* * *

Remus' body stilled.

He felt the pang in his heart and his inner beast raging a storm through his chest—His soul.

It felt strange, stranger than anything he's felt before. And it didn't help the Alpha's stressors as he plowed through the house and yelled out Sage's name.

Only to be stopped by none other than Kara, one who had nearly been shoved to the side if he didn't hold the final shred of a relationship with the young female.

The one he nearly called a sister.

"Rem—"
"Get out of my way!"
"You have to be careful! We don't know what's—"

"My mate is down there! Move!" He didn't hesitate to throw her aside, and her gasp was nulled by Andrew. Who caught her on first instinct before gagging at the thought of touching her.
"Do you have a death wish?"

"N-no...I don't. But my Nana was nuts! She always was!"

"You don't need to tell me, I'm the one that was at the receiving end of her intentions if you haven't managed to catch that." He claimed, gesturing to the better half of his face. And Kara frowned, and it occurred to him that she never seemed that disturbed by his scarred features.

And the male didn't know how to feel about it.

"Andr—"

"I am not on your side, nobody is on your side. And if I didn't have the self-control that I do, you'd be dead the second I caught your scent. And you want to know what the funny thing is?" He growled, coming closer to tilt his head into hers—Leaving her to submit to him.

"That nobody would care, not those you share a name with...Not the Luna...Nobody." It was cruel, but he didn't care. Instead, his eyes flickered back toward the basement as he heard the combined roars of Leo and Remus arguing.

He was needed, especially when another Elwood had rushed past him. "Stay here, don't think about moving." He ordered Kara, and he stormed down into the janky basement to see that the others weren't fooling around.

Not when the howls echoing into the damp cellar were growing closer together. "What the hell is this?!"

"Getting a plan together." Leo huffed, offering up a pistol and cocking back his shotgun as he nodded to Jackson and Eli. "We can't afford to lose you, Alpha."

"My mate is in there!" Remus demanded, and Andrew took one look at the pistol and nodded.
"He's right, Remus. We don't know what is there, and if they do recognize you—We're fucked either way. Let us get Sage out of there and we can regroup, we don't have time to argue. Let's go!" Remus shivered, it wasn't often that he was spoken to like that by another Alpha.

The persona was strange, and if anything, his wolf didn't mind having this trusted male take the lead.

He was right, there was too much at stake already. The pack had been pushed to the back of his mind for some time, ever since the trial has begun.

It was after losing Sage, that he didn't care.
But now he held the reigns of Alpha, and he needed to get back into the right mindset.

"You get her back...Swear to me—"

"I swear, brother." Andrew had kept eye contact longer than was necessary, but it emphasized his dedication as he followed the rest of the males—Leaving Remus in the basement alone, watching the glow of the remaining flashlights slowly fade into the abrupt darkness.

Hayden was relying solely on instinct at the mere thought Sage, his daughter, was facing something dangerous without him.
His blood pressure was rising and fueling his rage and fear.

He didn't even process that there was a set of tunnels, no, his body and beast knew right where his pup is.

And her shrieks and yells didn't aid in calming down his fatherly tune.

Upon seeing the scattered beams of lights, he caught the rather horrifying sight of what they were facing.

A dozen males. All of them wearing small shreds of cloth around their body, but their shapes were deformed.
Hunched over, and beyond the regular statue of a wolf.

If they were even considered that at this point.

"What the hel—"

"Papa!" Sage called out, and Hayden growled as he joined the four brave males in making a protective circle around his daughter. Already he caught the smell of blood being spilled on both sides, but they were well outnumbered.

And that's just what Hayes could see a few feet in front, there's no telling what else was lurking around.

"What's going on?!"
"Don't know sir! I think we interrupted their nap and tripped over a few." Liam rushed out, and grunted as shoved back another brave male on the opposite end. And the sound of ripping plastic caused Sage to shiver.

This was bad, really bad.

In trying to take hold of her surroundings, she tried to manage through an idea—Anything at all, to get them out of this predicament. But in seeing the scarred and damaged souls almost bleeding out of their eyes upon every swipe they tried to make, Sage couldn't fight against them.

They were rather limber, crouching low and trying to undermine them with the use of their surrounding. And it didn't help that Sage was soon pushed back behind a wall, one that was significantly wet with something that did not feel or smell like water.

Remmy?

Her link had gone unanswered, meaning something was blocking it—Clakitie perhaps? There wasn't a way to properly know without seeing the substance itself, but whatever it was, it definitely held an influence on these wolves.

"Any ideas?" Blake hissed, grabbing back his arm and kicking back another male. But they didn't look any all deterred from being thrown back multiple times.
If anything—Sage almost thought they looked hungry.

"Beep beep..." She whispered without much of a second thought, and it was clear what she attempting to think of. Those under the Underground's rule were susceptible to the same submissive tactics, such as the tracker being able to give an electric shock when Sage had left the premises.

