Violet
[Past Timeline]
The forest floor dug into my sore feet. Sharp, painful, and bloody.
I had been running for hours, stumbling through twigs, tree roots, and being slapped in the face by incoming branches and leaves. Life seemed to be against me, and the forest tore at my skin and drew blood as I ran.
My body grew weaker with each step. The effects of the rejection clawed at my insides and shredded me from within. My vision swam, but I kept moving.
Behind me, the howls grew closer.
At first, I had thought they were rogues. Wild wolves drawn to the scent of my blood, and eager for an easy kill. My legs trembled. My lungs burned. And it was hard to breathe, but I still pushed myself faster.
Faster than I had ever run.
I didn't want to die.
"She was never this fast before."
"Don't let her get too far!"
I knew those voices.
Pack wolves.
Shadowpine wolves.
Why were they following me? Damon had banished me. I was already leaving. What more did they want?
A sharp pain shot up my leg as it hit a protruding stone. I crashed to the floor, the ground scraping away my skin. I whimpered and trembled as I tried to get back up again.
A flurry of footfalls made me go stiff. Five large wolves emerged from the shadows, circling me slowly.
Some of the patrol wolves.
One of them stepped forward, a massive grey beast with a jagged scar that ran from his eye to his snout. His eyes were harsh. Cold.
I knew him.
"Why? I was already leaving," I moaned, my throat choking with a sob as my eyes watered. "What is this?"
"Oh, we know." He bared his teeth in a sharp grin that resembled a snarl as his voice echoed in my mind. "Alpha's orders. You're a liability now. A failed omega he wants erased."
The words hit me like a physical blow.
"No… That's not possible. He... he sent you to kill me?"
He drew closer. "Rejection should've killed you by now anyway. We're just speeding things up. Call it a mercy."
Mercy.
Something inside me snapped.
I had begged him not to reject me.
I had thrown away my shame and groveled at his feet.
It wasn't enough for him to just banish me, but to send wolves to hunt me down like a worthless thing?
"No," I whispered.
He bared his teeth. "No?"
"No." My voice came out stronger this time, steadier. I lifted myself up, my body screaming in agony as I sat up. "I won't let you get away with this."
The wolves bared their fangs. He growled. "You don't have a choice."
His mouth ripped open and he lunged towards me.
Time seemed to slow down.
I could see everything clearly. I had only noticed him, but now, I could see the others had lashed towards me too. They moved as one. Five wolves against a weak omega. They were going to give me a gruesome death.
I had nothing to fight with. No strength left. My body was already shutting down.
But something else woke up inside me.
It might have been a trick of the eyes, but the moon seemed to shine brighter above us.
The burn in my chest intensified before spreading through my veins. My hands trembled, not from fear, but from something else I didn't understand. It felt like I was going to explode.
My voice came out strangely, "STOP!"
The wolves froze mid-step, their eyes wide with shock. They were rigid. Unable to move.
The word had come out like a command. An order. Something primal and absolute raged within me. A power that didn't feel entirely like my own.
And I got to witness something shocking.
The wolves had obeyed.
Had I just used an Alpha tone?
Their eyes darted frantically, but their limbs wouldn't respond.
I paused to look at the sky. The moon truly was brighter. I slowly rose to my feet and stared at the wolves before me. Shock and horror reflected in their eyes. I felt power course through me, wild and uncontrolled.
"Impossible! What are you?!"
I didn't know. And I didn't care.
The rage, the humiliation, the betrayal, and the pain. Everything I was experiencing flared, and the power responded.
One of the wolves flew backwards as if struck by an invisible force. His body slammed into a tree with a resounding crack and he slumped to the ground. Not moving.
Blood started to pool beneath his limp frame.
I killed him.
The realization should have horrified me. But all I felt was a savage, bitter satisfaction.
"You wanted to kill me?" My voice shook with anger. "Then try!"
The command holding them broke. Maybe I couldn't sustain it. Maybe my focus slipped. Either way, the remaining wolves lurched into motion, snarling.
I raised my hands to defend myself and a silver light I couldn't control exploded outward. Another wolf was launched back away from me. The others stopped, hesitating.
I reached out again only for my vision to blur. My legs wobbled and panic began to creep in. The power was draining me. Fast. It was eating me alive from the inside and burning through whatever strength I had left.