"I can explain, Ethan. It's not what it looks like," I quickly spoke up, walking towards Ethan, trying to dissuade him from whatever punishment he was cooking up in his mind. I couldn't even begin to imagine what Ethan might do to Ronald.
But in that intense moment, there was no trace of anger in Ethan's eyes. This made me even more worried and curious.
"Ethan, please say something."
"What's there to say?" Ethan replied with a rather weary tone. "I'm to blame for this"
"What do you mean you're to blame for this?" I asked Ethan, feeling puzzled and concerned.
Ethan sighed and explained, "I made him come to this conclusion, I made him see that you're not happy here, I made him see you as a sex pawn. It's time I start taking responsibility for the cause of my actions. If I had been nicer to you, he wouldn't have given you a reason to run with him. It's all my fault."
This isn't like Ethan. The Ethan I know would've demanded Ronald's head on a plate by now, but instead, he's sitting here, blaming himself?
"So, you're saying that you're not going to do anything?"
"Yes, I'm saying that I won't take any actions against Ronald, and if you're considering his proposal, I won't blame you or stop you. But until we find a way to cure my poisoned spirit wolf, you can't leave my side."
Wow, is this really happening? What am I hearing? I don't understand why Ethan would decide to start taking responsibilities out of the blue. I mean, if there was a moment to start taking responsibilities, it would have been after Maya's passing, when he realized he caused her death. Why is he seeing things differently now? I can't stop asking myself all these questions.
Although I never wanted Ethan to punish Ronald, but this isn't what I was expecting. I feel very relieved about Ethan's reaction of not taking any action.
"When all this is over, I promise you, Ronald will not see any reason to take you away from here, unless you want to leave. I will make sure you call this place your home someday," Ethan added.
"You already once told me that, but how did things turn out? You ended up strangling me until I passed out. Don't make promises that you won't or can't keep," I replied.
With a heavy sigh, Ethan held my hand and gazed into my eyes. I awaited what explanation or excuse he would give this time to justify his actions. I thought it was definitely going to be about the alpha's powers, but he surprised me with his reply once again.
"I'm sorry," Ethan vented out.
The most surprising part was that he didn't struggle to say those words, and it kept me wondering if Ethan had hit his head on something before coming to my chambers last night. Or perhaps, was Ethan's sudden change of behavior an effect of the poison? Well, if it is, then I think it was a good thing that Ethan got poisoned.
Silly me.
"So, when are we heading to Grendor for the artifact?" I asked, changing the topic.
Ethan got up from the bed, he grabbed his boots and put them on. "We're leaving tonight. But prepare yourself, Laura is coming to pick you up very soon."
"What business does she have with me?" I inquired from Ethan.
"Don't ask me... ask my mother, they discussed the whole thing. But I think the question you should be asking is, what business do you have with Laura?"
Minutes later, Ethan walked out from my chambers. From his movement, it looked like he was still in pain, although it didn't appear to be severe.
Now, back to why Laura wants to see me. I convinced myself that it was not for a bad reason since Elizabeth was involved. I don't know about Laura, but I know for sure that Ethan's mother won't do anything to hurt me.
Hours later, I was summoned to the pack hall, and on my way, I encountered Michael. As always, he was going to tease me, but with the Alpha's powers within me, I would love to see him try.
"Look who's here, 'the Alpha's Sex Pawn,'" Michael said, attempting to hold my jaw. But I immediately gripped his hand and twisted it until I heard him scream out in pain.
"You little... bitch! What do you think you're doing?!" He cried out.
"Call me that one more time, if you wish to lose your arm." I threatened, but I might really do it because Michael deserves to be treated this way.
"Let go of my hand, you...!" He couldn't complete his statement.
"Well, I thought as much, you man whore," I said, letting go of Michael's hand and walked away. I can't believe I just stood up against the beta of the Moonwalkers pack like that. The Alpha's powers were not just making me hear things or have super strength; they were also giving me more confidence.
As I arrived at the pack hall, I saw Elizabeth and Laura, along with a few ladies I hadn't seen before.
"What's going on here? Why am I being summoned?" I asked Elizabeth, who requested my presence here at the pack hall.
"Let's get going. We don't have time," Laura said.
I was puzzled. "Where are we going?" I inquired from Laura.
"You didn't tell her?" Laura asked Elizabeth.
"Tell me what exactly?"
Elizabeth sighed and explained that she didn't get the chance to speak with me all through the night, and this morning she wanted Laura to disclose their discussion to me.
