Hunted: Chapter 15
#15 of Hunted
Well, the beginning of college is approaching, so I'm not sure how that will affect my writing schedule, but in any case it won't stop me. There's a good few chapter yet it seems, I want to tie up a few of the more pressing questions before moving on to a different series for awhile. So enjoy this chapter. Comments are great fuel for writing, so if you read, please leave a word or two!
Chapter 15
"ALPHA!"
Aden's cry echoed through the clearing, and the sheer desperation contained in that one word caused Tylan to pause. It was a strange word to use; archaic but still full of meaning. The idea of pack hierarchy had been nearly erased by the centuries since the monarchy had been established. True, the king did have the title 'High Alpha' but the only time it was ever was used was when it was tacked on the end of some introduction for the purpose of cementing just how powerful the king was. The common people knew the term as a title in children's stories, where the outcast would return to his home, defeat the villain, and be named the alpha for his show of courage and bravery.
None of those fit here.
Tylan knew the true meaning of the term, not the pale version it had come to. He had grown up in one of the few isolated inland clans that still maintained a pack mentality. His alpha had been a rough, jagged stone, with no mate to rub off the sharp edges. It was clear that he had worked to benefit the pack, but at times that was at the price of pack blood. He knew about alphas, and this pup seemed to have some idealist attitude towards them. He knew what an alpha would do. Cut the losses, and try to figure out if the incident was a danger to the rest of the pack. The pup was alone, his alpha wasn't coming for him. He knew he wouldn't, and he had beaten the last alpha of his pack. He looked back down at the shivering pup beneath him. It was time to show the pup just what a real alpha was like.
He growled down at the black-furred wolf. "Listen up, pet. I'm your Alpha now." Pinning the rope that was wrapped around the pet's neck to the ground, he backed off, giving the wolf a chance to act like a proper Omega and grovel at his feet. The wolf used his newfound freedom to curl up tightly, flipping his tail over his muzzle and breathing deeply. The shudders died down, and the whimpers grew quieter, taking on a more wistful tone. "Alpha..."
Tylan growled. Grabbing the wolf's shoulder, he slammed him back against the ground. "I'm your alpha, got it? Not whoever you had before. Your job, as a worthless Omega, is to do whatever I say, you got that?"
The pet didn't answer, instead trying his best to resume his curled-up position, nose in his fur. However, the comment about being worthless seemed to reach him, because as he tried to curl up he muttered. "I'm worth something to my Alpha..."
Shoving his muzzle down close to the pet's, Tylan snapped his teeth together. "Why you little-" He paused, nose quivering as he took in the scent that was all over the smaller wolf. It was a scent that many canines missed, being largely an undercurrent scent. It worked in the background, pushing down the guard of other canids and making it easier to give commands to. Tylan knew, he had the same scent. The scent of an Alpha. A pretty strong one too, going to the strength of it. Now he knew why the pet took such comfort in his fur. His scent was nearly fully meshed with the Alpha's, making what must seem to be a safe haven for him. While the pet had that, there was no way he was going to get him to bend to his will.
Tylan decided to resolve this as fast as possible. He could just keep the wolf close for the next few days, preferably in bodily contact, but he didn't have that luxury. They were on the run after all. He didn't expect the pet's old Alpha to give chase, but the Prince was a different matter. It was clear that he intended to make the human girl his mate, and once a wolf decided on his mate, he would stop at nothing to keep said mate out of danger.
The quick and messy way it was then. Standing up, he placed a footpaw on the rope, close to where it wrapped around the pet's neck. Satisfied that the smaller wolf wouldn't be going anywhere, he allowed himself the luxury of gazing over the lithe body. He let himself go, allowing his pheromones to run free. Soon he could smell it, the scent almost forming a cloud around him. He knew the pet smelled it as well, even through his fur, when his eyes opened and he looked up. Grinning down at the wide eyes, Tylan growled, paw reaching down towards his pants. Pausing at the string that held his pants up, he looked behind him. Zypher stood a short distance away, looking on. The weasel sniffed the air, then smirked and turned away, disappearing through the bushes back towards the bamp.
