pain as an illusion

Freya's POV

Pain.

Pain seemed to be the dominant feeling I experienced the very moment I opened my eyes.

" Prisoner six! Get a move on we don't have all day to play babysitting." A guard boomed, his voice causing some of my clan to shiver and cower.

" Prisoner six! Did you not hear what I just said?" He yelled again.

Blurry. My vision was still blurry as I felt my body being lifted off the floor like I was a feather, a slap crossing my cheeks swiftly.

Oh. I was prisoner six.

" The alpha would like that one. She has a big mouth on her and quite impressive skills. Single handedly killed hundreds of our good men." Another guard chimed in.

Even though the snicker was evident in his voice, I could not help but feel proud. I took the lives of these monsters'friends. Just like they took the lives of mine.

My body hit the sand again and the journey continued. I had no idea where we were going but I knew this was the end. The end of humanity. These monsters have taken over.

The burden I carried in my chest weighed me down with every step that I took. They had come into our villages, raided the stores and killed the people. My people.

When we finally came to a halt, it was in front of a gigantic gate with intricate designs.

" Separate the warriors from the citizens. The alpha wants to meet them" a voice hollered.

Still in my hazy state, I felt one of them drag me forward, nudging me as he made me kneel.

" She is the only warrior that survived" the guard said.

I raised my head slightly, just enough to avoid the rising gaze of the morning sun in my eyes and also to see the man in front of me.

He had a look of surprise on his face as he glared down at me.

" She? How is that even possible..." He asked.

" She is a beast in battle. With all her injuries she has refused to die." The guard said.

" I will take her to the alpha myself, get the rest locked up in the dungeon" the man said.

Again, I was yanked, onto my feet and pushed towards the finely patterned steps.

" Imagine if I had your blood splayed on these walls..." I muttered, a sadistic joke that bordered on wishful thinking.

The guard chuckled. A slow menacing sound.

" I would advise you to keep your lips sealed when you meet the alpha" he said, no words leaving his mouth again until we got to where I presume the alpha was.

The big doors opened to an even bigger room, painted dark grey with the mahogany shelves standing on either sides of the office.

" Alpha... She is the only warrior that survived" the guard said.

There was silence for what felt like decades. The nagging headache prevented me from looking at their so called leader.

" Look at me human..." He said, his voice gruff, almost as though he was struggling to keep his beast at bay. I wanted to defy him, to see just how much of a monster I could let out of him, but I decided against that.

Ever so slightly, I raised my eyes to hold his, my dull brown eyes against his fierce blue ones. It was probably a figment of my imagination or maybe I had collected one too many hits on my head, but I could have sworn I saw his eyes darken.

" Leave" he growled now, voice low as he looked at the guard, leaving me unnerved.

When the door finally closed behind the guard, he was before me in a flash, as he grabbed into my shoulders, sizing me up with his eyes. I had never felt so small.

He was bigger than most men from my clan, with dashing hair that for odd reasons I wanted to run my fingers through.

I cautioned my train of thoughts, refusing to look at him and instead focus on his surroundings.

I hated the fact that I was looking at a beast like him that way, but he was handsome.

" Yet another trickery of the goddess. You? My mate?" He asked almost as though the thought in itself was laughable.

To me it was. I have heard about how these animals depended on a fictional bond to pick their soulmates.

The absurdity of it was one. The fact that he considered me his was another.

I looked behind him, my eyes falling on a picture frame of he and a blonde haired man. A sadistic smile formed on my face.

" Oh, were the both of you very close? That's a shame. I had slit his throat and stared into his eyes, watching him breathe his last" I said.

The smile grew wider as I took in his face. He let out a guttural roar that rampaged through the whole room, threatening to bring it to the ground. The shelves vibrated and the ceiling lights shook.

His eyes were now a pale white, to signal the arrival of his wolf. In that split instant I thought he would hurt me, I prepared myself to embrace that hurt even, but he didn't.

He pushed me into the floor again as though he had just come to his senses, bellowing for a guard.

" Take her to the dungeon, make sure she is starved and beaten every hour. And then put her to work on the field." He said to the guards.

I scoffed. He could do better.

Finally, his cold eyes landed on me. I felt a shiver run down my spine as his gaze lingered for what felt like delicate moments on me, each stare making me doubt myself a little more.

" I, alpha zarek Leonid of the moon crest pack reject you human as my mate and soulmate." He said.

I did not know him, hated him and his kind even. But when he said those words, somehow I felt my heart drop to my feet.