Taelin-
This was it. The day I have been waiting for, for two years. When I first came here to become a warrior in the Royal Guard, I thought that if they accepted me, I would be able to start right away. Then I found out I had to go through two years of vigorous training and skill tests to even qualify.
Today was the day I would find out if I were good enough to join. At first, I had been the laughingstock of everyone. Twenty other highly trained werewolves had also arrived the same day as me, except only two of us were female.
I had figured I would be the only female since there had been no other she-wolves that have been in the Royal Guard. After training for the last two years, and getting tested for skills and endurance, now I know why. The training course was tough, and I am honestly surprised I had made it this far.
The other female that had applied, had been sent home after the first three months. Not because she was unable to keep up, but because it had been too hard for her. The guys had made it a point to make things difficult for us since they didn’t think we could hack it.
Some of them still didn’t think I belonged, but for the most part, I proved them wrong. I had to work twice as hard as the rest, training to become faster and tougher, but I never gave up. There were a couple of guys that tried to stick up for me, but I quickly shut that down.
The last thing I needed was for some guy to come to my rescue when I was trying to prove that I belonged. Now we were all standing in line, waiting for the Alpha King to let us know who would become a member of the Royal Guard and who would be sent back home. We started with twenty-one, but now we were down to twelve.
Only six of us were going to be able to join, which didn’t put the odds in my favor. If I did manage to get chosen though, I would be granted a place on the Guard and sent on my first mission. I was excited, but nervous at the same time. The last thing I wanted was to go home and show everyone that I wasn’t good enough.
In the past two years, I haven’t heard from my mother except for once about eight months ago. She sent me a letter telling me that she loved me, and she was praying for me, but she wished I would return home and give up this dream. Whereas I heard from Theo at least once a week, except for the past four months.
I knew he was more than likely busy with being Alpha and all, but I did miss him. Maybe because I have been away from home for so long, I was able to figure out how I felt about him. I still didn’t love him the way he loved me, but now I believed that I could.
I missed hearing from him and couldn’t wait to go home to see him. Once we received our mission, we were allowed to return home for two weeks. Either way, I was going to be able to go home and see everyone.
“Do you really think they are going to let you join? Women don’t belong on the frontlines.”
I turned around to face the one who spoke, but I didn’t need to look to know who it had been. Seth Pierce. The hotshot. He thought that just because he was the nephew to the Alpha King himself, he was a shoo-in for a spot in the Guard.
It wasn’t that he was wrong, but I doubted it was because of who his uncle was. He was one of the best in the class, so I was pretty sure he would get in. I just wasn’t about to let him continue pushing me around, which has been his goal from day one.
“I guess we will see, won’t we?” I told him, before turning around and facing the front of the room once more.
“You have to be kidding me. Women are not as strong or as fast as us men are. Go back home where you can be safe and have a bunch of pups.” Seth spoke, except this time I didn’t turn around.
“I was strong enough and fast enough to lay you flat on your ass yesterday,” I said, intentionally ignoring his last remark.
“Lay off her Pierce. She has made it this far.” Another voice spoke.
Again, I didn’t need to turn around to know who it was. Frank Houser. The bulldozer. Although Frank earned his title. He was as big as a house and didn’t need the skill to take out his enemies. All he had to do was plow right through them.
“I can handle myself.” I told Frank, looking over my shoulder towards him and offering him one of my rare smiles.
Frank, I actually liked. At first, he gave me a challenging time, but it didn’t last for very long. He was quick to realize I was able to back up my words. He was even someone I enjoyed training with. There had been a few nights he had caught me outside training on my own.
Being that I was a female, I did have a few disadvantages that the others didn’t, but I also had a few advantages as well. For one, I wasn’t as large or as strong as them, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t use my body weight to get behind my attacks. The advantage I did have was, that I was smaller, meaning I could move faster and get in and out of places more easily.
“I know you can. I am just getting tired of the hotshot running his mouth as always.” Frank said, rolling his eyes toward Seth.
“You are an idiot if you think she should be here. She should go back home.” Seth said, sounding annoyed.
“You keep talking like that and I am half tempted to think that you like her.” Another voice spoke.
Jack Tessler. The Brick. He got his name because he was hard. Hitting him resulted in broken fingers, wrists, and hands. Which I have done a few times.
Since I was the one who gave everyone their nicknames, I didn’t have one. Which I didn’t mind, since I wasn’t going to give myself one. I doubted any of them would give me one either.
“Bite your tongue.” Seth growled, then I heard something that sounded like a thud and then a curse.
