Chapter 2

I am choked by fear and disbelief before a guttural shriek leaves my mouth.

“MOM!! DAD!!!" I scream and soon as Korra hears that, she comes to a stop and drops me onto the ground, her body trembling with fear and anger as she glances back in the direction our parents have been killed...

"Kaida... you have to run okay... someone needs to lead the attack now that Mom and Dad..." Her voice trembles, tears streaming down her face as she holds onto mine, her grey eyes meeting mine.

"N-no... don't leave me, please... I won't survive without you..." I breathe out, sobbing as I hold onto my sister, desperate for her not to leave.

"You will, you are stronger. Much much stronger than you know. the blood of Alphas runs through you, that and much more..." She tells me before she hugs me tightly, crying quietly just as she steps back and away from me.

"Run! Until you're off the territory don't stop until you are somewhere safe." She orders me and for some reason, I can feel the authority in her voice, the same one my father would have. And that's when I realise, she has immediately become the Alpha...

I then watch as she shifts into her powerful grey wolf, her form menacing and much larger than me even in my human form. She stares at me sadly before a ferocious growl rips through her teeth and she runs back into the battle, tearing everything and everyone apart. I then turn to run off, but before I do, I catch a glimpse of something.

As if summoned by some dark force, a figure steps into view—a man, tall and terrifying, his eyes cold as he surveys the carnage with a satisfaction that makes my blood run cold as he stands next to the corpses of my parents, of Jace... He’s not like the others; his presence commands them, as if he’s orchestrating this slaughter with chilling precision....

I catch his gaze, and for a heartbeat, he looks at me. A cruel smile curves his lips, a smile that promises he knows exactly who I am. And then he turns away, disappearing into the chaos, my feet carrying me faster than I can even keep up.

The sounds fade, leaving only the quiet horror of what remains. Bodies lie strewn across the forest, familiar faces lost forever, their lives extinguished in an instant. My parents, my friends... everyone I loved, gone.

I’m alone.

Alone with the scent of blood and death clinging to the air, the image of that man’s face burned into my mind. The face of the monster who took everything from me...

And it's one I will never forget.

* * * * * *

6 years later…

What a sickening memory that was. My life was hell after that, after losing my entire Pack, my entire family, everyone I had ever known... I was completely alone, not knowing what happened to my sister and the rest of the people that remained behind to fight...

Until I went back there after a few years to see what was left of my Pack...

It had been completely abandoned, the entire Packhouse, as if it was cursed ground and the ghosts of the dead still lingered on it.

Since the attack, I had been on my own, moving from place to place, living in the woods, in the city, everywhere really. I could never stop moving... only because I knew it wasn't safe... for some reason, they were always after me...

That leads me to the present. I can't stop. I won't stop.

My legs burn as I push harder, tearing through the forest. Each breath rakes in my throat like claws but I welcome the pain. Pain keeps me awake. Alert. Moving.

The moon is out, full and heavy above the trees, watching me like she always does. My only friend. I started to hate her at some point, until I knew it was pointless. As much as I tried to blame her for what happened to me, for how my life fell apart, I knew it wasn't her doing...

The only thing that matters to me is staying ahead. I've been running for as long as I can remember, running from the past, my enemies, from myself...

But tonight? Tonight something is horribly wrong. The air feels thicker and I have no idea why.

My instincts prick at me, louder than the pulse in my ears, louder than the snap of twigs under my boots. I slow, crouching low, fingers brushing the earth carefully through my fingerless black gloves. I immediately frown to myself once I notice the difference in the soil. Once I realise what I've done I face forward immediately, my ears honing in on a sound in the distance... they're coming for me... Wolves. But not just any wolves... their scents are strong, sharp, too fresh to ignore.

"Fuck." I curse as I stand to myself, sighing to myself before I take off into the woods at full speed.

I've crossed into enemy territory.

I try to rack my brain of the Packs in this area, the territories that belong to no Packs and would bring me any trouble if stepped foot on them.

Stupid. So incredibly reckless. I should've been paying more attention, I should've known better. But after weeks of pushing myself through every scrap of wilderness I could find, it's easy to lose track. There's no time to backtrack now, no time to think about what comes next, I've got to move, fast...

But unfortunately, I'm not fast enough.

The sound of growls finally breaks the silence and my heart stutters as I continue to run forward. They've found me already. I can hear them crashing through the underbrush, closing in from all around me...

"Shit..." I curse one again. I slip behind the nearest tree, pressing my back against the rough bark as I take a moment to catch my breath. I've spent so much of my life running that it's become something I've used to. Not staying in one place for too long, moving from place to place... this was meant to be just another day...

I press my head against the tree and focus once again on the sounds echoing in the forest. If they see me, it's over. I'm strong, but I'm not stupid enough to think I can take on a whole Pack. Not when I'm half-dead from running, with nothing to fall back on but adrenaline and bad luck.

I take a deep breath before pushing myself off the tree powerfully, sending me back into the forest in an attempt to get off this territory before it's too late...

But unfortunately, it already is too late.

As I step into a space in the forest where a few trees have been cleared out, I notice one Wolf step out from behind the trees, being in full view. It makes me freeze as I stare face to face with it...

It is massive, light grey underneath the moonlight, with eyes hazel and glowing. I don't need to guess who sent it... I've heard stories of the wolves that guard the lands in these parts. I know their reputation. Cruel. Unforgiving.

But I'm not dead yet... Not by a long shot.

More of them pile out of the Wolves, each of them surrounding me and making me look at all of them, scanning each of them...

I'm ready to spring into action, when something makes me freeze.

A presence. Heavy. Watching. My skin prickles with awareness, and a low growl rolls from somewhere deeper in the trees, deeper than the ones currently surrounding me.

Another one...

Bigger. Stronger...

The Alpha...