Done and Dusted.

The night of the full moon passed.

Ocean looked into the infirmary room through the glass, his whole body emitting a dangerous chaotic aura, yet his golden eyes were clear. The contrast made his overly handsome image more unapproachable.

He looked at Kristensen on the bed through the glass door, her face pale because of the loss of blood or fright or fatigue - he couldn't tell but the pale face, along with how bloody he'd found her in the chamber last night - Ocean's eyes narrowed.

"Am I cruel?" He murmured to himself.

It wasn't that he hadn't wanted to intervene before things got to the point where Isaac hurt Kristensen, but why did he have to? How would she grow otherwise?

Ocean's eyes shifted between cold and chaotic. He had a purpose, he told himself, and his pub wouldn't survive if he glove handled her.

He'd had an inkling of what was going on in The Camp, Ocean agreed he'd underestimated the greed those people had. He had thought that as long as he made it clear that Kristensen was his pub, even if they acted against her, they wouldn't endanger her life, but the truth was something else.

Should he simply kill all of them and be done with it? The game wasn't as fun as he thought it would be, and he might lose his pub if he isn't careful.

Ocean tilted his head slightly deep in thought, and the arrival of Tate and Winnie didn't help the situation.

After all, he wasn't the only one who had been careless.

He didn't turn toward the duo; to Ocean - they fell under the same group as Isaac whether they were guilty or not. "Why do you think your friend would target Kristensen like he did?"

His tone was so cold and embedded with his innate alpha command that either Winnie or Tate couldn't wriggle out of.

"We - we don't know. Isaac and Leah were the ones in charge of the chambers last night." Responded Tate in a shaking voice.

To them, although most recruits were going to die, they never thought of the possibility of some dying because of Isaac. When Tate and Winnie thought about it, they couldn't help but feel dread. There was also their alpha house they'd have to explain to -

The duo cussed Isaac so much they wished they could kill him themselves, but they couldn't. They didn't know who took him or where he was taken.

Leah was nowhere to be found, either.

Still with his back towards them, Ocean continued, "You had better have answers about what happened in that chamber the next time we meet, otherwise..."

Tate and Winnie didn't respond as they exchanged alarmed glance, their expressions revealing unwillingness to the situation they had no hand in but Ocean didn't see any of it - his gaze had been on Kristensen since he found her.

Before they could respond, Kristensen stirred inside the room, her eyes fluttering open, and Ocean swifted in, ignoring Tate and Winnie.

Confusion clouded her gaze as she took in the unfamiliar surroundings. "What happened? Where am I?"

Tate and Winnie ushered into the room after Ocean, ignoring his gaze, they deflected Kristensen's inquiry. "Rest for now. We'll talk about what happened later." Winnie insisted, leaving no room for argument.

Kristensen's gaze darted around the three, and images of the previous night played through rapidly in her head. The confusion in her eyes cleared little by little, and she met Ocean's still golden eyes - her breath caught.

"You may leave." Ocean said to Tate and Winnie in a particular cold voice.

The alpha's symbol protected her at the end, and Isaac wasn't dead. Kristensen couldn't bring herself to wonder about where it was or who took it - she was glad she made it out in one piece.

The previous encounter with Isaac made her aware of the immense difference between an old beta and a new alpha. She couldn't be complacent only because she was an alpha or she'd die. Isaac would have killed her if it weren't for the alpha's symbol protecting her at that last moment.

She took a deep breath - how unlucky - she thought, and her body hurt all over.

Should she be grateful that only her body hurt and nothing was permanently damaged? Kristensen snorted in her head. She'd been beating black and blue by a lunatic - without returning the favor, she couldn't help feeling indignant.

"Are you going to continue ignoring me?" Said Ocean after some time. "You know, I saved you."

Kristensen reluctantly turned her gaze towards Ocean. She couldn't explain it, but every time her eyes met his felt like she would lose herself if she wasn't careful, making her shift her gaze almost immediately each time.

Ocean chuckled, making her blush.

"How did you find me?" Kristensen asked with a cough. She will never admit to being intimidated or charmed by him - although she couldn't say she was charmed - at most, she was a girl who admired the opposite sex.

When she didn't get a response, her eyes turned to him again, only to find Ocean's golden ones stuck on her face. Kristensen flushed again.

"Don't tell me the full moon fried your brain." Responded Ocean with a teasing flair.

Kristensen looked at Ocean with confusion all over her face, making her who visage look overly innocent, a deep contrast to her usually composed self.

"I gave you directed before, remember?" Ocean continued, "I went there after the full moon went down. I wanted to see how your first transformation went."

She understood what he was saying, but she didn't think that was all there was. Kristensen wasn't one to probe, so she remained quiet.

The only thing on her mind was, what now? She didn't think it was the end of the damnable ritual, especially with both Isaac and the alpha's symbol whereabouts not within her grasp.

Ocean's eyes narrowed with perturbed emotion as he watched his pub lost in thought. It seemed he had to do something...

