Chapter 4

Golden sunlight was what woke me up to a brand new day. In a way, I'd been hoping all this nonsense was a dream, a bad one that I'd soon wake up from. Unfortunately, this was not the case. Outside my door, I could hear stirring about, most likely from the ones who did not sleep at all. I hesitated to rise, because it only meant facing strangers who were just holding themselves back from snacking on me, and then others who had to resist the urge to maim me. I pulled the covers over my head, shielding my sleep sensitive eyes from the burning warm rays. A knock on my door startled me, but I stayed covered, waiting for my privacy to be forgotten. Surprisingly, no one entered, and I got up. As tired as I was, I really didn't care who saw me in my PJs. All I was wearing was a baggy tee shirt and a pair of really short black cotton sleeping shorts. Modesty did not occur to me until I opened the door and found Derek. He looked as though he had just woken up himself, because he had on no shirt, a pair of old sleep pants and his hair was disheveled. I wondered if a girl of his choice had done that. I felt my cheeks heat up slightly when he didn't say anything, yet his eyes roamed my now naked feeling body. "Can I help you? Or are you just going to continue feeling me up with your eyes?" I couldn't help the distaste that filled my words. He unabashedly looked back up into my face, and said in a groggy commanding voice, "Training will begin in a half hour. Be ready to come down or you'll come down unprepared." I didn't get the chance to say anything back before he stalked away. I gritted my teeth, but went and took a five minute shower to wake up. I brushed my teeth and hair in tandem, trying to get done as quickly as possible for the fear of Derek coming back in when I wasn't dressed and dragging me into the halls half covered. Once my waist length coffee colored hair hung straight without tangles and my teeth were clean, I dressed quickly in a matching set of black cotton underwear. I selected a pair of black skintight, torn jeans and a baggy purple tank top and quickly dressed. I was just putting on my tennis shoes when Derek came back up to gather both Spencer and me. "Did you sleep well?" I asked Spencer, noting the black circles under his eyes and his sullen approach. "Try not at all. This place is so unfamiliar, and I couldn't do anything but toss and turn." I smiled, "I'm sorry. It's actually safe for me to say I slept decently." "Glad one of us did." He mumbled. Unlike he had been, Derek didn't prod or poke at us, which surprised me. I had to make myself not look at him, because although I didn't like him, I did have to admit he was nice eye candy. He wore a dark blue pair of jeans, the kind of dark that exposed the fact that they must have been newly bought. The tight fitting black V-neck he wore gave the contours of his chest a nice show off, and paired with his black leather jacket, he was pretty much a knockout. He walked around like he knew it too.

I guess being the Alpha of Alphas, you could afford to walk around acting like you knew you were hot shit. The world of the supernatural laid down to bid your every command, or at least I'd been told. The only exception was the vampires, who ruled over them. This fact was what caused this war to break out. Apparently, the werewolves were no more than lap dogs, pleasurers or servants to the vampire people. Evidently, some vampires didn't think of their wolfy comrades this way, because I saw vampires throughout this house pal around with them, but most felt like they were "supposed" to. I was to understand the point of my being chosen from these tellings. My first lesson today was vampiric lore. Upon coming into a large room with several couches and a fireplace near the front of the room, Farren seemed to have been waiting for us. "Derek," she said in greeting. He didn't say anything, but nodded, gently pushing me forward. He didn't touch Spencer, but then again he was ahead of me by about two steps. I hadn't expected the gentleness of his touch, so when he'd reached forward, I tensed, waiting to be shoved. After his nudge, he jerked his hand away and I continued to walk.

"Okay, so I know you've probably still got a few questions. I'm going to do my best to explain to you the whole reasoning of you being here." Spencer and I both nodded once, waiting for the rest. "All right, well, to begin with, this whole war began last year. You humans probably failed to notice, as usual, but it's been a raging one. The leader of the vampiric cult that continues to fight for werewolf enslavement would be The Vampire King, Lorcan Kern." When she spoke the name, her chest seemed to tighten, and I couldn't tell if it was in fear or anger. Maybe both. "He believes his ways, the ways which he has set as law, are just. By fighting against these laws, we are committing treason, of the sorts. Obviously, we're all on his hit list. Our numbers are small, and due to his great army, those slight numbers are diminishing, and quickly. Aaden," she said, looking to me, her topaz eyes glowing in determination, "you were chosen because I have certain powers that can tell me when someone will be special. The kind of special you are, we need you desperately. Usually, when I detect a person of interest, their personality shows they are to become either vampire or werewolf. You're special in the fact that, well, I can't determine which would be better for you. You can choose either because you're suited to both." This news came as a shock. Either or? "As I was saying, the point of hiding out here is for protection. Everyone here is basically on death row, and if any of us are caught, it's immediate execution. The King doesn't put up with disobedience very well. Our small group runs out once trained and fights their way to earn another vampire's or werewolf's alliance. This is what we do. When the final showdown occurs, it's going to be bloody. More than likely, we will not win, because most do not feel as we do." She tilted her head downward, as if she'd already been defeated. Derek then spoke up, "But as we feel, we cannot afford this. Werewolves will never gain their freedom if we lose or even just sit back. As the Alpha, I cannot sit back any longer and watch my pack mates be beaten, raped or trampled on." He sat down beside Farren, in front of me, and in his desperation to catch our attention, leaned forward. "Do you understand why we do what we're doing and why you were chosen?" He asked, looking dead set into my eyes. I nodded. "Answer like you understand!" He yelled, his eyes glowing red and he reached out, gripping my knees in each of his large hands, his claws extending but not digging into my skin. "I understand clearly." I said boldly, even though my insides were everywhere. He didn't say another word, and instead lowered his eyes. His hands didn't leave my knees, but his eyes returned gray as he looked at me. "You may be our last hope. Because of your specialty, you could be a leader." With that, he rose and walked out. Farren's eyes were distant, like she was watching a movie over our heads. "Farren?" I touched her wrist and she snapped back to reality. "So you understand?" "Yes." She nodded and stood, motioning for us to do the same. "Spencer, you and Aaden will begin training today. Even if you aren't supernatural for a while, you still need to learn defense techniques and fighting stances. Can you train with her?" "Well, yeah, but-" "But what?" "I was raised not to hit girls." "Oh for Pete's sake! This is different." I giggled, finding it hilarious how he exasperated her. She led us down to the training room, where we found everyone else. Derek was already down, having shucked his jacket and he turned to face us as we entered. "Aaden, Spencer," he said, grinning somewhat evilly, "welcome to hell."