KOL and Elara were enjoying their free time playing horse and warrior princess when KOL suddenly widened his eyes, while Elara, who was on top of him, merely glanced to the side.
"What the fuck is that? That disgusting, wrong, filthy feeling?" KOL asked, disturbed. "Uhhhmm—"
And he let out a groan because Elara had no interest in stopping what they were doing.
"Just an alpha being born. It's pretty rare for a wolf to become an alpha nowadays." Elara didn't stop, speaking with complete indifference and a growing expression of pleasure before rolling her eyes. "Yesssssss."
"Wait, what?" KOL got up so fast that he accidentally threw Elara onto the bed. "You're telling me that sinister, disgusting aura is coming from a werewolf?"
"Fuck, KOL." Elara sat up, annoyed. "I was just getting to the good part."
"Hey, answer my question." KOL was still disturbed by the sinister energy.
"Yes, yes." She got up, shoved KOL back onto the bed, and climbed on top of him again. "Now let's continue."
"No." KOL rolled away and escaped. "You're going to explain what the hell is happening."
"Aahhh." Elara made a face of boredom mixed with frustration. "Yes, yes, yes, my sweet little love, that's not a normal wolf, it's an alpha. A werewolf that killed the inner wolf and took control of the curse. Do you seriously think a curse made to hurt its host would be as cute as the vampire one that was made to protect? Now come back, let's go back to what we were doing."
"No," Kol answered. "You're not explaining this properly. I need a detailed explanation."
KOL kept pacing around the room restlessly.
The sensation of that aura still crawled across his skin like something wrong, ancient, and hostile.
Meanwhile, Elara was sprawled out on the bed staring at the ceiling with the expression of someone whose patience was slowly dying.
"Kol."
"No."
"I didn't even say anything."
"You were about to tell me to come back."
"Because I want you to come back."
KOL pointed irritably toward the window.
"THERE'S AN APOCALYPTIC WOLF BEING BORN SOMEWHERE."
"And?"
He turned toward her in disbelief.
"And?!" KOL repeated. "How is your answer 'and'?!"
Elara let out a tired sigh and rested her head on her hand.
"Because that's not my problem."
"You literally just said that thing is an alpha."
"Yes."
"And that doesn't worry you?"
"No."
She answered so quickly and indifferently that Kol became irritated all over again.
"How do you act like this is normal?"
"Because it is normal," Elara answered. "Rare, but normal."
Kol ran a hand over his face.
"I hate when you say absurd things like you're talking about the weather."
She completely ignored the complaint.
"Any werewolf can become an alpha," she explained with disinterest. "But almost none of them succeed."
"Because they have to 'kill the wolf,'" Kol repeated slowly.
"Yes." She answered. "Most of them mentally break before that. Others become irrational creatures." She shrugged. "The ones who survive become… that."
Kol looked outside again.
"That aura is horrible."
"Werewolves are horrible," Elara answered immediately.
There was no anger in her voice.
No emotion.
It sounded like an objective fact.
Kol noticed that.
"You hate wolves."
She stayed silent for a few seconds before answering:
"I don't like them."
"That's the politest answer I've ever heard from you."
"I'm trying to get back to my peaceful afternoon."
Kol ignored that.
"Wait." He narrowed his eyes. "You knew about alphas before."
Elara slowly closed her eyes like someone realizing this conversation was lasting way too long.
"Yes."
"How?"
"…Because wolves are a race older than us vampires."
"Don't do that."
"You asked."
"ELARA."
She opened one eye.
"There were wars."
Kol froze.
"Wars?"
"Secret ones," she answered. "Between alphas and noble vampires."
The room became completely silent.
"…Excuse me, what?"
"They ended centuries ago," Elara answered with total indifference. "The alphas lost."
Kol blinked several times while trying to process that.
"Wait. Wait." He pointed at her. "You're telling me there was a gigantic supernatural war and my family, THE ORIGINALS, DIDN'T KNOW?"
"Of course not," Elara answered. "It was far too problematic to let you find out."
Kol immediately looked offended.
"That was insulting."
"It was factual," she corrected. "You are strong, but reckless, and I already told you the story of the Nobles. We basically cleaned up your messes and tried to reduce Persephone's workload, but you kept causing problems in wolf territories." She made a lazy gesture with her hand. "The Nobles solved problems before they reached you."
Kol stared at her.
"You're telling me there was a war against alphas happening behind my back?"
"Yes."
"I would've loved participating in that war."
"Exactly why we hid it."
Kol opened his mouth… and slowly closed it.
That made way too much sense.
Kol now looked genuinely irritated.
"Are there MORE things I don't know about the supernatural world?"
"Obviously."
"I hate this."
Elara simply opened her arms toward him.
"And I hate that you're standing there all scared in the corner instead of inside me…" Elara said in a seductive voice and pose.
Kol completely ignored that.
