Wolf Dominion Volume 2

I lie against the wall, pretending to be nursing my injuries and curled in on my stomach.

After a few minutes, I hear the glass door to my cell slide open.

“How the hell did your brother get out of here?” one of the guards comes over and kicks a boot into my middle to gain the answer.

I curl in and spit curses as I keep my face to my feet, “He ran without me, a coward.”

One of the guards laughs, “Alphas. What a joke.”

The second one keeps nudging my middle – trying to get to ‘my’ scars with his prodding boot, “That’s because anyone can be broken. You’re next, bitch. You’re up in the hour, get ready to die and serve your new Masters again, stupid dog. Get up. Stand! Stand!”

I try to struggle as much as I can to stand, keeping my head down with my supposed pain to hide my features. I looked like her enough as long as they didn’t stare too hard.

“Where are we going?” I ask the ground.

“She’s finally losing it,” the second guard chuckles – the one that laughs at everything.

“You’re going to the Ring to get spanked, sweetheart,” a hand slams over my backside, then stays there – gripping my flesh firmly to claim ownership. I pretend I don’t feel it as I walk between them, hissing air between my teeth, “Does that still piss you off, Mila?”

“I’m going to win this time,” I whisper the warning – the promise.

“You’re right, damn,” I’m shocked for but a second until I realise the guard talks to his friend, not to me, “…prison bitches kind of lose their appeal when they lose their senses, you know what I mean…? You’ll die in this one for sure,” he whispers the last line to me, “And so will your bitch Beast.”

In the hour leading up to the nightly entertainment, I learn this fact; punishment is not just grandiose fun for Cat Dominion, it’s held like a badge and used to boost their image as feral and vicious leaders of the planet.

Mostly left to suffer and prepare on my own in a transport cage – I’m allowed one thing, to wear the disgraced Alpha robes of Wolf Dominion – tattered and bloodied from intense fights. It served as identification in the Ring.

The portable dog cage is basically dropped into the Ring – the door opened for me to exit when necessary.

The Gladiator Ring is set outside the Dominion, carved into the Dry Canyon at its widest point – the ridges along the sides serve as sitting for the audience.

It was once a home to all terrors of my childhood.

The irony being I feel home right now – about to fight to the death.

It was my request. I knew by now the word had made it to the top.

And now I was facing the heat of it.

Mechanical lights, burn down over the rock field, filled with boulders and great places for Cats to launch from in strategic attacks.

It’s also the exact terrain I trained on with Xrat in the simulated environment.

The ends of the Gladiator’s Ring are blocked in by steel fences making the circle.

I note the Imperator is absent from viewing – but I do notice Princess Tyra seated on her viewing seat, more a stone throne from the highest point – being served by many handsome warriors she’s no doubt hand picked to entertain her.

Then of course, Skye is at her feet – sucking on her toes, still naked.

It’s about enough for me to witness, seeing him look like that.

I keep my eyes on the field.

I had to focus.

And of course – then she starts talking.

“We need to clear up the rules this round,” Tyra’s mouth is full as she chews and swallows her dinner and dessert, while speaking into a microphone. I have a small one sticking to my jaw for entertainment purposes – so they can hear my every move, “What do you want?” Tyra is bland and bored and seemingly pissed off.

She’s asked me.

I growl out, impersonating Mila, “I’m going to win tonight. So anything I want.”

Tyra almost chokes on her food and the crowd are hushed into a shocked silence.

“A perfect surprise performance,” Tyra whispers, “I love this new fight in you – so you want to have anything?”

“Yes – freedom to walk out with my wolf when I win,” I state, “That’s all.”

“Hmm,” Tyra is trying not to laugh, “…but if you lose… and you will lose… having the disgrace to ask for such a thing – you won’t be bruised. You’ll be dead. Ahh, I see now, so this is a death wish, isn’t it, Mila? A way to end it all…” I don’t bother responding to that nonsense, “…fine. I’ll make it a done deal. Good luck, I choose you to face my three newest recruits – they need to be blooded with their first kills. We’ll set them on you. Thank you for your service and loyalty to Cat Dominion, Mila. We’ll remember you in a minute of silence, how about that, after it’s all over in a few minutes?” Tyra loves the sound of her voice, and quickly loses interest, while I feel myself reaching out to Xrat – letting him know the plan through our combined heart strings. He’s already close, and I feel his bloodlust. We just got lucky – new recruits? Still good practice against lions.

However… I knew when I lowered my hood and Xrat joined the fight… I needed one more thing. A guarantee.

