raiden

As much as I wanted to be there with Beta Reo, I knew that he was in good hands with Archer and Boston. There were still others we needed to help, so I left the room and continued down the hall alone.

I race through the room, leading rescue after rescue out. While the wolves seemed to be closer in the front of the building, the other types of creatures were at the back. It was harder to get them to move, but I wanted to finish so I could go help out on the other side.

I begin to reach for another room, but when I open it, the room is empty. The scent of a wolf still lingers but there's nobody inside. My brows begin to furrow just as I hear a loud growl come from behind me. Turning around, I see a wolf. The wolf wasn't full size, but the size of a teen around fifteen or sixteen. Not newly shifted, but not old enough either.

The wolf had deep brown eyes, and a thick charcoal-black coat, and was baring his canines at me. While it wasn't necessarily feral, the wolf definitely acted like it.

"Hey," I try to say to tell the wolf calmly. "We aren't here to hurt you, we are here to help you."

The wolf doesn't appear to care about my words and it growls again. Its body begins to tense up as if it was preparing for a fight. The last thing I wanted to do was fight a child, but I needed to get out of there.

So, I stood up straighter and began preparing myself to shift. But the smell of an unknown scent caused me to pause. My eyes scanned the area, trying to find out where it could be coming from. I begin to turn my head, but I don't get the chance to look around completely. Not before pain erupts in my body.

My hand moves to my side and when I pull it away, it's covered in red. Standing in front of me is an older woman. She stares down at me with no emotions clear on her face.

She begins to talk, but I don't bother listening to her words. I push myself off the ground with a wince and force my body to shift before charging forward. The wolf from before growls out loudly and begins to chase after me. I try to race forward, but before I can even manage to get close, an invisible force sends me flying back.

My head hits the wall causing my vision to blur. I blink rapidly as the woman begins to approach me.

"So you're specimen two's mate," her scratchy voice says. "Sadly, you had to end up like this, but don't worry, I'll be sure to thank specimen two for all his help in the early stages of our experiments."

Her hands begin to reach out for me. Get up, Raiden. You can't lose your life here. Not after what I told Cloud. Not before I get to explore the world with him. Not now. Get up!

I try desperately to move, but the force that previously sent me flying back grows stronger. It holds my body down and causes more damage to the wound on my side. The burning wound that isn't healing as it should be.

Just before her hand can reach me, a wolf collides with her. I watch as her eyes widen and when she turns to look, standing there is Nara. Her teeth are bared and her claws dog into the old woman's skin. The pressure that was previously holding me down is removed.

I can feel the power begin to grow from the woman as she attempts to knock Nara off her. Nara's teeth sink into her skin though, making it harder on the woman.

I can see her mouth move as she speaks to Nara, but I can't make out what she's saying. The wound on my side is still bleeding desperately. My vision grows fuzzier as I watch the scene in front of me play out. The wolf from earlier lets out its growl and attempts to charge at Nara, but with the little strength I have left, I practically throw myself into his path and grab him. His teeth sink into my shoulder, but I don't let go. I tighten my grip and hold him down until more scents fill the room.

The wolf is snatched from my grasp and I look up to see Alpha Tatum holding him down. With quick movements, he knocks the wolf out and I turn back to Nara.

The woman attempts to send her flying using the same method she did on me. But with Nara's teeth quickly sink into her throat. Just as I turn back around, I watch as she practically destroys the woman's throat. Life leaves the woman's eyes as she stares up at Nara, whose eyes are filling with fear and shock from what just happened.

She moves off the woman, shifts back into human form and her body begins to tremble. She doesn't get the chance to say anything before one of the warriors from Alpha Aaila's pack enters the room. He quickly takes off his shirt and wraps it around Nara before escorting her out. Another enters and Alpha Tatum passes the wolf from before over to her and rushes to my side.

His mouth moves quickly and he takes off his shirt and I feel it pressing against my wound. I can't hear his words as my eyes begin to grow fuzzy and my vision is overtaken by dark spots.