Wolf Dominion

“Ask me more questions, Ryder,” Alpha Skye speaks slowly, as if he wants me to consider myself very seriously. He does not sound rushed, but very patient.

At the moment, I am kneeling in front of Alpha Skye’s desk, kneeling on the steel floor, hands folded together on my lap.

Skye stands against his desk, looking down at me from above, while holding a long whip. I’ve been let out of my cage after the Alpha spontaneously released me – right after just locking me up, proceeding the ‘thieving’ incident.

My eyes take in the whip, unable to blink away from it. To me, it represented pain and possible death. Like in the Dry Canyon, barely surviving day in and day out. I don’t want to be hit. I make it my objective to be as obedient as possible.

I have chosen a question now, hopefully something unprovocative.

“Alpha Skye. What is a Medivian?” I ask, thinking of him mentioning them, as some kind of important group, that Skyelar had spoken to in front of him, consequentially enraging the Alpha of the entire Wolf Dominion. So, the Medivians had to be important.

I’m intensely worried when Skye tenses, his fingers gripping the handle of that whip, the knuckles flushing white and then back to pink as he relaxes. Perhaps it was slight shock at the unexpectedness of my specific question.

“Medivians? Genesis Kind who can’t create a Nexus to a Beast,” Alpha Skye waits, inhaling shortly before adding, “…they are extremely important because of their ability to remain unbiased toward each Dominion on Genesis…” his tone has already quietened considerably, a sign of rage.

I stare from the whip, to his feet and then to the floor.

“Keep going,” Alpha Skye prompts me.

“Forgive me. Why am I… why… why am I to ask you random questions?” I glance up briefly to his eyes, hoping to see mercy.

“Try again,” Alpha Skye whispers this even quieter.

I drop my gaze again, flinching when I see the whip slither across the floor with electricity.

“Why are you holding a weapon, that can down a Beast?” I whisper it out in fear, “Alpha Skye – is it for me? I did not thieve off Skeylar, I swear it.”

“Don’t speak her name,” the Alpha gets angrier with every response that pours forth out of my naïve mouth, “But that is the question I was looking for. You were hit with this, in the sand – as you attempted to run. Are you aware it was this level of voltage?”

My whole body aches with phantom pains, from how it entirely hurt every nerve within me, “Yes,” I whisper.

“It should have killed you. Why didn’t it?”

“My will… was too strong?”

“Will for what?” now Skye really is curious.

“You heard me confess it when I was forced to speak the truth last night,” I admit, “Although that will… is gone now.”

“To kill me?” I do not answer. It was correct. Skye continues, “…so you really had a will that strong to kill me… and that is all you were living for… how smitten you must be to have made it in the same room as your life’s mission…” still I do not answer, “…I’m not going to train you to be a house pet, slave. I’m going to train you to be a spy. What do you think about that?”

I raise my head now, quickly, “What?”

Alpha Skye doesn’t smile, he just nods, “It won’t be easy – but you don’t seem to break easy, do you?” he does smile now when he lifts the whip, and then places it on the desk, out of his hold, “Ryder.”

“Yes?” I can’t believe I am feeling – slight excitement.

I was given a purpose, when he could give me nothing but pain.

I guess I was desperate for anything at this point.

“I only have one problem, I need unconditional loyalty,” Alpha Skye pauses, before admitting, “…it’s the one thing I cannot fathom… how to make you completely loyal to the Wolf Dominion… perhaps you’ll tell me what you would want in return?”

I stand, slow, testing his flexibility.

He is fine with me standing.

When I stand up straight, I still have a tremble for my injuries.

But – I do have one answer for the Alpha.

“I want the Human Kind, no matter how doomed, to have basic rights on Genesis -” I start off strong, until he starts chuckling.

I’m confused as his lip curls, truly humoured.

“I’m not changing law for you and your worms,” Alpha Skye lets out the first true insult. Slave and pet were nothing. Worm? Referred to our ability to crawl into caves and survive off the bare minimum, except we rarely survived like that. My Kind was almost instinct. And though he found it funny, it’s a punch to the guts, “…what do you yourself want, Ryder?” Alpha Skye questions me again, “A room instead of a cage? A Solividian prize collar – for higher ranking in the Wolf Dominion as a slave? Designation as a prized pet? Permission to choose your own attire?”

