*Content warning: graphic violence*
He woke up screaming.
There were teeth burrowed deep into the back of his neck. Thick. Sharp. Brutal. Lan’s voice didn’t sound like his own. It was too harsh. A broken, pathetic noise in the deep of night.
He had thought he was safe to pass to the branch packs soon. After the Presentation earlier that evening, Nyx led them back to their makeshift quarters. The ones who were claimed stayed behind, beginning their new duties with vigor.
It had been a relief, of course. Lan would soon be on his own once the branch families rejected him, too. With those comforting thoughts, he had drifted off on the second night.
How could he have been so stupid?
His wolf retreated and his body shifted back into a Human.
The massive jaws clamping down on his neck slowly eased up and retracted. Lan was gasping for breath, eyes spinning and blood rushing to the blossoming wound. His limbs trembled violently, entire body beginning to seize.
The shackles around his wrists snapped apart and he grabbed fistfuls of dirt. Anything to steady himself. He could hear himself screaming again as heat tore through bone and muscle. It felt like dying. Am I dying?
Is this how he would go? Not even making it to the end of the trial period? He’d somehow pissed off a packmate so much they wanted to kill him?
Lan felt a heavy weight settle atop him, forcing his shaking body into the ground. A too hot tongue dragged across his bleeding neck and he shuddered, eyes rolling back. Nausea swirled in his gut and it was only sheer willpower that stopped him from vomiting.
“Be grateful.”
He barely registered the words, but they somehow reverberated in his skull like a physical strike. Within moments, the world blacked out.
The next time Lan knew who he was and where he was, day had broken.
Last day. I couldn’t make it to the last day. That thought played on loop in his mind, but it was so hard to truly understand what that meant. Had he really failed? Someone managed to get him after all? Who would’ve wanted him?
Light filtered through the shallow cave entrance. The air smelled clean and damp despite how dirty and used Lan felt.
He winced and then groaned hoarsely at the pain coursing through his neck. Thick gauze wrapped around the supposedly tough skin which only worried Lan more. How bad could a wound be for it to heal slowly?
A low growl made him stiffen. Whirling around, Lan found dark golden eyes watching him. He reached up, touching the wound instinctually.
The packmate slowly shifted back into a Human.
“Nyx.” The name tumbled from Lan’s lips immediately.
He ran fingers through his long hair, a twisted grin morphing his face. “Lan.”
Question raced through his mind, but the answers were obvious. It would be pointless to pretend he didn’t understand. Although he had never seen a claiming before, every wolf recognized the process. The scarring. The feeling of subjugation.
No one told me I’d wanna puke. Lan grimaced, putting more distance between them.
“I didn’t think I’d finally find one of you that’s worth claiming.” Nyx laughed, low and meaningful. “Been telling Val how I’m losing hope. I don’t need another mate to breed or fuck but all the potential wolves that come through seem to be stuck on it.”
Lan felt a growl building in the back of his throat.
“Of course, since I’ve claimed you, I’ll fulfill whatever needs you might have,” he continued, eyes drifting over Lan’s body, “even if you’re smaller than I’d prefer, I can adjust.”
“I don’t need anything.”
Nyx shrugged, large shoulders rolling back. “Just letting you know it’s available. More importantly,” his smile returned, crude and cold, “I’ve been searching for someone like you. A wolf that’s too small to make a fuss but tough enough to endure some roughing up.”
Lan shifted into his wolf form and darted for the entrance. He had barely transformed though before Nyx crushed him against the floor. Even in Human form, he was ridiculously heavy, pinning Lan by the back of his neck.
“I knew you were the right choice,” he breathed, jaws snapping over the bandages and tearing straight through them.
The pain was paralyzing but for some awful reason, the pressure of teeth sinking into his neck made his muscles relax. Before he knew it, the wolf retreated, and his Human body was back. The weight of Nyx atop him was nearly unbearable now, though.
Nyx released his neck, lapping at the fresh blood. “I lead Val’s vanguard. We keep the packs outside of our territory in line and monitor anyone cursed with lycanthropy.” He curled rough hands around Lan’s wrists, daring to snap them if he made one wrong move.
Perfectly tense and silent, Lan waited.
“My packmates get restless. They need an outlet when the hunt goes cold. You’ll help us stay sharp and calm.”
He didn’t dare ask for clarification. It wasn’t necessary either though as his bones creaked in Nyx’s grasp. If this man and his unit didn’t want sexual gratification, then the only other thing could be physical gratification. A sandbag that would hold up to beatings. A target for practice. Someone with enough fire to put up a fight but never enough to actually win.
Lan ground his teeth, struggling against the urge to shout.
“Maybe you’ll change your mind about getting fucked,” Nyx remarked, feigning friendliness. “It’ll be the only pleasure you feel for the rest of your life. The others would be interested, too, if I’m not to your taste.”
