Amazing cover art by @squirrelflight1010 ! Sorry this took so long, I was kinda tired/stressed by school, and had no motivation x3 Buuuut here it is now so enjoy ig! :'D (Small needle warning.) Chapter 3: Lupo bucked and struggled against the chain's heavy bonds, his orange eyes wide, exposing the milky whites in his panic. He was trapped, well and truly trapped. There was no escape. This was the end. He was going to die. He tried to howl a distress call, but the chains tightened around his soft throat, and all he managed to emit was a strangled yelp. The first human was slowly getting to his feet now, his dark brown eyes watering, but, despite the obvious pain written all over his pale face, there was a cruel smirk tugging at his lips as he stared down at Lupo, his bitten hand still dripping blood onto the too-clean tiles of the floor. "Boy, he's a tough 'un," the second human commented, slacking the chain a little bit as he started towards the first human. As soon as Lupo felt the vicious, cold chains release from his throat, stars exploded in his head and he collapsed onto the floor, his tongue lolling out of his dry mouth and his orange eyes flicking from one human to the other. "We'd better get 'im to the vet," the first human said gruffly, the brutal smirk still etched onto his lips. "She'll take care of 'im." Take care of me? Lupo thought fretfully, wincing as his head slipped of his paws and his injured jaw hit the hard tiles with a jerk of agony. Kill me more like! He tried to struggle to his feet, but the chain had knocked all the fight out of him, and his legs buckled and slipped underneath him, and he rolled onto his side. "Gerrup you mangy mutt," the second human commanded, tugging the chain viciously. The humans had finally finished their conversation, and both were now looking down at Lupo, their faces a picture of scorn. The hated chain tightened around his neck again, and Lupo coughed, his eyes watering with the pain, and staggered giddily to his paws, the cold tiles slipping around under his sharp, unworn claws. There's no way to escape this time. I am doomed, Lupo thought dully as he limped across the tiles in the wake of the two intimidating humans, his tongue hanging out from his jaw and his tail dragging sadly behind him. The extravagant burst of power and wild hatred he had felt when he had sank his teeth into the first human's hand had died, and been replaced by a dull sense of dread. The mysterious white door approached, closer and closer, seemingly glowing compared to the other mangy brown-and-grey doors. Lupo's heart sank lower and lower in his chest until he was sure he had left it behind. They were right at the white door now, and Lupo's hackles were puffed up in fear and confusion. Why had he been picked to die? It wasn't his fault he was born. It was the human's. He allowed his lip to jerk over his fangs and a low, steady snarl to built up in his throat. He wouldn't go down without a fight. The humans didn't have any natural weapons- their claws were small, smooth and dull, their teeth were rounded like a rabbit's, their hearing and sight and smell were all inferior. Lupo would give the humans a few scars to remember him by, he could assure them that, and that alone. He was disturbed out of his dark thoughts of revenge by the noise of the first human lifting up his good hand and rapping smartly and sharply on the white, smooth door. Twice. Lupo's tail slowly lifted up above his back, and his ears pricked up, cutting the air as he strained to hear for the inevitable noise of the human - 'vet' as the other humans called her - coming to answer the door and take Lupo away. Forever. Lupo's fiery certainty of fighting the humans shrunk inside of him until it was a tiny spark. What good was it fighting humans? When he bit the first human, all it had gotten him was trouble. He couldn't fight them. Despite having no natural weaponry, they were wily and cruel, and could easily come up with a last minute weapon or a defence against onslaught. No, Lupo would have to go down quietly. Perhaps his gentle example would show humans that wolfdogs were not the monsters here? Lupo shuddered. No, humans couldn't be taught anything. They were too far gone to be taught anything by the 'mere' dogs and wolves. He was jolted out of his anxious, terrified thoughts by the neat click of the door opening. The light emitting from the room was so blinding, Lupo had to squeeze his eyes tight for a second before he could make out the silhouette of the 'vet' human standing in the doorway, her sapphire-blue eyes wide and gentle. Lupo felt that same spark of doubt. The 'vet' human looked so gentle and kind, she couldn't possibly be responsible of the evil the other humans had done? Lupo shook out his ears, and allowed his amber eyes to spark with anger for a second. No, this human was no better than the other ones. They were all the same. Cruel, wily, and vicious. (continued in notes and credits)