“You are the idiot.” Frank laughed, which piqued my curiosity enough to turn around.
Seth was holding his wrist and glaring at Jack, who was holding a hand to his face. I didn’t need to ask to know that Seth took a swing at Jack, which resulted in a broken bone. Shaking my head, I turned back towards the front and waited once more.
I didn’t care if Seth liked me or not. He was too much of an asshole to give him a second thought. The only thing I cared about right now is for the Alpha King to make his appearance and let me know if I was accepted or not. For the remainder of the time, I chose to ignore the others.
After what felt like an eternity, the Alpha King finally entered the room holding a couple of folders. I watched as he walked towards the front of the room, spreading out six folders on the table he was now standing behind, facing us. My stomach turned and I felt as if I were going to throw up.
“First, I want to thank you all for stepping forward to put your lives on the line for the sake of our kind. Your sacrifice is appreciated. If I could, I would take you all, but I only have a place for six of you. Those that don’t make the cut today can reapply in six months. Over the past two years, I have watched all of you closely, so my decision was not an easy one to make. When I call your name, come retrieve your folder and stand up here with me.” The Alpha spoke, as he looked from person to person.
“Frank Houser.” The Alpha called out.
“Jack Tessler.” He called out again.
I wasn’t surprised those two were called forward. I would have been more surprised if they hadn’t.
“Nate Myers.” The Alpha called out, except this time I was a little surprised.
Nate wasn’t bad, but I didn’t think he was that great either. Every time he and I had a sparring match, he rarely won. There were far better candidates in my opinion.
“I am sorry, I meant Matt Myers.” The Alpha spoke, calling out Nate’s brother.
“What about me?” Nate asked, his voice rising slightly making him sound as if he squealed.
“You can reapply in six months. Nick Rous.” The alpha said, sounding harsher than I would have thought, before calling out a new name.
I tried not to look over at Nate, as I heard him run out of the room crying. Keeping my eyes forward, I felt as if I were going to throw up. That was four names already, only two more to go.
“Chris Sedgwick.” The alpha called out.
I knew at that moment that there was no way I was going to make the cut. As much as I hated to admit that Seth was right, I knew he was going to be chosen. He was probably the best out of all of us, not to mention he was the Alpha King’s nephew.
I didn’t much like his attitude, but he was a much better fighter. Not that I haven’t taken him out a few times, but I think that had been all just luck. I almost didn’t want to be here any longer, because I was sure Seth was going to make a comment about me going back home.
I looked at the Alpha, waiting for him to call out another name, but he just stood there. His gaze moved from person to person, as if he were trying to decide something. I don’t know why he was taking so long, since he had the last folder sitting directly in front of him. I was sure they already had our names in them, along with our application.
Taelin- “The last name I am about to call, I want you all to know, that I have watched this one very closely. I am not choosing them because of who their family is, but because they were the best in the class. This person trained harder than everyone and I think will one day become even better than me. Despite all the factors against them, they have achieved something I haven’t seen in many years.” The Alpha spoke. The way he was dragging this out made my head hurt. The fact that he mentioned a family connection just proves that he is about to call out Seth’s name. I think the Alpha King may be full of shit though. I admit Seth is good, but he is also lazy when it comes to training. “I didn’t think my uncle saw me like that.” I heard Seth whisper, sounding just a bit smug. “Taelin Reyes.” The Alpha spoke. This has to be a dream. There is no way I just heard what I heard. It was my name the Alpha King called, yet I couldn’t bring my feet to move. I just stared at him with wide eyes
Taelin- Arriving at the wall that surrounded my pack, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to continue. There was something eerie about the atmosphere that seemed to leak out past the walls. Standing just outside the gate, I got this sickening feeling when no one came out to see who had arrived. Typically, one of the pack warriors, depending on who was on rotation at the time, would open the peek hole to see who was outside. Nothing happened though. When I looked up to the top of the wall, I didn’t see anyone walking around either. The way the wall was built allowed others to walk on the metal platform that was just inside the border. I kept watching, hoping that I would see someone. I have even gone as far as calling out to alert them of my arrival. “Mom?” I attempted to link with my mother, but I got no response. “Theo?” I attempted, but still no response. Why wasn’t anyone answering? Something was wrong, but I didn’t know what. The only way I was going to know, is if I entered the territ
