wrong move, half-blood. He should've stayed at home instead of banging a low-life human out there. If only he used his head at least once, you shouldn't be suffering right now! You should've not been born anyway!"

"Don't you ever insult my father-" Amara repeatedly groaned when she felt another kick on her spine.

She coughed once again and tasted her blood coming out of her mouth. Another foot stepped on her face that made her vision more blurry.

"And don't you ever talk back!" Sierra shouted at her as she stepped onto her face firmly, making her feel a lot more pain in her head. They continued to beat her up with no mercy.

She breathed heavily and tried to move her hand. She was about to hold Sierra's foot so she could somehow break it when she heard the door open.

'I must fight back', she told herself. But she was already beaten up, almost unconscious that she could not hold on to her foot. Klaud gave Sierra her favorite poisonous spiked club, ready to hit her with a final blow.

But then a violent howling along with heavy winds from the thunderstorm broke in throughout the windows that shattered the glasses into pieces. The intense cold wind blew out the candles, turning the lounge to be completely dark. Amara was crying for help until some heavy footsteps were heard, which she knew were familiar.

The room was lighted as someone entered the room with a lamp. His eyes were blue as ice. He was tall, sculpted with broad shoulders. He then put down the lamp and lit up his cigar as he smoked in the room and proceeded with a long sigh.

"Would you want me to kill all of you?" he asked warily.

"Killian?" Klaud, who also harmed Amara, had spoken in sudden disbelief.

"I knew it!" Killian, one of the top warrior wolves, yelled.

"What are you doing here?" Sierra asked.

"I should be the one asking you, right? What are you doing here? You're hurting her!"

She felt a sudden warmth when Killian touched her arm. That touch gave her a sigh of relief. She's saved by this warrior, again. She couldn't count how many times Killian saved her from these ill-mannered full bloods. She couldn't thank him enough for standing up before her. He was the only person that accepted her, aside from her father.

"Remove your foot, Sierra!" Killian glared at Sierra and immediately pulled her foot away from her face. "Where are your manners? You only mug on someone who can't fight back!"

"Killian, why don't you mind-"

To their surprise, Killian growled, and in one swift move, he was able to push Sierra on the wall, cornering her with all his strength. Sierra's face was disconcerted.

"What the heck, Killian!" Sierra hissed.

"Why don't you mind your own business, Sierra? Leave the half-blood alone!" He screeched with his gritted fangs.

"Get off me!" Sierra yelled at him.

"The next time this happens, I'll make sure you're going to pay for bullying her!" Killian then released her.

Amara felt at ease when Killian helped her stand up. She couldn't even make a move because of the bruises she got. He carried her out of the packhouses.

"Why did you come here, anyway? You know Sierra loves to beat the hell out of you whenever she sees you," Killian sounded so annoyed as they walked their way to Omegas' houses.

"I needed to help my father..." she replied weakly. The pain in her stomach became more evident as they continued to walk.

Killian had to stop for a moment when he noticed her soft whimpers. He pulled up the hem of her shirt and saw the bruises on her stomach.

"You've been beaten severely this time, half-blood. We need to go to the pack doctor so your wounds will be treated," he said.

"As if the pack doctor would treat a half-blood like me," she replied bitterly and shook her head.

She knew it better. Every time she gets into trouble, up to the point of losing her life from the non-stop beating she gets from the full-bloods, not even once a pack doctor showed up. Her father had to treat her instead, using the herbs he usually gets in the woods. Unlike the normal werewolves that could heal a wound any moment, she couldn't heal herself at all, perhaps because she's been cursed by the goddess.

"I will still try to convince Dr. Vaugh, alright?" Killian insisted.

She let out a soft chuckle. "Whatever you say, warrior."

"You know I'm always here for you, Amara. I don't really like it whenever they hurt you," Killian uttered sincerely as he gazed down at her with his ice-blue eyes.

She felt her cheeks flush because of what he said. Those kind words gave her comfort. She glanced up at Killian and smiled at him.

Amara has loved Killian Montreal secretly. Even though he already found his mate and she knew it would be only one unrequited love, she couldn't find a way to end her feelings towards him.

Aside from her father, he was the only person that made her feel like she was normal-that being a half-blood was not a bad thing. He'd been protecting her since she was four years old, and now that he became an exceptional warrior in the pack, she felt more at ease.