Tylan refocused his attention on the pet, whose eyes were fixed on him fearfully. "We shouldn't be interrupted now, pet." Tylan growled as his paw went to work on the strings of his pants. Within a few moments he had them open. With a quick shove, they pooled around his ankles and Tylan easily stepped one paw out of them, making sure to use the one that wasn't holding down his new Omega.
Free of its confines, Tylan could feel his cock dip away from his body as he lowered himself down again, resuming the pin he had used before. The pet started struggling again, tail clamped firmly between his legs. Tylan resisted the urge to turn the wolf over and rip that tail out of the way and fuck him good and hard, both for his insolence, and because the pet's scent was making him more and more horny. However, he had something he needed to do first. Leaning down, he whispered in the pet's ear harshly.
"You might as well forget that last Alpha of yours. Once I'm done with you, there won't be a trace of scent on you that's not mine. If he ever does find you, there's no way he would want you back. You will be repulsive to him. But don't worry, you weren't worth his time in the first place. The only reason he took you in is the same reason I'm taking you in now. It's not because you're worth out rime, nothing could be further from the truth. You're pathetic, worthless, worse than the waste of the animals we keep in our stables. The food they eat is worth more than you, and don't forget it." Tylan leered down at him, tightening his paws around the pet's wrists until he cried out in pain. "The only reason you live is because I allow it, scum. You better do your best to please me, because if I ever get bored of you, I'll slit your throat and toss you in a ditch to bleed out."
Pressing down with his hips, he ran his cock through the black fur in slow, grinding humps. Looking down between their bodies, Tylan grinned at their difference in size. The pet's looked like a pup's beside him. "Such a small puppy." He growled. "And where have you been? That's not what you're supposed to smell like." He said mockingly. "Let's fix that before I give you a nice" he thrust his hips against the pet's, hard, "spanking."
The pet let out a loud yelp and renewed his struggling. It was no use though. Tylan simply bore down on his wrists and legs harder, pressing them into the leaves of the forest floor to keep him in place. Arching his back, he growled dominantly, releasing a stream of urine to soak the pet, who was still wearing his pants.
For most canids, this was just a dirty kink, but Tylan's pheromones were strong enough that the action served a purpose. Wherever the stream touched, Tylan's scent covered whatever had been there before. Slowly, both the pet's and his former alpha's scents were being replaced with his own. Tylan knew this, and his drove his lust to more lofty heights. When he felt halfway empty, he picked the smaller wolf up and spun him around, slamming him back down chest first. Gripping the offending tail, he yanked it up, drawing a yelp from the Omega beneath him. After thoroughly wetting the pants beneath the pet's tail, he spent the rest of his scent-laden urine across the wolf's back. Once his flow had trickled to a stop, he took a deep sniff, growling with pleasure when all he smelled was himself. Leaning over, he growled into the pet's ear as he reached for the button on the back of the pet's pants. "Now, to mark the inside..."
Before he could go any farther, however, Lokisson strode into the clearing. "Tylan, that can wait for now. We've stopped long enough as it is. Cedric will be coming soon enough, with the Prince on his tail. We cannot afford to have them catch us. You know the price for failure."
The wolf growled in frustration. "Fine. I'll be there in a minute." As soon as the fox turned around, he slammed back down on the wolf below him. "Listen up, Omega. You have a few hours, a day at the most, before I can have you alone. You better spend that time thinking of how you can best please me, because if you don't..." He trailed off threateningly. "Do you understand?"
Aden nodded, ears pinned and tail tucked. "Yes, Master."
Tylan's paw crept up to his throat, slowly tightening around it. "Yes..." Tylan growled softly. "I am your master, alpha, and as far as you're concerned, your god. You have no need to fear anyone else, because I will not allow anyone else to harm you." Aden's eyes were wide as he gripped the paw around his throat, mouth gaping as he tried to breathe. "Your alpha can do whatever he likes to you, can't he, pet? I could kill you right now, if I chose." His eyes hardened. "If you want me to do that, keep struggling. I only accept complete submission from those under me."