Ryker- When was this going to end? For years we have been dealing with this threat and haven’t gotten anywhere. Although I had no one to blame except for myself. When the breakout first happened, I had been tasked with finding a cure. Or rather my pack was. We weren’t an exceptionally large pack, in fact, we were potentially the smallest pack in the world, consisting of only twelve members. We used to be a lot larger, but this parasite has taken out the rest. Just because we were small though, didn’t mean we weren’t one of the best. Every member of my pack has been trained to fight off those that have been infected. We were also the ones that could find a cure. At least at one point, I thought we were, but now I wasn’t so sure. When the breakout first happened, my pack had been one of the first ones hit. The ones that remained are immune to the parasite. Everyone, including me, has been infected, but we were able to overcome it. When the Alpha King learned of this, he sent over on
Taelin- One look at the man standing before me and I was wanting to scream Mate. Samantha was already screaming it in my head. Just when I had been ready to accept a chosen mate, I was now standing before my fated mate. “What is your name?” The male asked, coming toward me like a predator. “Taelin. Would you be so kind as to give me your name?” I asked, trying to contain my excitement. “Ryker. Why did you come here? If protection is what you are seeking, I can offer it. However, you will be expected to carry your own weight and help where needed. I also need to know if you have been infected.” Why was it that even his name made me buzz with excitement? When he continued talking, I just became annoyed though. Why was it that all men think I just needed protection? The ones needing protection were them. Mate or not, my spine stiffened at his comment. I have read the file on this pack. They were small but tasked with finding the cure. They were all very skilled fighters as well, whi
Ryker-I had to admit, she had a fire in her that was a bit refreshing. Not saying that all my pack members didn’t have a fire in them, but hers was different. It was like she always had to have her back up.She was getting under my skin, and I didn’t like it. I wasn’t against female fighters, since we had a female member in the pack that could wipe the floor with the men. My problem was that I felt like she was going to be a distraction, which none of us could afford.The way she responded to my Beta though, now that had been impressive. When he had commented on her looks, I had been ready to lay into him. Not that I knew why, I barely met the girl, and my loyalty was to my members.“Hey! My name is Sara, I can show you where you will be staying. Don’t mind the men, they are just stunned with how beautiful you are.”Just as I expected, my Gamma jumped in and was already trying to be besties with the girl. It didn’t surprise me considering she has been complaining about being the only
Taelin-I was a little disappointed that I hadn’t been able to settle in before I was already called down to get to work. Not that I really minded, considering I needed to get used to being here. Sara was great, but the guys here were already on my last nerve.It wasn’t like I shouldn’t have expected it to happen. Very few males couldn’t care whether I was a female or not. In a way, I had hoped that once I finished my training, people would be more welcoming to me.What makes me being a female any different? I went through the same training everyone else did to get the position I now held. I guess there wasn’t much I could do about it, other than do what I have always done. Prove I belonged.Gathering up the last of my gear, I made sure my thigh halter was properly secure. I might have the benefit of shifting into a wolf, but we were trained to fight in our human form. Since I didn’t know the area, I wasn’t going to shift to defend myself.Taking one last look in the floor-to-ceiling
Taelin-Trying to keep my attention on our surroundings, I found it rather difficult to ignore the feeling that I was being watched. I thought perhaps I was just imagining it. Chancing a look over my shoulder, I found that I wasn’t.Ryker was staring at me. He didn’t even turn away when I caught him. It was as if he was entirely okay with the fact. I wasn’t sure what bothered me more. The fact he was staring at me with an expressionless face, or that I liked him looking at me.His face might appear to be emotionless, but there was something in the way he was looking at me. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but it made me feel good. Like tiny little ladybugs fluttering around over my skin.I was about to avert my gaze and return to keeping an eye on things when I noticed something from the corner of my eye. It was to the left of the truck, the side Ryker was on. Focusing my eyes in that direction, I thought maybe I had just imagined it.Until I realized I saw a rogue running towards the
Ryker-How stupid could I be? When I told her that my main priority is keeping my members safe, I hadn’t expected her to risk her life as she had. What is worse, I called her an idiot when she did.I told Julian to stop, but he just reminded me that under no circumstances are we to put ourselves in danger if it can be helped. I had hoped that Taelin would be on the road waiting for us on our return, but she wasn’t. We even looked around the area but didn’t find any of the rogues or Taelin.I couldn’t believe she had gone and got herself killed not even a few hours after arriving. We picked up the supplies and made our way back without any issues. I couldn’t get Taelin out of my head though.“Ryker, you need to let it go. There is nothing that can be done now. She was hot, but obviously not cut out for this job. It is time we contacted the Alpha King and explained what is going on.” My Beta said, pulling me from my thoughts.“It can wait until tomorrow. Right now, we need to get everyt