Caged Wolf
Chapter Seven: Reaper

Song of the Chapter: Rabbit Hole by AViVA

I’m watching a battle between a large dangerous vibed almost black male alpha with grey eyes, Noah, and a smaller vibrant red blue-eyed alpha, Grant, intently when my stomach rumbles noisily. The battle wraps up with Noah winning, per-usual, and I stand as the door to my room opens and the floor lights up with arrows. A narrow built male steps inside my room with his contacted white eyes on me, I bare my canines at him causing him to flinch and filling me with satisfaction.

“The cafeteria is now open for lunch.” The guy states, he is trying to hide the tremble in his voice but nothing stays hidden from me.

I’m about to move to kill him when I notice he leans heavily on one leg. He moves for me to follow him and I see the clear limp, it brings me back to the fight from earlier today that caught my attention and got my hackles up. I can see it playing out again in my mind, the alpha female with striking green-eyes and night black fur. She refused to lay the sick game this place wants us to play by attacking the human, I have respect for that. I believe she might be the strongest Wolf in here next to me but I’ll need to see her fight Noah first, right now he is my top contender for power.

“You are the human who got attacked, aren’t you?” I question, I note the guy instantly tenses up becoming uncomfortable.

He doesn’t respond but I already have my answer from his reaction. I find it interesting how he healed so quickly for a human, it probably means this place is using our blood for healing themselves. I frown to myself until we come to a stop at a set of two familiar doors as the smell of food wafts into my nose. I let him lead me through the doors and I groan at the all too familiar sight of the high school setting before me. Somehow I always forget that the cafeteria truly means this. He leaves me alone to the prodding eyes of the other Wolves all zeroing in on my still bare kneck, they resent me for not wearing a collar just as much as they are wearily curious of me. I bare my canines as usual as I move towards the food-line. When I emit my typical growl all the Wolves step aside letting me go first as my plate is piled with the normal ribs. I move quickly as I head to my empty round table in the corner where I begin to happily eat by myself. I’m half-way through my first rib when whistles ring out and male hormones beat at my nose. I glance up annoyed but am instantly captivated by the pair that stand at the doorway. One is a lean, but still, muscular male with snow-white hair and dark green eyes while the other is a female with bright green eyes and black hair, I’ve never seen either of them before. I recognize the female as the Wolf from the battle that didn’t want to submit to this place. These pairs are siblings fro their looks, their similarities. The girl’s eyes flicker around the room before finding mine and I can sense an immense amount of strength behind them. Our eyes disconnect and together they move for the food-line. I watch intently as Wolves step-aside for her without her even making a fuss, they either already fear her or they respect her I can’t tell which. I look away and try to refocus on my ribs but I can’t.

“Your lucky your sister took you back or I’d kill you right here right now for everything you did to us, Crane!” A female growls as she steps into the guy’s path.

I look up as the guy flinches and his sister stops ahead of him but doesn’t turn around. The guy tries to keep walking and ignore the female but the girl who spoke pushes him roughly.

“You don’t belong amongst us!” Another guy growls as he pushes the guy, Crane, and a group of Wolves ping-pong him spilling his food across the floor.

I note that this Crane doesn’t stop them, this surprises me because it means he obviously feels he deserves such a reaction from these Wolves. I don’t disagree, I know who Crane is and what he’s done, he doesn’t have any sympathy from me. Obviously the rumours about him killing his own sister we’re fake. Someone throws a punch and Crane hits the floor. I notice the girl gingerly place her tray on the table before turning back to these Wolves, her brother shakes his head at her.

“Dusk, don’t!” Crane pleads from the floor but his words come too late as the girl reacts.

