Natalia
The van came to a jolting halt, tires crunching on gravel. As the doors were wrenched open, I blinked against the sudden brightness, taking in my new surroundings. I was at the heart of the Night Walker's pack grounds - a sprawling, heavily fortified complex.
While it appeared modern and almost civilized, there was an undeniable sinister edge to the entire place. Heavy gates and high concrete walls topped with curled barbed wire surrounded the compound. Guards with guns and fangs patrolled constantly. Everywhere I looked, the Night Walker's symbol was on proud display - a menacing black wolf with blood-red eyes.
As I was forcibly dragged out of the van, raucous jeers and taunts rose up from the crowds of Night Walkers milling about. I kept my head high, refusing to show any weakness, but inside I was trembling. I was deep in enemy territory now, completely at their mercy.
The guards hauled me straight to a administrative building and into a sterile white room. A bored-looking female Night Walker in a lab coat waited there, holding an ominous metal collar and a scanning device.
"Welcome to your new home," she droned in a flat, affectless voice. "You belong to the pack now. Hold still for identification."
Before I could react, she clamped the cold metal slave collar around my neck. I heard it click and beep as it synced to the network that would now track my every move. The reality of my situation came crashing down - I was a prisoner, a slave. My lip curled in a silent snarl of defiance.
"Name?" She asked not bothering to meet my gaze. Holding my chin up, I answered with as much defiance I could muster.
"Natalia, daughter of Alpha Alec of the Wild Crest pack."
The technician scoffed, running her scanner over my body, paying particular attention to my torso and abdomen. When it beeped, she glanced at the screen then nodded, as if confirming something.
"Untouched. A virgin," she announced to the guards. "I see. Have her transported to the lower residence. She'll start in basic domestic service and menial labor."
I bristled at her clinical label and dismissal of me as a lowly servant. But I kept quiet for now, knowing I had to learn what I could about this place. The guards escorted me back outside and across the compound, giving me a chance to study the layout.
We passed through a bustling central plaza surrounded by various buildings - barracks, training grounds, an armory, even a schoolhouse, though "indoctrination center" seemed more accurate. The scope of it all was unnerving. The Night Walkers were far more organized and established here than I had realized.
Eventually we reached a block of dreary gray bunkhouses encircled by yet another fence - the slave quarters. Inside was cramped and noisy, with wolf after wolf crammed onto wooden bunks in crowded rooms. Their Watchers, the guards assigned to each unit, eyed me as I was led past.
I was taken to the women's wing and handed off to a stern older female Night Walker named Agatha. Her sharp gaze took me in from head to toe.
"The new arrival, I see. Fresh meat," she remarked. "You'll be starting on kitchen and sanitation duty. Up before dawn, work until you drop. No slacking or you'll regret it." She rattled my slave collar for emphasis, then pointed to an empty bunk. "Sleep there. Training starts tomorrow."
I shuddered as I sat on the lumpy mattress, the reality of my new existence sinking in further. I was considered the lowest of the low here - inexperienced and useless. They would work me like a dog until I proved otherwise.
The other slaves kept their distance, likely warned away until I learned the rules here. Resting my head in my hands, I struggled to rein in my churning emotions. I could not afford to break down or lash out, not when I was so outnumbered. But neither would I roll over in passive acceptance. There had to be some way I could turn this situation to my advantage. Some way I could survive long enough to gain my revenge.
The next days were grueling. Days began hours before the sun rose and did not end until it had long since set again. I was put on every demeaning chore imaginable - scrubbing floors, hauling trash, washing mountains of dishes. The work was designed to be exhausting, mind-numbing, spirit-breaking.
The Watchers kept us all under constant surveillance, quick with their fists or electric prods if our pace lagged. Meals were bland gruel, just enough to fuel the body but hardly satisfying. The message was clear - I was worthless in their eyes, undeserving of any basic comforts.
At night I collapsed into my bunk, muscles aching down to the bone. Sleep brought fleeting escape, but also vivid nightmares of the attack that had destroyed my old life. I often woke in a cold sweat, stifling sobs to avoid disturbing others.
The only thing keeping me going was the rumor mill among the slaves. In hushed, furtive whispers exchanged while the Watchers weren't looking, I learned more of this place and its leaders.
The Night Walker pack was run by a set of particularly brutal triplet Alphas - Leo, Luke, and Damien. They kept the entire pack under their thumb by fear and violence, ruthlessly crushing any hint of dissent. Public executions were common.
But they also had a taste for pleasure and luxury, sequestering the most beautiful and skilled slaves in an exclusive harem to cater to their every twisted whim. Only those who pleased them greatly earned the "privilege" of being taken to their beds.
