HALF-SHIFTER'S AWAKENING

BIANCA'S POV

"Why should a lovely damsel like you be heading to Dartmoor island?" The captain of the ship on which I voyaged on asked me as he stood next to me.

The sharp wind struck my ankles. I shivered as I felt the touch of the western breeze. Everything just happened like magic. I did not know where this ship was heading to.

"I simply have no way to go. I don't have other options."

I whispered softly, not double-crossing the unrest I felt. Sudden feelings of fear and dread overwhelmed me and I couldn't help as tears trickled down my cheeks.

I was really worried about my fate, scared of this said island although it had been my choice to come here. All my dreams were shattered.

The captain was old school, probably worked for a human, but he had nothing against those who I had grown up with- werewolf shifters such as myself.

I felt his look all over, and I shuddered, realizing that he was staring at the scar that ran from my neck to my chin.

Right now, I was only a lady with no place to go.

The captain nodded, running a hand through his thick white beard.

"You seem like the sort that is running from something. Everything about you screams fear."

He stopped staring at me and directed his attention towards the island. We were coming increasingly close to the ocean side, and the little wharf with a couple of settlements.

"Dartmoor Island is pure heaven. It's been quite a long time since I got there since the uprising."

"What happened?" I was charmed to get familiar with the spot I would soon call home.

"Well, it used to be the island where Calabria would send their most dangerous criminals, including shifters, vampires and the likes."

The captain stared at me for a moment.

I nodded, itching to hear more about the mysterious island.

The beefy man proceeded with the story.

"The superintendents held the shifters under tight restraints for fifteen years, but something else happened during this period. The detainees coordinated themselves and went after Port Louis, the seat of the superintendents."

"I guess they succeeded?"

"Alas, you're right. And presently the island is partially under their control." The captain murmured.

"It is a troublesome place to live. I could encourage you to not enter this world. However, it's absolutely impossible that I can persuade you to return with us."

I shook my head.

"There's no life for me in Calabria. Not any longer."

"You could choose a different island to stay on; elsewhere next to Dartmoor."

I hesitated for a moment before speaking; I was just being clueless about the whole thing.

"I'm a shifter. I don't expect you to understand my plight."

A rebel without a partner was nothing; more terrible than junk. Here, basically, no one would ask questions concerning why I wasn't on the south-central coast under the security of my wolf family.

Dartmoor Island was the last option for anyone who had nothing left to lose.

The captain scratched his beard.

"All things considered, the best advice I can give you is to travel west and locate the Centro Villa."

"Why?"

"Those are the only reasonable people left on the island; alongside the previous superintendents and their families."

"I'll see to that."

The exhortation had come to me unexpectedly, and I looked at the man suspiciously. For what reason did he want to help me? After what had befallen me, I had quit believing people at face value.

Nothing was free in this world, basically not so much for me - I didn't merit being deceived by others.

Another mariner called the captain.

"Excuse me, miss."

With those few words, the old ass captain walked off towards the edge of the ship.

I kept gazing at the beautiful island from a distance away. The sight was wonderful: the waves were tranquil, and the grasses were much greener.

But my thoughts soon brought me a flashback, to the particular moment that pushed me along these lines......................

It was on my 26th birthday. I was celebrating my new age, old enough to start my own clan.

I'd went to the shooting range first, and Clara and I did what we both had fun doing - we tested firearms on blank targets.

After some crazy moments, we as a whole ate a birthday cake at home, basking in the joy of the celebration.

I actually recalled that day affectionately: the grins of my human mother and my wolf shifter father, as well as my dearest companions, when they gave me presents.

Since my dad had hitched my mom, a human, he didn't have an elevated status in the pack. Some said he had weakened his great shifter blood, and I, as the result of the union, a mutt, wasn't looked on affectionately.

Fortunately, I could shift into a wolf, although I hadn't figured out how to do it until my mid 20s, not at all like the full-blooded shifters who could shift shapes from their youth onwards...............

Some days later, we were simply strolling through the town when I saw Jack Gilmore, the Beta's son, with three of his friends in the county square.

As of now, Jack was the most attractive man I had at any point met, with his long brown hair and olive skin.

At the point when our eyes met, his own so dim they were practically dark, it seemed as if lightning struck me.

The disclosure that he was my fated mate profoundly impacted me. I approached him, a blissful grin all over my face, yet Jack's demeanor showed outright disgust.

"A crossbreed with a distorted face like you - my mate?!" He asked, waving his hands in the air.

His friends laughed behind him, which made him more irate.

"I won't get myself into this. Never!!!" he yelled.

I opened my mouth to say something in defense. A piece of me, the wolf in my spirit, had proactively uttered hints of pain. She realized what was coming even before I did.

