A violent emotion with extensive destructive power swept over Aperius's body taking over his mind and soul, causing him to lose all reason. He desperately wanted nothing but to end the person crouching before him even if it meant bringing himself down with him. The words 'kill' and 'slaughter' echoed in his mind as a wisp of red danced in his pupils like rising smoke.
From a very young age, he knew that he was born in a world filled with hatred and great abhor directed toward him. He was the very symbol of the deepest unforgivable betrayal between an alpha and their mate. He understood that and knew nothing good would ever happen to him.
Even the heavens had punished him severely by letting him be born with a frail shell that could shatter like fine porcelain at any time.
Because the pack valued the strong and despised the weak that were treated as rice weevils contributing nothing to the advancement of their territory, it further devalued his pathetic life.
If at least he was born female, they might have used him to breed and increase the pack numbers but he was born a useless male with nothing good about him.
Others were born with a head start but he was disadvantaged from the get-go thus he treated everything with an air of indifference, like he was a passerby watching life happen around him.
He never fought with anyone and somewhere deep down he hoped he would die during one of these unwarranted punishments.
But today something finally snapped. He suddenly had something to fight for. They had everything, the love, the praise of the pack, prestige, and a bright future but all he had was that pendant in Olcan's hands. That was the only thing he could rightfully claim as his.
The clothes on his back could be stripped off him at any moment. The pathetic little cottage he called home could be taken away at any moment. But that pendant….. that pendant belonged to him.
A grim smile crept up his face as his soulless black eyes glared fiercely at Olcan like looking at a dead man. That eerie smile sent chills down Olcan's spine as his entire body tensed up with his hairs standing on end.
When did Olcan ever been this terrified? For a werewolf pup, he had lived a relatively spoilt and pampered life with every one of his desires being handed down to him on a silver platter.
Like a brainless lovestruck fool he had come to make trouble for Aperius because of the most beautiful female in the pack, Helena. But it seemed like this time he had poked the bear and it finally fought back.
"Give. It. Back," said Aperius annunciating each word in a deep menacing voice.
Unwilling to lose face, Olcan steeled himself and spoke through gritted teeth, "You dare threaten me?.... You must be tired of living," while clutching the pendant like he was holding onto a lifeline.
Aperius sensed his terror and that dreadful smile changed into malicious laughter like he had been possessed by a vengeful spirit out for blood. This was no man but a fretful boy who could only hide behind his mummy.
As the sounds of that eerie laugh echoed through the open space the air suddenly became still. There wasn't even the sound of chirping birds or small critters giving Olcan the illusion that it was only the two of them left in this world.
They had probably felt the presence of a bloodthirsty predator and reacted purely on instinct by running away.
Olcan glanced suspiciously at the empty forest and in a moment of inattentiveness Aperius bore his teeth and growled at him with his body jerking forward as though to bite his neck. Olcan's blood ran cold as he fell down onto the ground, his back covered in a layer of cold sweat.
"Give it to me!" bellowed Aperius as he tugged and twisted the ropes binding as though trying to break free.
He was like a mad man moving in a violent and convulsive way while repeating the same words over and over again. "GIVE IT! GIVE IT…. GIVE IT BACK TO ME!!!" he roared having lost his mind completely.
His usually weak and tired body had suddenly become energized with a kind of strength that sprung from nowhere.
Because Aperius was weak and never made an attempt to free himself when tied to that pole no one ever thought of reinforcing it. Even the ropes binding him weren't as tight as they should have been hence they were slowly coming undone.
When Olcan saw the pole move an inch out of the ground he was scared shitless. In a moment of rare intelligence, he raised the pendant like he was raising a string of garlic at a vampire.
"Keep this up and you will never see this cheap thing ever again," he said putting up a brave front.
As expected Aperius ceased his actions taming his emotions that had run amok. With his bloodshot eyes, he glared at Olcan like he wanted to tear his flesh and feed his corpse to scavengers.
He watched Olcan's every move, his sharp pupils following him like a jaguar stalking its prey in the wild.
Though terrified Olcan still put on a brave façade as he rose to his feet. He broke into mocking laughter but if one paid close attention they would sense the fear in that laugh. His laughter soon died down as he raised the pendant to his eye level.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk… I never thought you cared about anything. Apparently, the only thing you care about is this useless garbage worth nothing."
Aperius' cold gaze shifted towards the pendant and his breathing quickened as though afraid it would disappear before his very eyes. Olcan kept his distance this time crouching before him to meet his eye level.
"This cheap thing can't belong to the Lycius pack… it must have been brought here by that filthy hoe who couldn't keep her legs closed," he said, and Aperius who had been calm just now jerked violently with the veins on his neck throbbing.
"Uh uh uh….. I wouldn't do that if I were you," said Olcan somewhat enjoying the feeling of controlling Aperius. He seemed to have discovered the joy of messing with lively prey rather than lifeless ones.
He watched Aperius' violent outburst fizzle down and a slight quirk appeared at the corner of his lips.
"I am sure you don't even know why you were punished today. The reason is quite simple.... let this older brother enlighten you. It's because of Helena," he said with his eyes brightening up the moment he mentioned that name but there was no fluctuation in Aperius' eyes. It seemed he didn't even know who Olcan was talking about.