~Hours Later - Dusk~
"Axel, I'm hungry. Isn't it time we head home? I'm sure mommy and papa are worried about us."
[Yes, it's about time we make our way back. But remember, I'm in charge until we do.]
"Why is that so important to you?"
[Because you have the survival skill of a baby bird.]
Nathan sniffed. "Meanie."
[As long as we're alive, you can call me whatever you like.]
Nathan huffed but let Axel take over again while making their way home. As they got closer the smell of blood saturated the air.
[I don't like this. Something's not right,] Axel whispered as they inched their way into the packs boarders.
"Where is everyone?"
Axel didn't respond, afraid of the answer.
They made their way toward the plaza in the middle of the pack and what they saw made them freeze, hidden in the hedges that framed the large space.
Bodies.
Everywhere.
Some were vampire but most were werewolf. And in the center of it all, on the performers stage, were the Alpha, Luna, their pups and Nathan's parents, bound in silver chains. A tall vampire, obsidian black hair falling to his waist, his cold eyes a deep maroon, paced in front of them.
"Where is the last pup? My resources tell me that the Dark Moon Pack had 49 pups. We've taken care of 46 and the Alpha's two brats are in front of me. Where is the 49th?"
Peter glared at him and spat a glob of blood on the vampire's pristine shirt. "Then your resources are wrong. A pup got sick two weeks ago and died."
The vampire seethed as he stared at the Beta. "This is my favorite shirt. And my resources aren't wrong. They just counted your packs numbers a few days ago. So, I'll ask again. Where. Is. The. Last. Pup?"
Peter didn't falter under his scrutiny. "I guess your resource miscounted."
A hard backhand knocked Peter to the ground, blood flowing from a split lip.
"Very well. Since you don't want to tell me, I'll just have my men search the mountain for them. In the meantime," the vampire gazed past the Alpha and Luna, "I'll start with these ones."
In the blink of an eye he was towering over the two young girls that were shivering and crying. In the next he was holding the heart of one of them, having ripped it out of her chest. He stood there, the heart dripping blood, just staring at it before bringing it to his mouth and taking a large bite out of it.
"Delicious." He said almost conversationally while licking his lips. "Nothing beats a fresh heart. Especially of one so young."
"Claire!" The Alpha's pain-filled scream echoed across the plaza. "You monster! Why are you doing this?! What do you hope to gain?!"
The vampire seemed bored as he answered. "Why am I doing this? Simple. I hate wolves. You're simply parasites on this land. I'm only doing what needs to be done."
Watching all this from his hiding spot, Nathan started shaking, wanting nothing more than to run to his parents for comfort.
[Don't even think about it. You go out now, you'll kill us both.] Axel's sharp words rang through Nathan's head. [We need to leave before we're spotted.]
"But mommy and papa…"
[There's nothing we can do for them. We're outnumbered. The only thing we can do is run. Live to see another day and maybe one day, we can get our revenge on the one who did all this.]
Nathan retreated, leaving Axel to get them away from there, but he wasn't fast enough. Before he could get them more than a hundred feet they witnessed the brutal slaughter of what remained of the Dark Moon Pack.
Axel vowed to himself then and there that he would do everything is his power to protect Nathan and bring vengeance to the vampire who annihilated the entire werewolf population.
For days Axel wandered the mountain, trying to find his way to the base so they could look for a new home. Nathan had retreated to the recess of their mind, grieving and unable to function. Several time they were almost caught but through sheer luck they avoided the vampires and finally managed to get off Dark Moon Mountain.
Over the next century they never stopped moving. Going from one place to another, the only goal survival.
Nathan managed to force the memories into a locked box in his mind, hoping to never revisit them.
Axel taught him as well as he could but it was difficult while sharing the same body. And Nathan never shifted back to his human form since that fateful day.