When I wake I am alone.
Now although a blanket has been placed over me.
I sit up and a lightheaded sensation makes me want to lie back down. I don't because I know today I will have to face another hardship. Slightly embarrassed by my actions yesterday I rise and take a quick shower. Then I braid my hair back and get dressed in the outfit I am provided. Thin blue workout shorts dangle loosely from my thin legs. A tight, figure hugging shirt accompanies the shorts. To finish up the look a pair of dull running shoes are to be worn.
I sit and wait for the guards to come summon me to breakfast, but they never do. It isn't until I find a little note on my nightstand that I realize they won't be coming this morning. The note is written in cursive black lettering on a shimmery gold piece of paper.
Take this morning to yourself, see you soon, Chris.
I run my hands over the shimmery slick paper and frown. Were the others allowed this treatment? If not, why me? My cheeks flood a light pink at the thought of Chris taking in any romantic interest in me. I shake my head and pinch my wrist immediately after. Chris is a manipulative individual who wants nothing more than these games and women willing to do sexual favors.
Breakfast is delivered to my room on a silver platter. A rich fatty type of chicken is smothered in a golden brown sauce. My drink is orange juice with blended strawberries to give it more flavor. I inhale the meal and end up licking my lips for more. Sitting on the edge of my fluffy bed I stare outside at the garden of roses. The sky above is a gloomy shade of grey. The wind must be harsh because the rose bushes sway East sharply. I jump when a loud knock interrupts my thoughts.
"Caliana Johnson please step outside" a professional yet deadly voice says.
A shiver runs through my spine and I rise and walk over. Like before guards stand waiting but this time they were armed. Electric wands were gripped firmly in their hands and I cringe. Today must be an extremely hard task. The guards guide my down the golden hallways until we are outside. I glance around the group and notice one girl continuously crying. I wonder who she lost yesterday.
"Caliana?!! Caliana!!" A high pitched and excited voice calls. I turn and see Christina running up to me before squeezing me in a death hug.
"I though you hadn't made it out. You weren't at breakfast with eveyone! Are you ok, did something happen?"
Behind me I feel a presence creep up. My heart hamors in my chest. Electricity begins to crackle between us. With careful words I answer her.
"I was throwing up this morning. I didn't feel well and requested to eat alone. The doctor came in.... and he helped me," I cautiously remark. Damn me for never being good at lying.
"Lucky you" she purrs lustfully " Doctor. Oliver is one hoty. Now I know why you don't talk about Chris like the rest of us. You and Doc have a little....." but she doesn't get the opportunity to finish.
"May I speak with Caliana privately?" Chris asks from behind me.
Christina's eyes immediantly snap up to Chris. Dreamily she sighs before nodding her head. With his gloved hand he pulls at my wrist. I frown at him and my eyebrows clash at the force behind his pull. We weave throughout the people before he pulls me inside. I rest against the wall as he begins to talk.
"Look" I start " I tried my best to lie to her. And you didn't have to do that for me his morning...."
"Freckles" He says seriously making me hault "today is going to be dreadful. I want to tip you off on something."
I frown and stare at his shoes. Was he tipping everyone off? If not why me? I should be the last person he tips off, especially because I broke multiple rules.
"Ok" I say cautiously " scream it from the roof tops."
I glance up and find him looking down at me. His eyes are lit with life at my phrase. I can tell he is thinking something filthy so in embarrassment my cheeks tinge pink. I scowl at myself for being so cliche.
"You are going to be running today" He says carefully.
"I'm a fine runner" I state stubbornly.
"I'm sure" he sighs " but the things you are running from are specifically designed to run faster than you."
"So I'll shift" I say.
"No" he rushes " they will go after you first if you are shifted. Run towards the North. Stay away from a big group."
My breathing slightly escalates. He steps closer to me, so close that I can feel the energy from his skin. I have the sudden urge to lean in and kiss him but I ignore that thought. Then he tilts my chin until I have to look into his eyes.
"Stay alive violet eyes" He halfheartedly teases.
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The sky gives a roaring crack and sheets of rain begin to pour on us. I grumble as the rain drops onto my bare legs. Why of all days were thin shorts picked?