"I would rather not mate with you! I reject you as my fated mate."

When the words were out of his mouth, I tumbled to the ground, holding at my chest. Maybe somebody had torn out my heart, blown my mind, and kicked me until I was in a wad of torment.

Tears tumbled from my eyes like cascades, and I saw myself shouting when Jack made a sickened face.

BIANCA'S POV

"Get this filthy thing out of my sight!" He pointed at me, and then at my folks.

My father was enraged, but Jack's position in the pack was much higher than his, so I understood he had to tone down his reaction. Mother gazed at us, stunned.

Susanne approached me and embraced me. When she opened her mouth, I knew she was planning to call Jack furious names. I shook my head.

"Don't bother," I murmured.

Susanne gave me a concerned look, but she withdrew.

"What's happening here?" The Alpha's voice resonated in the square, booming and commanding.

Jack stood proudly when the Alpha moved toward us. A giant of a man, the leader had a long, shaggy beard and similarly ragged eyebrows.

"I will not accept her as my mate," Jack stated, staring at me. It didn't seem like he felt any regret for his actions.

I gazed up at the Alpha, wiping my tears away. He had a cruel demeanor.

"So you would rather not mate with this mutt?" The head of our pack asked Jack to confirm his decision for the last time.

"I won't," Jack answered decisively.

I was sad and didn't know what to do. Why did fate have to hitch me with such a horrible person out of all the wolves in the pack?

I sent a prayer to the Moon Goddess. Obviously, no answer came. Regardless of whether the Moon Goddess felt Jack would be a good partner for me, and I for him, he'd already made up his mind. And nothing was going to change that.

Also, he'd already dismissed me; such an extreme motion was conclusive.

"Then there's no place for the crossbreed in our pack," the Alpha's words severely impacted me.

I opened my mouth to protest why the Alpha would remove me from the pack unceremoniously, but I was being misunderstood entirely. Since Jack didn't want me as his mate, I would have to abandon my life here. I was going to leave behind my folks and my livelihood.

Also, where else would I go? There was no place in Dartmoor that would accept a rebel-a wolf shifter without a pack. A rebel was untouchable, disregarded by everybody.

My dad rushed to respond. While I was lost in my thoughts, he challenged the verdict. I could hear him screaming at the top of his voice; he was not scared to confront the Alpha.

I stood there with tears drowning my cheeks, trying to figure out my next move.

"Why? On what basis are you dismissing my daughter from the pack?" My dad asked.

"I have neglected how you weakened your bloodline for a long time. You brought this animal that is neither completely a human nor a wolf shifter into our clan, however if she has not proved deserving of her fated mate, then there's no place for her here."

The Alpha's words were cold, and I felt their conclusiveness. I had never seen somebody squabble with him and emerge from the argument victorious. The Alpha's statement had more weight than the law itself.

Perhaps, if he said there was no place for me in the family, I needed to leave. I would be somebody with nowhere to go.

I stared into the mirror, checking out the scar on my cheek. Jack had dismissed me because of my crossbreed nature-something I had no chance of impacting.

I had sustained a lot of injuries while fighting off a bunch of marauders at the Flintwood Sugar Plantation.

Throughout the year, I still had bruises all over. People normally stared at me in shock and disgust, gossiping among themselves about my weird appearance. How was my fated mate going to accept me in this state?

The Alpha gave me the rest of the day to leave. With nowhere else to go, I made my way toward Del Rio, a port town.

Dartmoor Island was the only spot I could imagine that somebody like me could call home: somebody who had nothing, somebody who was completely alone, without trust in others and without hope. This crushed animal was who I was now. I was no longer under the delusion that I deserved the attention and acknowledgment of others.

The boat hit the wharf, jolting me back to reality.

I hoped the mariners would put down the ship's anchor. I waved at the captain and advanced onto land.

I needed to wait a second to become accustomed to being on stable ground again. I put on my knapsack with a few provisions I had taken with me, and I left the boat.

I also hoped that these steps in the right direction meant I was leaving my previous life behind completely. I was ready to start all over again here on Dartmoor Island, the forbidden gem of the South Pacific.

I was still hoping that the island would end up being a good spot for me.

The captain's words were still on my mind. His advice reminded me not to expect much from the island's occupants. The port buildings stood void, and the street I followed north was congested with vegetation. Hopefully, soon I would find the street that extended west to the Belmont pack. I hoped they would accept me and wouldn't discard me like my former pack had done.

Maybe I could make a deal with them and simply live alone in some isolated spot on the island.