"This mutt was stupid enough to try bite 'is way out of 'is cage," the second human explained roughly, jerking Lupo's lead for emphasis and making Lupo stagger and cough again, his vision blurring and pulsing as the chains tightened and released around his throat. The 'vet' looked down at Lupo as the second human speed-explained, her blue eyes welling with sympathy. I don't need human sympathy! Lupo thought scornfully, letting a snarl of anger vibrate in his throat, letting the human 'vet' know what he thought of her sympathy. Her sympathy was tinged with wariness, Lupo noticed with a twinge of pleasure, as the second human gestured to the first human's injured hand. Yes, human 'vet', be afraid, be very afraid! Lupo thought, exposing his fangs in a low growl of menace. "I'll take care of him," the 'vet' said quickly, as the second human offered to come in with Lupo. "There's no need to stress him out more." She bent down on her long, gangly legs, and looked Lupo in the eye, her blue eyes meeting his orange ones. Lupo was shocked out of growling for a second by the intensity of the emotion in her eyes, instead of the normal, cruel coldness Lupo usually saw in the human's eyes, he saw fear, sadness, a twinge of anger, and sympathy. Are humans really capable of feeling other than vicious resentment? Lupo wondered, shifting from one paw to another nervously. It still didn't change the fact he was going to die, but the 'vet' was the human he most wanted to die at the hands of. The only nice human in the whole, cold realms of the Breeding Place. The second human handed the 'vet' the chain, still muttering a warning about Lupo's 'vicious temper' and 'sharp teeth'. The 'vet' tugged gently on the chain, and Lupo slowly followed her into the room, his amber eyes flashing over his surroundings for, what he thought, was going to be the final time. It's probably a blessing, he thought dully as the door closed behind him and he slumped onto the floor, a small arc of blood spraying from his jaw and spattering onto the smooth tiles. To be rid of all this pain, this fear, this uncontrollable fury within me... As soon as the two humans were out of sight, the 'vet' visibly relaxed, and her sapphire eyes released their troubled, anxious look as the bent down next to Lupo. "No wonder you're so angry and vicious, I can see how awfully Conner and Barny treat you," she murmured, reaching out one spindly, delicate hand towards Lupo. Me? Angry and vicious? Lupo thought resentfully, but he only half heartedly snarled at her as her hand approached him. This is the end.. I guess... Lupo thought sadly, as he closed his eyes and waited for her hand to grab his neck, or stab him, or something along those lines. But all he felt was a gentle pressure on the back of his neck, and it travelled down his length, making his hairs prickle uncomfortably. What is she doing? He wondered, opening one golden eye to study her crouched form next to him. One hand was supporting her weight, leaning against the tiles, and the other was slowly travelling down his length, over and over again, repeatedly. Admittedly, Lupo found it quite comfortable, a pleasant change from the normal rough, brutal handling he was used to. "Shhh, boy, shhh," the 'vet' murmured, as she stood up, turning her back to Lupo, and walking over to a long, short table in the middle of the blindingly bright room. On the table was a series of different instruments, Lupo shuddered from his slumped position on the ground just looking at them. Were those the instruments used to...? He shivered and curled his bushy tail around his flank, not wanting to think about death before he died. The 'vet' was fiddling with the instruments, brushing them aside one by one, clearly searching for a specific one, one hind foot tapping the tiles almost nervously. At last, her fingers seemed to connect with the favoured one, and the curled her hand around it, lifting it off the table and turning back to Lupo. Her face was now masked, her mouth and nose now covered in a thin layer of papery substance. Lupo's eyes darted to the object held in her hand. It was a sharp, gleaming object, some sort of small container filled with green liquid that smelled odd, with a sharp, pointy thorn stuck on top, seemingly. Lupo stiffened himself, and kept one eye staring at her as he closed the other one. She bent down next to him, and she was so close all Lupo could see of her was her feet coverings and her long legs. He soon felt the thorn sink into the back of his neck. He tried to growl, but no sound came out of his mouth. His eyelids fluttered. No! Lupo tried to howl, but no sound came out of his jaws. He could feel a wave of blackness thundering at the back of his eyes, and slowly, it spread across his vision, obscuring it. The last thing he knew after that, was the sensation of being lifted, and then, fuzzy darkness...
