Images flashed in and out, sounds and lights, blurring into a grey haze as the lethargy and shock held my body captive. I would have been afraid but fear couldn't penetrate my mind, I felt numb. Cold and numb to everything around me. There was an emptiness in me that resided over my heart and it was polarized by the cramped feeling I had in my head.

I was dimly aware I was in a car with my hands tied behind my back so tightly they were numb. I was thankful for it because my broken wrist would have been unbearable. I couldn't think, the dizzy haze covered everything and the lethargy made me so confused. I felt cold but the faintly painful wound on my neck seeped out hot blood. So slow and languid as it trailed across my skin.

My hearing felt muffled and my head lolled as I was yanked upwards. Voices murmured around me but I couldn't pinpoint it. I couldn't think with my life leaving my body through the wound. I could almost feel the sky underneath my wings.

Fly, little maggie bird, fly.

It would be so easy, to slip into that abyss, to join my family in the moon's embrace. I wanted that so badly. I wanted my dad and my muma. I wanted my uncle and everyone else that was lost. They were my pack, my family and I wanted to be with them.

"She's bleeding out!" The voice was frantic, cutting through the fog slightly as a bunched up cloth was pressed hard against the wound. I gave a small whine at the pain, my eyes fluttering, the lights and images swirling together.

"Doesn't matter. She will heal." Dark and dangerous. I wanted to inhale sharply. Teeth and broken bones. I should have flown away when I had the chance. My memories were fuzzy, so fuzzy. They were broken and disjointed, hazed and blurred. Emotions seemed to be the only real thing that seeped through, that made the entire feel like reality instead of a dream. How I wished it was a dream.

"Not if she loses too much blood." Someone wrenched my chin up. "She is fucking out of it." I was, even though I was in enough that I could hear their voices, no matter how distorted they somewhat sounded.

"So?" So unconcerned. There was a wrenching from deep inside of me. Something tethered to my soul twisted and ached at his tone.

"You do understand that if she dies, you will weaken, right? You took off on a half-cocked idea and you returned with this-this thing that you stupidly bound to you! Under the moon's eye at that." The other voice rose, an angry pitch that I would have cowered from if I had the strength. This was why Sorrel was to be the leader. I wasn't strong enough. Someone raised their voice and I instantly wanted to go belly up. Sorrel was the tough one, the strong one. She would have figured everything out already but I was still stuck. I was weak and useless. No one ever had the heart to tell me but I knew it. I always knew it. I missed her so much that I wanted to cry. My heart and soul wept for her.

"Show me the moon's eye and I will rip it out. You and your stupid superstitions, Nexus." His tone was mocking and there was something deeper in me that drowned out the painful twisting of my soul. A cold feeling at the challenge he had given. The moon's light was cold and she would show us just how sharp she could be. "I know what I am doing." He truly didn't. I knew the moon, I loved her. I worshipped her as I grew. She was the one thing I had growing up that wouldn't judge me. Our goddess viewed us all as equals and I had even expressed my want to go to Altia and serve her but my loyalty to my family was stronger.

"She's cold." The voice was soft, an almost timid statement as a hand touched my face gently. He was right. I was so cold. I felt it in my very bones. It was a deep freeze that left me aching but unable to rub it away. It was the very life leaving my body. There was nothing that could ever take that feeling away, that could erase it from my memory.

"Probably. She's been down there for a few hours." My soul twisted violently at the remark, at the tone. It twisted and sent shards of pain through me. They were dull and barely made my skin ripple. So weak. Just like me. I should have tried harder. I should have fought harder. Instead I had given up, turned belly up at the first showing of violence.

"A few ho- What the hell, Malak!" It had the edge of a snarl and something beside me shifted as my mind attempted to go fuzzy, to take me away from everything. I was wrapped in something warm. The small warmth seeped into my chilled skin and I was thankful for it. "She is to be by your side and you cannot treat her like filth." It was a heavy reprimand that was returned with a dominating snarl that had my wolf curling up into a tiny ball and shaking so violently I was scared she would shatter.

"Her pack was filth." again a sharp spear of pain ran me through. My pack was everything to me. It was my family, my home and he was calling it down as if it were nothing. If I had the ability I knew tears would have burned my eyes. I was too weak even for them.

"We all know that but you treating her like she is some sort of gutter rat means that everyone else will. They will see her as a weakness that you don't even like and they will use her against you." Such a harsh reprimand. I was a weakness yet again. I wasn't Magdalene, I was a target that people would go for, a soft spot. "You have created your biggest liability!"

"I like a challenge." There seemed to be some twisted humor in the dark tone and I prayed to the moon that I would not be hurt in his challenge.

"Arlo! Talk some sense into him! I'm done!" There was a harsh thread of finality to the tone and the sound of feet on gravel started. "I told you to get the older one but no! Nexus doesn't know what the fuck he is talking about." There was a faint sense of relief that I had been taken and not Sorrel. I was happy I had spared her the unknown fate that lay before me. Silence fell and I started slipping backwards into the haze.