Aden's tongue was hanging out of his mouth and his eyes were rolling by the time he forced himself to let go of the paws crushing his throat. Tylan released him, and took a shuddering breath, trying to replenish his depleted oxygen supplies. The wolf rose to his footpaws. "Get up, we need to get going. The fox thinks that your old alpha is going to come after you, and I want to get a bit of fun out of you before he kills you."
Aden struggled to his footpaws, swaying back and forth as he straightened. The world was still dark around the edges, but the fear of his new alpha kept him upright. He sniffed the air. He stank of the wolf before him. Every strand of fur in his pelt was saturated with the odor. As the alpha walked away, he staggered behind, trying to stay on his feet. Was it true what he had said? Would Alpha really kill him when he found him? Was he still Alpha? The other wolf said he was alpha, and he certainly smelled alpha.
They reached a wagon, and the alpha motioned him in. Aden complied, cringing as he passed the wolf and received a lusty growl. Chains clanked as a manacle locked around his footpaw. His alpha knocked him on his back, briefly grinding his groin against Aden's tail before walking away. Sniffing, Aden crawled into the bed of the wagon, sitting against the wall. He could see the girl, Ayala, lying in the front of the wagon, still asleep. Whatever they had used on her had really knocked her out. He curled up, trying to find solace in his tail, as he always had before. It smelled of the alpha. Wherever he went, he couldn't escape the wolf's scent. He repositioned himself, trying to find a spot of fur that smelled of himself, but he had no luck. He had been thoroughly marked as the alpha's.
His alpha probably was right. If his Al...no, the other alpha found him, it was certain that he would kill him. His alpha said that was the way it went, and...Aden shook his head. His alpha must know something he didn't! He wouldn't have thought that his other alpha would ever kill him, but his new alpha said that he would. And now that he belonged to the new alpha, it was his duty to follow. There wasn't any way around it. He would do what his alpha said whether he liked it or not. The consequence of not following had been made pretty clear. He would do it, because he had to do it. He...
He wanted his old alpha back.
Tears flooded his eyes, and he ducked his head as he tried to stifle his sobs. He missed the warm, protecting arms of his old alpha; the concern that showed those bright yellow eyes when he had been frightened. The deep, rumbling growls that made his back vibrate as his alpha held him close, warning off those who wanted to hurt him. The scent that lingered so that, even when he wasn't there, Aden could be comforted. The scent that covered his fur now wasn't like that. It didn't offer comfort, only sheer power. It made him tremble, but not in the way his old alpha's had. The fear he had felt then had been tempered with the trust that he wouldn't be hurt. This scent held no such promise. To this new alpha, he was nothing but a toy, less than that even, meant to be used until he broke, then cast aside in the search of a new one.
His head dipped to rest on the floor of the wagon. Half-curled, Aden sought sleep, hoping to escape from his life, at least for a few hours.
An especially hard jolt woke Ayala. Sitting up, she groaned as she held her head. The only thing she could think of that was similar was the hangovers that some of the servants talked about when they didn't think she was listening. If this was anything like what those felt like, then she wasn't drinking alcohol ever.
"Well, looks like the young lady is up finally. You didn't kill her, Tylan!"
"She was out for a while though. Good thing I didn't get distracted, eh?"
Ayala looked up at the front of the wagon, finding three pairs of eyes gazing back at her. One, the fox, turned back to the front of the wagon after a moment, taking the reins from the wolf, who had been driving the team of two horses. Relieved of his duty, the wolf turned fully around, grinning at her. "So, how're ya feelin'?"
Ayala glared at him, then winced. "I was coming quietly you know. That was completely unnecessary."
The ferret shrugged. "Not really. Now you don't have a clue where we are."
Sitting up, she leaned against the wall of the wagon. Rubbing her wrists, she was surprised to find that they weren't tied. "What's keeping me from running away now? Even if I don't know where I am, I can still ask around to find my way back."
