Writers POV

When she opened her eyes, she was greeted by a nearly dark room. She could feel a headache approaching, and nearly every muscle in her body was aching. She found herself on the carpeted floor, next to the windows. She sat up and rested her back against the cold wall. She sighed and lightly massaged her forehead. She attempted to stand, but a sharp pain shot up through her legs and she fell on the carpeted floor. She looked around and stood up again, crawling her way towards the switchboards and switching the lights on, instantly illuminating the room. Her fingers had left a red print on the switch, and she looked down at her hands, perplexed. Her hands were stained bright red with blood, fresh blood. Her eyes widened as she looked down at her blood-red, trembling hands. She dashed into the bathroom and stared at her reflection in the mirror. She was drenched in blood, and her face was barely recognizable. Her body was riddled with sharp, deep, and small cuts and her legs were riddled with claw and bite marks. Her senses were filled with the haunting screams of the wolves and warriors, and she shuddered, barely standing straight on her trembling feet. As the buzzing of screams became louder, she covered her ears with her hands, closing her eyes, she collapsed to the ground. As the memories flooded in, she hugged herself and sat on the corner. The memories of her demon form were always vague, and she could never remember them. But today, the demon made her live through the haunting memories. She had a distant look in her eyes as she stared at the bathroom wall, her mind swirling around the burning wolves' screams, their thrashing around on the forest floors, and how he gawked at her demon. The fire caught his hands, burning him, but he didn't take his gaze away from her kept her mind humming. His gorgeous blue eyes looking right at her dark ones traumatized her. A tear rolled down her cheek as she closed her eyes.

"I hurt him!" she exclaimed to herself.

"I hurt him!" She wailed, and tears streamed down her face. Only a handful of times did she cry before, a handful of times she was scared but nothing was compared to how scared she was of herself.

She was lying on the bathroom floor when she heard the sound of rushing footsteps and the smell of smoke. She got to her feet and turned on the faucet. She sprayed cold water on her face and stared at her reflection in the mirror. She looked down, feeling the demon peering through her eyes.

"Do you feel satisfied now?" she inquired coldly.

"Do you feel satisfied now that you've hurt the only person I've started caring about after all these years?" The bathroom was deafeningly quiet.

"Answer me!" she yelled back at herself in the mirror. She could feel the demon stirring inside her, but she didn't care. Her eyes had darkened and her skin was becoming paler. Her jaw clenched, and she punched the mirror, shattering it to pieces. She threw away her clothes burning them to ashes and jumped into the cold shower.

She scrubbed herself with soap and cleaned herself as thoroughly as she could. Her thoughts kept returning to him, his eyes, and the fire. She slammed her hand against the tiled wall and rested her head against it, in anger and frustration. She felt helpless all over again, disappointed, and most greatly, scared. She was terrified of herself and the demon within her. She had harmed their pack members, and she had harmed her moon-blessing. She harmed those who cared for her. She exhaled deeply and closed her eyes, allowing the cold water to run over her naked body.

She got out of the shower and dressed in a fresh pair of t-shirt and leggings. The red blood-stained white carpet screamed for attention as she got out of the closet. She dragged the loveseat from the corner of the room and placed it over the stained carpet, unable to think of anything else. The loveseat perfectly concealed the stain away from any eyes. She cleaned her wounds and concealed them, leaving only a few on her hands. After dressing the wound on her hand, she dragged herself to the bed and collapsed. She was exhausted both physically and mentally, her eyes closed on their own accord, leaving her vulnerable to the nightmares that awaited her.

The packhouse and infirmary were in complete disarray. The wolves were brought back as soon as backup had arrived. There were nearly fifty casualties, ranging from minor to severe injuries. Five people were killed on the spot, and nearly ten were seriously injured battling death. The wolves of the pack were flustered, hollering, and demanding answers as soon as they had returned. The wolves were being treated in the infirmary, and the doctors were working as hard as they could to avoid losing any of the severely injured. Despite their high healing abilities, the burn injuries were severe in many cases, and it would take them days to recover without medical assistance.

