HUNTED-Chapter 432: Golden Egg (2)
Instinct kicked in. Keira sliced her clawed hand forward and stumped the wolf’s nose before jumping to the side. The wolf whimpered and shook its head at the assault. That didn’t stop it from starting to circle Keira.
Keira knew better that this wolf wouldn’t stop unless it was dead or was on the brink of death because it was a type 1 rogue- a werewolf that remained too long in its wolf form and was now feral and highly dangerous. It shouldn’t shock her to see one in the forest, but then she remembered that this was all a game for those who had put her in here.
There was no way out of fighting this wolf. She wasn’t one to back down from a fight, especially after years of training under the best warriors, including her brother Koa. But she had yet to fight in her wolf form.
’I’ve got you.’ Ember’s confident voice eased some of Keira’s anxiety, even in the face of this deadly foe. ’Trust in me.’
’I do.’ Keira released the reins to her body, and Ember gripped at them, rippling their body until skin ripped away to masses of black fur. Unlike the first shift, this was much quicker. In a matter of seconds her bone broke and realigned, growing as her form changed.
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Those seconds were highly important, though. The other wolf wouldn’t wait for her to shift. It was the perfect time to attack when their opponent was vulnerable. The rogue lunged at her again, jaw snapping, but Ember emerged ferociously snapping back.
They fought, snapping and lunging at each other. Either wolf trying to get the upper hand. Ember was much bigger than the rogue and managed to pin it down a few times, teeth sinking into its neck. The rogue whimpered, and when it threw Ember off again, it started to back away, its neck gushing with blood.
Ember took another step towards it in a warning, and the rogue jumped before skittering away, looking over its shoulder, making sure she wasn’t chasing after it. As the wolf began to merge into the forest’s shadow, a whistle blew, and others raced past them—all of them type 1 rogues.
’Thanks for taking over,’ Keira whispered, finding it a little strange to be watching through something like a camera lens as her body moved in wolf form.
Ember didn’t respond as her body started to shift back. Once the fur had retreated into her body and Keira was thrust forward into the reins of her mind, she collapsed, naked, onto her knees into the dirt.’Ember, are you okay?’
’Fine,’ she yawned. ’Just need a ten-minute nap. The wolfsbane, silver, recent healing from a gunshot wound and this second shift has fatigued me.’
Once again, Keira worried that she couldn’t live up to the standards of her siblings. But she didn’t voice her thoughts even though Ember could hear them. Like her wolf just stated, a lot has happened between the two transformations, and they have taken a toll on her body.
Keira stared at the dirt a moment more while the forest spun a little. Once the dizziness subsided, she slowly got up, forcing herself to look around, alert for any dangers. She also hoped there wouldn’t be any more drones flying around. She was currently naked, and her pyjamas had been shredded to pieces.
There was no threat, but Keira remained vigilant as she crawled over to the golden egg. Her body shook a little, but gradually, she grew stronger, the shakes diminishing. Leaning against the tree for support, she rose to her feet, holding the egg, inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly.
As she regained her strength, Keira turned around and looked up at the countdown in the sky.
Forty minutes left. She had forty minutes to hold onto this egg without others trying to steal it. In the four hours she had, Keira couldn’t find anywhere to escape. The forest had been so vast and full of other werewolves fighting.
The commentator or whatever he was didn’t instruct them if they had to get back to the tunnel in the remaining time or stay where they were with their eggs. Keira had ventured far into the forest, so she didn’t mind sneaking back in the meantime.
Pushing off from the tree, she walked slowly at first, but she was no longer wobbly. Her wolf was snoozing currently, so perhaps they were recovering from their second shift quite quickly. It pleased her to know this. It shouldn’t take too long then to be capable of shifting and staying in wolf form for long periods of time.
Shifting should be second nature to her, and although it did take time to get used to it, she was a Cross. She had to adapt quickly and be as amazing as her siblings.
"Well… wasn’t that a pathetic sight to see." Keira’s head whipped up at the feminine voice. So much for being vigilant. There, emerging from the bushes across from Keira, was the woman who’d taken a dislike of her the moment she’d tried to talk to her.
The girl with the jagged scar running along the side of her scalp. She, too, was naked. Keira tried not to look at her body, but the scars shaped like large bite marks and scratches were difficult not to immediately see. It was only a split second before Keira’s gaze flicked back to meet hers.
This girl also held onto a golden egg, yet the menace that was emanating from her was uncomfortable. It raised the hairs on the back of Keira’s neck, straightening her back and bracing for a fight.
"You have an egg, too," Keira stated, looking at the egg in her arms, hoping to diffuse whatever situation this was turning into.
They weren’t competitors… Unless this was the first of many games?
The girl stepped closer, her nails sharping into claws. "That I do… But I think some of us have had it a little too easy until this point." She glared at Keira.
For some reason, she had an issue with Keira when they had only met hours before. In that time, Keira hadn’t done anything that would incite such hatred.
’Jealousy?’ Ember murmured, rousing from her slumber and growing alert at the new threat.
’We just met…’ Keira trailed off as the girl dropped the egg and shot towards Keira at a speed she didn’t expect.
But Keira was quicker. She dodged one attack and another, backing away and blocking her next strike with her arm before punching her in the gut and swiftly connecting her fist under her chin. The girl staggered back.
"This is pointless-" Keira began before blocking the girl’s kick. She was a good fighter. But Keira was better—she didn’t train for the sake of training; it was times like this when others might need her help.
Keira might not be the Alpha Heir or anyone important like her older siblings, but she still had a duty to others and maintained a great physique with skills.
The girl’s attacks were rough, sloppy and desperate, like someone who’d fought simply for survival or to prove herself. Her moves had power and speed behind them, but they weren’t refined. She hadn’t had the same training as Keira nor like another wolf in a pack.
Keira was beginning to realise that this girl had not been brought up by a pack. She was possibly a rogue or maybe even someone who’d been raised inside this ’research centre’.
"We’re running out of time," Keira began again, seeking reason with this unreasonable person. "Look!" She pointed her chin to the sky while blocking another kick and pushing it away.
That did get the girl’s attention. She looked up at the timer.
Twenty minutes.
From the anxious look on her face, Keira had been correct in her assumptions. They had twenty minutes to get back.
"Argh!" The girl lunged at Keira, this time grabbing her by the hair as they fell to the ground, Keira’s back hitting the ground with a loud thud. Seriously, what was the purpose here? Reduce the amount of competitors?
Elbowing her in the face, Keira twisted free before the girl’s claws could sink into her head. She then grabbed her by the hair and kicked the girl in the throat, focusing on not killing the girl. She gasped for breath, eyes shimmering with tears as she clutched at her throat.
Keira leaned over her, still holding the girl’s hair. "I could kill you as easily as snapping a twig." She punched the ground beside her head, and the girl’s eyes widened. Keira’s hand had shot through the earth, dirt coming up to her bicep as she held her gaze, eyes shimmering a blue-silver hue, her wolf brimming beneath the surface at the pest wasting their time.
Backing away, Keira grabbed her egg, and with a last-minute decision that would make the girl hate her more, she took the golden egg she’d dropped on the ground.
"What are you doing?!" The girl shrieked, breathing heavily after their fight but jumping to her feet in a panic.
"Actions have consequences," Ember’s voice rumbled through Keira’s voice. "This is yours."
Turning away, Keira shifted into her wolf form again, jaws gently grabbing both golden eggs, looking behind her and watching the girl’s fury ignite as she chased after her, shifting into a battered, scarred light brown wolf.
