Hesha lied awake on the bed. The sun had begun to rise, but the beta had yet to fall asleep. Hesha watched the light creep into the room she was given to prepare for departure until the sun was well above the horizon. The team was set to depart for White Fang at midday, so the beta slipped out of the bed an hour before the appointed time.

Hesha was quiet as she changed into the set of clothes that had been provided and braided her long brown hair before exiting the room. The beta had not seen her teammates ever since they had been given separate rooms, but Ganz had not said a word since they had been interrogated by Crimson Night's prince.

The beta walked down the corridor slowly as she made her way to the place of departure. She did not run into any of her teammates as they had already set off for the eastern gate. Several maids and servants passed the beta as they made their way to clean the five rooms that were now vacant.

"Did you hear about the prince being flogged this morning?" One of the servants said lowly to a maid as they walked passed the beta. Hesha found herself stopping in her tracks at the servant's words.

"What? No! What happened?" The maid returned as the beta turned around.

"Apparently he was sentenced to seventy lashes."

"Seventy?!!" The gasp from the maid was the last that Hesha was able to hear as the two disappeared into a room.

Seventy lashes?! Hesha's heart pounded as she thought of the caring true blood receiving a deadly amount of lashes. A lump formed in the beta's throat as she continued on her way.

A small smile formed on the beta's lips when she saw her teammates gathered at the eastern gate. One member turned when they heard the beta approaching and waved.

"Hesha!" Another member called in greeting with a smile.

As soon as Ganz heard the beta's name, the alpha whirled around to face the approaching female. The alpha did not waste a second in storming over to the beta.

"Ganz," Hesha voiced in greeting only to be met with a hand around her throat. Hesha let out a gasp as Ganz tightened his hold. The beta's eyes widened as she looked up at the team leader.

"Did you betray me?" Ganz questioned in a growl.

The alpha used his dominance in the question, so the beta was forced to answer truthfully. "I did it to save you, to save everyone."

Ganz bared his claws at Hesha's answer and threw the beta to the ground. "Then you shall pay for it with your life, beta. Black Moon has no need for traitors."

Hesha held her throat as she coughed and struggled to catch her breath only for the alpha to begin slashing her body with his claws. Ganz's eyes were hard as he ruthlessly slashed his second-in-command. The three remaining members stayed frozen in shock and fear. Being Ganz's subordinates, they could not intervene. And being wolves from Black Moon, no wolf of Crimson Night dared interfere.

"Ganz...please," Hesha pleaded as a pool of blood began to gather at her feet.

"How dare you beg for your life. You have no right," Ganz snarled in response before lifting his hand and aiming it at Hesha's chest. Hesha watched with wide eyes as Ganz's claw-bared hand fell toward her heart. A blur of blue flashed in front of Hesha as a blow to the head knocked the alpha unconscious.

Hesha gasped in surprise as Ganz fell on his face incapacitated. The beta let her eyes trail up to see a tall man standing before her. A mask covered the lower portion of his face, but his blue eyes shone through the dark strands of hair as he kneeled in front of the beta. Hesha held her breath as the man checked her wounds. A sadness filled his deep blue eyes as he looked over the beta's cut body. A crowd had gathered due to the beta's cries of pain, and several guards had appeared by the time the masked man intervened.

Hesha did not resist when the man placed his hands behind her back and under her knees and lifted the beta into his arms. Hesha immediately felt a sense of safety she had never known as she rested against the man's chest. The beta looked up at the man as he turned from her team and began toward the castle.

"Send them on their way," the man commanded the guards, who bowed in response before lifting Ganz and setting him on a cart pulled by a donkey. The man's voice was deep and soothing, and Hesha felt as if she could listen to it for the rest of her life.

The beta leaned her head back on the man's arm and looked at her team. The three were given sacks of food and supplies that were placed in the cart with the incapacitated alpha. Her teammates did not turn to check on the beta even once as the gates were opened, and they set out for Black Moon. A single tear rolled down Hesha's face as she realized she would never see them again. She had become their enemy to save them and must now live in a different world. The beta placed her head back against the man's chest and let her tears fall silently as the man carried her into the castle.

Hesha was nearly unconscious by the time she was set on a bed in the clinic. A physician-in-training entered from the office and immediately began tending to the beta. Hesha looked at her surroundings once more before closing her eyes and letting darkness overtake her. The man was gone.

>>>>>>

Jae let out a wince as he set his feet on the floor of his room. The sun was high in the sky indicating it was midday as the true blood began to walk. Yejin entered through the door just as the true blood had reached the window and pulled back the curtains.

"How do you feel? You seem like you're doing better," Yejin commented as he set a tray with congee and water on the cart next to the nightstand.

Jae turned to face the alpha before nodding. "I am fine."

"That's good. Come eat some lunch," Yejin told the prince as he stirred the congee.

"Bring it to the table," Jae said as he walked passed the bed and sat at the small, round table stationed toward the right section of the room.

Yejin was quick to oblige his prince and brought the bowl and glass of water to the table.

"So, what is it?" Jae asked out of the blue as he began to eat.

"What? What is what?" Yejin inquired back as he sat in the chair opposite the prince.

"You've been wanting to tell me something. What is it?" Jae told the alpha before taking another bite.