"He's right you know." The words were spoken int hat soft and timid tone and there was a bark of laughter that followed the,

"Baby Arlo always following the leader."

"This is serious, Malak." The owner of the voice swallowed and I had an arm shift around me. The cloth pressed to my neck was removed for a second before it was pressed against it once again. I gave another small whimper of pain, the sound so faint I could barely hear it. "She will be seen as a weakness and there are those who will attempt to use her against you." The voice shook slightly as if hating that he was addressing a superior. I felt for him slightly. Just like me, unable to look my uncle in the eyes even in informal settings. The weaker wolf submitting to the stronger one.

"I would like to see them try." There was glee to his voice and for a brief moment my heart fluttered. He would protect me from others. If I didn't have to worry about the harsh pack I would be brought into then I could perhaps make a life for myself. I did not choose him but he forced a claiming and I would deal with it as smoothly as I could.

"Please, Mal." There was a faint plea to the voice and there was a gruff coughing sound.

"I don't breed weakness. When I am finished, she will be strong." Just like that the hope I had was immediately replaced with dread. I just wanted to sink away from everything, fly away and never come back.

"She might be broken. They weren't of our ways, Mal. Their minds are fragile, their bodies even more so. Look at her." It was a pitying tone and another hand gripped my chin, my nerves awoke at the touch, demanding to have the warm hand on them. They burned for it and I hated myself.

"She is decent enough." His warm breath brushed my face and I couldn't help the whimper that escaped my throat as I tried to bring my face closer to the warmth.

"She's barely able to hold her head up. One of our own would have healed by now." The words were soft and once again the cloth was shifted over the wound. It was still bleeding and I was still so cold.

"She is malleable. She's the timid sister. She won't break. She will bend." He believed it to be true. It rang in his tone and I would have swallowed if my mouth wasn't so dry. Even a weeping willow branch would snap if bent far enough.

"Mother and father expected-"

"Expected me to bow down to their wishes as if I were some juvenile in training. I was told to get a mate. I have found a mate." There was an edge of a snarl to his voice that had me nearly cowering in my useless body. I was just a tactic, a toy he could use as he wished. He wanted to mould me, shape me into what he wished.

"She is too delicate. You are going to break her." There was a faint sound to the voice that I couldn't place. The words were spoken low and I was at least thankful someone understood that enough force could break anything.

"Then she will be broken. This discussion is over, Arlo." The finality was harsh and the dominance was enough to make me want to curl up. If my limbs weren't numb and tied I would have done just that.

"Yes, Alpha."

"Always so stuffy. You spend to much time with Nexus. I was your brother well before I was your Alpha." There was a softness to his tone, an affection to it that lightened the usually dark cadence to his voice. It became more pleasing and made my heart flutter. I had never had a bond before so I was guessing my reaction were a direct response to it and him. It didn't give me any relief to know my reactions were beyond my control.

"I give you the respect you deserve as my superior." It seemed scripted and rehearsed. Formal.

"You do well with that, Arlo. I appreciate it but one of these days we are going to sit in front of the tv and we are going to play video games until our brains melt." There was a bright spot of laughter to his voice that rolled over my skin, warming me up. "Just like we did when the world wasn't so serious." The laughter faded and the darkness returned, leaving me cold. There was the sound of a throat clearing.

"I... I think I would like that." There was a happy hopefulness to the words. As if the man had waited a long time to hear his brother speak to him like that.

"I know you would. Now get the fuck away from her." The tone had turned deadly and I was immediately let go.

"Yes, Alpha." The warm jacket was pulled off of my and the cloth was left to fall from my neck. I felt my body falling backwards but I was picked up instead, the rope around my wrists being cut as I was pulled onto a lap. I leaned towards the large chest, needing the warmth it exuded. There was the sound of a car door closing before the vehicle started, the rumbling creating an almost soothing background noise. Being held to such a warm person was making me relax.

"She's small." There was a bit of wonderment from the words that rumbled out of the chest I was held tightly to. "Look at her little hands." At large hand picked up one of my own, slowly spreading my fingers out as his touch was soft and gentle. A thumb caressed the back of my hand as large fingers moved my own around. Circulation was coming back to my hands and my wrist was slowly starting to throb with pain.

"Her wrist is broken." It was a snappish tone as another door closed.

"I can see that." it was a harsh reprimand that had a growl rumbling his chest. My hand was dropped and my other one picked up gently, as if careful not to harm the already painful wrist. "Right, little lamb? I can see that and I'm going to fix it." The words were whispered into my ear, hot breath washing over my skin as I slowly started shaking, the cold finally making me tremble. There was the sound of ripping fabric before the hand holding my wrist lifted it up and something was wrapped around the broken joint again and again until it felt like nothing could move it.