"So the alphas lost the war…"
"Because they were few," Elara answered, even more frustrated and irritated at being ignored. "Creating an alpha is difficult. Losing one is easy."
Her voice remained calm.
Cold.
Distant.
"After the war, the survivors hid themselves away in isolated packs. They created non-aggression rules against vampires." She shrugged. "Since then they avoid conflicts."
Kol narrowed his eyes.
"You participated in that war."
Elara stayed quiet for a moment.
"Yes."
"How many alphas did you kill?"
She looked at him with a blank expression.
"Many."
It didn't sound like a threat.
Nor pride.
Just an old fact she no longer cared about hiding.
Kol felt a slight chill.
Not because of the violence.
But because of her complete indifference.
"And you're this calm… knowing one was born."
"They always get born again eventually," Elara answered. "Wolves keep trying."
"You talk about them like pests."
"Because they're persistent."
Kol stared at her in disbelief.
"You're terrifying."
"Kol," she answered for what felt like the thousandth time, clearly losing patience now. "I do not want to discuss magical dog sociology."
Then she pulled his arm again.
"I want you quiet for five minutes."
Kol looked at her.
Looked at the window.
Felt that horrible aura crawling through the city once more.
Then he pointed accusingly.
"If that alpha destroys something, I'm blaming you."
Elara finally smiled a little.
"If it survives a week, then maybe I'll consider caring."
—+++---
"Ohhhhh one of my creations mastered its punishment. I thought none of them would succeed in this era hahahahah!"
A shadow laughed in the middle of an abandoned temple.
—++—
"Oh my god." Davina fell to the floor with her hands on her head. "What the hell is this?"
"Davina, what happened?" Marcel ran toward her. "Why are you curled up like that?"
"You don't feel it, Marcel?" Davina answered with her hands on her head. "That bizarre energy? It's way worse than the energy from you vampires."
Marcel looked confused.
What the hell was happening in the city?
—++---
Hayley was getting absolutely destroyed.
She thought she could defeat Caroline after becoming an alpha.
It was true that she could now use all of her powers whenever she wanted, but she was still getting beaten horribly by Caroline.
It made no sense.
Werewolves were supposed to be stronger than vampires.
But after being kicked into a wall by Caroline, Nik's words came back to her mind.
Werewolves were not stronger than vampires.
They only reached their maximum potential once they activated the curse, while vampires kept getting stronger with age.
But just how old was Caroline?
Or was Nik's bloodline somehow different?
Hayley tried to bite Caroline, since Caroline had resistance to werewolf venom, so it wouldn't kill her.
But Caroline's arm transformed into black metal, and all Hayley felt was agonizing pain in her teeth and a shattered jaw that healed immediately afterward.
She had the semi-immortality of werewolves.
The only difference from vampire immortality was that werewolves did not come back from death the way vampires did unless they were killed by things other than wood through the heart, total heart destruction, or decapitation.
Hayley fully transformed.
But Caroline dominated her wolf form as well and pinned her to the ground, forcing her back into human form.
Nik appeared at the exact moment Hayley was forced back into her human form.
He immediately looked away.
"…Seriously?" Nik muttered with obvious discomfort while ripping off his own shirt and throwing it toward her without properly looking. "Put this on."
Hayley, still lying on the floor and breathing heavily from the brutal beating she had just received, blinked in surprise.
Caroline crossed her arms while watching that.
"You literally smashed through a wall trying to bite me and the first thing he does is give you a shirt," she commented dryly.
Hayley slowly put the shirt on, still trying to process the fight.
She had become an alpha.
A true alpha.
And Caroline had still dominated her without even seeming tired.
That completely shattered everything Hayley believed about vampires and werewolves.
But then something else caught her attention.
Nik still refused to look directly at her.
That made a small smile appear on her face.
"Are you nervous?" Hayley asked with rough amusement.
Nik immediately looked offended.
"No."
"You threw the shirt without even looking."
"Because I have manners."
Caroline rolled her eyes.
"He's uncomfortable," she answered mercilessly.
Nik pointed at Caroline irritably.
"Thanks for the support."
Hayley laughed a little despite the pain.
Then she tilted her head while watching Nik.
"Funny…" she commented slowly. "You faced absurd supernatural monsters without hesitation… but you got shy around me."
Nik froze for a second.
Amara, who had been quiet until now, slowly raised her eyes.
The atmosphere instantly became strange.
Hayley was still overwhelmed by the aggressive confidence of her newly awakened alpha form and didn't realize her mistake.
"Maybe I should test that more often," she teased.
The next second Hayley's eyes widened.
An agonizing pain tore through her neck.
She collapsed onto the floor clutching her throat while blood started pouring through her fingers.
Hayley tried to breathe in panic.
Nothing came.
She could feel her life slipping away.
"AMARA," Nik immediately said.
The illusion vanished.
Hayley violently sucked in air while touching her intact neck, completely terrified.