He could hear the wailing of the families who had lost a loved one, as well as those who were waiting outside in the infirmary corridors for word on their loved one's condition. When the doctor applied undue pressure to the burn injury on his left hand, he winced. He sat shirtless on the uncomfortable hospital bed while the doctor treated his wounds. The fire had only burned his hand, but he had lost five of his warriors, and many more of other warriors who were lying on the hospital bed waiting to die. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath through his nose and exhaled through his mouth. The doctor dressed the wound and took a step back.

"All done, Your Highness," he bowed, leaving Aiden alone in the room, who was deep in thought.

He's not sure why, but he couldn't get the demon's dark eyes out of his head. Or the way those eyes flitted around when they landed on him. She felt both familiar, mysterious, and dark. She was immensely powerful he had no doubt in that. When they went looking for the demon after the fire had died down, all they found was burned earth. Everything else in the fire zone was burnt to the ground. A knock on the door brought him back from his ruminations.

"Come in," he said, slipping his arms through the sleeves of his shirt. Beta Nicholas walked in, peering through the slightly open door. He bowed his head and moved closer to his Alpha.

"How are you feeling, Aiden?" Nick inquired, and Aiden gave him a brief look before averting his gaze.

"How are the wolves?" He inquired while buttoning his shirt.

"The majority of them are doing well. Two of the pack warriors are still unconscious, and the healer believes they have a slim chance of surviving the night." Beta Nick briefed him, and Aiden stared at him with vacant eyes.

He rolled up his sleeves and climbed down from the bed.

"Let's go," he said as he began walking out of the infirmary room with Nicholas on his toes.

After visiting the injured, their families, and a meeting with the pack, he came back to their temporary bedroom. When he pushed open the bedroom door, her scent enveloped him. He entered the room closer to where she was. He turned on the lamps, and the light illuminated her slumber face. Her lips were slightly parted, her cheeks were glowing warmly, and her long lashes touched her cheekbones softly. He knelt beside her and leaned in closer, a small smile on his lips. For a brief moment, he forgot the cries of the wolves and the howls of pain that echoed throughout the infirmary. For a brief moment, he forgot about the burned faces. When he noticed a trail of dried tears on her cheeks, he frowned. When he got a closer look, he noticed her lashes were wet and she had a light pinkish glow on her cheeks and nose. He could tell she was crying. Abruptly he felt awful for he had let her shade tears. He lightly caressed her cheeks with his hand. Her eyes shot open, and she sat up, wide-eyed, gazing at him. He sat on the bed, facing her, and frowned at her sudden behavior.

"Are you okay?" he inquired, she didn't answer and her gaze was drawn to his burned arm and the memories of the afternoon graced her mind.

"Your arm..."

"Uh, yeah, we were caught in the middle of a fire," he explained, and she looked at him.

"Are you feeling better now? Is your arm okay?"

"Don't worry, the doctor took care of it; it's all right now," he said with a small smile.

"How about the warriors? Are they okay?" she inquired, her eyes wide with concern, and he frowned.

"Most of them are fine." He paused

"Though we lost a few brave ones and a few seriously injured," he said again, and her gaze fell.

"I'll go freshen up a bit," he said as he stood up and walked into the bathroom disappearing behind the door. She sat on the bed, arms around her knees. She could hear the families' wailing in the distance. She closed her eyes and focused her attention on the sound. Her face scrunched up in agony and distress because she was the one responsible for the deaths of those brave and innocent wolves.

"Ariel? What happened in there?" He inquired as he exited the restroom with a bewildered face.

"I shattered the mirror. Accidentally." She responded coldly.

"What! Are you okay?" He inquired as he approached her, his voice tinged with concern. His gaze was drawn to her bandaged hand. He gently took her hand in his, but to his surprise, she yanked her hand away from his grasp.

"I'm all right." She averted her gaze from him, and he looked at her, perplexed.