I get 10 minutes to run for life. I get 10 minutes to hike my way into the woods. Then mysterious creatures will be released into the wild to tear us apart. Trained to make sure your limbs are not intact Chris said. So as I wait for the mark to go I can hardly breathe. Sweat is already coating my forehead.
"After 5 hours if you are still alive I will have to personally find you," is Chris's final remark.
A loud blaring horn is sounded in the air. The sound makes me tremble. Behind me I hear the ticking of a clock. I begin to jog and cringe as mud flys on my legs. The rain is relentless, it showers me. I am soaked by the time I reach the entrance to the Northern forest.
The Northern forest has trees that seem to stretch to the sky. There are no sounds of any kind of animal existence. Only the heavy, steady noise of never ending rainfall. I hear my loud alarmed heartbeat in my ears as I continue to trudge through the forest. A little less than an inch of mud clings to the bottom of my sneakers. My arms are filled with goosebumps and I'm sure my breathing can be heard a mile away.
I continue to hike through the deep green forest, on edge with every step. I know the 10 minutes are up when grim and horrendous howls overcome the soothing rainfall sounds. Some of the howls are shrill and high pitched while others are low and purposely made to make the hair on the back of your neck stand up.
I freeze and listen to the pack run. Their huge paws pounding in the soil. Making it seem as if they were coming from everywhere. My body violently shakes and I decide it would be best to continue to move. What would I do if they found me? I decide to not overthink and continue to head North.
My plans change when blood curdling sounds break through the quiet forest. The screams are horrendous and it is the type of scream that takes your entire body. It is the type of breathe that uses the entirety of your lungs. The screams bounce off every tree until the ringing brings tears to your eyes.
I begin to sprint toward a tree flinging myself on it and scrambling up the slick bark. Tree branches snag at my shirt but I continue to climb. One snags right below my eye and I feel blood begin to trickle out. I climb so high that I can see the layout of the forest. My lip trembles as the pack of unearthly gigantic hounds rip someone to shreds. The girls honey brown hair is now blood red. Her leg looks like a piece of badly minced meat. Chunks of fat are ripped off and tossed around the trees. She reaches her hand out towards the tree by her and whimpers. One last cry for help that no one could offer. She dies when the grey hounds snap her neck.
My hands tremble by my side as I watch the hounds begin to encircle the tree she was whimpering at. Tears blur my vision as one hops on a branch and begins to chase after its prey. A male voice begins to scream for help and the hounds all growl. Their growls rip through the peaceful forest. My body trembles and I cover my mouth as the hound snags the boys legs and tugs him down. He thrashes wildly, grabbing branches and leaves to prevent his fall. Before his body can touch the ground the hounds rip off his head.
My stomach flips and I turn to throw up. My breakfast spills out and I moan lowly. My body is quaking and the floor below me sways. Blackness dots my vision and I grab onto a branch to steady myself. The cut below my eye begins to sting as rainwater hits it. Slowly my vision returns and the ground stops swaying. I climb down the tree and once on the floor I throw up again.
Flashes of the boy tumbling from the trees. Flashes of that pieces torn from that girls leg. They play like a never ending loop in my mind. My hands press in the mud as tears flood down my cheeks. Innocent people were just murdered. Heaveniess collapes my chest and the world falls on my shoulders.
The sky gives another crack of lightening and more rain pours on my head. I sit with my knees tucked to my chest and my eyes squeezed shut. The morbid howls of those demons grunts make existing painful. I try to stand but when those images flash through my head I collapse back on the ground.
I know I'm being weak and impossible but I can't seem to breathe. Death has never been kind and I know that. But watching those two die has caused an ache to blossom in my chest. Thinking about it has caused searing fiery bursts to settle in the pit of my stomach. Knowing that I couldn't do anything to save innocent people has caused an icy wind to prevent me from breathing properly.
A crunch behind this tree makes my alertness arise. I sniff and shift my gaze behind me. Slowly I rise to my feet and I take a step back as it steps into view. His eyes are glazed over with a stormy black. The mutt barely has any fur and I see burn marks crawling up the side of him. He cocks his head at me almost as if I'm familiar. Then he bares his large yellow teeth and growls. I turn on my heel immediately flinging mud at the beast.
