The Possessive Alpha
Chapter 73

DAMON POV

As soon as the clock turns midnight, an eerie silence fills the field, everyone waiting with bated breath, a tangible power radiating from Elle. Saturating so much of the air around us, it can be tasted on the tip of the tongue; spicy and invigorating.

Any hope that the authority coming from Elle is a good sign things will go smoothly is quickly dashed when a bloodcurdling scream left her lips, ripping my heart to shreds. Before I can move toward her, my father’s voice echoes through the link, ‘Stay, Damon. She is a Firstborn Alpha son; she must bear this pain alone, as did you and all firstborn Alphas.’

‘You can send her words of encouragement,’ my mom’s voice comes through, nodding towards Elle on the ground whimpering in agony, her body already drenched in sweat. ‘Don’t cross the boundary though, no matter how much pain it looks like she is in, okay?’

Nodding in understanding, I lower myself to the ground, keeping my gaze locked on Elle’s face, “It’ll be okay, Biscuit,” I coo, my voice a gentle whisper as I lay along the border, my body facing hers. “Breathe and look at me. Look at me,” I command, trying to get her focused on something other than the agonizing pain as her body reshapes and reforms. Thank the Goddess, it only happens once, or we might never shift if we have to deal with the kind of torture each time.

“Open your eyes,” I say once more, this time with less force than before, my tone pleading with her instead because seeing her writhe in pain is killing me, knowing I can’t do anything about it. Thirty seconds later, Elle’s chest rises as she takes in a large breath, shuddering from her insides’ torment, she finally opens her eyes to me, and they’re…glowing? Yeah, they’re f*****g glowing, I realize as I stare at her in wonder, basking in how Angelic she looks, even covered in dirt, sweat, and tears.

Before I continue with my words, a spine-chilling scream can be heard behind me, looking over my shoulder. I see Charity in Matt’s arms while she continues screaming, sweat pouring from her forehead. If anyone else had caught her, I might have had to intervene and assist with her unexpected shift, as my responsibility as Alpha. However, I don’t think I’d be allowed near her because she is cradled in Matt’s arms, and he snarls at anyone who dares come near her, even her parents when they stepped up to help.

“Who- AHHHHHHHH!!!” Elle starts to ask until a piercing scream that could break the sound barrier escapes her lips as she rolls around, her muscles strained and limbs contorting in odd angles as they break and reform.

Slowly a shimmery gold essence begins to leak from the center of Elle’s chest as it rises through the air to search for a particular essence.

What the f**k is happening?

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ELLE POV

Pain. Agonizing, mind-splitting, soul-crushing pain radiates over every inch of my flesh, each cell ripping itself to shreds and reforming. I can hear another crucifying scream in the background, I can’t pinpoint who it belongs to, but it calls to me.

‘I’m sorry, Elle,’ Scarlett whimpers, clearly struggling with the overwhelming torment, ‘but it’s about to get worse.’ I can tell that she is still trying to take on the brunt of the shift herself instead of giving me my equal share, and I think it’s starting to backfire on us.

‘Stop holding back, Scar; it’s now or never,’ I scream, my back arching as I twist around in the grass, irritating my raw skin. ‘I want this…over…with.’ I say while trying to breathe and failing miserably as I scream into the earth, grass tickling my nose and tongue during my screams.

‘Are you sure?’ She asks again, so weak she barely hangs on before passing out.

‘Yes! f*****g do it!’ I scream as I get onto my hands and knees, my claws elongating into the dirt as I try to brace for the crippling onslaught of the shift at full force. Within seconds of my command, it roars at me in a great flood of pain while another distinct scream joins mine briefly before quieting again.

Screaming into the clear night sky, I can make out the large white moon above as it shines, my elongating shrieks slowly turning into barks of pain. Looking down, my hands slowly reshape into white paws that ombre into a fiery red. My arms lengthen into long legs covered in red fur; they tremble slightly from exhaustion as Scarlett extends to our full size.

Standing a foot taller than Damon, I realize how large Scarlett is as we look down at the other members of the New Moon, many of whom are shaking while baring their necks in submission, refusing to meet my gaze. Another chilling scream shakes the trees surrounding us, breaking me from the daze of seeing things through Scarlett’s eyes.

