Six—Lucien the brave

Chapter Six— Lucien the brave

It was him. The Alpha with the smile that rubbed me the wrong way, that same smile now beaming down at me.

I gasped loudly. Scrambling to my feet and ready to make a run for it when someone else grabbed my collar. I wanted to scream but even I couldn’t withstand the pressure of the grasp of my captor, my sight was hazy but I could sense more than the alpha’s presence surrounding me.

“What should we do with her?” I heard the voice from behind me, “She’s—

“She’s coming with us.” He smiled, Lucien, I remembered his name.

“It’s forbi—

“Do you not know who she is?” He chuckled softly, stroking his hair like a pompous deity, “It’s unlikely to have someone from the oasis breach the border like this. She’s the chosen Luna, I don’t know why she’s here but it saves me the strength of having to go to the temple.”

He walked up to me, grabbing my chin which he tilted up to face him. The Alpha’s eyes intimidated me, but there was no deadly intent unlike those of the red devil himself. I gulped hard, he turned my face to the side, and then the other.

“She’ll do for now.” He murmured, “Take her to the lair.”

“L…lair??” I finally spoke up.

His brow arched, “You’re the chosen one. You should know your place. Your first trial starts with me and I haven’t figured out what to—“ He paused, “What’s your name again?”

Perfect.

I was trapped in a corner and he couldn’t even remember my name, even after we’d just met a couple of hours ago.

“Ivy.” I murmured.

He smiled. The Alpha was a hard one to read but he did have a handsome smile. I hated it.

“Ivy. That’s a beautiful name for an ordinary girl. I don’t know how Nik convinced Atlas and I to not kill you.”

“I don’t—

“It’s fine.” He yawned, flicking a finger like it was some sort of signal, “You’ll probably die before you reach the third trial. Even if you don’t, Atlas would probably finish the job. You’re too scrawny, too weak, you can’t possibly be the chosen one.”

“Then let me go.” My voice was meek, hoarse, pathetic, “Please let me go. I’ll disappear and never—

“Sorry. I can’t do that.” He smiled.

“Why?”

“Because you’re my new toy and I’m bored.”

I hard a deck to the nape of my neck, all of a sudden I lost my breath and my consciousness slowly started to drift off. I plummeted to the ground, my sight only catching a glimpse of a few surrounding me all of a sudden.

“Sorry Ivy. It’s just the rules.” I heard the Alpha say, “Take her to the lair.”

**********

The sound of a loud clang woke me up from my slumber the very next morning. I squealed at the top of my lungs as I jolted from the bed I was supposedly in.

None of it was a dream—running away, getting caught, the sudden smack to the back of my head. It wasn’t just a plain nightmare but the devastating experience of my reality. I was on a bed, a rather small one but still a bed regardless. I couldn’t help but glance around the room I was in.

I was no longer in the Oasis but in the lair of the first Alpha. I was in the Red moon pack’s territory.

I gulped hard as my eyes caught a glimpse of every piece of furniture which surrounded me. My room wasn’t as cozy as the one back home, with a simple wooden chair and stool which sat at the far end of the room, a mirror which had been dented by the side and a chest of drawers with dust all over it.

I was the chosen Luna and yet I was still given the room befitted for a pauper. It was pathetic.

A knock suddenly came on my door and I quickly scrambled back into my bed, feigning sleep as another knock came in. My intruder took no heed for a response, opening the door and barging in without remorse.

I shut my eyes. A stupid decision which left my cheeks flustered.

“I know you’re awake.” I heard a voice say above me, it wasn’t the Alpha’s, “Good morning, Luna.”

My eyes slowly sprung open to a young male standing right over me. He looked shaggy, with frizzy brown hair that was in great need of care—an omega perhaps, I couldn’t help but wonder at the lukewarm color of his eyes.

“Good—

“I’ll skip the pleasantries.” He suddenly cut me off, tone harsh, “I’m Buck. I’ll be your trial advisor.”

“Trial advisor?” My brow arched.

He nodded, “The Alpha wants you to get dressed and meet him outside the main gate in five minutes.”

I blinked, exasperatedly. I had just woken up and it was all too fast to process all at the same time. Buck suddenly turned around to leave and I scurried to my feet again, almost grabbing him by the hem of his shirt when he turned around. The hostility in his eyes threw me aback, I knew when to stand down.

“What?”

I looked down at my dress which had seen better days. I was in need of a shower, a proper meal, rest, and decent clothes.

“I…I have nothing to wear.”

Buck stared at me, eyes bleak and unwelcoming still. He turned to the door, “You’re not a princess here. At the Oasis they might’ve treated you like a god, over here you’re just a Luna who needs to pass a trial. If you want clothes, you have to fend for yourself.”

He walked off, slamming the door behind him. I couldn’t help but stare.

A minute passed, another followed. I kept on staring as I couldn’t undertand what was going on. My clothes reeked of sweat and dried blood, my hair was disheveled and in clumps from all the mud, I still had thorns sticking from right under my feet.

I shut my eyes for a moment. There was no way out in my case, I was trapped with a destiny I barely wanted and didn’t ask her. My eyes opened a second later and I let out a deep breath, I finally mustered up enough courage and walked towards the door to open it.

My room was right above a flight of stairs which threw me aback for a moment. Still, I gulped hard and trudged forward, walking down the steps and towards wherever the light was headed.

Buck was right at the end waiting for me, those eyes still filled with disdain which he rolled as soon as he caught a glimpse, “Follow me.”

I nodded, tagging alongside him as we walked into a chamber filled with other males. They were the pack members, their voices filled the room from jesting to arguments. The noise had died down immediately as my head hung low, my cowardly self unable to bear their eyes focusing on me as we walked towards the path that led outside.

“Is that her?”

“She looks normal.”

“That’s an unfortunate sight.”

Their words all filled my thoughts as Buck led me to an outer chamber—a somewhat terrace. There I saw him, standing at the far end and looking out to the horizon.

“There he is.” Buck grunted and turned to leave when I muttered ,

“I’m not a god.”

“what?” He frowned.

“I’m not a god.” I repeated, “I’ve never been treated like one. I want to go home.”

He stared at me blankly for a moment, like I was stupid. Then he shrugged, “Do what you will, chosen one.”

I gulped hard, unsure as to why I had just corrected his notion of me when Alpha Lucien was suddenly right in front of me.

I yelped for a moment, almost falling to the ground when he grabbed me by the waist. My heart thumped for a slight moment, a very stupid reaction to a male who contemplated taking my life just a day ago.

“Hello there.”

“H…h….” I couldn’t find the words in me to say. He was close, too close for comfort.

“You stink.” He muttered, finally letting go of me, “You should take a bath.”

He wasn’t wrong. I did stink and I looked horrid.

“I—

“I’ll have one of the pack members bring you a pair of fresh clothes. They’re not used to seeing a woman in the main lair. What did you say your name was again?”

I frowned this time, “It’s Ivy.”

“A really pretty name for an ordinary girl.” He smirked, “Your first trial begins now.”

I blinked, “What?”

He nodded, “You heard me. Your first trial has begun.”