"What is she supposed to tell me?" I asked again.
"Well, you're coming with me to the Ironclaw pack," Laura disclosed.
Ironclaw pack? That's the name of Laura's pack, but why would she want me to go there.
"Come with you to the Ironclaw pack? To do what exactly?" I inquired.
Elizabeth held my hand and spoke up, "Emily, your kind is rare, a human who became a werewolf, and you're currently in possession of an Alpha's powers. It's a lot to handle on your own. You need guidance and training, most especially training."
I knew I needed training to fully adapt to this werewolf life, but I didn't understand why I needed to follow Laura down to her pack.
"You're leaving for Grendor tonight, so it's best that you get a short and effective training before embarking on your journey. And who better to train you if not Laura?" Elizabeth added.
"What! I'll be receiving training from Laura?" I asked in shock.
"Is that a bad thing? We don't have time, move your butt after you finish exclaiming," Laura retorted
Elizabeth gazes were clearly telling me to go with Laura. I didn't want to turn her down because I knew that it took a lot for her to convince Laura to train me in controlling my abilities.
After a long, hard conversation, I accepted to go with Laura. So this is why Ethan asked me to prepare, that his mother had discussed something with Laura.
I had never been to the Ironclaw pack before, but I guess I would today. One of the ladies that was with us in the hall was Laura's pack member. The lady transformed into a large wolf, and I clung onto her. Laura also transformed into a massive wolf, and we all headed towards the Ironclaw pack.
Laura's wolf form was more massive than the other two ladies', which kept me wondering why the Alpha's forms were bigger than their pack members'.
Upon arriving at the Ironclaw pack, I was amazed as words failed me to describe the beauty that befell me. All the pack members were dressed in white pants and jackets, just like Laura. I guess this is their uniform. It explains why Laura was always in white whenever I saw her.
I was given a long pep talk on how the whole werewolf thing works; now it was time to display it.
The training begins...
I was escorted down to their training ring, and my opponent startled me. It was Laura herself, the Alpha of the Ironclaw pack. Why would an alpha challenge a mere upcoming werewolf like me to a combat?
"Now, remember, you're stronger than you think. The Alpha's powers run within you, so don't let Ethan down," Laura said as she prepared to begin the challenge.
"Why am I fighting you instead? Am I not supposed to start with a weak opponent?" I asked Laura.
"There's no weak opponent in my pack. And the reason why you're fighting me is because I want you to learn a few moves from me before we head to Grendor," she explained.
The training began, and I was defeated countless times by Laura. I couldn't even land a single blow on her. Her strikes were very effective, and I believed if I were still a human, I would have been dead by now. With every passing moment, I broke a bone but healed up right away.
Whenever I got close to understanding Laura's fighting strategy, she changed her tactics, defeating me with a new strategy. This continued until she ran out of new tactics, and I didn't let the opportunity pass me by.
To the wonderment of everyone, including myself, I landed an attack on Laura. My strike didn't just hit her but also tossed her out of the ring, and she landed on the floor with her butt.
"I did it! I did...!" I exclaimed, hoping everyone would cheer for me. However, they were all waiting to see how Laura would react.
"Oh oh... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to do that," I apologized in fear as Laura approached me with a wrathful gaze. It was the same look I had seen in Ethan's eyes when he strangled me. I guess Laura was angry because I had hurt her pride as an Alpha.
As Laura got closer, fear gripped me, knowing I was within her territory with no one to defend me. But to my surprise, her angry expression began to lighten up, and she grinned, clapping her hands to cheer me on.
It seemed that Laura was only teasing me with those angry looks. Of course, I knew Elizabeth wouldn't have left me with her if Laura intended to harm me.
Soon, all the pack members began to cheer for my victory. They were not mad that I had tossed their Alpha out from the ring, and Laura didn't look embarrassed either that I had defeated her.
"See, I told you, you're stronger than you think. Remember these few lessons; you might need them when we get to Grendor," said Laura, impressed with how quickly I had caught up. Well, eight hours had passed already, so I didn't feel like I had caught up quickly.
As we prepared to embark on this journey, we never knew that we had been sold out by our own pack member, and that a great danger was about to befall us. Now, the one billion dollar question remained: who could have sold us out?
To be continued... From Understand Basement To Cell
Hint for the next chapter: "It was all a set up from the very beginning." Find out who said this statement and who sold us out in the next chapter."