A bitter taste filled my mouth whenever I heard the harem mentioned. The thought of willingly going to those monsters, letting them use me for their gratification, turned my stomach. Even if it meant a life of luxury instead of grueling labor, I would never sink so low. I still had my pride.
MICHEAL'S POVMy gaze moved from one elder to the other as speak, uttering words I knew I was going to put down at the end of everything. They have been trying to get me to have a meeting with them for ages and this was the first meeting we are having in a while, if not I could have dismissed them and left the room.I shouldn't be here when I have far more troubles to deal with and as I followed them with my eyes, I was wondering if there was any way at all that I could follow to ease all of these positions. It has been a tradition for every pack to have an elder whereas I see no point in it. They help in no way. All they do is bring up problems that will stress you even more even when you think you are managing the pack really well. There might be no way to get rid of them but I know for a fact that I am not going to tolerate them in any way. If they were tolerated by the past rulers then they should get ready for a change."I think reducing the rate of the tax at this point will b
DAMIEN'S POVMy gaze flickered from Lucas to Leo, still not believing that they were even thinking about doing that. This just confirmed to me that they do not know the gravity of the situation we are in."We can get into the pack, grab her, and then leave the pack all in one day. We can take as much time as we desire to bring her back to this place" That was Lucas, speaking wholeheartedly to Leo."And if we can even consider this in a broader sense, we can continue living there with her instead of coming back all the way here you know" Leo added his delusions all the while I observed them with wide unbelieving eyes."That will be a wise thing to do if we can be able to pull that out smoothly," Lucas remarked."Alright, alright, you all should slow down" Having heard enough of their bullshit, I chimed in immediately.They both turned to look toward me at the same time. They were so deep in their conversation that they had forgotten that I was still in their presence."I hope you two r
NATALIA'S POVI was happy.That is the word, happiness. You can never tell just how much loneliness has affected you until you are opportune to be in the presence of people again. It just so happens to be the best feeling and almost everything you think was a problem would end up being not an actual problem and was just created by your mind overthinking because you have no other person to share your thoughts with. I have been that way for the past months, just thinking and thinking my life away. The only time I had the chance to interact with anyone was when I paid a visit to the palace or when I was off to get my food supplies in the market. It has always been a routine. Stay at home for up to a week, go out to the market and the palace, and then come back to the loom of loneliness and silence. I had no idea that it was affecting me until now that I was blessed with the presence of other living beings."What do you desire to eat today?" Cole asked after he knocked on my door and I
LUCAS'S POV"What?" I asked Leo who was suddenly looking at me like I had managed to develop a second head in three seconds.He didn't budge, and I wasn't even sure if he heard my statement. He seems to be in a haze, deep in thought. "Leo? What the hell is wrong with you?" Damien, who was more closer to him asked while tapping him on the shoulder. This seems to have made him snap out of whatever hex that had suddenly befell him. "What?" I asked again, eager to know what was on his mind. "I think I know...." He slowly muttered, still falling back in thought."You know what?" It turns out I wasn't the only one eager to hear what he wanted to say because both Damien and I spoke at the same time, this time around."I think I know where Natalia is hiding" After some painful seconds of waiting, he finally spoke again, emphasizing any word he muttered."What do you mean by that? How did you know where she was hiding? Is that even possible?" I remarked, a deep frown playing on my face. I c
LEO'S POVI do not despise her. I just don't trust her. I am still failing to believe she ended up just finding herself with no motives. Let's face it, I am a very practical person. For us to find ourselves here, we spend days on end running. The keyword there has been running. We never stopped once, encountered numerous dangers on the way and because we are warriors, we aced it. So imagine just a defenseless lady going through all of these. I see no chance of her survival. Except if she was escorted here by someone experienced, who stays hidden behind the shadows. So it makes no sense to me that Damien blindly believed her and even allowed her to stay with us. I have tried multiple times to talk him out of it but he just wouldn't budge. He kept telling me he knew Micheal and in her explanation, there was no form of deception. It's frustrating that he can't just listen to me for once and agree that there is more to what she was saying than meet the eye. It doesn't help that he has
DAMIEN’S POV“And you think everything is going to be as we left it?” Lucas inquired, looking amusingly at me.“Of course not, things are going to change drastically, and above all, your personal items are going to be used by another set of people” I clarified.“Damn man, I will hate to rearrange. It is going to take painful weeks of working” Leo winced, slumping his shoulder against the rocky wall. “You can simply just move to another wing you know, there are numerous parts in the palace and it is enormous enough for you to change wing each week for two months so there is no reason to throw a tantrum” I proclaimed with a shrug.We were currently having a casual discussion on how things were going to be when we returned back to the palace after everything died down. We haven’t really brought forth who is supposed to role but I think we have now learned our lesson and are going to cross that bridge successfully when we get to it.“Not man, I choose to stay in that part of the palace f