I watch curiously as she grabs the first girl and guy by one wrist each before easily slinging them across the room, they both land with hard thuds. Dusk returns the puncher's action with a right hook to his jaw-breaking it. Suddenly everyone converges and I’m sure we are about to have a mauling when a commanding growl fills the room causing all Wolves to hit the ground and bow instantly, myself included. What in the actual fuck? I’m enraged by this she-Wolf as I try to stand and struggle to as she picks her brother up off the floor before retrieving her tray and heading my way. They sit at my table, she pushes my tray of food over to her brother causing my eyes to begin to flow even though I still can’t break her command. The moment she bites into her first rib the spell is broken leaving the room bewildered and spooked but knowing who the boss is. I’m not down for that, I’m the Reaper, I’m the fucking boss, not this bitch. I let out a low growl as I flex my claws letting my eyes glow brightly to show how pissed off I am.

“Who the fuck do you think you are?” I growl as I stand over my table towering over her.

She keeps me waiting as she finishes the rib in her fingers before sucking the juices from their tips. Finally, she looks up at me giving me the time of day.

“Names Dusk.” She states simply before sipping from her water.

“Well Dusk, you just pissed off the Reaper,” I growl the room trembles.

Dusk simply raises an eyebrow at me as she sets her water down.

“Is that supposed to intimidate me?” She laughs out the question before smiling at her brother who watches me as if he is analyzing me.

Her lack of fear frustrates me, I react irrationally as I swiftly kick her chair out from under her wanting to humiliate her as she just did me. She falls awkwardly before picking herself up and glaring at me. Good now I have her full attention, something inside me tells me I didn’t want it.

“Don’t you know it’s rude to kick someone’s chair out?” She growls but keeps her composure which frustrated me even more, I can sense something deadly within her but I ignore it.

A flickering occurs and her voice echoes as our confrontation appears on the TV screen in the room, great they are broadcasting us. Distracted I miss it as she lashes out winding me with a well-placed shot to the ribs, she’s a scrapper. I nash my teeth as my need to just touch her and get this over with takes over. Something inside me tells me that killing this she-Wolf would be a very bad idea but I ignore it. I throw a slash at her that she dodges before grabbing my shoulder using my own momentum to toss me into the neighbouring table. Now she’s done it, I give into my needs as I shift and let out a loud snarl. Her eyes glow as she dodges my lunges and swipes only enraging me further. Finally, I catch her thigh with my paw tumbling her as I pounce. She comes up under me with her legs tucked as her feet press into my chest her hands clamping my jaws shut so I can’t bite her. She pushes off the ground using her back causing my back legs to hold my full weight as my front legs hang in the air while her hands continue to clamp my jaw tightly. I’m being defeated. A fire burns in her eyes and I begin to feel intense heat across my body as Crane comes up beside us looking into my one eyes and speaking words that I know I will never forget.

“I thought your touch killed, Reaper?” Crane states his tone amused as he turns away and retakes his seat at the table.

It dawns on me that he’s right, Dusk should be dead right now because I’ve touched her with my bare paws several times now. I blink and blink again as Dusk lets me move away from her to process. I don’t understand what’s going on right now, how the hell is she alive? Everyone else I’ve ever touched has died, why didn’t she? I shift before I’ve really processed I pull the smirking girl in front of me into a hug as everything I’ve ever built up inside me crumbles. Tears build in my eyes as it’s been an unbelievably long time since I’ve been able to hug anyone.

“How?” I finally ask as I pull away from her, she didn’t push me away so I know she must have known this information about herself before this all happened.

Dusk simply smiles at me before moving back to the table where she continues to eat, her brother smiling at her. She pushes my tray my way as an invitation to sit, an invitation I didn’t know I was waiting for as I sit though I’m no longer hungry. I push the tray back to Crane who happily accepts it ravishing the ribs I’ve left.

“How?” I repeat eagerly curiosity burning me.

“I’m the Hellhound, I’m immune to death by any powers.” She replies glancing up to gauge my reaction.

I’d love to say I’m passive and don’t have a reaction but low and behold my mouth pops open, my eyes go round, and my mind fills with a flurry of questions. I look back and forth between the two Wolves in front of me and conclude I am being told the truth. I try to figure out if I truly believe it. It seems I do as I reach out and touch her arm just to be sure it wasn’t a fluke.

“Welcome to the pack from hell.” Crane jokes causing me to stifle an awful sound, a sound I am so unrehearsed in I don’t even remember how to do it.