“Are you mocking me, Alpha Skye?” I ask, failing to smile.

He stands off his desk, “…whatever do you mean?” Skye tilts his head a bit, quite irate by my tone, “Speak.”

“You fail to understand Human Kind,” I whisper quickly, as Alpha Skye closes the distance and chooses to stand above me, without touching me, he simply stands tall and looks down. An alien species, unable to fully empathise with my true needs. I look up at him, and I wait for his admonishment.

“…I think you fail to understand generosity… any other worm would have cried or screeched from happiness – then kissed my feet in gratitude,” I want nothing more than to spit on his feet right now when he says it like that. I look down, considering it, but I hold back, simply for the fact – I didn’t know how far this was about to escalate, “…so you decline my offer…?”

“I would prefer to remain a slave of your house hold – cleaning your bed sheets. Rather than willingly spying for the ene –” I pause before I say enemy, but he’s already caught on.

“Enemies on Genesis battle to the death,” and it is now his infamous death drawl that I hear, “What are you suggesting, pet? That after giving you shelter, water, food and care – that you would still wish to fight me? For rights? You have none.”

Fighting and enemies were a core component of the nature on Genesis. I should have been more careful with my words; because he was truly triggered.

I take a small step back and look up into Skye’s blue eyes, taking back my statement quickly, “I’m sorry. I am not your enemy, because I could not battle you to the death. I want to know. Why… did you kiss me last night?” I whisper the question, but I really do need an answer.

Alpha Skye’s eyes read through mine, and he brings up a hand to pet through my mangy hair, stroking through until he grips it. Without answering, he turns me back to my cage and he puts me back inside.

“Training you as the house pet will not require anything out of my means, and I’ve lost interest – I thought you were braver than that, Ryder,” the Alpha doesn’t give me a second glance as he heads back to his desk, and I make the mistake of speaking to him when his back is to me.

“I was just being honest, Alpha Skye –”

“What did I tell you?” the Alpha snarls as he spins to me, and I freeze as I get his full brunt of disapproval. He sits at his desk as he’s putting in a call.

A few minutes later, some Helpers come in, three of them.

One of them has a mouth gag, with a buckle at the back. I shuffle back into my corner, but I can’t escape their tenacity in dealing with a human pet.

Alpha Skye pretends not to be bothered enough to watch, but I feel his gaze focused on me anyway the entire time.

Two of them have to restrain me back, while the one with the gag, shoves it between my teeth, it’s shaped like a bone. As they secure it at the back with a lock, I am left unable to speak.

I feel like I’ve been muzzled, with the gag pulling back hard.

As they leave, Alpha Skye sneers at me and I spin to kneel and face the wall, hiding my tears of injustice as they flood down my face. I was harmless and this was unnecessary.

Not so long later, Alpha Skye stands and puts on a robe and more formal attire, preparing to depart. I only see through the reflection of the Solividian metal walls.

It’s before he leaves that he speaks to me again.

“Ryder,” Alpha Skye addresses me. I do not turn completely, but I do look over my shoulder, utterly humiliated by the tight gag, “You keep telling me you’re nothing. I kissed you because you’re mine. That gives you something to be, doesn’t it? Pet. As mine you have a purpose. I hope you understand soon, with time, exactly what that purpose truly requires,” the Alpha tilts his head at me, “…useless worms don’t have a life in my dominion, and if you become food… you will be forgotten… as if you never existed…” I think he is just being cruel, until he sneers the last past, “What do you really want for yourself, Ryder?”

And then he turns, his black robe with the red collar sweeping back, shimmering all kinds of metallic shades. Even his hair, shimmers different with the sun now sharing the sky with the moon.

What do I want?

I want… to know… why the Alpha Skye was so adamant about picking the brain of a human ‘worm’… and why he seemed inclined to teach me drive for life.

It seemed rather caring.

It was either pity or curiosity on his part, but it scared me for what it was doing to my heart.

First, I felt safe around him.

Now? As he leaves… I feel…