The Beast's Possession
29: Beta’s bastard.

pov**

**Bane "You need to stop whatever you're doing there," I hissed, barely holding onto the consciousness.

Time had passed, that much I knew, but I couldn't figure how much time. Days morphed into one big mess. That wasn't surprising since all I could see was darkness - never ending, thick and fucking inviting. Every moment, I had to fight myself not to give in. The more I fought the louder it whispered in my ears, inviting me to join and be free of the pain, the torture.

I knew it was a bad idea to give in - if I ever did, there was no way back and he would win. For as long as I fought against the temptation, there was hope for my pack, for my future and my mate.

The only issue was that for as long as I kept fighting, I didn't have the energy to fight the fucker who used my body as his own and regain the control.

How did I get here? How did I fall so deep and end up in the only place I never wanted to be?

"Bane, oh, Bane, my boy, look at us. Look at what I have to offer," he laughed.

For a brief moment, he granted me a slight view of myself in the mirror. It wasn't long enough for me to fully take in the details, but I got enough to notice the change before the darkness took over my vision again.

Now, I wasn't surprised about every time I heard screams and gasps as this asshole walked through the halls. Around my eyes, the skin was adorned with black veins, something like a view from a horror movie, but real life. Majority of my eyes had turned black and some skin on my cheeks and neck had started blackening too. If I didn't figure something out and fast, soon I would become a coal man.

"Aren't we glorious, my boy? Have you grasped the true potential of the power I'm offering yet?" He laughed, taunting me and my inability to push him back where he belonged.

For some reason, I thought back to my childhood days, right when I first learned of the curse. I was young, naive and honestly, pretty stupid. I remembered how sure I was about this curse being a fairytale. After all, I didn't feel it affecting me back then.

What I didn't know was that for as long as my father lived, it really didn't affect me. The moment I laid his body into the ground - this thing hopped from the dead vessel to a new one.

The change came slowly, which I took as a slight flu, not an actual problem. In fact, I used to boast to everyone that I would be the first one who managed to avoid the curse and that wouldn't change me.

Well, look where that thinking brought me, right?

"Ah, don't ignore me. Isn't it nice to have someone to talk to? It gets lonely back there, doesn't it? I would know, my boy. The darkness feeds you, but it doesn't speak to you once you accept it and learn how to thrive in it. I'm sure you're hearing it whisper to you, it has already accepted you as their own, there's no point in fighting back anymore."

I didn't want to listen, but did I have a choice? All this talking was nothing but another tool he used to humiliate me and remind me that he came out on top after all.

How foolish it was of me to think that I could fight it.. Even my best friend, my second-in-command and Beta, the only man who had ever believed in me, ended up in a ditch, imprisoned and tortured simply because he believed I was strong enough to fight this monster.

And then, unexpectedly, the thought of Aife crossed my mind. I still clung onto the images in my memories - those of her smile and her soft voice. Her feather-like touch and the gentle feeling of her lips against mine. Fuck, the heat of her body and the warmth of her embrace.

The things I would do to experience just a brief moment of what we shared just once more..

"Have you forgotten I hear your thoughts, boy?" The monster laughed, still refusing to grant me another moment of eyesight.

He was walking somewhere, moving fast like a man on a mission. "I can't believe you. After everything I have done for you, everything I have to literally shove down your throat to show you your true potential, you're still hung up on some unworthy woman. It's always the same thing with this fucked-up bloodline, you boys refuse to understand that women are below us. Those breathing incubators serve only a few purposes - to satisfy your animalistic needs, birth sons and shut the fuck up." He growled, growing irritated.

A part of me loved the fact that just mere thought of the woman I loved could set him off like this, but the other part feared the consequences. He was unpredictable, a ticking time bomb - anyone could suffer if I didn't tone it down. The only issue was that once I thought of her, I felt like I still had some hope left. For her, I was ready to do whatever, even if it came to killing myself to rid her world of the monster that haunted me.

"I would like to see you try!" The monster roared and soon after, I heard the sound of something heavy crashing against the wall and shattering into pieces.

While I had no idea where we were, I could tell the object of his anger was a piece of furniture. At least it wasn't anyone living, suffering the consequences that should be only mine to bear.

No, honestly, these consequences - nobody but that fucker deserved them. He was the one who challenged and pissed off the Goddess, not me or those who suffered through this nightmare before me. Because of this fool, the entire bloodline was cursed and had to suffer through years on end.

"It was her fucking fault, don't blame me for some bitchy woman getting pissy because of her period! Selene is just as low as any other whore working on the streets. She too should learn her place. She is no Goddess of mine. Remember my words, boy, the day will come when the bitch gets off her high horse and returns here to face true power. Once she does, once she grows the fucking balls she needs for that I will be ready, waiting to kill her and take the place that should be taken by a man who knows how to lead this shitshow. One day, you will learn how to kneel in front of greater power, even if I must wipe off the entire world to see you break."

Officially lost his mind. All the time he spent in this darkness had taken any common sense from that monster and replaced it with delusions.

"But first," he laughed. "First, we need to get rid of that Beta's bastard. No way will I ever allow cats and dogs to cross breed. I can't believe you looked past it and let this happen. Today, we implemented changes. Today, I will erase all of your wrongdoings and fix the mistakes you made. I will fix the mistake that incompetent bitch made by pairing a cat and a wolf. Watch a true Alpha at work."