I interrupt her loud giggling and distant whispers to her crowd of lovers, “…make it official, that you’ll keep to your word, on pain of your death if you break the vow that I go free when I win…”

“Oh shut it, it’s vowed already,” Tyra snaps over me, angry at my audacity to keep talking, “Let the lions and dog out – call to your Beasts. Transcend. And kill the miserable wretch,” as the crowd falls silent, I close my eyes as I hear the roar of lions making their way into the Dry Canyon – leaping over the barriers of the Ring to join the battle.

Fine, I don’t have time to lower my hood.

I close my eyes instead as I stand and I breathe slowly.

Xrat practically shoves me into his brain, pulling me in with an Alpha’s dominance.

I open my eyes – from his yellow and blue orbs – as our large heart beats steady and true as we sprint through the Dry Canyon… still a little bit far away.

Hurry, I whisper, and I quicken our strides.

It was all over if they got to my human body quicker than we could reach the Ring.

Xrat barks once in defiance, annoyed I would worry at all.

However, I can hear Tyra interrupting through my human ears.

“…where… where is her wolf… can someone check… the Beast’s cage was opened? What do you mean it’s – ah – oh I was fooled again. She doesn’t want to fight at all… of course… well then –”

Xrat is closer than I thought.

He skids around one corner, suddenly ascending the sides of the canyon to gain a height advantage on his way in. Instead of jumping over into the Gladiator’s Ring, he leaps from up high, pretending he can fly.

So. Yeah.

Teeth bared – Xrat flies in.

Cute little show off. I wish I could hug him as a pup again and never let go – I knew this side of him so well, playful and bearish.

Xrat has slipped from the dry darkness, silent as a phantom, straight into the spotlights of the Ring – a disturbing growl from his throat vibrating the rocky earth itself.

The height of him is towering over the edges of the Ring.

Around Xrat – are new military bred Lions.

Bigger than usual yes – but fresh.

And no where near as large as him.

Xrat doesn’t waste any time.

He mock lunges side to side, back and forth – not once, or twice, or three times.

Maybe twenty times, just teasing the lions. Or so it would seem.

They all raise twitching paws, confused – probably assuming he’s messing around.

The moment they think he’s playing a game – Xrat pounces back onto the highest boulder, shows off his pretty silver and blue fur to the crowd and Tyra – then twirls through the air as he lands his jaws on two lion necks at once.

Crunch.

Decapitation was possible at the corner of a Wolf’s jaws, and with his razor sharp teeth.

Xrat chomps down and smiles in the blood flow.

The third lion swats and snarls on the side, but the moment Xrat makes a move forward to the last lion – the cat drops and rolls, trying to surrender instead.

Xrat rips off a leg and thwacks it in the head with the severed limb. As the lion screams Xrat drops the limb and rips out the throat without mercy, pulling back to howl to the Genesis moon as he pronounces his victory.

While also shoving me out – or rather, I’m pulled out by an electric tug.

I feel it in my neck – a small charge severing me from Xrat’s body to pull me back down into my own skin.

I open my eyes to the crowd, then I look down at my body, almost expecting a bunch of lazers pointed at me.

But there is nothing.

And there is nothing but heavy silence, from the Ring’s crowd and from Tyra herself.

I realise after a moment that they’re waiting to see who I am.

I pull down my hood, and I look straight up to Tyra.

Xrat stands to attention, jaw bloodied and eyes focused on Tyra as well.

Skye is quickly pushed to the back out of sight. Interesting move.

Tyra is now blushing, as all eyes focus on her reaction. I had the advantage now, as she speaks up, clearing her throat, “R-Ryder. What do you want?”

Ah; that was the thing.

I wanted nothing in this moment – other than to show her I was a huge fucking threat to everything she thought she controlled.

I knew getting it all back in one day and one night was impossible, but I had time to master this and take control of Genesis… one small step at a time.

I speak clearly and with my own dry tone now, as my voice booms through the Ring’s speakers, “Tyra. I’ll take my free will to leave, with it I am assured by your current reaction that I’ll leave with your respect as well – and perhaps a deep rooted fear in your gut for the Luna.” I pause before I say it, “…to Wolf Dominion.”

Xrat snarls and grins his enthusiasm – the only one to make a noise as his fur drips blood down to his paws from his jaws.

Tyra takes a minute of silence before officially responding to me.

I notice how the crowd all look at her in anticipation, perhaps worrying she’s falling a point or two from her perceived political throne.

Now Princess Tyra can choose to execute me if she wishes – as a coward with no honour. Hence the delay in her thinking.

Or… the better option, she can show poise.

I’m impressed by her resilience thus far, even as she tried to ignore the death of the lions on the field – and the blood staining the Gladiator’s Ring, all of it, glaring up at her. Including a Wolf that shouldn’t exist – since her Kind slaughtered all Xrat’s pack when he was a pup; the sole and secret Survivor of Xrat Company, greater than Zrot Company.

