Against All Odds

ZARA

I woke up before the sun rose, took a bath, got ready, and picked up my bow and arrows to go for my rounds. Other warriors of my pack start at noon but, I am there at the boundary as early as five every day, making sure that everything is in order and no lycan is trespassing into our territory.

I relaxed a bit when I checked all around and realized that I was alone. I walked to the river not far off from where I stood and bent down to drink some water when I caught a sound. I listened intently and heard footsteps but they were not familiar. My battle instincts kicked in and I jumped into the water. I took out a few of the arrows stacked at my back and looked around warily, ready to plunge the heart of whoever the intruder was, I wouldn't put it past the evil lycans.

ANDERS

I ran into the woods to exercise my body and do what I did best; keep watch over the lycan territory. This was the life I loved and lived for.

My name is Anders and I am the most highly respected gamma in my pack, for now, until I assume my position as the alpha. I don't have a mate, never got one when I turned eighteen and I didn't consider it a big deal because not everyone gets a mate. Girls would queue up if I as much as bat an eyelid at them but I'm not interested. The alpha's daughter claims to be in love with me though, but I'm yet to decide if she is worthy of my attention.

Some would say I am arrogant but I like to believe that I am straightforward and a go-getter. I let nothing stand in my way and this has been my life's motto for as long as I can remember.

I feel excited each time I recall that I'm going to be the next alpha of my pack, it is the utmost honor for me and rightly deserved since I earned it. I could still remember the best moment of my life when I won the alpha contest. I defeated fifty strong lycans in a day and that's how I qualified for the alpha position. They didn't stand a chance against me though because my strength is unique.

I was still thinking about my moment of glory when I heard a disturbance in the river and felt a presence. Someone was trying to cross over to our grounds. Those darn werewolves, I am not sparing any of them.

I quickly hurried to the river and saw a werewolf in the middle of it. I briefly looked around and jumped into the river without second thoughts. This werewolf who had her back to me turned and aimed her arrow at me but I quickly caught it. Didn't these werewolves know that an arrow was nothing in front of a lycan?

I threw the arrow into the river and charged at her just as she charged toward me. I knew that her life was going to be over in a matter of seconds and I had no intention of stopping without achieving that. She seemed fearless and brave and in my opinion, stupid. Shouldn't she know better than to fight a lycan?

Werewolves could only shift during a full moon but lycans could shift at any time and were way bigger and stronger. Although werewolves were faster and more skilled than lycans, they still did not stand a chance against them, especially ones like me.

I was so close to getting to her and ripping her head off when the strangest thing happened; an undertow. It threw the both of us off balance and into the water and for some unknown reason, the water became greatly disturbed.

I tried to hold on to whatever my hands could find but the water tossed us about and I could tell that the werewolf fared badly. Her bow and the arrows she earlier held in her hands were gone and she was now struggling for her life.

The water pushed us further at an unbelievable speed and we both ended up falling from the top and plunging into a much bigger river which was surprisingly calm. We fell into the river at the same time and began to swim to the bank. She turned out to be a better swimmer than me as she moved more quickly but stopped when two crocodiles showed their ugly heads and began to advance toward us.

I quickly turned my back on the crocodiles and began swimming toward the far end of the river. Apparently, she did the same but the crocodiles turned out to be faster. I heard her scream and I turned to see that a crocodile had caught one of her legs and the other one was aiming for her hand. It couldn't be more obvious that she was a goner. Serves her right for daring to challenge a lycan such as me.

I turned and continued swimming but I heard another blood-curdling scream. It was still her voice and it gnawed at me, as though leaving her to her fate was the worst thing I could possibly do. I wasn't softhearted or empathetic, no. I was used to only doing things that benefited me but for the first time in my life, I felt compelled to risk my life for an enemy.

I tried to fight this sudden urge to run to her aid but I couldn't, it was more than I could fathom and eventually, I gave in. I turned and began swimming back but I could no longer see her or the crocodiles. The area where she was had turned red and I believed her blood had changed the color of the water. Those crocodiles must have bitten the life out of her and now they were probably coming for me, or so I thought.