Turning her head, she finds the source of the screams, curled up in Matt’s arms; Charity. Before Scarlett can put a paw over the boundary, Damon’s bright blue eyes are in front of us, preventing us from moving past him to help. Charity is in the same fetal position I was in a few minutes before me.

Growing impatient, I try stepping around him again, only to be stopped once more while he stares at me, his head c****d to the side like I am a problem that he has to be solved. Growling, I lower my head, getting pissed he won’t let me past him.

“Look up, Biscuit,” he says as he points to the sky, and when I see a golden strand of energy flowing from Scarlett’s body, weaving above the crowd, branching out in two directions. One branch leads to Theo, the energy engulfing his large frame, which has shifted into his wolf Cerebrus. The other hangs precariously over Charity’s body, waiting patiently for her shift to succeed or for her to die before attaching itself in the same manner as it did with Cerebrus.

No one says a word or moves a muscle while hundreds of eyes silently watch Charity contorting with torment on the ground, wondering if she’ll live through the experience of a forced first shift or die as most do. I can see her parents passing behind Matt as he continues to hold her, whispering soothing words in her ear while trying to keep her hair out of her eyes. Sitting on my hind quarters, I watch patiently with the rest of the pack, praying that the Moon Goddess lets her live through the experience.

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DAMON POV

Scarlett’s body towers over me, her majestic frame a head taller than my human form, and if it was Slade, she would match him in size easily. Goddess, she is gorgeous, a raw power emanating from her that has the weaker members of the trembling stuck in their spot.

‘She’s beautiful,’ Slade says, his voice holding the same awe currently radiating throughout my body. Even in the moonlight, it looks like her hair is glowing with an incandescent hue. Slade is burning to shift and run the land with her, but Charity’s bone-shattering screams call us back to the truth of the situation.

Bringing my eyes back to Matt; he is still caressing her hair, trying to calm her while her body twists into painful positions trying to force a shift she isn’t ready for. The panic radiating from her family is starting to overcome the field as no one steps forward to comfort her, but the feral look in Matt’s eye is enough to keep anyone away.

The average pack member might not understand what’s happening, but their wolves do; looking around, I see black eyes in every member, including Andrew and my parents. They’re all present to witness the success of a forced first shift.

Looking above her, I see the gold strand slowly getting thicker, moving closer to her hand Matt. So that has to be a good sign, right?

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ELLE POV

I don’t know how long I have been sitting here watching Charity scream in agonizing pain but watching her body resist a position her wolf wants so badly was excruciating. My eyes warily wander to the gold aura hovering above, getting closer to her body by the second. Selene, please, let Charity survive, please. I beg the Moon Goddess silently as my friend continues to write in resistance.

As if she heard my prayer above all others, Charity rolls off Matt landing on all fours on the ground. Anticipation races throughout the other wolves in the field at this sudden change in position, and the same sensation circulates within my gut. She is going to survive. Charity is going to f*****g survive this.

The aura, patiently waiting for its moment, begins touching the top of Charity’s head while her nose lengthens into a snout and large canines fill her mouth. Sandy blonde hair sprouts where skin used to be, and her legs and arms lengthen while her torso fills out.

Standing on shakey legs, Charity shakes out her fur while surrounded by the golden energy. Despite her slight build and petite frame, her wolf is massive, standing only a half foot shorter than me. Once encased in the energy, the connection between Charity, Theo, and I gets stronger. As the golden hue gets thicker between us, I notice that my connection with New Moon slowly disappears into the ether as if it never existed.

Scarlett and I tilt our heads toward the full moon letting out a soulful howl to mourn the loss and celebrate the successful shifts that happened tonight. Charity, my Gamma, and Theo, my Beta, join in my celebrations before running off into the woods, ignorant of the New Moon members watching them, their eyes slowly returning to the normal shades.

Padding over to Damon, I drag my wet, saliva-soaked tongue down his face before turning on my heel, leaving him stunned until I make it to the tree line. Damon’s hearty chuckle rang in my ears as his husky voice calls over the wind, “I’ll give you some time to run, Biscuit, but you’ll never be able to hide!”

Game on, Alpha, let the chase begin.