“…well…well, what about material possession? I asked what do you want,” Tyra builds up to it, seemingly working it out, probably through her obedient toy – that I was his lover not too long ago, as she drags him forward into view – and his eyes remain firmly downcast away from me, “Don’t you want Skye too?” Tyra tests my limits, “You have the right to ask for something tangible after that brute display. That’s why you slaughtered my Kind, isn’t it? For Skye? Your love?” It’s a smart move – maybe if I was naïve. She is far too generous in this moment – a trap I knew from Lemeri so I was eager to avoid it.

I also make a more dramatic decision, as I respond fire cold and without hesitation.

“Princess Tyra; enough talk. I already have the true Alpha in my hands. Skye is therefore expendable and of no use to me,” my loud words echo many times around the canyon – and Tyra lets my admission sink in. I watch as Skye’s sunken head slowly raises itself from the dirt and stones, slowly, his hollow eyes try to stay down but he cannot help himself. Perhaps he’s second guessing his ears. I’ve said enough. Tyra is pleasantly speechless as well as I now turn and walk out with Xrat by my side. He allows me to climb onto his back.

The gate opens to the dessert on queue – allowing us our earned way to freedom.

I’m glad Tyra heard my words about Skye, because I already knew – I could tell from her blush – Tyra loved Skye. What female didn’t fall for him?

And with her father Opular keen of torture to force compliance, I just saved Skye’s life by making him out to be the most unimportant thing in my heart.

Even though Skye probably deserved every second on his knees to Tyra and to the whole planet for giving our son to the enemy – contributing to this awful scenario; our son still deserved a father at the end of the day. Skye was still the secret number one priority. Skye and Ryder – my family.

And that meant I had to avoid them both.

All a means to a bloody end.

There was power in being underestimated, so hopefully Skye understood deep down why I was being so cold and leaving now without him.

Or maybe… perhaps even Skye would never forgive me for the humiliation… and the embarrassment… of being left behind when I could have bargained his release on different terms for winning a fight in the Ring.

Either way he took this event – Skye was learning an important lesson. I wasn’t just a Messier Luna that he created – I was also his Alpha now, and Skye would be my subservient half in following my steps to recovering our lost Dominion.

Opular’s POV

“Imperator, I report! A Luna just killed three lions in front of the entire Cat Dominion tonight – in the Ring! Tyra let her go –!” an Elder warns me, while I bathe in a stone bath, enjoying my time alone.

Until I was interrupted.

For the third fucking time – with the same report, just from different officials every time. First a Head Sentry, then Damion, 1st Sworn of Tyra, then of course a fucking Elder to come berate me.

“I know!” I throw my empty glass at the wall – and it shatters, “Get a fucking slave bitch to clean it, go,” a good reason to get rid of pesty Elders, give them chores.

I had plenty of Wolf Bitches under my hand to clean up my residence.

Oh, and they were hard, hard workers.

They were stubborn fuckers too.

The Elder leaves in a stumble and a mumble.

I think of my daughter Tyra acting the fool like always.

She plays too many games.

But the reckless Luna I keep hearing about – with no soldiers, no force, no pack, no authority and no place – was pissing all over my fucking territory.

“Come back for a second, Kole!” I keep in my excess exasperation as the Elder rushes back in and almost trips on his luxurious wolf fur slippers.

I sigh slowly.

“Yes, Imperator –?” Kole stands to attention, happy for a different discussion perhaps.

“What’s her name – I don’t know her name…” I start.

“Ryder,” Kole reminds me of the baby we took in a while back, and it takes me a second to make the connection.

Oh. Ryder – Ryder. Ryder…

Huh.

I didn’t think that baby was even real to be honest.

But I tossed it to the nurses just in case the baby was a handy tool… now I smile. I’m glad I didn’t end the small pest that came my way – he thought I was his dad. It was cute, for minutes at a time.

“Please send a message to this Luna – who hides in a cave in that asscrack city.”

“Yes, Opular?”

“She can have her baby. But I want her for a week first – all to myself.”

“Dead or alive?” of course he has to fucking ask that.

“Alive, obviously,” I answer as calmly as possible, “Of course, she insists on having a target on her head – she insists we kill her and make her a martyr for Wolf Dominion. So of course, Kole – I’ll take the Luna and I’ll fucking break her mind.”

“Pardon me, but the rumour is that she has been broken many times before – through torture, enslavement and being bred a Human,” Kole is too precise.

It didn’t matter.

“…idiot, get out…” I dismiss Kole.

I don’t need to explain to him my methods.

The way to break a self-proclaimed lunatic like her – was to make her feel safe.

I wasn’t an Imperator for nothing.