"Thank you, Killian..." was the only thing she could say.

Her heart aches knowing the fact that Killian loves his mate so much. It was a bitter truth apart from being a half-blood. Deep in her wildest dreams, she hoped that Killian would love her and choose her over his mate, but she knew it would not happen.

Not in this lifetime, she told herself.

The storm was over when they headed to the pack doctor's place. Killian was carrying her on his back. The surrounding was now quiet as it was only Killian's footsteps on the grass that were being heard.

She leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. The side of her lips curled up for a small smile.

I could trade everything to be this close to him and to be at peace knowing he'll stay by my side, she thought. However, she reminded herself that Killian's heart was already taken, and her pathetic love will remain unrequited...

AS expected, Amara wasn't treated by the pack doctor. Dr. Vaugh was busy attending to a pregnant Luna, and so, her father, Argus, aided her wounds using some herbal leaves instead at their home.

She was able to take a rest in her tiny room after that. She fell into a deep sleep and only woke up when she heard her father's loud cries. She got up immediately on the bed. Despite the injuries she got, she still managed to run towards the door. As soon as she opened it, her eyes turned to the people in their living room.

There she saw her father on his bended knees, asking for mercy from the two high-ranked warrior werewolves in front of him.

"Father!" she called Argus, her father.

Terror started to creep into her body when she noticed the warriors' eyes. Those ruthless eyes seemed merciless, cold, and screaming of death and hatred.

Her father turned and met her gaze. She was so scared that she could not make a single move.

"Please go back to your room, Amara!" his father pleaded.

"B-But what's going on?" She panicked; her body started to shake in fear. "Father, why are they here?"

"Please, Amara! I don't want you to see this!" Argus cried out loud and then looked back at the warriors. "I didn't do it! I swear, I didn't try to kill the Alpha!"

Amara's eyes widened. It's as if she felt a lump in her throat that she couldn't breathe properly. She held her chest and leaned against her room door for support. She couldn't seem to take a grasp of what was happening.

"You were the last servant in his room, and yet you still dare to deny it?!" The warrior named Thomas groaned angrily. "We saw the fucking knife in your belongings! Don't you ever try to deny it!"

"I didn't do it! Please, spare my life!" Argus begged in front of them. "I swear to the Moon goddess that I never tried to harm our Alpha. I've been a loyal servant for years already!"

Amara couldn't utter a word. She was shocked to hear everything. It was like a scene that she saw before. The trauma, violence, and misery were all going back in her head. She knew her father wouldn't do anything that could harm the Alpha. Afraid to see what could happen next, she ran towards her father and knelt in front of the warriors.

"Amara, I told you to get back to your-"

"I believe my father, sir! He can't even do something that could upset Alpha Gregory. He couldn't even kill an animal... It wasn't him! Please... Please spare his life!" Amara begged as her tears fell down her cheeks.

The warriors only laughed at her plea. She then hugged her father, trying to protect him at all cost.

"Argus, you've been an amazing servant. The Alpha trusted you more than anyone in Omega. How dare you do this to him?"

"I didn't! I told you, it wasn't me!"

"It wasn't him, believe us, sir! Please try to investigate further! There might be a mistake-" Amara wasn't able to finish her words when Isaac, the other warrior, attacked her.

She felt her bones breaking into pieces when he thrust her to the wall with all his force. In just a matter of seconds, the warrior partly shifted. She coughed some blood when she fell on the floor, but Isaac didn't stop right there. He choked her neck and pinned her to the wall.

Amara tried to fight back. She threw some punches for the first time in her life, but that didn't make Isaac flinch even a bit. He laughed and eyed her darkly.

"This half-blooded b*tch doesn't know her place yet, Thomas."

Amara screamed when Isaac started to move his face closer. His fangs were all ready to bite her. She cried for help and shouted Killian's name. The warriors just laughed in amusement.

"Who are you calling, huh? Your savior?" Isaac mocked her and strangled her neck deeply. She felt his claw digging deeper into her skin, making her blood flow down her shoulder blades.

"P-please..." she tried to speak, but she was almost out of breath.