He snarls loudly and I hear his gigantic paws thudding on the earth. I dodge in between the trees. I make sharp turns around bushes and ignore the scratches made in my arms and legs. The hound is gaining major spead on me so as I hop over a log I shift.
My wolf has always been small and it's always been a disadvantage. Now it seems like a disability. My thigh is bitten into hard and my legs begins to spasm. I tumble in the mud and across my vision black dots dance. I see the grey hounds shadow creep over my body as if death was confirming my end. Before his yellow teeth can dig into my throat I squeeze my eyes shut and hope to see stars.
————————————————————
The rain cascades onto the trees and I wait. My breathing is harsh and a mark of the promise I made to my sister. I promised I would try, and I did with failure. My claws dig into the gooey mud and I feel it begin to cling to my fur. When I do not feel razor sharp teeth in my neck I hesitantly open my eyes.
The hound stands with his tail tucked between his legs. His ears are perked up and those stormy eyes are momentarily cleared. The grey ugly hound gives a sharp whine and wags its tail when something begins to stalk toward him. The hound lays down and begins to playfully roll in he mud. I take my chance and try to stand. Prickles of burning pain shoot up my leg. I collapse back on the ground and with watery eyes try again. My leg is gushing out blood and with the slightest bit of pressure fiery pain makes blackness begin to shield my vision.
The hound is still distracted and I can tell his Alpha is coming closer. I'm about to try and crawl but am stopped when a enormous wolf comes into view. His brown fur is slicked back with rain water. He wags his tail at the hound and approaches him with confident steps. I flatten my ears and slowly begin to inch back.
Tall grass begins to shoot over my head and I slide further down the muddy hill. My leg begins to violently spasm. So badly that I begin to whine from the pain. The sound of movement stops me from crying out although. The grass around me shuffles and I tuck my tail in and flatten my ears. My body trembles and I contemplate if I should look at the sky before death. The wolf peeks his through the tall grass with flattened ears to be careful. When his eyes land on me they perk back up.
I keep my ears flat, unaware of who he is. The eneromous wolf invades my personal space and begins to sniff my neck and face. I snap when he begins to lower his nose to my body. The wolf doesn't try to overpower me like I thought he would. Instead he crosses over and lays right in front of me. When the bush begins to rumble again and the hound peeks his out my body trembles. I bare my teeth and attempt to shield my butchered leg. The wolf only now notices my leg and attempts to paw at it. He extends his snout to see the damage done but I snap at him. He growls at me lowly, an Alphas warning.
The rain pours onto my snout and head. I finally get the chance to look the wolf in the eye. The eyes hit me the moment I see them. The realization of who these eyes belong to hit me in the chest and I perk my ears up unknowingly. Chris wags his tail and scoots forward little by little. I let him because my chest is weighed with the odd feeling to trust him.
Chris is so wrapped around me that my heart thuds in my chest. The greyhound behind him lays casually, smiling as he stares at me. When I feel Chris's tongue touch my wound I whine and try to tuck my leg back away. Chris growls lightly and nips at my ear to tell me to stop. So I do stop but watch his every movement in worry. Chris stops licking my gash and stands, trying to motion for me to stand. I want to tell him that I can't. That he will have to leave me to fend for myself. But he doesn't move.
He whines at me and the hound behind him whimpers as well. So I put pressure on the leg to attempt him show him that I cannot move. But am shocked when I feel no pain. I look at the gash in my leg and then back at Chris in confusion. He shakes his head and begins to run forward. I follow him the feeling of complete protection and safety growing with every second I am around him.
———————-
The remaining of us are rounded up and marched down to the castle. Chris does not make eye contact with me again. In fact he sticks to the outskirts of our little pack and avoids me entirely. A small nagging in my heart is worried that he has lost interest in me. I like being pampered and treated differently, despite the fact that it is purely for his entertainment. When we step foot onto the castle grounds workers with white towels are waiting to wrap us up.
Chris disappears and as I shift back my legs are almost incapable of moving. I stumble into the arms of a worker, lying my head on his shoulder and the man wraps me up.
"It's ok miss" He says soothingly, while stroking my wet hair.
I don't try to get off of him but instead wrap my arms around the man. He wraps his arm around my waste to steady me.
"Do it Alpha" the mans says still soothingly.
A needle is plunged into my arm and darkness swallows me like a black wave.