"I'll have someone come and clean it up." He stood up, his gaze fixed on her, but she didn't look at him, nor did she respond, instead she turned to open a book and begin reading. He stood in front of her for a few moments, staring at her, waiting for her to say something at least. But she ignored his existence and he went towards after standing there for a while.

He changed into a pair of black sweatpants and emerged from the closet shirtless. He noticed Ariel dozing off at the far end of the bed. He looked at her sleeping self for a few moments before going to turn off the light. He noticed a faint stain of blood there. And it was certainly not his or Ariel's. He returned a brief glance to his sleeping mate before turning back, switching off the light, and climbing into bed.

She was wide awake when he climbed into bed beside her and fell into a deep slumber. She kept staring at the room's plain ceiling. Sleep didn't come, and she didn't wish to fall into the hands of her waiting nightmares. While he slept, she kept moving around in bed. She could still hear the cries of the bereaved families. She got out of bed without making a sound and exited the room. She discovered the infirmary while wandering around the corridors of the packhouse. Except for the wounded's families and healers, the infirmary was mostly empty. She walked around the corridors, the wolves looking up at her with eager eyes. But she couldn't bring herself to look at them. She walked forward, keeping her gaze forward, and came to a halt in front of a glass wall. The injured wolves were kept in the huge ward in front of her. They were in separate beds, covered in white sheets, and their breathing was mostly steady. She could see the bandages on their bodies and the light burns on their skin. She remained motionless, staring through the glass. She sensed a presence beside her, but she didn't acknowledge their presence. Soon she was greeted by the voice.

"Evening, Luna." She nodded and Beta Nick stood beside her.

"How are they doing?" she inquired, not looking at him.

"They're mostly safe and healing at a steady pace."

"What about the valiant souls we lost?"

"They're being kept in the mortuary."

"I wish to pay them a visit."

"Of course, Luna." He bowed walking towards the mortuary and she followed him quietly.

Beta Nick led her through the dark corridors to the mortuary. The guards standing in front of the mortuary bowed as they entered. She walked into the mortuary, unfazed by the cold temperature and darkness, and stood by the stretchers carrying the deceased warriors covered with white sheets. She paused for a moment and gazed at the five covered lifeless warriors.

"Did they have families?" she inquired.

"They did. Us," he replied, his voice quivering, and she turned to face him.

"Most of them had lost their families in attacks or died serving the king; Alpha had taken them in and we were their families just as much as they were ours," he explained as she closed her eyes. She was their Luna, and she was supposed to look after them. She was supposed to protect them and stand by them, but she was the one who brutally murdered them.

"All five were our warriors?" she inquired once more.

"Four were our warriors, and one was from the Dawn Pack." He replied and she nodded.

"Please give me a few moments alone," she said, and Nick walked away, leaving her alone. She lifted the sheet away from their faces and recognized them instantly. They were the ones who stood by her side and defended her when she first arrived in this pack. They had only met her that day, but they respected her and considered her to be one of their own. Defending her when the wolves were disrespectful.

Even without Nick telling her, she could tell they were close to him and Aiden. The fifth, a Dawn Pack warrior, was very young, and she couldn't imagine what his family was going through. She knelt, her head bowed in guilt and contempt. In a small voice, she started speaking

"I won't apologize as I'm not worthy of your forgiveness. I was not worthy of your respect. I wasn't and am not worthy of anything. I'm not worthy to stand by your Alpha. I'm not worthy of being here, alive and breathing. But I promise I won't let any more brave souls perish because of me. I will protect them with my life. Even though we didn't have time to know each other, but you all will be missed deeply. I would never be able to forgive myself for this. Perhaps you all should pray that I join you soon. Rest in peace brave souls."

Aiden noticed slight dampness in the bed as she quietly climbed under the covers beside him at the far end of the bed. Away from him.

________________________________________

Guess who's back with a new chapter update!!!! And guess who changed their pen name!!!!

So here we are, living The Reapers biggest fear. Everyone gets scared, everyone shades tears no matter how strong they are.

Stay safe and be happy my little assassins 🔪 ❤

Until next time

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