Tears burned her eyes as she tried to glance at her father, who was still asking for mercy. She felt the intense and unfamiliar heat all over her body. Watching her father pleading for his life made her feel more miserable. Her father was kind and innocent... It must be some frame-up.

"Let go of my daughter!" Argus yelled; this time, his voice filled with anger.

She saw how her father's eye color turned from brown to spring. He was about to attack Isaac, but Thomas shifted into a full wolf and bit his father.

Amara's vision went pitch black when she saw how the wolf bit his father's head and decapitated him in an instance. Bloods were everywhere, including her face.

Her heart froze... She saw how her father's head fell on the ground, and then his body being gripped by the ruthless warrior.

She was aware that the warriors laughed out loud, but it seemed like she became deaf for a moment. She was still pinned in the wall, looking at her father's head on the floor. Isaac released her and turned to his father's body, and attacked it into pieces.

She couldn't look away. Her eyes were fixated on her father's head that was also facing her. His eyes were wide-opened, tears were still on his cheeks...

A memory of her father smiling and covering her with a blanket replayed in her mind, a blanket that reminded her of her father's warmth and love. She gasped and tried to crawl slowly towards her father's head while hot tears were falling down her cheeks like a rapid river.

"F-Father..." she called him, hoping that his father would respond like he usually does. But then he didn't answer back...

His head didn't move, eyes weren't blinking, and lips still half-opened...

"N-no... Father..." she cried softly.

With her hands shaking in fear and sadness, she touched her father's head carefully. She bit her lower lip. Her hands caressed him for the last time. She held his face and shut his eyes closed, and then she screamed her lungs out.

Killian stormed to the house. He was shocked at what he saw. Amara felt helpless and hopeless at that very moment. Still holding her father's head, she looked up at Killian, who was standing before her.

"You're going to pay for this," Killian shouted as he looked at his co-warriors ruthlessly and then shifted into a wolf.

Amara didn't even flinch when they started fighting against each other. She continued holding his father's head and let her tears run down her cheeks. Her chin was trembling, and so her lips.

Her poor father was killed... They were supposed to celebrate her birthday tomorrow! Her father even promised to give her a new dress as a gift!

Her father, who made her feel complete even though she no longer has a mother whom she could hug whenever she wanted to, was killed before her eyes...

How could she live after that?

That tragic truth was eating her up, and it was so excruciating that she felt like she can no longer live anymore. If earlier she didn't want to die from Sierra's hand, now she thought of a different case.

The lightning struck the tree near their house, followed by the violent sound of thunder. The heavy rain was pouring hard, and she could hear the eerie howling of wolves somewhere. Still holding her father's head in her arms, she glanced up at the opened window and saw the gleaming silver moon hanging in the sky.

Her heart pounded so loud, it's as if it started pumping blood through her veins. Amara looked at the full moon intently. She knew it was triggering something within her body as the heat she tried to ignore became more evident and uncontrollable.

Out of the blue, a strong wind shoves another head that rolled on the floor towards her.

When she glanced at it, her pupils dilated...

It was from her beloved warrior.

AMARA's wrath was ablaze. Looking down at the head of her beloved warrior, Killian, her hot tears could not stop falling. Rage started to build up inside her heart, along with the harrowing, tormenting feeling of loss and despair.

The warrior wolves have shifted back to their human forms. She heard them laughing as nothing happened, mocking the death of his father and Killian, who did nothing but obey the Alpha.

Amara could not find a way to accept the fact that these two important people in her life had to die for such an invalid reason. There was no way she would accept the horrible death of her father and Kilian. They were the only people she treasured and loved the most.

'Why did they have to die?' She asked herself repeatedly. However, Amara could not get the answer to it.

She screamed her lungs out. The intense heat she was ignoring became so unbearable. She screamed so hard as if her body was burning on fire. Suddenly, her head and body have suffered in excruciating pain, something she never felt before. She gasped for air and closed her eyes firmly. Her breathing became ragged and heavy that made her fall on the floor.

"We have to kill Argus' child, Thomas. This bitch will seriously put us into trouble," Isaac suggested to his co-warrior.

"Then kill her. I want to see her suffer first, but I agree, she must die and join her father in hell." Thomas laughed.