The sound is a laugh. I have just laughed for the first time in quite a while. It feels good. Sitting here with these two feels so right. I catch Dusk’s eye and she smiles at me making me feel warm, making me feel part of something. I’ve never believed in such things as mates but maybe I should.

“So where’s your collar?” I question Crane when they have finished eating, they stand.

“I riped it off in a half-feral state,” Crane explains continuing the conversation allowing me to assume they want me to follow them where-ever they are going.

“I didn’t think you could come back from being feral, even half.” I think out-loud finding myself slightly impressed even if I don’t want to be.

“With the support and a strong bond one can.” Dusk claims over her shoulder, from Crane I wouldn’t have believed such a response but from Dusk I do.

“Support,” I repeat the word with distaste, support isn’t something I understand.

No one ever supported me, I’m the only one who has ever had my own back. My own father taught me to never trust anyone on the day he committed suicide leaving me alone in this life. The reminder memory causes me to wall up and become suspicious of what these two truly want from me, I’ve been wanted before but only for my powers.

“What do you want with me?” I stop following them as I ask the question, I want things back on my own terms.

Neither of them stops walking, they continue on making it clear they aren’t going to answer me, making it clear we are doing things there way or the highway. I watch them walk out of the cafeteria baffled. Maybe they don’t need me for anything, maybe they choose me. Either way, curiosity gets the best of me as I take off after them. I catch up with them as they walk slowly as if they are simply walking aimlessly, I think they are trying to make it seem that way. I follow not asking any more questions as we go. Eventually, I’m lead to a room that appears to be a training room of sorts as punching bags line the walls. Dusk and Crane maneuver a bag that Crane steadies as Dusk begins a routine in punching it. I watch as she starts out slowly picking up the pace over time until I notice her hands begin to glow orange as flames enter her eyes.

“Let’s get one thing straight Reaper, we don’t need you. We don’t want anything more from you than you to choose to help your own kind, to help me. This place is a derailment of our peace and freedom, I intend to re-rail us. We’d love for you to choose our side about this matter, but, if I’m being honest if you're not on our side I’ll kill you because you’ll be in our way.” Dusk’s words are honest and quite frankly intimidating as she turns to me her hands glowing and her eyes burning with fire as heat radiates from her causing sweat to form on my brows.

The punching bag leaks behind her from where the rubber melted before her fists. Her eyes hold mine demanding a response from me, I truly believe if it’s not one she wants to hear she’ll dispose of me right here right now. For the first time in a very long time, fear for my life squeezes my chest. I have met someone who outmatches myself and that terrifies me.

“I’m assuming you have a mate, a pack you want help re-uniting with, but what happens after that?” I ask cautiously.

“Noah is my equal, my pack is my family. Without them I’m nothing more than a hell-breed killer and everyone in here will die because I will become consumed by what lies within me.” She responds and the vulnerability in her voice surprises me, the fear of who she could become.

“What happens next?” I prod gently.

“We break the fuck out of here anyway that we can, hopefully with minimum casualties on both fronts,” Crane responds first but Dusk nods her head in agreement though her eyes are haunted.

Something within me clicks and tells me I belong with these two, I belong in this plan. Something tells me that this movement will lead me to a life I never even thought possible for myself.

“I’m in.” I decide knowing that it is the correct response.

Dusk’s hands cool as steam leaves them than she reaches one hand out to me, I take it and shake it. We spend the next several hours discussing who we are looking for and formulating a type of plan to map this place out for possible weak exit points, Dusk wants to be able to get every Wolf out of here and that makes me respect her so much more. We get pretty far when we are rudely interrupted by a pair of white-eyed minions. The white-eye thing pisses me off because I genuinely have pale, almost white, irises so there’s are an insult to me. The male collects Dusk leading her to a fight but not before placing a hand on the female’s back, a gesture that oddly seems to affect Crane as he tenses. I note this in the back of my mind as a development to keep an eye on. Maybe there is something more to this girl than meets the eye.

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