Chapter 11: You Can't Wake Up
"But…that's not tr—" Wells tried to argue.
Clarke took a step back, pausing in what she wanted to say. "It's true. I feel it. I know I will go feral without my wolf."
The wolf inside her was no longer responding; hasn't since she changed yesterday. She could feel the tightness in her chest, the black hole where the spirit of the wolf usually warmed her. It was getting bigger, and colder as the days passed.
It had only been a couple of days, she mused herself, since they landed on this beautiful hell.
"That can't be, you can't die." Prince of the ARK tried to reason with himself out loud.
She rolled her eyes at the statement. Her eyes going towards the twilight sky, the colors painting the sky. If she looked hard enough she could see the brightest fake star of the Ark, why did it feel so far yet so close? "I won't die, Wells. I'll go crazy. Totally different things." She placated him.
"How do you know? My father said that it would only make the wolf dissipate and you'll be human, or it will kill the host as well?" The boy asked her confused.
His father once explained to him that this was a necessary footstep towards their evolution. The wolf cannot stand to be in a cage as it longed for the wild, which the ARK couldn't provide. Phoenix station was the beginning for the next step. Yes, their parents got it their own bands (those have a less degree of sliver compared to those of the younger age) when they were a little older, but they figured that doing younger would be better than waiting for the wolf to actually be tied to the persons soul.
See, they are legends that the wolf and human soul don't blend until they learn to get along with one another. So, getting in between the tie that holds the spirits together before they blend, the person had a better chance of surviving—even half of the kids from the privileged didn't survive. Though, they were smart enough to cover that little tidbit up.
Clarke shook her head.
She had seen first-hand what the bands do, since her mother was the Chief of Medicine. The screams and blood still haunts her dreams some nights, "Your father lied. I've seen what these sliver bands can do, Wells. It's not pretty sight." She sighed, tired all of a sudden. She needed to get sleep soon, "I don't know what to do now." She was at a loss for words. She knew that she would have to leave soon.
Or the outcome could be a catastrophe.
The birds again chirped their songs, making Clarke turn to watch them as they weaved through the trees with practice ease. So carefree, She envied, so free.
Wells stayed silent, nothing like the forest around them. He made a decision, and he was sticking to it, "We still need to get the band off. You'll have to fight it then." He told her defiantly as he moved toward where she stood, fingers already bracing for the sting of the metal.
"Why?" She startled.
He paused in his steps, fingers barely brushing the metal. He had left his mate, and his whole life on the ARK for her. He knew he would have to tread carefully in what he says. There was just something about Clarke that needed to be saved from the punishment his father was placing on her shoulders.
He looked into her eyes, the clear pain and determination for life, "Because out of everyone here, you're our most valuable asset." Prince's words hung in the air for a moment, "So?" He inquired.
Her eyes said all.
They were his pack.
Pack.
Pack.
Pack.
He couldn't get that word out of his head, as he made his way through the already half built wall around the dropship. The 100 were scattered or in little groups; some were still working while others were taking a small break. They acknowledge him in all of their own ways, a pat on the back, nod of the head or even a smile (that one was from their youngest delinquent—Charlotte) as he walked on.
They were his.
He could feel it in his chest, making the Alpha in him curl happily at finally having a pack. The ARK didn't give the relief as the Earth did. No one cared that he was an Alpha here, in fact, they wanted an Alpha to take charge here.
They were his, he repeated, as his eyes drifted over them all. His to protect, his eyes turning the yellow brown searching for any, or all disruptions, and his to serve. He knew what he had to do to protect them and that was that all the wristbands needed to be taken off.
He couldn't have the ARK coming down upon them, especially after what he has done.
He could see that his sister actually listened to him for once as she had stayed put, talking with the boy—Monty. His could hear that Jasper was still sleeping peaceful inside the dropship, his heart steady for once as he made his way towards the entrance. The thought that at least the wounded are taken care of made him swell with pride; he turned towards the delinquents. His eyes scanned the crowd once again, as they all started to realize that he had something to say, and as well as how the hunting party had done.
They were successful in hunting a couple of deer, although they were mutant. But food, nonetheless.
His wolf couldn't see the Princess anywhere, and that little bit irked him. It was already midday, and yet; they weren't back. His mate wasn't back yet, but he pushed it aside. His pack needed him right now, and that was making sure they knew he was their Alpha.
She was going to be fine, he repeated once again to himself, she is tougher than she looks.
"We have food!" He yelled to the crowd that gathered by the dropship entrance, "Those that want some will have some, but only if you take of the wristbands." He pointed towards the ARK, as it circled the Earth like eyes of God, "we are no longer slaves to them, but those bands let them know otherwise. It's time to show them that we are not theirs to punish for taking just a piece of food, or even some medicine. We are no longer theirs to control and shackle. We are not theirs to float." The crowd around them roared with intensity that rattled his bones as they all started to wrangle with the bands, "As of right now, in this moment," his eyes roaming them all as his eyes turned their golden brown, "I am your Alpha."
A scream shattered the air around them.