Breathing a few more seconds, I rested my back on the headboard of my bed, calming my heart rate from the recurrence of the same dream I had before. I thought it would be different, but it wasn't. I was about to head back to my sleep when I heard my door open and only to smell my close and trusted best friend, Talia Grimwolf.
"Whatever you're thinking, I'm not up to it," I refuted beforehand, rolling my eyes when Talia pulled my duvet off before I could even cover myself.
Talia was the only she-alpha who had been overly protective ever since we became close and best friends. Among her brothers, she had more free time to pop wherever I went; even now that I was about to sleep again, here she was, annoying me. Her grin was giving it away.
"Oh, please, Bernila, I haven't said anything, but it will be fun." Talia grinned deeply, pulling me out of the bed gently before adding with a wink, "So, like it or not, I'm dragging you out of this room."
That's right, I'm Bernila Daquila, the kind-hearted nerd with outstanding intelligence, but also the weakest omega of the Moon's Gypsys pack that I would ever have, despite having gamma parents who died when I was five. Luckily, the alpha's sister and her husband were the pack's senior doctors, and they adopted me without hesitation. They treated me well—the alpha's family does, but sad to say, not everyone in the pack was kind enough to help when I got bullied. They thought it was just passing teases between children, but I'm already nineteen and still going.
"Talia, I'm not up to anything. I've been through worse outside the pack house, and you witnessed all of it, so, for my peace, let me…" I tried my best to reason with her, but I know her well—she won't let it slide or let me cope in my bedroom without even trying to breathe fresh air outside.
"I know, but you're giving them satisfactory, and you're not caving in here," She replied sternly but gently, reminding me to fight before grinning mischievously. "We're heading to the woods for a camp, and don't worry, I'll keep them away from you."
I rolled my eyes, trying to think of some way to get away from this. But before I could even come up with something, she already knew how to make my defenses crumble, saying, "I'll bring two liters of ice cream; just join me, and it'll be yours."
I quickly shot my glare at her, but she just smiled hopefully at me, making me sigh, give up, and agree, "Er! Fine, it's because you're holding my love for ice cream captive."
"I know, and you love it," She said, winking at me before pulling me to my walk-in closet to change. "C'mon."
Afterwards, Talia and I arrived at the campsite where our batch mates gathered, but I flinched when their eyes landed on me. I hate when they look at me like I'm a walking plague. I truly want to vanish on the spot, making me tug Talia's sleeves, hoping I could leave, but she won't let me.
"Stand tall. I'm with you." With her usual genuine smile, Talia encouraged me softly before guiding me to her other friends. Her friends were nice people, but before we could even get closer, she stopped, growling in annoyance, and I knew who could stir her protective instincts around me: my ex and his gang. "Of all wolves who'll sit with us," She whispered, growling in her throat, squeezing my hands for support before asking, "Did you bring your med?"
Yes, I'm taking a medication to keep my PTSD at bay. I was diagnosed with it, but not due to my bullies, but because of something else. I woke up in severe pain and was ruined by a nightmare that I wished was a dream. Sadly, it wasn't. It haunted me, weakening me without knowing the root, but luckily, it changed when the alpha's children became my friends and protectors, and my rose thorn mark showed.
"Always," I replied, nodding.
"And your rose thorn mark?" She asked softly, but was still annoyed.
"Still on me, but I don't think it'll…" I answered and subconsciously touched my temple, but she quickly pulled my hand down.
My mark was a rose wrapped with infinity thorns, which protected me by not letting anything or anyone harm me, making the bully lessen. Luckily, my three epsilon bullies weren't around at the moment.
"Just making sure, Bernila…" She smiled gently at me before adding with a spat, "They're sitting with us like they did nothing to you." Then we approached her friends, greeting, "Sorry, we're late. I have to drag her to enjoy her life a little."
"Talia," I whined, pouting, causing some of her friends to chuckle.
"Well, Bernila, sometimes you need a new perspective." One of Talia's friends, a Kappa male, said warmly and patted a space beside him.
I'm greeted warmly by them and handed a beer, completely ignoring the group of men on the opposite side. I partially laughed or smiled at Talia's friends' jokes whenever they cracked one, making the night serene. I like this atmosphere; however, it didn't last when Talia excused herself for a little bit. She was called by her brother, who was on patrol duty, checking us, but in a split second, my sight went dark. Something suddenly covered my face, and I felt a rope wrapped around me. Panic was obviously rising, and some worried voices trying to stop whoever was doing this to me were not helping. I'm panicking even more.
"Just a moment of dare, Sigbin."
