Chapter Two
The man opened her cage and reached inside, grabbing her by the scruff of her neck and holding her up. She stood there, frozen in fear as the man put a collar around her neck and clipped a chain to it. He began to pull on the chain but Ember wouldn't budge. She stood there frozen in fear as her eyes filled with tears. The man yanked the chain, sending her toppling forward.
Once she was upright again he pulled on the chain until she came closer to him. She shook her head rapidly trying to move away but he grabbed her by the scruff of her neck and pulled her face closer to his. "Stop resisting mutt."
He released his grasp on Ember's jaw, allowing her to drop to the floor. He then grabbed the chain and yanked her forwards. Ember had no other choice but to follow so she kept some distance between her and the man. The man stood at the door waiting for the others to pick a wolf to bring upfront, once they made their choices, they walked through the door and down a hallway.
The hallway opened up to a semi big room full of caged wolves and other animals she's never seen before. The cages in this room were slightly larger than the ones in the back room. They had more bedding and cleaner looking food and water bowls.
The first wolf to walk past her was a female. She had light blue fur and long golden tusks, with deep green eyes and she was taller than Ember. She was put into one of the empty cages and soon after, Ember was placed in the cage next to hers. Wolf after wolf was placed into the empty cages until there was none left.
When the room was empty apart from the caged wolves and animals, Ember yelled out for her mom. No response. She began to panic and paced around the cage yelling out for her mother, hoping she'd hear her and respond to her despite her not being in the same room. As tears streamed down her face, she layed down , resting her cheek on her paws as she cried quietly in misery.
While laying there, she felt someone nudge her side. She lifted her head and saw the blue wolf from earlier. "Come closer pup" She said as she scooted closer to the bars between their cages. Her voice was so calm and soothing, it reminded her of honey. Ember slowly inched her way over, keeping her belly close to the ground and her tail tucked between her legs.
"Relax, I won't hurt you." She said softly. Once Ember determined the wolf was telling the truth, she quickly made her way over and pushed herself as close to the wolf as she could, feeling the wolf's soft blue fur against hers. "What's your name kid?" The wolf asked in a soft tone. "Ember.."
"My names Aerwyna but you can just call me Wyna for short." Ember gave a tiny nod at her. "I heard you calling for your mom, were y'all brought in together?" "Yes.." She answered while looking down at the floor. Wyna noticed how upset Ember seemed. She reached down and nuzzled behind her ear. "What's your mom's wolf form look like?" Aerwyna asked. "She has brown fur with white patches on her chest, white paws and white ears."
"I don't remember any wolf like that being brought in here so she may still be in one of the back rooms." Wyna replied. Ember nodded her head but kept quiet. "Shut up you stupid mutts!" A man called as he walked in the room. His voice boomed throughout the room. Wyna and Ember tensed immediately. Wyna growled and glared at the man. Ember shrunk back a little. "You better watch it you little bitch, you're on your third strike. One more and it's lights out for you." The man snarled. Ember flinched slightly at his words.
Wyna let out a low growl causing the man to chuckle. "No food for a week, let's see how you behave then." With that, he went to walk away but stopped when Ember spoke. "You can't do that, she'll starve!" The man laughed and looked towards Ember. "I can do whatever I want. Here, y'all have no rights, no say in what happens to you. You may have been mighty beasts that once roamed the woods but now you're nothing more than dogs. You're gonna learn that soon enough." He laughed and walked away.
Ember looked at Wyna who looked very annoyed. "Who are these people..?" Ember whispered. "They sell us to humans as slaves, playthings, maids .. Anything you can imagine. Some of us end up in mansions as maids, others end up in small families as pets and some are sold for meat and fur. Most die young... It depends on the situation and who walks in that door. " Wyna said, her eyes showing anger. Ember couldn't believe her ears.
"Get some sleep, tomorrows going to be a long day." Wyna says as she lays down on her pile of straw and closes her eyes. Ember does the same and lays down on her own pile of hay as the darkness begins to wrap itself around her.
A couple hours later Ember wakes up as a loud scream is heard from the other side of the room. Wyna stirs awake instantly. "Where's my daughter?! What'd y'all do to my little girl!" "Mommy!?" Ember cries as she pushes up against her cage bars. "Ember?! Are you alright?! Have they hurt you?!" Her mother's frantic voice filled the room.
"Move along ya worthless pieces of trash!" A man yelled while kicking Ember's mother in the side. Tears began to fall from Ember's eyes as she watched her mother limp away. "Don't hurt her! " Ember bawled. The man simply chuckled as he kicked her mom again. "Go back to sleep you stupid bitch and stop crying before I give you a real reason to cry." He said menacingly.
| A/N - Forgot to mention that Ember's mother is named Athena (･ω･*) |
"Don't fucking touch her! " Athena snarled while lunging at the man, gripping his arm in between her jaws. The man grunted in pain before slamming her into the wall. Hearing the ruckus, two men came running from the back room carrying chains. They managed to restrain Athena by putting chains around her neck and waist.
Once restrained, she continued to thrash around, biting at the chains and the men restraining her. But eventually, the men were able to pin her down by placing a foot on her neck and one on her back. "What a stupid bitch." The man said while pulling down his sleeve to cover his wound. "Kill her." He spat while walking away.
Ember's heart sank in her chest after hearing what was said. "No, leave her alone! " she shouted. The men chuckled as one pulled out a gun. "Close your eyes, Ember." Wyna whispered in her ear. "It's going to be okay.." Ember stared at her mom, frozen in fear. She watched as the man put the pistol right between Athena's eyes and pulled the trigger.
All sound ceased once the shot was fired.
Ember sat there staring blankly at the scene unfolding. She hadn't realized that her mother's dead body had already fallen limply to the floor.
Her mind couldn't comprehend what just happened in front of her. "No..no..no.." Ember sobbed as she fell to the ground crying. "Shhh pup don't cry....it's going to be alright." Wyna tried to calm Ember down. She wasn't going to listen though. Wyna tried her best to comfort Ember but nothing seemed to work. The door opened and everyone looked towards the entrance, seeing three men come inside. Two were tall and muscular whereas the other one was short and chubby.
The two taller men started looking around while the shorter one waited at the front desk. Soon after, the same men from earlier came out from the back rooms. "Clean up this mess." One of them said while pointing to Athena's lifeless body. "Yes sir." The other two responded as they worked together to move Athena.
"Gabriel, to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" The man said as he approached the front desk. "I've come to buy another wolf." Gabriel said nonchalantly as he leaned against the desk. "Oh? What happened to the female wolf you bought from me last month?" "Nothing, I've come to get a breeder male for her." Gabriel replied.
"Well then take a look around and let me know which ones you're interested in. The majority of the males are in the cages in the back of the room." The other man said as he pointed towards the far end. Gabriel glanced at Athena before turning back to the man. "Thanks." Gabriel said, pushing himself off the desk.
He walked over to the cages and checked each one, searching among the specimens.
After ten minutes of searching, he came across a gray and black Wolf-dog hybrid. "That one's not too bad." Gabriel stated. The man who was helping him approached. "This hybrid is perfect for her. How much will it cost?" Gabriel asked casually. "$5500" "Deal."