Born From Ash (Book I of The Flame Trilogy)

Angel thought it would be a good idea for me to get a real tour of the pack. Though I suspect her idea is actually a ploy to get me to socialize with some of the bitches since Irina and Viktorya also come along. They agreed with Angel that a tour is a good opportunity to bond with their Alpha-female.

Their desire to be close to me is more irksome than anything else, especially when it’s the last thing that I want. It’s frustrating to think that I am wasting time that could be spent doing something useful, but I don’t argue. Instead I rationalise; perhaps seeing the pack would be useful for me, I would be able to help more if I knew my ally.

The building I had been cooped up in the previous day is the pack house; a communal hub for the pack as well as homes for higher ranking members. Angel is informative as she explains things to me. We walk at a leisurely pace, the cold barely biting as the sun peeks out from behind the imposing mountains.

A little while down the main dirt pathway is the clearing I had run through when I had come onto the territory. In my haste to escape the wild Epsilon on my tail when I had first arrived, I hadn’t realised how large it really was.

The space is huge, bustling with life and energy as the late morning turns to afternoon. There are stalls and buildings dotted around and as busy as ever, women mill around- walking together, laughing together and buying things from nearby stalls and shops. There are several pups running around, some in fur, some in skin, as they play and chase each other under the watchful gazes of the nearby women.

One of the nearby vendors calls us over, Viktorya pulling me excitedly. It’s a bakery, the windows are lined with freshly baked breads and pies, inside a small stone furnace has something else cooking inside. A short fat man stands at the window smiling widely as we approach.

“What a pleasure!” He bows to his high-ranking bitches before handing us each a slice of freshly baked cheese bread. Just the scent alone is enough to make my mouth water. “Please try!”

I take a small bite as the three other girls dig in beside me. They groan and eagerly compliment the man on his skill at his profession. I nod in agreement, never actually speaking a word. I admit the bread is amazing, it’s enough to let the emotionless mask that I usually wear slip for a second, in its place a visual representation of sheer bliss takes over as my taste buds sing.

I don’t get to embrace the feeling for very long as I’m once again carted away by the excited bitches who are more than happy to tell me all about their pack.

“Everything we have comes from the earth, and we use it to trade within our pack and with other packs. Within our pack we are well provided for by the skill of the men. Since our territory includes the mountains, the males that do mining can find elements that may not be available in other territories.” Angel explains to me as we walk through the main area of the pack.

It continues much deeper into the pack, nearly at the base of the mountain. Set up like a market, and filled with wolves. It hasn’t escaped my notice that although the slight chill of the mountain can be felt, none of the pack members here dressed warmly- perhaps all wolves’ blood run as hot as mine. Or perhaps their pack has acclimatised to their terrain.

It also hasn’t escaped my eye that all of the vendors are male; the women walk about exchanging things, some chat with others but none have any sort of business of their own. This pack is male dominated in every sense of the word.

“So, what exactly do the bitches do?” I ask looking around the bitches who, oblivious to our ongoing conversation, continue with their time passing activities.

“A bitch’s responsibility is her home and pups.” Irina chips in, “We also ensure emotional support for our males, they don’t want us to get hurt so we look after them and they look after us. We also look after each other, we meet up each week for a luncheon!”

My eyebrows shoot up in surprise, it’s strange. Shadow Fang doesn’t discriminate; whoever you are once you are a member of the pack, you would be shaped and moulded into an obedient soldier. Neither males nor bitches are encouraged to procreate because pups are a liability to the pack; that’s why most pack members have human concubines reserved for them. Only the strongest members are allowed to mate and procreate.

We walk around for hours and they show me everything. The tea-shop, which is the only female run establishment because it’s a bitch only area; they explain that this is where the weekly luncheon that Irina mentioned, is held.

At the very center of town stands a giant clock tower, in front of which is a large metal pole, Viktorya tells me it’s meant to be used for public whippings for pack members who were to be banished but it hasn’t been used since Dimitri’s father was Alpha. They also show me the fields and farms where the pack’s food is cultivated, tended and prepared before reaching the kitchen in the pack house.