"Ahh, well...the beta from Black Moon was nearly killed by the team's leader."

Jae set down the spoon as he heard Yejin's response. "Is she alright?"

Yejin nodded as he answered, "She is alive. Kace saved her and brought her to the infirmary."

"Ah, that's good. What about the rest of the team?"

"Kace sent them on their way. They placed the alpha in a cart and set off just minutes later."

Jae nodded as he fiddled with the spoon in the congee. "That's good. Let me know when the beta regains consciousness."

"Ae," Yejin responded with a nod of the head as the prince returned to eating his lunch.

>>>>>>

"It's so hot," Syri panted as he and Estan made their way through the market. Estan nodded in agreement as he trailed his eyes over the selection of bread. The zeta and gamma were running low on supplies, so they decided to make a run to town to stock up. "Oooh, can we get some strawberries?" Syri asked as he looked at the red summer fruit with drool practically running down his chin.

"Of course, we can get whatever you want," Estan smiled at the zeta before asking for a small basket of strawberries.

Syri hummed happily as he walked down the market with a basket of strawberries in his hands. The zeta followed the gamma as Estan went around buying a selection of bread, cheeses, and vegetables. Soon, the two had completed their shopping list and were milling through the crowd as they made their way to one of the market's entry and exit points.

A loud laugh sounded above the general murmur of the crowd causing numerous heads to turn in the direction of the laugh's source. Estan and Syri scurried to the side of the aisle as a group of foreign betas and thetas broke through the crowd. They had clearly been drinking. Their faces were red from heat and alcohol as they sauntered down the main aisle of the market. Several held jars with liquor as they grabbed whatever they wanted from omegas, gammas, and epsilons who were helpless in front of the hunters.

They are not pann. Pann would never act with such disrespect. Estan observed the group with a scrutinizing gaze as he hid the zeta behind him. Syri's sweet scent had grown much stronger since Jae's musky scent had fully worn off, and Estan hoped the men were too drunk to notice. The gamma let out a sigh of relief when the group walked passed the two without noticing the zeta's alluring scent.

"Let's go," Estan said in a low voice as he took Syri by the hand and began leading the zeta in the opposite direction as the one the brawlers were headed down. Syri grasped the gamma's hand as he quickly followed Estan through the market. He did not like the smell coming off the men. They were foul.

Estan let out a long breath as he and Syri broke out of the market. The two slowed their pace as they reached a safe distance from the drunk werewolves and meandered through the town at their own pace. They always enjoyed looking at the flowers blooming on the side of the buildings and on the vines that crawled up the light posts. Syri let out a satisfied hum as he smelled the sweet scent of summer honeysuckle.

Estan smiled at the zeta as Syri scurried to the side of a building and plucked a single flower. The zeta pulled out the back of the flower to extract the small drop of honey which he savored dearly.

"Inso! Have you ever tried honeysuckle?" Syri called to the gamma who was standing a short distance away admiring a flower the color of Yejin's light blue eyes.

Estan nodded his head as he walked over to the zeta and plucked a single flower. "Mmm, it's just as how I remember," the gamma said as he tasted the sweet honey on his tongue. "I used to raid an entire vine that grew on the side of my parents' house every summer," Estan told Syri as he reminisced about his childhood years.

"It must have been nice to have flowers at your home," Syri said as he smiled up at the gamma. Estan could tell the zeta did not have that privilege by his tone of voice, so he smiled softly at the zeta before affectionately ruffling Syri's pink hair.

"How about we plant one-"

"How 'bout you come with me," a rough voice cut off the gamma, startling the two.

Estan immediately stepped in front of Syri as the man approached him. He was not as drunk as the men at the market, but Estan could tell he was from the same group. "What do you want?" The gamma asked defensively as he and Syri took a step back.

"I just want to have a good time. I noticed your friend has a nice scent. How 'bout you come play wi' me?" The man's words slurred together slightly as he approached the two clumsily.

Estan's nose crinkled as the smell of alcohol grew stronger. To the gamma's horror, the smell only grew more and more concentrated until three other men came out from behind a building.

"Heyyyy, don't you be havin' any fun wi'out us!" One of the newcomers yelled at the first man.

"Don't worry, there' enough for us to share," the first man assured the three as they joined him.

The gamma used the distraction of the arrival of the three to slowly back up from the men with the zeta. "Syri, I want you to run when I say so," Estan told the zeta in a low voice, so the four could not hear.

"I'm not leaving you," Syri answered firmly.

"Run, now," Estan said through his teeth as the four turned their attention back to the two.

"Then, you're coming with me," Syri said as he grabbed the gamma's wrist and began dashing down the road. Estan did not have time to protest as the zeta dragged him down a side street and around several buildings.

Shouts and yells rang throughout the town as the four chased the gamma and zeta through the small alleys and roads of Alia. The zeta and gamma were out of breath by the time they had come upon a dead end in the road they were following.

"Shit!" Estan cursed under his breath as he turned to face the four who had caught up with them.

"Ooh hoo hoo, tha' was quite a run you made us do. You'll pay for tha', Pretty," the first man sneered as he pointed at the zeta. "Now, come here while I'm asking nicely. We're goin' to have a long nigh'."