Amara watched her with a calm and disturbingly empty expression.
"You flirt a lot for someone who just got beaten up," she commented.
Caroline smiled slightly.
"The confidence apparently came with the alpha package."
Hayley looked at the two of them, finally understanding how dangerous the situation was.
Nik ran a hand over his face.
"You two are completely insane."
"And she was provoking you," Caroline answered immediately.
"She was joking."
"She was flirting," Amara corrected coldly.
Nik opened his mouth to respond, but Caroline simply pointed toward the door.
"Out."
He blinked.
"What?"
"Adult girl conversation," Caroline answered. "Girls only."
"This never ends well."
"Out, Nik."
Amara merely looked at him.
Nik immediately recognized that look.
He sighed in defeat.
"Don't kill her."
"No promises," Caroline answered.
"THAT DOESN'T HELP!"
Even while complaining, Nik left the room.
The door closed.
_++
Hayley remained quiet after Amara's politely terrifying threat.
The silence became awkward for a few seconds until Caroline sighed and uncrossed her arms.
"Look…" she started in a calmer tone. "We're not trying to attack you."
Amara lightly nodded.
"We genuinely like you."
Hayley looked between the two of them, still cautious.
"You could've shown that without the murder illusion."
"That was emotional communication," Amara answered with complete seriousness.
Caroline covered her face trying not to laugh.
"She's trying to improve socially."
"I'm doing very well."
"You traumatized the girl."
"But the message was understood."
Hayley stared at the two of them for a few seconds before finally letting out a tired laugh.
That eased some of the tension.
Caroline then sat in front of her.
"Listen." Her voice became more sincere. "I know how this looks from the outside."
Hayley frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"Me, Amara, and Nik," Caroline explained. "A lot of people look at our relationship and turn it into some weird fantasy."
Amara made a mildly irritated expression.
"As if Nik has a harem."
Hayley looked away for a moment.
That alone was enough of an answer.
Caroline noticed immediately.
"Yeah." She sighed. "Exactly that."
Hayley looked embarrassed.
"I didn't exactly think of it like that…"
"But part of you assumed the rules were different," Amara calmly completed.
Hayley stayed silent.
Because they were right.
The way the three of them acted around each other… the intimacy, the closeness, the naturalness…
At some point her mind had simply associated that with looser boundaries.
Caroline rested her arms on her knees.
"Our relationship is not open," she said directly. "It never was."
Amara nodded.
"We chose each other," she said. "That doesn't mean other people are included."
Hayley swallowed hard.
"I…" She ran a hand over her face, frustrated with herself. "I think I got carried away."
"The alpha aggression made it worse," Caroline answered. "Dominance instincts, provocation, confidence…" She pointed at Hayley. "You're feeling all of that for the first time."
"But it's still your responsibility to control it," Amara added.
Hayley slowly nodded.
"Yeah," she admitted. "You're right."
She let out a slow breath before continuing:
"I think…" She hesitated slightly. "Part of me made assumptions about you without realizing it."
Amara tilted her head while observing her.
"Social prejudice," she answered. "It happens often."
Caroline rolled her eyes.
"People see two women with one man and immediately turn it into some limitless mess." She grimaced. "It's irritating."
"Especially because Nik is way too emotionally dramatic to survive an open relationship," Amara commented with a laugh. "And he barely survives the two of us already, and only I have PMS because I'm still technically 'alive.'"
Despite the tension, Hayley ended up laughing.
"That sounds true."
"It's very true," Caroline confirmed.
Hayley stayed quiet for a few seconds before looking sincerely at the two of them.
"Sorry," she said genuinely this time. "I didn't mean to disrespect you."
Amara studied her for a moment.
Then slowly nodded.
"We know."
Caroline smiled slightly.
"And honestly?" She shrugged. "We know you admire Nik a lot. You're basically one of his fans. With your hormones at maximum because you just became an alpha, you're probably confusing what you feel for Nik, and I can tell you right now that it's not love and it's not attraction."
"It really is," Hayley admitted tiredly.
"Just don't direct it at our boyfriend," Caroline answered casually.
"Or I'll bring back the neck stabbing illusion," Amara added politely.
Hayley immediately raised her hands.
"Message received."
Caroline finally relaxed for real.
"Good." Then she smiled slightly. "Because I genuinely don't want to stop liking you."
Hayley stared at her for a moment before sighing.
"You two are absurdly intense."
"And you flirted with the wrong man," Amara answered calmly.
"Definitely," Hayley muttered.
Outside the room, Nik was still leaning against the wall looking like someone waiting for a death sentence.
When the door opened and Caroline stuck her head out, he immediately asked:
"Is she alive?"
Amara appeared behind her.
"Physically and emotionally."
Nik let out a relieved sigh.
"You people are terrifying."
"People keep saying that today," Caroline commented thoughtfully.