I’m most interested in seeing the training grounds, but they don’t show me anything of the sort; since they have never personally been (and aren’t permitted to go) they admit that they don’t actually know where it is.

I could probably sniff it out; the scent of Epsilon training is bound to give off a pungent scent that wouldn’t be too hard to detect. Flying would make it even easier, but that would mean letting her out and that’s the last thing I want to do.

“Besides, I don’t want to know how Mikhail would react if he knew I went there.” Irina adds purposefully. “The man is a beast sometimes.”

“Yeah, I’ll bet, and I also think you quite like it!” Angel laughs, pointing at the ripe purple marks on Irina’s exposed skin. The girl in question blushes scarlet, her embarrassment rolling off her skin in a powdery odor that almost makes me choke.

Her embarrassment only makes the other two girls laugh harder, causing Irina to pout childishly whilst urging them to stop. It isn’t until the large clock tower rings its chime to signal four o’clock did they pause; Angel turns to me suddenly with a startled facial expression.

“I promised Alpha Dimitri to have you back by four, I guess I lost track of time... we better head back.”

I nod, but I don’t move. Like waves crashing against a shore, the smell drifts over to me, assaulting my senses with it’s familiar scent. I can smell it; sweat, blood and the sheer exhilaration of a fight. My feet stay rooted to the ground, my mind firmly made up; I don’t give any of the women any warning, I simply start walking, following my nose.

Irina starts up in a flurry when she realises that I’m not following. It’s quite an amusing sight. She runs up to me with desperation colouring her face as she tries to convince me to turn back, whether because she feels strongly about sticking to this pack’s strange hierarchy or because she doesn’t want to get into trouble with her mate I’m not entirely sure.

Either way I’m having none of it.

“Why do you allow yourselves to do nothing but lie on your back for your mates? There is no cock in this world good enough that you should sit around waiting for it.” My voice comes out harsher than it probably should, but my words strike the women around me to their core.

It probably sounds spiteful to their ears- a wolf who doesn’t understand the ‘sanctity of mates’ but I don’t care; doesn’t it anger them as much as it did me that they are allowing themselves to waste away?

“Do something for yourself for once in your life.”

Irina raises her chin, her bottom lip wobbling as tears sprang to her eyes. Perhaps if I had been taught compassion it may have made me feel something. Instead I simply look at her blankly as her tears begin to fall, she shakes her head before walking off in the direction that she had been headed in before.

I don’t pause to look, continuing on my path through the treeline, following the scent of dirt, sweat. If I focus hard enough I can hear the pants, grunts and tell-tale sounds of combat in action; it’s exciting, my mind reminding me of my earlier sparring with Dimitri. God I need some more of that.

“That may have been a little bit harsh.” Viktorya winces, watching the sniffling Irina walk away. There’s an obvious conflict within her whether she should follow the girl or not- is that what it feels like to have compassion?

“It wasn’t. I simply expressed that you should do things for yourself,” I shrug. I suppose to these she-wolves it may seem harsh considering how bluntly I phrased my argument. “Surely there are women around you who want to do other things?”

Angel’s eyes spark, and I notice there is hesitation in Viktorya too; she opens her mouth presumably to argue but says nothing. Her eyes glaze over as she engages in a telepathic conversation- probably with Irina or her brother. Either way I’m not bothered, especially when we finally reach the clearing that served as the pack’s training grounds.

It is a large space, though nowhere close to what we have in Shadow Fang. There are slight markings in the dirt, marking out rings in which wolves could spar, those who aren’t fighting are either watching or practicing their own things.

There’s an even smaller group, it seems to be young males, going through their first shifts. Their pained screams barely audible amongst the other clamour of the rest of the training grounds. I watch for a moment as one boy in particular grips the earth below him as one of his femurs snap, tears streaming down his face. The man in charge of the group, bends down; for a moment I think he will hit the boy, but he wipes his tears and rubs his back gently trying to comfort and coax him through the change.

I envy them, I really do. I remember my own first shift- at the ripe age of 10 being beaten with a staff until my wolf forced its way through. Writhing for hours on a cold, stone cell, as my bones snapped and my body tried to figure out how to refigure itself. I remember the torment of being forced to shift between forms, non stop until I could finally complete the shift in less than 15 minutes.