Lan suppressed the growl building in his throat. Fighting back wouldn’t help. Even if he did, how much damage could he do in this state? Newly branded. Claimed. His body was a wreck in transition. The only silver lining was that Nyx couldn’t compel him.
Not like an alpha could.
“Be thankful you’re part of the main family now.” He released Lan slowly, hands still clamped down around his wrists. Without letting go, Nyx twisted both arms back, nearly dislocating Lan’s shoulders in the process. “Will you walk back with me properly or should we start training you now?”
This time he couldn’t stop the snarl.
Nyx grinned. “My lucky day then.”
That would be the first of many strikes against him.
***
Twelve moon cycles had come and gone since then.
Lan was set loose a few times each month. No shackles or chains. Sometimes they’d let him out more, depending on an assortment of things.
This evening would mark the third day of “training exercises.” He loathed and enjoyed the freedom. Sometimes he convinced himself that this time he would actually escape. Lose them in the winding forests and disappear into the fog.
None of them would be able to face Valentine and the others if they actually let their undesirable little punching bag disappear. It would be the shame of a lifetime. How could proud wolves from the main family’s vanguard actually fail to keep their toy under lock and key?
It was so pathetic that they would rather let Lan run. Leave him be and report that they’d accidentally killed him or some other nonsense.
Lan took a ragged breath, frustrated that the wound from earlier hadn’t healed yet.
Just like every training exercise, Nyx let him go hungry for a day and then proceeded to inflict a deep wound across his stomach. It created a sharper scent. Easier to track. His blood created a trail no matter how much Lan wanted to avoid it. He’d learned a few tricks in the past year though.
He could spread the blood across different trees and shrubbery. Confuse their scents by rubbing the blood of other animals across his fur. A recent tactic he’d picked up was rolling in thick mud to neutralize the odors. The only problem was it usually left his fur and skin sticky and uncomfortable.
None of that matters.
Lan could feel hope swelling in his chest as night fell on day three. They still hadn’t found him, and he couldn’t smell them either. It was the longest he’d gone without being captured. At this point, Nyx would probably beat him half to death for the insolence and humiliation once he caught him.
Just the thought of that made him bristle. Others could physically harm him, but there was something different about being brutalized by your owner. He felt anger flash through him every time the permanent bite mark on the back of his neck pulsed.
It was a disgusting reminder that he’d been claimed by a horrific creature—one that drew immense pleasure from covering him in scars and seeing him cower under the stifling pressure of being bound.
Lan had grown fairly accustomed to ignoring the weakness induced by their bond, but he couldn’t fully ignore it when Nyx got too close. Held him down. Slurred vitriol and slashed his skin open.
Willingly returning to his side was out of the question.
At the same time, when the fifth night fell, Lan was beginning to grow uncertain of himself. The training exercise had never gone this long. Had he actually successfully escaped?
He outsmarted the vanguard? Is that possible?
Lan’s limbs trembled from exhaustion and hunger pangs finally caught up to him. When was the last time he ate something? The wound on his stomach hadn’t healed much at all but that made sense. He usually didn’t have time to stop for an actual meal that could replenish his health. Furthermore, he’d never been gone this long. They usually found him and patched him up by now.
Dragging himself forward, he caught the whiff of something—meat?—cooking nearby. If there was anything peculiar about the scent, he wouldn’t have noticed. Five days with barely any food. Adrenaline running low. Muscles screaming.
Lan was understandably overcome.
He crawled into the encampment with barely a glance around. There were three charred forms in the fire. Without hesitation, he clamped down on one and dragged it out. Wood crackled and fire licked at the meal, but Lan didn’t mind it as he tore ferociously into the flesh.
His eyes nearly rolled back with relief. It was everything he wanted. Sure, it wasn’t the best tasting thing he’d ever eaten, but right then and there, he was ascending.
The meal was over all too soon. All he had left were a few bites.
With some of his senses returning, guilt rumbled in his stomach. He couldn’t possibly take the other two meals. It was bad enough he’d stolen someone’s potential dinner. It was then Lan caught the sound of something crackling and thumping against the ground.
Turning around, he saw another charred form roll out of the flames. Standing on the other side of the fire was possibly the most beautiful person Lan had ever seen.
It was such a strange feeling. He still couldn’t make heads or tails of everything, but he knew with every fiber of his being that this person was breathtaking. An anomaly. Light flickered across his features, warming honey-blond hair and dark eyes.
He snapped the large tree branch in his hands into smaller pieces and slowly started building the fire back up. Flashing a wry grin at Lan, the man called out, “Go ahead and eat, doll. Saves me some trouble.”
Lan’s ears perked at the sound of his voice. Smooth. Warm. Sweet. Why would anyone speak to a beast like that? He sniffed the air a bit more carefully and caught a hint of something sharp.
Although he couldn’t be positive, he’d wager this was a Night Child.
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