Beneath the mask covering my sight, I knew who owned that voice and the snickering voices with her, making me terrified. "No…no…them again…"
Panic intensified because it was my bullies, the three epsilons, who might not bully me that harshly, but they were consistent whenever they found time to do so. Tonight wasn't an exception, but the air was whooshing differently.
I could feel that we were a little away from the campsite as I tried to wiggle out from their grip until it stopped. They pulled off the mask on their head, making me look around, only to find myself standing at the old, creepy ruins—an old Knightrose mausoleum. I stumbled backwards, frightened, and my bullies laughed at my terrified expression; it amused them.
"It's not funny," I mumbled softly, looking down, but we're werewolves, and they could still hear them clearly.
"We know, but you're adorable." One lady epsilon chuckled amusingly, admitting something I didn't think they would see me like that. I'm speechless. Confused. However, their laughter made me frown. Then she held her laughter to grin before continuing, daring me, "Alright, for the last time, we're daring you to get inside and stay there for five minutes."
The second lady, Epsilon, added quickly, promising, "Promise, we're going to pick you up."
"W-what's the c-catch? " I stuttered, not meeting their mischievous gazes.
"If you do that, we're going to stop bullying you. Promise." The third Epsilon, a man, vowed, but still grinning mischievously.
"You can do it right, Sigbin?" the first epsilon lady asked daringly, making me speechless and frightened until they pushed me inside without waiting for my response, locking the gate behind me, laughing. "Just five minutes. No longer than that."
Sigbin was another name they gave me because it was a kind of monster that was hard to distinguish due to its monstrous hybrid form and was mostly heard as one of the Philippines' folktales. Yes, it still has its canine traits with large flapping ears, deadly fangs, and a long whip-like tail, but when it comes to shape and size, that made my wolf even more peculiar. It was small, a goat-like entity slightly human-like or a beast form with elongated limbs, features, and a bat-like appearance with dangerous claws. It's truly a monstrous figure. However, what stood out the most was my wolf's unsettling presence, and its striking attribute was its undistinguished oversized head of a dog or a goat, together in one small body. And to add on, its menacing aura was its rotten scent that could weaken or paralyze anyone who smelled it, feared by everyone.
Not my family, though, since they were the ones who helped me control it. But tonight, at the moment, things were different.
"Please, I'm scared…" I cried weakly.
I'm timid, trembling as I clenched the hem of my clothes, protecting myself from the eeriness swirling around the cold mausoleum. I had been flinching whenever something brushed against my skin or hearing some clattering sound from broken twigs, snickering rats, and a flowing river somewhere near the area. I may be a weak werewolf shifter, but I don't fancy the creepiness, but I have to endure this.
"They're going to stop bullying me if I finish five minutes early, right?" I muttered, thinking of the dare they had pushed on me.
I just think of it that way and walk carefully, touching the cold, concrete-ruined walls just to be my guide around, but I jolted when bats began flying around. Adrenaline rushes in my veins, making me scream in fear and run, even causing me to trip on something. I'm being stupid, forgetting how skinny I was, which is why I easily got wounds, and now, I'm limping and bleeding.
"Talia…help me…" I muttered weakly, crying as I aimlessly crawled in the dark ruins of the mausoleum until my bullies decided to show up, scaring me to the core. My heart rate was deafening, and I trembled badly, causing my PTSD to attack.
"Damn your face. It's epic." The Epsilon man laughed at my frightened state.
"For a timid omega, you survived five minutes of a dare in here," the first lady epsilon commented amusingly.
"Let's go. As promised, we're done bullying you," the second lady epsilon added. I like that sound; however, fear is all over the place. I couldn't hear them clearly.
They were about to touch me, but I was frightened, trembling, and crying badly, causing me to wobble backwards, making them frown.
"We're not going to hurt you anymore," the first lady epsilon said gently before adding, "Let's get you out now."
I could sense no harm with them, but I'm having a relapse, and I can't control it without my medicine, which I think had fallen out of my pocket when I panicked earlier. I shook my head, fearing hurting them.
"S-stay…t-there…I'm…h-having…r-re-relapse…" I stuttered, trying to control my heaving, but I couldn't. I'm losing grip.
"Dammit. Call Talia." The second lady epsilon shouted after realizing what I said, but it was too late.
When I stepped backwards one more time, I fell drastically. I heard them scream, shouting my name, but the harsh wind brushed against my body, making their words fade. The next thing I felt was my body cracking like it was morphing into something before I crashed into the river. The current was harsh, making my body hit some rocks, breaking some more bones, and bleeding out in the process.
Surely, I won't survive this.