"I'll come get you when you're declared good as new." He left before Kristensen could respond.

Kristensen pursed her lips and grumbled. "Who wants to go with you?"

Outside The Camp, a convoy of shuttles made their way through the town - it was a parade many citizens hadn't seen for a long time.

The emblems of different alpha houses on each shuttle made the town lively as people filled the streets to catch a glimpse.

By the time they arrived at the gates, the still waters of The Camp were brewing.

Drew stood with Tate and Winnie as the welcoming party of the alpha house representatives. Her crystal blue eyes filled with disdain as they swept over the spectacle being made.

In her mind, only the House of Ocean Ly deserved to parade wherever it went. Every other house was making a fool of themselves.

To Tate and Winnie, they could barely contain their excitement. It was the first time they had seen so many alpha house emblems in one place.

Drew's disdaining eyes swept over them, "Country bumpkins indeed."

The duo was too excited to take offense.

The alpha house representatives, donned in distinctive, came out of their shuttles uniformly.

Most of the representatives surveyed the area and Drew, Tate and Winnie with discerning eyes - the parties exchanged mocking glances.

"The recruits that made it through aren't here. They're resting after last night. Don't bother assessing us." Drew's stern voice covered the area. "Welcome... welcome."

Tate and Winnie exchange glances, even with their excitement, they couldn't understand why this year was different from the others before.

The recruits that successfully phased through their first transformation had always pledged to their alpha house - though they wouldn't be important members - they always went to House of Caston.

Why was it different this time around?

That wasn't the only puzzling thing. The other was the number of recruits that succeeded in transforming.

Alphas, betas, omegas - the number made up for more than the last three years, and their aptitude wasn't bad either.

The duo couldn't understand what was going on at all.

The party of alpha house representatives were ushered to the central hall by Drew, Tate, and Winnie trailing behind.

They watched their alpha house representative anxiously, trying to catch up and fill in what had happened, but Drew's gaze stopped them in their tracks.

"He won't blame us, right?" Tate whispered to Winnie.

The duo exchanged nervous glances. They could only hope they wouldn't get blamed.

They arrived at the central hall, Drew acknowledged the representatives with a stiff nod, her arrogance all for there to see.

"When can we meet recruits?" Said a burly looking man from the alpha house in Cyan colors.

Drew briefly looked at him but gave no response. She sipped her wine leisurely.

This rundown place - if it weren't for Ocean asking her to come, she wouldn't have known about its existence yet there were alpha houses she recognized amongst the emblems.

How did they know, and why did they send people? She wouldn't believe it was for the recruits. Some had aptitudes, but it wasn't earthshattering or note worthy...

The hall fell into an awkward silence as each party grippled with their own thoughts.

Ocean, his presence commanding the attention of those around him, broke the silence as he entered the hall and made his way to Drew.

He surveyed all the subtle symbols those alpha house representatives adorned and let out a slight smile.

They really couldn't sit still, he mused. Or had the commotion his pub made yesterday too big?

House of Caston Maddison - Ocean's eyes narrowed with untraceable amusement.

He never thought those old men would extend all their arms to The Camp because of that Alpha's symbol.

The game was on...

"I should've been here to welcome you, my apologies." Ocean's lazy voice echoed after he sat down beside Drew, without any trace of apology in his actions.

The alpha house representatives watched him with a mixture of curiosity and respect, respect they couldn't explain. It came naturally.

They exchanged nonsensical greetings and small talk, and Tate and Winnie watched the proceedings with dread.

"Casey," said Ocean after some time, his voice carrying weight that demanded attention, "I hope your alpha is well?"

Tate and Winnie wanted to find the closest exit to escape, but the light smile on Ocean's face had them rooted in their seats.

Casey, whose name was called out of nowhere, looked at others with bewilderment and answered cautiously with a nod, "Alpha Maddison is in good health, thank you."

Ocean's gaze sharpened suddenly and penetrated Casey's facade as he delved into the matters at hand. "Oh? Because we have a situation with an instructor from your house - Isaac. It seems he's been killing recruits. You don't happen to know where he is, do you?"

A hush fell over the hall.

"Isaac? You have it wrong. He used to be of ours but was chased out a while ago." Responded Casey, maintaining his composure and choosing his words carefully.

Ocean's eyes narrowed, his tone deliberate. "How convenient. We find out he's a rogue, and you've expelled him from your house a while ago."

A flicker of uncertainty crossed Casey's eyes, too quick to catch. "Thanks to Alpha Maddison's wisdom, he saw through him and got rid of him before he could implicate our house."

Ocean let out a chuckle. Seemingly, he'd let go of his suspicions.

Tate and Winnie wiped out the nonexistent sweat on their foreheads. As they looked at another, they thought, if we weren't in trouble before, we're in one now.

"Tell your alpha I'll be visiting him soon. I want to see for myself since when has Caston been intelligent."

With that, Ocean left the central hall the way he came, leaving many alpha house representatives clenching their fists and teeth.

Somehow, something had gone terribly wrong.