Again, her question was met with a shrug and a small smile. "You didn't run before, why would you now?"
"You were threatening Aden before!" She snapped. "It's not like I wanted to come."
The wolf's ears perked up."Is that the bitch's name?" He gazed at her contemplatively, "Not that it matters much, but it's interesting to know."
No, Ayala realized, he wasn't looking at her, he was looking behind her. Spinning around, her shoulders tightened in fury as she realized that Aden was there with her. Lying half-curled at the back end of the cart, his right footpaw shackled to the frame. His fur was in the process of drying, and she doubted that it was wet with water. She turned back to them, fists clenched.
"Scum! Liars! Oathbreakers! You promised that you would leave him alone if I came quietly!" She brought a hand to her forehead. "What was I thinking? If you'd stoop so low as to hold him hostage to get to me, why would you keep your word?"
The ferret glared at her. "Careful who you call oath-breaker, girl. We've kept our word. Neither I nor my companion here have touched him since we left the tavern. Tylan here has been 'taking care of him'." He snickered.
Ayala took a breath, ready to start shouting at them, but she realized it would do no good. Giving them one last glare, she turned to walk over to Aden, stumbling from the bouncing of the cart.
"Don't go near him."
The wolf's voice was low, almost a growl, and some instinctual part of her shivered as she halted.
"He's mine now and I don't want you to go near him. I'll let him know when he wakes that he lets you come near him, he'll be punished." The wolf licked his muzzle. "On second thought, go near him if you wish. The punishment will be enjoyable. For me."
Ayala sat down, revolted. What kind of mess did she get herself into? Closing her eyes, she tried to think back to the lessons her parents had had her take for situations like this. What could she do? After a few minutes, she let out a mental cry of frustration. None of the situations she had been presented with factored in the idea that she wasn't the primary target! All the offers she could make were void here. Well, maybe not an offer of money, but then she didn't really have the weight to back that one up. She could tell them...no, it's best that she didn't. That could make things worse rather than better.
She could at least try to find out their plans. "What's going to happen to me?" She turned to them. "Come on, be honest. What is it? Death? Slavery? Imprisonment?"
The ferret nudged the fox next to him. "Lokisson? What's the plan for the girl?"
Lokisson didn't turn around, his eyes staying on the road visible between the pair of horses. "Imprisonment, at least until the Prince is mated. After that, I don't see any reason to keep you further. You'll probably be free to go. At the most, you'll be deported." He cocked his head in both directions, first right, then left. "Oh course, it's possible that someone higher up than me could take a liking to you and elect to keep you there, but that's unlikely."
"I'm not sure if I should be relieved or insulted." Ayala said dryly.
Finally he glanced back at her, if only for a moment. "It's not an insult." He turned forward again. "It's simply a fact. You're fair enough, for a human, but there's not many in the kingdom that go for humans. It's why you don't see them all that often. Canines are the main species here, and Wolves make up most of the upper class. The royal family are wolves and the King's guard is made up entirely of wolves. It's only recently that other species and kinds have begun to make headway. I think the Prince is the only member of the royal family ever that has chosen someone other than a wolf to let join his personal guard. I don't know for sure, but I think at least three of his guard are a species other than wolf. One is a weasel, right Zypher?"
The weasel's muzzle twisted into a snarl. "He's a ferret. It can't be that had to learn the difference, fox."
Lokisson shrugged. "Don't get all worked up, I said I don't know the details. It's not my fault that I got one of the species mixed up." A sudden jolt threw them to the side, and the wagon ground to a stop. Lokisson ground his teeth. "I hope that's not what I think it is." Handing the reins over to Zypher, he vaulted over the side and peered under the wagon. "Tylan, come over here."
The wolf jumped over the side of the wagon as well, landing much heavier. "What is it?"
"This wheel is broken. Do you think you can help push the wagon off the road so we can get this fixed without being in plain sight?"
"Why don't we just leave the wagon?"