Amara growled loudly. Her fingers were already scratching the wooden floor, digging deeper onto it as, little by little, her claws had started to grow. The veins on her hands and neck became more visible as the blood inside it continued to pump wildly. Her heart was pounding aggressively, and with each pound, she felt her bones turning broader and bigger until it finally ripped her clothes. She gritted her teeth as her mouth slowly changed its shape. Her fangs grew sharper and almost ready to bite flesh.

She arched her back. It was as if a devil had finally awakened inside her body and overpowered her. Amara howled in pain when her body started to shift for the very first time, minutes after turning seventeen, on the night of the full moon.

As she continued panting, her eyes opened by force. Those amber-colored pairs of eyes have turned to golden mist. At the same time, Amara's slim body has transformed into a vast and dangerous silver-colored wolf.

That was the moment she lost her sanity. Rage and vengeance took over her emotion. Her golden mist eyes turned to the two warriors who killed her loved ones.

Amara never felt so powerful until that moment she completely shifted into a wolf. She snarled. Her gleaming fangs were out. With her saliva flowing from her mouth, she has one goal for that night, and that was to kill those warrior wolves.

***

IN her wolf form, Amara ran as far as she could to save herself from the Crimson moon pack that was hunting her after the death of the two warrior wolves. The rain was still pouring heavily, and the cold wind was aggressive, swaying the trees in the woods. She didn't stop. She didn't want to rest. The only thing she wanted to do was escape so the pack would not find her.

She knew she was tired. However, she still wanted to go farther from the pack's territory. Her four legs were all numb, her breathings weren't regular, and her entire body was wet and cold. Amara would've collapsed already if she was in her human form, but then her wolf form was persistent and way more robust and more uncontrollable than her average human body.

She didn't mind the darkness of the place. Despite the eerie noises she heard, the chilling night that continued to send shivers down her spine, and the emptiness she felt in her heart, she kept running until she reached the end of the woods.

Amara found herself standing on the edge of a cliff. Tears pooled her golden mist eyes. She gazed up at the dark sky. The gleaming silver moon was still up there, shining as if it was mocking her and laughing at her unknown misery.

Despite her current form, she couldn't escape from the searing pain that was eating her whole heart. Her sanity has lost from the moment she shifted. Her memories weren't intact in her mind but she felt a strong sting within her that was continuously tearing her into small pieces.

She growled as she gritted her fangs. Still looking at the moon, all she could feel was wrath and pain for something she couldn't remember... yet. As the cold wind blew her wet fur and tears, she howled in despair, hoping that it would lessen her affliction.

That night, Amara's wolf was restless. She continued running with all her strength until she finally reached the boundary of the werewolves' territory and made her way into the land where werewolves would not dare to enter.

***

"CHILD, wake up! Why on earth are you sleeping in the woods? It's dangerous here!" an unfamiliar voice of a woman had spoken that woke her from her deep sleep.

Amara could feel the throbbing pain in her head. A soft whimper escaped her mouth as she tried to move her weak body before opening her eyes slowly. Her vision was so blurry that it made her blink several times. When her eyes started to see clearly, the first thing she saw was the face of a woman who has gray-colored hair, wrinkles on the sides of her almond-shaped eyes, fair cheeks, and pale chapped lips. The older woman was gazing down at her and holding her in the arm.

Fear tormented Amara's chest, and her heart became uneasy because of the presence of this older woman in front of her. She panicked and got up immediately, trying to move away from the stranger.

Based on her sweet foreign scent, Amara knew that the stranger was a human.

"Why are you sleeping here in the woods, young lady?" the woman asked worriedly, and then she looked down at her body. "And where are your clothes? What happened to you?"

As if that became Amara's cue to check on herself, she looked at her body and realized that she's naked. Her forehead immediately creased. Her mouth was left half-open, but she couldn't utter anything. She was bewildered. That was one thing for sure.

Amara's eyes started to roam around. All she could see were tall trees-vines brushing the green grasses, fallen leaves on the moist soil, the pleasant lake in front of them, and the sun rays reflecting on its water. The sound of birds and crickets chirping altogether and the bees stinging from somewhere filled her ears too.

The forest seemed unfamiliar to her. It was not like the typical forest within the Crimson pack territory, the place where she lives. She could not even smell any scent of werewolves in the area, which she finds odd. The only scents she could smell are those from grasses, the mist of fog, the smell of the cold water in the lake, and lastly, the sweet scent of human blood.

