The Beast's Possession

**Aife

pov**

I did take a nap, one I clearly really needed. The only issue was that after I woke up, I couldn't shake off the odd feeling of something being terribly wrong.

One thing I had learned was that ignoring this gut feeling was the biggest mistake I could make, so as soon as dread filled me, I jumped out of the bed, got dressed and ran downstairs.

In the building, people were mingling as they usually did, nothing out of the ordinary. I didn't see Zion anywhere, so I assumed he had to be down in the cells, having the conversation with Kala.

I really wanted to run there and drag him out to discuss the bad feeling I had, but I fought against the need, knowing how much the time with his mate would mean for him. I would know... Although Bane wasn't my mate, I still valued every moment we had together.

So, instead of everything I really wanted to do, I decided to stay in the living room and wait. After the first fifteen minutes, I couldn't sit around anymore, so I started pacing the room, throwing impatient glances at the watch.

It took thirty minutes for Zion to finally emerge. "Finally," I huffed the moment he entered the living room.

With his eyebrow raised and a look of confusion on his face, Zion stepped closer to me. "If you needed me, you could have sent a guard down to the cells to alert me. What's going on?"

I still didn't stop pacing the living room, and at this point, I started biting my nails, unable to form the words or explain what I felt. Zion clearly had enough of my antics as he stepped right next to me and grabbed my shoulders to stop me, "Aife, talk to me. What is going on? Did something happen to you?"

Since his eyes scanned me for injuries, I knew Zion was growing increasingly more worried with every second I spent in silence.

Huffing, I stepped away from him. "I'm not hurt, Zion. I need to gather my thoughts to explain this."

Raising his hands, Zion took one step back. "Alright, goddess, no need to shift into a hedgehog or some shit. Just tell me you need time, don't blow up on me like that."

All I could do was stare, with my jaw probably hitting the floor. I didn't yell at him, didn't raise my voice or anything. But maybe I did without noticing it?

After slapping my forehead, I ran my hand over my face and groaned. "Sorry." This apology wasn't much, but it was the best I could do for now.

I felt like my mind was all over the place and no matter how much I wanted to set my thoughts straight, they literally avoided my attempts to grasp them.

Once I realized I was growing too frustrated with my own inability to set myself straight, I sat down and focused on my breathing. While this state of stupid confusion wasn't anything I welcomed, what was worse was the fact that the sinking feeling in my gut grew stronger.

"Something's terribly wrong. I don't know what's going on, but something is. I have this feeling in my gut. Zion, I feel like I'm losing my mind, but I'm not joking around... This feeling is..."

Frustrated, I ran my hand through my hair, grabbed a fistful of it, closed my eyes and let out a loud scream. Deep down, I knew acting like this wouldn't help me, but I had to get rid of the weight somehow and I didn't know a better way to do it than screaming out the emotions.

Clearly, at my sudden outburst, more people ran to the living room, all of them looking panicked and ready to jump into battle if there was one.

"Calm down, guys, your Luna is having a little mental breakdown, that's all." Zion muttered, making the situation worse than it was.

I wasn't losing my mind. I wasn't going mental or having a breakdown. Sure, I didn't know what was happening to me, but his assumptions were as wrong as they could be.

"I'm not having a mental breakdown, Zion," I finally snapped. Slowly, I opened my eyes and looked at him and added, "just because I can't explain what is going on doesn't mean I'm losing my sanity, you asshole!"

Every word that left me was sharper than I intended them to be, but if that was what it took for others to take me seriously, I had to do it.

No one expected me to blow up like this, even Zion flinched at my words. "Goddess, there's no need to be so damn rude. Sheesh, Aife, I would never have taken you as the cursing type."

Getting up from my seat, I crossed my arms in front of my chest and glared at him. "Because I don't like cursing, so I try to avoid doing that. If I must for you to take me seriously, I guess I will have to address you as an asshole from now on."

Everyone surrounding us exchanged glances, but no one spoke up. Zion, clearly, didn't get the message as he took one step closer to me and opened his mouth, possibly to scream at me, but at that very moment a surge of pain hit me right in my chest. The scream that left me and echoed against the walls was so terrifying, it was fit for the scariest of horror movies. Right after that, I collapsed on the floor and my body started convulsing with such intensity, I couldn't stop it.

I felt Zion's hand on my shoulder a moment later, but as he tried to lift me, another scream tore out of me. The pain, I couldn't describe it - I felt as if someone was trying to cut me open and pull my guts out of me while I was still fully awake. "Aife, what's going on?" Zion screamed, panic dripping from his words. "Someone go get the doctor, get anyone who can help her. Fucking go, your Luna needs help, can't you see it?"

My hands shot to my stomach as I gritted my teeth and forced out the words, "attack. We're under attack, they're taking our people."

I had no idea why I said those things, but I might have been right. Ever since I slept with Bane, I felt this odd bond with his pack people and now, the pain and everything literally felt like someone was hurting us all and taking what was precious to us.

"Send the patrols out to check the damn borders!" Zion screamed over the voices that started overwhelming me, but the pain didn't fade, if anything, it became worse, more intense.

When Zion attempted to scoop me in his arms, I felt like his skin was burning me, so I couldn't stop the screams of pain from escaping me even if I tried. As soon as he stood up and turned his body to carry me away from the living room, I heard the main door open and footsteps of multiple people approaching us.

Zion ignored them all as he carried me away, but in the distance, I still heard someone scream, "Killian is here, he's taking the rejects and his army is moving towards us now. Alert the Alpha, we need him here!"