"Because, without the wagon we leave a scent trail. With it, they're not sure if they're following the right wagon or not. If we get off, they'll have confirmation. Can you carry it?"
The wolf grabbed the broken wheel. "I carry it, you fix it. And while you're doing that, I'll finish what I started back there."
Lokisson rolled his eyes. "If you must, but don't tie him. I'll finish before you can pull out. I don't want to wait around for you."
"I'd rather seed him good, but I can separate earlier." He licked his muzzle. "You sure you don't want to see me tied with him?"
"Quite sure, thank you."
The wolf shrugged. "Your loss." He jerked his head towards the driver's seat. "Let's go, I've got an Omega to finish marking."
Leaves crunched as Cedric's large paws pressed them against the dirt beneath. Soon after the crumpled remains were tossed into the air as the same paws that crushed them scooped them up in their rush. Cedric was running down the road, using all four paws in a loping run. His sword, strapped across his back, made no noise save for the buckles, quieted by its leather sheath. His sight had narrowed, concentrated on the set of wheel tracks in the dust before him. Only occasionally would he catch the scent he was seeking. That foul, sharp odor of another male's urine. He had found a large scented spot a little ways back, and in the very center, clinging to a few blades of grass that had remained untainted, he smelled the scent he was seeking. The scent of his mate. Aden's fear and pain was evident, but what drove Cedric further in his fury was that there was so little of his mate's delicious scent left. It had been covered by the repulsive scent of that other wolf. His instincts screamed against it, demanding that he remove the source of the scent, kill the one that took his mate from him and blot out the offending scent.
Since then he hadn't been thinking rationally. The edges of his vision were dark, so focused was he on the tracks before him. He would follow them to the end of the earth, never giving up. Teeth bared in a snarl, he plunged forward along the road, leaving Aylmer and his guard to follow along behind. They had fallen back a few hundred feet by now, and at times their view of him was cut off. Cedric didn't care that he might end up charging the kidnappers alone though. He would take back his mate, or die in the attempt.
Coming to a sharp curve in the road, he began to turn, but a gust of wind brought him up short. It carried the scent he was seeking, and it came from straight ahead. Plunging forward, he disappeared into the brush. A short distance off the path, the undergrowth died out and he was left with a clear run. Redoubling his efforts, he pushed himself forward with greater speeds. A fallen tree appeared in his way, and with a short jump he was on top of it, leaping off in a soaring glide that stretched over the tangle of broken branches below. Landing, he stumbled a moment before taking off again.
The scent was growing stronger.
A flicker of movement came from his right, and Cedric's feral mind reacted. Leaping away, he turned his head and snarled at the ferret that was running alongside him, at several yard's distance. Thurgis merely glanced over, features impassive. His Prince had told him to aid Cedric, and he had confidence in the rest of his squad. They would keep the Prince safe, he didn't need to worry about that. He could concentrate on keeping Lord Cedric alive.
A clearing opened ahead, and he could see a wagon in it. A fox was kneeling next to the back of the wagon, examining the wheel, while a wolf carried a limp form away from it. After a moment, the ferret was able to recognize it as Aden. Moments later, he spotted Ayala standing in the wolf's way, shouting at him. He could see that some struggling ensued as her shouts woke Aden and caused him to panic. A swift backpaw from the wolf sent Ayala sprawling to the ground, and the wolf quieted by dipping his muzzle down to the smaller wolf's ear. Thurgis couldn't hear what was said, but whatever it was caused Aden to go as stiff as a board.
They were fifty yards away now, and the third member of the party, a weasel, looked up and noticed them. Thurgis was slightly surprised that they hadn't noticed the three-hundred pounds of wolfflesh charging towards them before now, but he wasn't complaining. Slowing down just slightly, he pulled out an arrow and nocked it, noticing the weasel copying him. Drawing back, he leapt into the air, sighting and releasing at the peak of his jump. It was a shot that could only be pulled off after decades of experience with a bow, and he nailed it. The weasel had Cedric at the tip of his arrow, but before he could release an arrow came buzzing out of the sky and sunk deep in his chest, with the added bonus of cutting his bowstring. Mouth open, he fell back, his breath turning to a dying gurgle as blood filled his punctured lung.