The girls beside me look around in awe; Viktorya seems more focused on the mass of sweaty bodies, no doubt checking out the impressive males, whilst Angel is more interested with the small rack of weapons off to the side.

I walk over to the rack, pulling them both to follow me; a few of the men look over with complete shock. Is it truly so shocking that women would want to hone their own physical skills? The thought of these men being outraged almost makes me scoff; God forbid Women train in a way that would be benificial, but of course having tea every week is of the utmost priority.

“Why don’t you girls give it a go?” I egg them on with a smirk and a challenging glint.

“Why don’t you two go ahead, I’ll just watch…” Viktorya hesitates, she’s a mix between nervous and somewhat distracted. Her eyes glance quickly between Angel and I, and the group of men who are quickly realising our presence.

“Alright,” I chuck a longstaff over to Angel who catches it clumsily. “Hit me with everything you’ve got… we’ve probably not got long.”

She laughs nervously, and for a moment I thought she’d give up, and run away with Viktorya in tow, but she furrows her brows and looks at me with determination. Her footwork is clumsy, and she is still figuring out how to balance herself properly with the weapon when she comes at me.

I block her easily, nudging her with my own staff making sure to stay away from really fighting her. She laughs, swinging wildly as she comes at me again. Even Viktorya from behind me seems to cheer her on, her nerves dissipating with the fun.

A louder calamity breaks out around us, though I mostly ignore it. Until one male steps forward to try to end our sparring, his hands reach forward to grab Angel but I block his path with my staff. The least I can do is to get the two other bitches out of trouble since I’m the one who landed them into it in the first place.

My public challenge is not taken lightly, especially as a stranger to the pack. All hell suddenly breaking loose when the egotistical bastard tries to subjugate me.

Dimitri’s P.O.V.

I stand waiting outside the packhouse with Mikhail and Viktor; the girls were supposed to have been back over 20 minutes ago. I’m not particularly worried, they can’t exactly get into trouble within the pack but we do have other things to focus on.

I sigh in frustration, checking the watch on my wrist once again as another minute ticks by. I’m even considering giving Viktor an order to reach his mate through their mindlink, but I’m cut short when a crying Irina comes walking back up to us. She instantly flings herself into Mikhail’s arms and nestles her face into his chest, seeking comfort in her obviously distraught state.

A part of me wishes that was me with my mate, but the larger part of me knows that would probably never be us. She is a force to be reckoned with, even if she needs it, she probably wouldn’t accept comfort from me.

The Alpha side of me is focused, instantly on high alert. What could have possibly caused Irina to be so upset? Is it a threat to my pack? Is my mate okay?

“Irina, what happened.” Mikhail rubs her back gently, as she calms down. “Where are the other girls?”

The bitch in question sniffles quietly, as her tears finally stop. Then realising that she has three pairs of expectant eyes on her, she blushes. Personally, I’m not moved by her display, only growing more agitated by not knowing what is going on. She bites her lip uncomfortably, obviously not wanting to speak up. My only thought is that they’ve gotten into some kind of trouble, and I have no doubt that my mate is at the forefront of it.

“Irina, I am asking as your Alpha. Where is my mate and your Delta’s mate and sister?” My voice is commanding; neutral. My eyes probably betray my agitation though I try to hide it, but the longer it takes for her to respond the harder it gets.

I’m distracted as an assault of voices come through my mind- pack members all trying to reach out to me at once. I send a loud growl through my mind silencing them all; being connected to an entire pack could really be exhausting.

Enough. One person speaks.

Alpha, there are women in the training grounds. The Delta- female and a Kappa, there is a stranger too.

I suspect this is what Irina was hesitating to say. I don’t wait a moment longer, motioning for Viktor to follow me; my mind in a rage. I don’t know what makes me angrier; the thought of my mate hurt, the thought of someone else putting their hands on her, or how much it angers me that she’s started this trouble in the first place.

Viktor and I take off, the two of us jogging through the trees without saying a word. I’m far too furious for casual conversation anyway. My mate insisted on having information, insisted that we need to to help each other and yet she was causing trouble within my pack.

