Chapter 2: Into the wild
The night air was thick with smoke and the metallic scent of blood as Aria ran. Branches tore at her arms and legs, the cold earth biting on her bare feet. Her chest burned, her breaths coming in sharp gaps, but she couldn't stop-not now. Not ever.
Her pack was gone. Her family was gone.
The memory of her father's lifeless body flashed in her mind, his blood pooling around him. Her mother's last desperate plea-Run, Aria!-echoed in her ears. And Tobias.... she hadn't seen him after the battle began. Was he still alive?
Tears blurred her version, but she didn't slow down. The only thing keeping her moving was pure survival instinct.
The world outside the pack's territory was vast, unkind place. Every pup grew up hearing horror stories about rogues-wolves without packs, without protection. Some were exiled for crimes, others were lone wolves who had lost everything. All of them were considered dangerous.
And now....she was one of them.
The first night
Hours passed before Aria finally collapsed in a small clearing, her body trembling from exhaustion. She curled up against the base of a tree, wrapping her arms around herself for warmth. The night was eerily silent, save for the occasional howl in the distance.
She wasn't safe. She knew that.
She was too young to shift, too small to fight. If another wolf found her-rogue or otherwise-she wouldn't stand a chance.
Aria clenched her fists, trying to steady her breathing. she had to be strong. For Tobias. For her parents.
But as the cold seeped into her bones, as hunger gnawed at her stomach, she curled in on herself and did the one thing she had sworn she wouldn't do.
She cried.
Alone, abandoned, and utterly lost.
Survival
The days blurred together.
She moved constantly, never staying in one place for to long. she scavenged for food where she could-stealing eggs from birds' nests, eating wild berries she prayed weren't poisonous. She drank from streams, her reflection a ghost of the girl she once was.
Her hair, once brushed and braided by her mother's gentle hands, became tangled and wild. Her clothes, torn from escape, clung to her thin frame.
She learned to track animals, to recognize which plants were safe to eat. She learned which caves were empty and which were home to bears. She learned that world outside the pack's borders was cruel and unforgiving.
And she learned to fight.
It started with small creatures-rabbits, foxes, anything she could catch. She had no weapons, only her hands, her teeth, her will to live.
But the first time she killed something, she vomited.
The sight of bloods on her hands, the lifeless eyes of the rabbit staring up at her-it made her sick.
Yet, the hunger won.
She forced herself to eat. She forced herself to grow stronger.
And when the first rogue found her, she forced herself to survive.
The rogue attack
It has been weeks since she escaped maybe longer-she'd lost track of time.
She was crouched by a stream, cupping her hands to drink, when the scent hit her.
Rotting meat. Sweat. Blood.
A rogue.
She spun, but it was too late.
The man was taller her, his body covered in scars. His yellowed teeth twisted into a grin as he took a step forward.
"Well, well," he sneered. "What do we have here? A little lost pup?"
Aria's heart pounded. Her instincts screamed at her to run, but she knew better. if she turned her back, he would pounce.
Instead she straightened, meeting his gaze. "Leave me alone," she said, her voice steadier than she felt.
The rogue laughed. "Or what? You'll cry?"
He lunged.
Aria barely dodged, rolling to the side. She scrambled to her feet just as he swiped at her again. His claws caught her arm, pain flaring through her skin.
She bit back a scream
Think, Aria. Think.
She grabbed a rock from the ground and swung with everything she had. It connected with the side of his head, a sickening crack echoing through the forest.
The rogue staggered.
It was the only opening she needed.
She turned and ran, forcing her legs to move faster than they ever had before.
The rogue roared behind her, but she didn't stop.
She didn't look back.
She ran until her lungs burned, until her legs buckled, until she collapsed in the thick underbrush, hidden from sight.
The rogue didn't find her.
She didn't sleep that night.
She didn't cry.
She just stared at the stars through the canopy, her hands clenched into fists.
She wouldn't die like this.
She wouldn't let them win.
The Wolf Within
Months passed.
Aria grew stronger.
She no longer flinched at the sight of blood. She no longer hesitated when hunting. The girl who had once been a beloved Alpha's daughter no longer existed.
She was something else now.
A survivor.
She avoided pack borders, knowing she'd be driven away—or worse, captured.
She learned to hide her scent, to mask her presence.
She learned that loneliness was better than betrayal.
And yet…
Some nights, she still dreamed of them.
Her father's proud smile. Her mother's gentle touch. Tobias's teasing laughter.
She dreamed of warmth, of home.
And sometimes, in the dead of night, she swore she could hear a voice whispering to her.
You are not weak.
You are not forgotten.
You are meant for more.
At first, she thought she was losing her mind.
But then, one night, as she stood at the edge of a cliff, staring down at the dark waters below, something inside her shifted.
A warmth spread through her chest, deeper than anything she had ever felt before.
Power.
For the first time in her life, she felt it—truly felt it.
Her wolf was still silent, still buried deep inside her.
But it was there.
Waiting.
Aria took a deep breath, staring out at the moonlit forest.
She wasn't just a lost pup anymore.
She wasn't weak.
She would survive.
And one day…
She would return.
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End of Chapter 2