"Where am I?" she asked, her voice was shaking in fear. She then looked at the older woman again, who was still gazing worriedly at her. "W-what did you do to me?"

"Oh no, please, calm down! I didn't do anything to harm you. I was looking for some woods I could use at home and then I saw you sleeping near the lake. I was just here to help you."

"But you're a human!" Amara almost yelled, frightened and confused by the situation.

The older woman looked at her; the confusion was written all over her face.

"O-of course, hon. Shouldn't I be a human?"

Amara tried to stand up. She couldn't handle the throbbing pain in her head. The more she tries to understand what was happening, the more pain is attacking her head. It was the first time it ever happened to her. She never had a migraine until waking up in this unfamiliar forest.

"W-wait! Don't tell me you're going home naked?"

Amara knew that the human was following her. She tried to run to get away from her. However, the pain hitting her head was more potent than her will to escape. She stopped for a while and leaned her back against a tall tree.

"If you walk on the highway naked, I assure you that you will be in trouble. I'm not saying this to generalize men in Drysdale, but some of them were just born perverts, you know."

"W-what?" Amara glanced back at the human who was carefully watching her from a distance.

"I said some men were just born perverts, and if one of them sees you walking naked on the highway, you'll be in big trouble..."

"No, not that one!" Amara walked towards her and gripped her arms firmly. "Where are we?"

In just a second, the older woman feared her. She's gripping her as if she was about to break her bones. Amara couldn't control the rage building up within her. Her whole body felt heavy and weak when she woke up but then, strength awakened in her upon hearing the human's statement.

"Tell me, where am I?" she shouted angrily.

"Y-You... Your eyes..." The woman stuttered in fear as her eyes widened. "Y-You're not... W-what are you?"

"I asked you, where am I?!" she repeated the question.

"D-Drysdale!"

"No!" she growled loudly.

Amara could not even control herself anymore. She felt her nails digging deeper into the human's skin. Anger and the familiar heat started to consume her. Her heart was pounding loudly out of rage. It was the first time she ever felt that, and she couldn't understand why until she saw her eyes reflecting from the woman's eyes.

It was a pair of golden mist eyes...

Shocked by what she saw, Amara released the older woman and stepped back. She shook her head as she continued to look at the woman.

"Y-you're not a human," the woman concluded with her entire body shaking. "The color of your eyes suddenly changed..."

Amara closed her eyes firmly. She breathed heavily and tried to calm down. When her rage started to subside and her breathing went back to normal, she opened her eyes again and met the older woman's gaze.

"Unbelievable..." said the older woman. "Your eye color turned back to amber."

That gave her a sigh of relief; however, her mind was still haywire. Amara was still puzzled as to why she ended up sleeping in this forest in Drysdale. The human territory was way too far from the werewolves' region as they were isolated.

"My father must be looking-"

Amara was not able to finish her words when the memories of what happened last night started to replay in her head; the tragic memories of how the warrior wolves attacked and decapitated her father right in front of her-his blood all over the four corners of their home, how Killian Montreal, the love of her life, saved her from being killed... and how she shifted to a full wolf for the first time after turning seventeen on the night of the full moon.

She finally remembered everything. Those tragic memories hit her head like wild waves.

She felt her heart stopped beating, and her lungs had multiple lumps that she couldn't breathe. Her whole body started trembling as the memories started to get clearer.

Amara wanted to open her mouth and shout, but it seemed like all her gathered strength from earlier had escaped in an instance.

They killed her father...

They killed Killian...

Hot tears pooled down her eyes as the excruciating memories of the tragedy that happened last night hammered her world, shattering it into pieces. It was, indeed, a fatal pain, like a silver bullet getting through her bones and was slowly killing her. A soft whimper escaped her lips.

"No..." She cried as she remembered how she embraced her father's head for the last time at that very moment and how Killian was beheaded the next minute despite his loyalty to the pack. "No..."

"Y-young la-"

"NO!" Amara screamed in despair.

She remembered everything. She remembered how the people she loved and trusted the most died. She remembered how the warriors took their lives.

They were gone. The two people who showed her love and kindness were gone!

With her body shaking in hatred and sorrow, Amara fell to the ground.