A last favour from him

                         ~ELARA~

I stumbled, landing hard on the damp stone floor. The iron bars clanged shut. Darkness pressed in.

For a moment, I just lay there, my chest heaving, my sobs echoing off the walls.

Outside, I could still smell the smoke.

Papa was gone.

And now, so was I.

I crawled into the corner, hugging my knees to my chest.

I was alone, betrayed. The daughter of a hero, now treated as nothing more than a prisoner awaiting death.

I stayed in the dungeons for days with barely any food or water.

I might die from starvation before the Alpha even gets to decide my fate or before I even think of ways to escape.

No one visited me once in the dungeon. The only person that would have cared to visit was Amara, my help.

But seeing that she didn't come to see me, the Alpha must have made a rule that no one must visit me in the dungeon.

It would be a very easy rule for the pack members to abide by because no one cared about me.

No one ever cared about me.

Born wolfless, I was the mistake the Moon Goddess had cursed them with. An Omega without a wolf was worse than useless….it was shameful.

The silence in the dungeon was deafening.

No whispers.

No mocking laughter.

No one telling me to get up and scrub until my hands bled.

Only the sound of my own breathing.

I sat there in the darkness, my cheek swollen where the Alpha had struck me, my back against the damp wall, the smell of earth and rust filling my nose. The stone was cold against my skin, but I barely felt it.

I couldn’t stop seeing the flames.

Couldn’t stop hearing the crackle of the fire as it consumed everything I had left of my father.

He was gone.

The one person who believed in me…who saw me as more than a wolfless disappointment…. had been turned to ash while the pack watched.

And I had been forced to kneel and watch too.

A broken sob tore out of me, raw and ugly. I pressed my fist to my mouth to keep from screaming, but it didn’t stop the tears.

I cried until my chest hurt, until my throat burned, until I had no tears left.

I cried for my father.

For the little girl I had been.

For the life that had been stolen from me.

When the sobs finally faded into quiet hiccups, I wiped my face with the back of my shaking hand.

“Why?” I whispered into the darkness. “Why did you take him from me?”

There was no answer. Only the drip of water somewhere deep in the dungeon, like the moon goddess herself was crying too.

I curled up on the cold stone floor, my cheek pressed against my knees, staring blankly at the iron bars of my cell.

I wanted to give up.

I wanted to stop fighting, to let the pain swallow me whole.

But Papa’s voice came back to me…. soft, steady, unshakable.

“You are not weak, my little moon.”

My throat tightened again, but this time no tears came.

I forced myself to sit up straighter, even though my body ached.

If they thought locking me in this cell would break me, they were wrong.

Yes, I had been reduced to nothing, an omega, a prisoner, a shadow of who I once was. But I'll definitely survive this.

I closed my eyes, clutching the memory of my father’s smile like a lifeline.

“I will survive this,” I whispered to the empty cell.

My voice didn’t shake this time.

“I will rise. And when I do… they will all pay.”

The words hung in the air like a vow.

For the first time since they dragged me here, I felt a strange calm settle over me.

I wasn’t free.

I wasn’t safe.

I wasn’t strong…. not yet.

But I was still here.

And as long as I was breathing, I had a chance.

I leaned back against the wall, closing my eyes.

The grief was still there, heavy and suffocating. But beneath it, deep in my chest, the spark burned steady.

I would carry this pain.

I would carry my father’s memory.

And one day, I would turn this pain into fire.

I remained in the dungeon for days. Chains rattled every time I shifted as I sat curled on the floor, though they weren’t truly needed. I was wolf-less. Helpless.

A soft creak broke the silence. The cell door groaned open.

I lifted my head, eyes narrowing when I saw him.

“Azrael,” I whispered, my chest tightening.

The Alpha’s son. My first love. My ex. The boy who had once sworn forever to me before I caught him in the arms of my best friend.

“What are you doing here?” I hissed, bitterness dripping from every word.

His eyes…grey like storm clouds, flickered with guilt. 

“I saw what my father did. I couldn’t just… leave you here” he said softly.

I laughed bitterly. “You left me and you betrayed me already. You all are the same.”

“I know.” His jaw tightened. “I can’t undo what I did. But I can do this. Think of it as my last favor.”

He pulled a key from his pocket, unlocking my chains. My wrists burned as the shackles fell away. 

I stared at him, suspicion warring with disbelief.

“Why?” I asked, my voice shaking. “Why are you doing this??”

“Because once… I loved you,” he murmured, his expression twisted with regret. “And maybe a part of me still does. Run. Now. Before I change my mind. I don't think my father has plans to spare your life. So this is your chance to escape.”

My throat ached, but I swallowed my pride and nodded. “Thank you.”

I darted out, my bare feet pounding against the stone. The tunnels were dark, unfamiliar, but instinct pushed me forward. Faster. Faster.

But freedom was not so simple.

A howl split the night. The alarm.

“Prisoner escaping! Stop her!”

My heart lurched and I knew I was in big trouble.