Chapter 3
Rhea pov
Alora growled again, hating the way we were seen, she believed us to be strong, that we could fight and prove our worth, but I knew different. It is just how things are done. The female’s of our kind were given to mates that would be the best fit for the pack, and we would give whoever that was plenty of babies. We weren’t made for anything else.
I carefully walking towards the edge of the lake, nervous as I peered into the water to see what we looked like. Bright yellow-gold eyes shone back at me, our fur the perfect shade of the sun. Alora was massive! Much bigger than what I had expected. Yet, breathtakingly beautiful and fierce. I was proud that she was my wolf, that the moon goddess had deemed me worthy of such a stunning creature.
I could feel her happiness as well as my own, I was worried about sharing myself with my wolf but now all those fears were put to rest. She was perfect. The missing half to my soul that I didn’t know I needed and I realised that no matter where life took me, she would be there, loyal and true to our safety and happiness.
The afternoon sun was high above me by the time I shifted back onto two legs and manoeuvred into a knee-length green dress with thin sleeves, ensuring that no one saw me in Alora’s true form. I didn’t know how people would react. We were like humans in the sense that we didn’t trust anything that we didn’t understand. I walked into the pack house through the omega door, it was a way to get around without ranked members of the pack finding me when I wanted to be alone.
As soon as I stepped inside I was surrounded by over thirty omega’s running around frantically, some preparing food and others carrying various objects from pillows and blankets to a mop and bucket. What was going on? We didn’t have any visitors from other packs for a few weeks, had someone come unannounced?
I stopped a small omega with dark brown hair and hazel eyes, my voice strong and curious. “Hey, what’s going on? Do we have a pack visiting?”
The girl looked around, clearly panicked and nervous. “No miss, the vampire King has encroached onto our territory, he’s on his way here.”
WHAT!? The vampire King!? What was he doing coming into our home uninvited, the annual meeting between the vampire king Gabriel wasn’t for another three months, what was he doing here now? It just doesn’t make sense, coming without invitation breached the treaty we had made with his kind after the war. Why would he risk that?
Alora growled within me, we should kill him, vampires cannot he trusted!
We can’t do that Alora! He’s the king of all vampires, if we kill him his kind will come for revenge against all wolves!
We will kill them all! They shouldn’t be allowed to exist! They are abominations.
It doesn’t work like that Alora! I screamed at her, if we declare war we will be wiped out! We were on the verge of extinction before the vampire king made the treaty with every alpha on the continent.
She growled, disliking the tone that I was taking with her. But said nothing else, clearly realising that I was right. Starting a war with the vampires would only cause more problems. They could wipe us out before we could even blink. Their speed was something of legend.
I turned back to the girl who was bouncing on her toes, it was clear that she had an abundance of stuff she needed to do, and I was holding her up. “Miss? If there is nothing else you need, I have duties I must complete.” She whispered, her eyes cast down.
“Of course, I’m sorry for distracting you.” I replied with a tight smile, others of ranked positions would look down to omegas because they are seen as weak.
Most of them do have wolves, and they are trained to fight in case our boarders are attacked. But in all packs, the omegas are the servants, many not even receiving a living wage. The pack of course takes care of their needs, but I hated the way that others of my kind treat them as if they are nothing. It could just as easily have been any of us in their situation, it’s is only because of my blood that I am deemed better or worth more.
It was something I had never agreed with, and I was always kind and polite to each and every one of them, even the ones that make my blood boil. They are making the best of what they have, and trying to live peaceful lives. Isn’t that what we all want? To be happy.
She gave me a confused look before nodding mutely and scurrying away, I suppose it’s confusing that I treated them with respect when almost everyone else of rank uses them for their own gain and enjoyment. But I was never like the others, I didn’t see the need in treating them as worthless creatures. I guess the old human saying would apply ‘treat others as you would want to be treated’ or something like that.
I smiled to myself, noting that Alora was oddly quiet as I climbed the three sets of stairs to reach my fathers office, it’s where he spent most of his daylight hours, so I knew I would find him there. I needed to apologise for breaking his rules and trying to argue, hopefully that would mend the bridge between us. I didn’t want to be a disappointment to him, I loved all of my family equally and I hated it when any of us were on bad terms.
I reached the double dark wood doors quickly and took a breath before I knocked, my father audibly sighing before he shouted that I should enter. Gabriel arriving so suddenly must be weighing heavily on his mind, his instincts would probably be telling him to attack, while his mind argued the consequences of such an action. I never found the king of vampires to be openly cruel to our pack, but he wasn’t exactly nice to be around either, he had come every single year since before I was born. He only stays for a day or two to see how we are, or rather make sure we aren’t preparing for war against him.
He was never openly hostile either, especially not to my siblings and I, but I could tell the visits weighed heavily on my father. He hated the vampires, after all, one taste of their blood and they could compel us to do whatever they wanted against our will, our bodies obeying their commands. That’s why Alora and every other wolf hates them, they could use us as puppets and food without a second thought, we would age and die in a two hundred years, they would not. Vampires were immortal, and the only way we knew to kill one was to rip of its head.