I had been walking tirelessly for ten minutes when the hedges to one side stirred, as I was about to cross the community's town hall. About seven men wearing black vests and khaki short jeans emerged. They were all wolf shifters; the creature inside me recognized them as members of my kind.

BIANCA'S POV

I halted abruptly, staring at them, but what I found in their looks made me shake in dread. They had lust in their eyes; a few even licked their lips.

Obviously, I hadn't considered the possibility of this kind of physical danger. There must be some women on the island, but most convicts are male. Seeing a female, like myself, was probably fascinating to them, regardless of whether my face was that of a rebel.

I made a stride back, but the hedges behind me stirred too, and then two other men blocked my access back to the port.

"How fascinating. What do we have here?" The man took a stride towards me. He was attractive, assuming one was into men with mustaches, and he must have been one of the biggest and most powerful shifters I had ever met. On his biceps, the words "El Paso" had been inked. The way he saw me was as if I were prey and he the hunter. I genuinely wished I'd never met him.

"Don't bother me!" I yelled.

I removed my backpack, putting it on the ground. I thought of moving and taking off immediately, but that escape plan could mean forsaking all my provisions. Did I really have a choice? The men didn't have any civil plans towards me.

Was it possible for me to beat off nine werewolf shifters? I was half-wolf, half-human, less lethal in comparison with the Lycans of Valhalla. For our sort, my size was a disadvantage, and I wasn't exceptionally quick. I had never fully adapted to moving around as a creature, so I was exceptionally awkward. Now, I wished I had spent more time on drills.

Before exploring my next option, two men appeared and were about to drive farther north. One of them was huge and strong, with long, braided hair and elaborate dark tattoos on his right arm and chest. He wore no vest or shirt, so his six-pack was on full display. His face was handsome too, as though it were carved from the finest marble. He chuckled and started advancing towards me.

The other man who stood close to him wasn't as tall or well-built, yet he moved with a lot of grace. He had a halo of wavy, colored hair on his head, and his handsome face was clean-cut. Even in this situation, he wore a cordial grin. My wolf perceived the men as bear shifters. My wolf appeared to think that they were both fascinating, and I chastised her-this was not a time to get lost in attraction.

"Logan, it's nice seeing you here!" the man with tattoos cheered, blinking at Logan while gesticulating.

"I'm not sure I'll return that same gesture." Logan stood with his entourage to confront them.

Things were about to go south as my eyes met the wavy-haired man. A stunned demeanor appeared all over him. Could it be that I was actually so sinister as to terrify people? I turned away, yet I couldn't stop staring at him until he suddenly opened his mouth in shock.

I became flushed, humiliated, and wanted to move away from the spot. I didn't want these attractive men to check me out, despite having a huge scar on my face. Unfortunately, I wished I had never gotten the scar. The situation would have differed then; I wouldn't even have been here.

"That lady, hand her over," the voice of the wavy-haired man was bold and agitating, and his words shook me, sending chills down my spine.

I recognized the voice as one an Alpha would have.

Out of the two men, I guessed that the taller one would be more of an Alpha. The head of a pack was much stronger and had the size of a bear compared with the size of a wolf.

His eyes were brimming with fire, and he looked appallingly tense. I looked at the other person. I panted, seeing that he looked angry as well. Why did the two need me? Would it turn out to be a wise decision if I moved with them? What assurance did I have that they weren't more than a bunch of hooligans, worse than the ones I'd encountered back home?

Logan chuckled. "I think I was the first to notice her. So automatically she's mine."

A flurry of roars emitted from the wavy-haired man and the other one as well. I panicked, my greatest fears trying to break me. My instincts told me that a battle would break out at any moment now, and it would be a horrendous and rough one.

Logan waved at the ones who were behind me. "Take her to Port Brampton," he probably was an Alpha as well, since his voice presently had the very roaring tone that dismissed any dissenting opinion.

Logan and the six guards close to him changed into their wolf forms. Snarls and hints of fury could be heard as seven of them set off an assault against the other two people, yet I couldn't watch the fight unfold as two of the guys behind me suddenly snatched me, each under one arm, and suspended me in the air.

"Hey! Let me go!" I shouted and kicked, yet I only kept kicking and scratching.

I wanted to be free. I'd just escaped from home to find a new life, but I ended up being stalked by a bunch of bulldogs.

Although I was resisting and causing as much irritation as could reasonably be expected, the men still succeeded in recklessly tossing me into a confined space in a cargo hold.

They then hopped into the front of the cargo, one controlling everything and the other in the front seat, and we took off.

"Help! I'm being abducted!" I shouted.

"Shut up, bitch!" was the response I got from one of the rogue wolves.

Without a doubt, the island that was a special heaven to rogues and rebels was nothing less than a fool's paradise.