Now all they needed to find was the Snyder equivalent of it.

"Good thinking Sage, we need to feel against the wall—Anything in the actual basement that we could've used?" Luke asked, and his father huffed. "Nothing. A bunch of books and papers. Unless we missed another panel."

"No, there were no more floor indents, we would've found it. Fuck—Where's the light switch?!" Hayes growled, thankful that the others were giving at least some hindsight to what they walked into.

"Sage?!" The voice had come from the side, and the goddess was it a blessing to see the rays of light starting to appear. "Here! We're here!" She responded to Leo's stressful call while Hayden kept his body in defense of his daughter.
Remaining dutifully at her side.

"SAGE!" Had it been a normal moment, Sage's father would've made a snarky comment at his daughter being so affected by the male.
But even he tilted his head at Andrew's call, feeling the familiar tick of an Alpha's anger.

Andrew had been paired with a few of his own males, in addition to Leo. With the strangers distracted, the light was easily lingering around the room until the lights flickered on. The odd blaring of the fixtures above them had buzzed, and not even a moment later, the skinny males had fallen to the floor in order to cover their eyes.

As Luna, she felt obligated to help and heal them. But nobody in the group had allowed her to get any closer than she is. "What the hell are they?"

"Wolves. They've wolves, they're just..." Blake mumbled, looking towards Andrew with a similar expression gesturing to either. "More Clakitie?" Sage whispered, and her Charge nodded.

"Yeah, some wolves don't react to it the same way. Or it could be a new version." While both she and Remus had discussed that there was a possibility of an unknown, it felt like their preparation was all for not.

Letting these males just wander around the room on their lonesome without any restraints meant that there was something else keeping them there.

"Shit, they're getting used to it...Think we can use any of that stuff?" Hayes questioned, barreling and pushing his way to a rack of oddities that he couldn't begin to understand.

Or would've until he knocked over a sizable bell to the ground. One that sounded as if the world shattered as it echoed back and forth through the cave walls.

Thankfully the advancing males had covered their ears and fell back towards what could be considered sleeping arrangements with tattered blankets and moldy food.

"Sir, stop the noise!" The Alpha didn't understand the plea until he turned over to see that the account survivors of the Underground were withering to the ground as well—But more importantly, his daughter was gasping and trying to hold in the heavy amount of torture as she gripped the wall beside her.

Leo helped Hayes in stopping the sound as even Luke and Liam were getting rather twitchy and submissive with the act of the bell.
"What the hell was that?" Liam questioned and Andrew snarled.
"Seems like the Snyders have the same tactics as the Underground. Is everyone alright?" There were a few nods, but then finally Sage gasped a sob let out, but she didn't look for the comfort of the others.

Instead, she curled up against the wall, trying to sort her emotions and memories to where she is now.

Calista's teachings reminded her of the method, five things. Have to find five things to remember that you're alive and well, and to understand that you're grateful for them.

So Sage gazed around the room. Trying to get her mind to focus on one particular thing at a time.

Answers. She was starting to uncover the much-needed answers to save wolves like them.

The pups. She couldn't wait to cuddle them. Even if they were sleeping, she planned on setting herself in the rocking chair and holding them until the morning.

Remus. Her mate, the male that even after all the trouble she's caused and the stress she puts him under—Is still fighting to be by her side.

Her family. Both adoptive and not, it helped so much to see the concerned looks of both of her fathers while Blake had tried to persuade her attention.

The last one—The last one didn't help her as much as she thought it would. Not when her eyes connected to Andrew's with the same torment she's been punishing herself with since returning to Crescent Moon.

He was the one sitting right in front of her, grasping her face into his hands—His lips moving sporadically, but she couldn't hear a damn thing.

Whatever that sound was, it had taken out her hearing, but thankfully things were starting to return as a gentle buzz started to fill in the different beats of those around her.

However, Andrew was soon pulled away, and she was prepared to shout at her dad for being overbearing yet again.
Instead, it returned to a free-for-all, the dozen of the unnamed deformed turned violent, trying to get through the new scents, and Sage could only stare in awe.

They were fighting for a purpose, that was clear. They were taking cues from one another, and it wasn't until a lone one emerged from the shadows and come towards the Luna.

"Sage!" Blake shouted, throwing the attention to all the wolves in the room. But the number still outmatched them, even with the added rescue party.

The said male, rather bigger than the others, hair tangled and matted against his scalp as he crawled forward and huffed. It caused Sage to tilt her head, her eyes blinking in interest—Something that was returned by the male.

He patted his chest and let out a low growl, and Sage responded with a huff.
While it wasn't threatening, it allowed her to realize that he was the deformed's Alpha.

To return the offering, she gestured up her wrist. The male's nostrils started to go wild as he desperately inhaled her scent again. Hers was indeed the loudest in the room, being the only female.