Unaware that Thurgis had just saved his life, Cedric was only focused on one person. The wolf that had tainted his mate, and even now was holding him in his arms. Howling a challenge, he charged across the clearing.
The wolf's muzzle broke into a feral grin as he tossed Aden aside. "Stay there." He snarled. "And if you move, I won't only knot you and pull out when Lokisson says we need to go, I'll fuck you with it until then."
Turning, he rushed to meet the challenger. Moments away from each other, they both leapt into the air, paws extended, teeth bared in a snarl. Time seemed to slow as they both arced through the air, even then sizing each other up. The wind rushed through their fur, tails streaming like war banners behind them. Then the world snapped back into motion as over six hundred pounds of wolven muscle collided.
Crashing to the ground, they both darted away from each other, circling on all fours. Tylan knew he had the advantage. This wolf, Lord Cedric he supposed, must've run all the way here from the port, where he had rode in the wagon. He was still fresh. Beckoned by some unspoken cue, the two wolves came back together in a whirl of snapping jaws and scratching claws. Tylan clamped onto Cedric's shoulder and he howled, snapping his head to the side and bashing Tylan away. A quick swipe of the paw left large scratches across Tylan's muzzle. For a moment they separated, but then they crashed together again.
Ayala was moving as soon as she saw who the attackers were. Running towards Zypher's corpse, she quickly frisked it, finding Aden's dagger stuck in the belt. A swift paw knocked it away, then grabbed her by the shoulder and lifted her up. Turning her around, she was pulled back against Lokisson's chest. Her hands flew up to where his arm crossed her throat, but the prick of a dagger stopped her from pulling at it.
"Come any closer and I'll kill her!" The fox's voice called out. Looking up, Ayala noticed that the rest of Aylmer's guard had arrived, along with Aylmer himself. The wolf was looking at her hopelessly, unsure of what to do. His guard stood alongside him, waiting for his orders. Ayala didn't wait for those orders.
This situation was something she had been trained for.
Nimble fingers slipped underneath her bodice without drawing the fox's attention, procuring a small knife from within. If needed, it was small enough to conceal in her hand, but was sharp enough to cut through thick rope. Now she needed to cut something much less resilient. With one quick motion, she slashed down the length of his arm, twisting away from the dagger behind her as she did so. Lokisson let go of her with a yelp, rolling away and holding his arm. He glanced over at Tylan, then rolled away again as an arrow zipped past him. Ducking behind the horses, he used them as a shield as he darted into the trees. With him on the run, all eyes turned towards the source of all the noise: the two wolves fighting.
Both were bleeding from multiple wounds, but were still going strong. Cedric had long slashes going down his arm, but Tylan's leg looked like Cedric had taken a chunk out of it. Now their fangs were locked as they struggled to make it past each other's defenses. Then, in a single moment, it was over. Cedric ducked down and pushed Tylan into a full stand, then leapt up to sink his fangs into the other wolf's throat. There was a crunch, and a spray of crimson blood as Cedric's head jerked to the side, ripping out the wolf's larynx. Tylan collapsed, and Cedric fell back to all fours, spitting out the chunk of fur and flesh in his muzzle as he watched the life fade from Tylan's eyes.
Aden nearly collapsed in joy from where he stood. His Alpha had come for him! He knew Alpha wouldn't leave him! Cedric looked up at him, and Aden's smile faltered at the feral gleam in those eyes. They were still wild with fury, and the teeth below them were stained red with blood, as well as the fur around his muzzle. Aden took a step back, unsure. He will kill you. That's what the other alpha had said. He had said that Cedric would kill him to get rid of the scent that had tainted him. Aden wavered, unsure.
Then, Cedric took one step forward over the dead body between them, and Aden broke. Turning, he ran as fast as he could into the forest.