I hear the commotion before I even reach the training ground; I take a moment to breathe and steel my face into an impassive mask. I step into the afternoon light to survey the scene around me. Considering our morning sparring session, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise but nonetheless the sight I’m met with is both unexpected and impressive- not that I’m going to it.

My mate, subduing a male on the floor. She has him on his knees, a longstaff behind his head locking his arms in position. Each time he tries to move he cries out in pain; my guess is that each movement increases the pressure on his shoulder joints.

“Let him go please!” Viktorya cries beside my mate, almost as if she’s the one in pain. Angel stands beside her, trying to console her. “Please, he’s learnt his lesson.”

The crowd separates as Viktor and I come forward. There is an evident change in the air as our presence is recognised. Every wolf steps back, keeping their head low and making room for their Alpha and Delta to pass.

Part of me is always irked by the way wolves never look me in the eye, no matter the amount of times I told them to. I wanted to be their equal, to prove that I am not like my father. But it’s just part of being Alpha, there will always be a divide between me and my people. Eventually I stopped trying to bridge the gap. The responsibilities that I carry as an Alpha will always set me apart from them, the only thing I can do is to fulfil my duty the best way that I can.

“What is going on here?” My hard tone inspires silence in them all; my mate gives me the sexiest amused expression I’d ever seen but I keep the stoic mask firmly in place. “Let him go, now.”

She sighs, releasing the man from her hold before holding her hands up in surrender. Viktorya rushes to his side, her behaviour rather friendly towards the Epsilon as she helps him to his feet.

Her grin never once falls from her soft features- is this what brings her joy? Brawling, challenging others and causing trouble? She is most definitely troublesome, but for the moment I don’t seem to care. It’s the first time I’ve seen her smile- a real smile.

“You aren’t going to put me in the cells again for this are you?”

“Don’t give me any ideas.” I grunt, mostly in jest though the playfulness is most likely lost under my hard stare. To most it looks like the glare of an impartial Alpha, but in reality I’m thinking about ripping her clothes off and having her right there in front of all my Epsilon. I can’t deny the pride I feel that she’s my Alpha female.

“I will deal with you later, Mate.”

The Epsilon wolf breaks away from Viktorya’s hold, she tries to stop him but he puts his arm out to stop her from approaching him. Angel holds her back, though judging from her eyes that keep shifting to Viktor, she wants to go to her mate. The wolf kneels before me, his gaze low.

“I am truly sorry Alpha, I didn’t know that she was your mate. The only reason I tried to subdue her was because I thought that they would hurt each other.” His voice is quiet, but I know that every wolf in the clearing could hear his words as he spoke.

My mate let out a snort, rolling her eyes at his statement. I ignore her, I mean what I said when I told her that I would deal with her later.

“What’s your name?”

“Feliks, Alpha.”

“Well Feliks, I think we all learnt a valuable lesson today. This goes for all of you, never let your guard down. If it makes you feel any better, She is capable of almost beating even me. Now get up.” I offer a hand down to him which he takes gratefully and stands back up on his feet. I grip his palm a little tighter, making my voice loud enough for everyone to hear as I grunt. “And if anyone lays a hand on her again, I’ll kill you myself. Now go to your mate.”

He finally walks back over to Viktorya, she blushes as he says something quietly in her ear. Their hands intertwine, and she blushes again when he pushes a strand of her hair away from her face. For a moment, I’m almost envious, wishing that I had gotten that instant intimacy with my own mate.

I cast a brief look over to my own mate, who watches the scene with a perplexed look on her face. She’s all brains and brawn, a raging flame unable to be tamed. She was not simplicity, and soft touches- I know this already. So why does she keep surprising me?

I turn to Viktor who looks as though he is ready to race over to his own mate, he turns to me trying to hide the obvious compulsion. I shake my head, trying desperately not to smile in amusement.

“Go,” I motion my head to her. “I want you, Alexei and Mikhail in my office in an hour.”

He simply nods.

I look back over to my mate, she’s already watching me curiously. I gesture her forward with a come hither motion; for a moment she seems as though she’s going to resist, but thinks better of it. Instead she follows me wordlessly as I lead the way.