But the high rank allowed the male to know now.

The stranger had offered his own in response, taking another step forward. And while his smell nearly caused her to gag and her eyes to water, she remained aware of the situation and offered a smile.

"Sage." She offered with a tap of her chest. And the male caught the action as his eyes flickered from her eyes and back down to her chest. "Sh-a-ge." The male repeated, and her eyes sparked up in joy. Yet it was instantly downplayed as those in Sage's party were working in a panic to return back towards her.

Yet the Deformed Alpha had turned his back towards Sage as he growled in defense of her own party, and that had caused the majority of the room's hostility to tone down.

Eyes had shifted between either side, but Sage remained behind the stranger and sighed in relief. Her hand had reached to him, having removed her glove and managed to offer skin contact with him.

In response, he purred.

Clearly, they were touched starved and Sage knew the feeling very well. Her gaze connected off towards Liam as his eyes softened—There was a time back in the Underground when Sage craved a friendly touch.

His friendly touch.

"It's okay...Okay." Her voice was a blessing to the other males as they slowly came forward to sit nearby, but that didn't stop Andrew from stalking over with a protective glare.

With a firm growl from Andrew, the imprisoned Alpha tilted his head and began to back away with a look of curiosity. Though his eyes continued off towards the next cave dwelling.

"What's there?" Sage questioned, and where the words had failed the deformed group of males. It was clear that they longed for whatever is further down in the connecting tunnels.

And it didn't take long for the Luna to realize what was that important to a male. They had answered this question before, to control a male—All one would have to do is take control of their female.

"Take them to Infirmary," Sage whispers, getting to her feet with a firm expression that caused the others to either tilt their head or share their own opinion. "No. They stay here too long, send them upstairs. I want Ellie, Julia, and Aurora to help with these males. They don't like other males." Luke smirked and nodded his head, turning over to his father and leaning in to get the call in.

"Might have to lead them that way, Sage. If they don't like males, they won't listen to us." Sage nodded, her gaze trying to figure out a way to get these males out.

But they were not leaving without force, and once again, they were defending and protecting whatever is in the next cave.

Upon searching the rest of the room, Sage hissed out a warning to her father and shook her head frantically. "No, not water."

"What? It's moving like—" It made sense as to why the strangers looked like they did, if this was their water source then they were getting a direct intake of the very thing that was slowly killing them.

"It feels like a burn, Hayes. Shouldn't let them drink any more of it." If the males wouldn't leave without their tempted mate, then Sage wanted some supplies to come this way.

Eli and Caleb had gone forward and returned back towards the Snyder's basement to make the first of many care packages.
And the wait is what killed Sage the most.

She looked at the males with sadness in her eyes, seeing the outline of their bones, the hardship gleaming in their expressions. But the smell surrounding them was only a brutal reminder that they were here for goddess knows how long.

"We'll help them, and if not Crescent Moon then Harlow will help them." Sage shook her head, nicking her head forward with a rush in her step. "They are from Crescent Moon."

"What?" Luke growled, and Sage took another inhale—Though needed to put back on the mask as she felt a wave of nausea returning to the back of her throat. But she didn't complain, not when she was probably the bridge between another attack or not.

But when the Deformed's Alpha had come forward to tug off her mask, Sage realized that perhaps the idea of a mask resulted in identity—As Kara mentioned that her family would hide their identity behind masks.

Leaving Sage to suffer the combined smells all over again, catering to their comfort in every way she could, even if their joint attention was still focused on the next cave.

______

Date: 05/12/23

Time: 9:53 (I tried, but failed)

Words: 3094

Author's Note:

And welcome to the next phase! The Full Moon is only staying for another chapter, then we're onto even bigger things!

But look at what's been uncovered! The Deformed or Mutated strange wolves are in fact Crescent Moon wolves, not well known to the characters we know and love now, but they are someone's father or son.

Safe to say that the Snyders had gotten easy with their settlement, but that begs the question, can Kara be forgiven?

Perhaps in the heat of the moment, everyone is struggling to get answers and are pinning their hatred on her, but at the end of the day, she's barely surpassed legal age.

One little Omega female can only do so much. But her redemption arch is on it's way!

BUT....

There is some very very exciting announcement!
I could hardly wait for today's upload because I received the best news on Tuesday!

That's right!
Lacking Humanity|Crescent Moon has been given the Alpha Award!

Someone get the tissues because I'm crying! Again!

I'm going to be posting an announcement right after this chapter, but check out the sticker on the Crescent Moon cover🥹🥺

On that note, I plan on updating all the covers (Basically I'm just taking out the moon, I think they look a little too crowded). So don't be alarmed if it looks a tiny bit different!

Alrighty, that was a lot! I hope you all have an amazing weekend and I hope to see you all for the next update for The Brave Human Mate.

If not, Monday it is✨