"There. Wrapped up tight so it can't move. Feel better?" There was a softness to the tone that had me relaxing a fraction more. The pain was a dull throb that I found I could ignore as I managed to turn my head, pressing my face into his chest. "You are right. You need the rest. Sleep, little lamb. We will be home soon." A hand brushed down my hair before I had another jacket wrapped around me. It's warmth enveloped me and the sharp scent of Malak's scent filled my lungs. Like cold winter's air. I shivered more uncontrollably, my teeth chattering violently and I had a warm hand cup my cheek.

"Shhh, my little lamb. Sleep." The hand pressed my face closer to the chest and I tried to block everything out and fall back into the haze. It wasn't hard and I soon found myself lost in that murky grey. The place where I was tired but unable to fully sleep, the place where everything became distorted and disjointed. There was nothing in that place, soft silence that was blessed with little whispers of the moon. As long as I had her I knew I would be okay. She was my only solace, my only companion. I was all alone in the world without her.

I let her whispers send me backwards, the grey and black swirling around and around until it swallowed me whole.

~~~~~~~~~

I awoke to the sound of echoing footsteps, my broken wrist was a faint afterthought of pain, my sleep healing me as best as it could. I found I was able to open my eyes. I felt my heart stutter in my chest at the darkness. We were underground, away from the reach of the moon, away from her eyes. It was so still, like a tomb and I couldn't help but stiffen up and cling to the man holding me. My hands grasped his shirt tightly in my hands and I held myself close to him. I didn't like the place we were in.

"Cease your grabbing." His voice was harsh as the clang of metal was heard before I was set on my feet, harsh and unforgiving hands prying my hands away from the fabric. I gave a small cry that was cut off as a heavy hand clasped the back of my neck and squeezed. "Come." It was a harsh bark of a word and I was practically dragged down the stone hallway. It was cold and damp and so lonely without the moon's touch. I felt tears well up. The pain of him digging his fingers into was far worse than the pain of being away from the moon's eyes.

I was shoved into a dark opening, the ground disappearing from under me. A scream caught in my throat as terror strangled me. I was flying, flying down down down and I didn't have wings. My heart beat three hard times in my chest before I landed hard against the stones. My hip took the brunt of the fall, the bone cracking from the force. A hoarse scream erupted from my raw throat as it did so before my ribs on my one side snapped as well before my head cracked hard against the unforgiving stone. The scream was abruptly cut off as I saw stars. Pain exploded from my body as I lay broken at the bottom of whatever place I had been thrown into.

"Malak! You didn't throw her, did you?" It was a frantic voice that cut it's way through the painful haze in my brain, my lung rattled as my bones shifted under my skin. I felt like I was going to die. The pain was everything as it refused to let me breathe.

"She wanted to jump from me tonight. I was simply showing her how it felt to actually fall." There was a hard tone to the dark voice, even darker than the shadows that encased me. I couldn't scream. The pain had taken away my voice, the very breath in my chest.

"It could kill her." Frantic panic followed by frantic scrabbling as a light seemed to chase the shadows away.

"She's alive. Broken bones heal stronger." And he wanted me strong. How many more bones would break under his hands in his quest to make me strong? How many more injuries would I sustain? I wanted to weep but the pain had jarred me to a point beyond tears.

"You felt that, Malak. I know you did. How could you?" The voice was closer and so was the light, it burned my eyes as someone quickly hit their knees beside me.

"Easily. I simply pushed her and down she went." He laughed and that aching twisting turned into a heavy throbbing. More pain to go with the pain he had given me. The laughter was choked off from something and there was a pained gasp that mirrored mine as I was rolled onto my back, my bones shifting to the point where it cut off all screams that wanted to erupt. Pain robbed me of my voice, it was blinding in its intensity. "Make sure she doesn't die." The words were spat out and I stared up into the darkness. My chest rattling with my wheezing breaths. Each breath was agony. Each movement was hell. Tears finally slid from my eyes, moving to my hairline.

"So small." The words were choked out and I looked at him as the flame made the shadows of his face flicker. Such soulful brown eyes, such pity, such sorrow. I shifted my gaze to stare up into the darkness. Not even the moon could see me anymore. I was alone. No family to wipe my tears as claws tore my shirt. "I am so sorry."

There was no family to kiss my wounds and hold my hands as he made a deep cut through my skin. it was not a wound to torment but one to seek out what had been broken in my wingless fall to earth. His hands were inside of me as he shifted my bones, pulling shards of them from my chest with panicked breaths. My lungs gurgled and he cursed loudly before calling for help. My eyes slid closed. If help did not come, I knew I would die. I wanted to smile, to tell him to let me go but I couldn't. Words rang through my head as his hands held my bones tight, unwilling to let them slice through my organs once more.

Fly, little maggie bird, fly away.