Autumn Commander Timari

James' POV

I'm frozen in place watching in slow motion as my father tears Cody from my arms by his hair, Cody's gasp of pain a fierce dagger to the heart. The silence is screaming in my ears as my heart stops and kicks into overdrive all at once, brain refusing to process the image in front of me.

"You sick, disgusting excuse of an Alpha. Who the fuck do you think you are?" His words are chilling, sharpened nails scraping against my skull, goosebumps rising on my arms.

'Fuck, fuck, fuck.' I hear Sloan whisper to himself, his presence stringing more and more as he tries to calm down.

My eyes are stuck to Cody's and I hate it, wanting to look away, but unable to, my father hands siphoning the life from my precious light. My body is shaking, though the earth is still, and it feels like I can't quite catch my breath.

"Don't fucking ignore me, boy!" My father roars, and I see a few Omegas in a crowd cower, baring their necks in submission against their will, fear and resentment etched into their faces. The stronger wolves are able to resist, but a few still grit their teeth with the effort. "I thought I told you to stay with Jessica until you found your Mate. Did you let that faggot weak fucking wolf of yours convince you to let this Omega shove his dick up your ass? How can you lead our pack if you can't even tame your own beast?! You're a goddamn embarrassment. A fucking disgrace. It's time I come back home for good and get you back in line. I've given you too much fucking freedom. And that ends now." His voice is feral, though low and controlled, his anger a burning arrow aimed straight for my head.

'No, no, no, no.' Sloan continues to mutter to himself, his worst nightmares coming to fruition the fragile dreams we dared create crumbling before our eyes like nothing.

Devastation shoots through me, despair quickly settling in my chest as I stare at my father in horror.

He always told me he was my creator. That he held the strings of my destiny in his hand, with me attached to the other. And for all my life that's been the case.

Just when I think it can't get any worse, I see Jessica at the edge of the crowd, tears rolling down her cheeks as she shakes her head at me, anger rolling off of her in waves. The reminder using being busy as an excuse to end things rather than being honest and the promise that I someone continue to break. And now I don't have the chance to clear things up or apologize. I can only stand there and stare as she runs off, the muffled sound of her cries crystal clear to my accursed wolf ears.

I turn back to my father, my mind hazy and slow as I'm faced with the image of Cody hanging in the air. His hands are clawing and I see his face getting red, fear pulsing through me as my brain starts to finally process what's happening.

Panic settles through me, and I realize he's waiting for an answer, I go to give him one, not wanting to irritate him further, still trying to clear my head. "Exactly. Cody's birthday isn't for another two weeks, but Sloan and I are pretty sure he's my Ma-." In a blink of an eye, Cody is thrown on the ground, gasping harshly, and my face is stinking from the slap my father plants on me. There's a collective gasp of the pack, the first time my father has ever laid his hands on me in public.

"You're wolf doesn't get an opinion. And like you said, it's not the runts birthday so you don't know. But if that's really the case, maybe if I get rid of him, Celeste will see fit to grace you with someone worthy of the title Luna. Not this sad half-human excuse of a wolf." He spits, a vein popping out in his forehead.

I feel like I'm drowning, my body shaking so bad, I feel like I can almost hear it rattle.

I'm frozen, unsure what to do. What to say, my mind at war with itself my body stuck in the face of my own indecisiveness.

And I'm failing. I know I am. I say I love Cody and that I will protect Sloan, but here I am. Look at me. Falling apart the moment things get hard. How pathetic.

I feel myself start to slip away again, the shame and guilt unbearable, the pain in Cody's eyes inexcusable. But just as I go to let go, six people are suddenly surrounding the three of us, my father turning around in confusion. I want to cry when I see who it is: Zee, Alex (who helps Cody off of the ground, placing his arm around the Omega to help support him), Charlotte and my three Warrior Commanders.

"We're with you, Alpha James." Titan says and Zee and Charlotte nod in agreement while Alex winks, his grin wide despite the tense mood.

"Damn straight, boss." Johnathan agrees and Timari gives me an encouraging smile.

'James. I want to do it. I want to be the one that banishes him.' Sloan says, surprising me. I can tell our friends support means a lot to him, as it does for me, and I notice a calmness there that wasn't before.

Knowing that he needs this even more than me, and accepting he seems more prepared to face him than I am, I concede, but not before I offer my own support. 'I'm sorry I failed to protect you again, Sloan. Thank you for being stronger than me.' I tell him and I mean it.

'Thank you.' He answers before we switch places and I give Sloan the stage he never was allowed all our lives.

✨✨✨

Sloan's POV

When I open my eyes, I find myself feeling oddly calm, my body still and centered as I move from my petrified statue and instead towards the man that raised me.

I stop when we're only a foot apart, close enough that I know he can see my black eyes, know that it's me that's saying what I need to say.

"You were never my dad, you know. You were always just the Alpha-"

Before I can continue, he lunges, but I don't flinch, instead, I watch with almost a cold detachment as Johnathan and Titan wrestle him down onto his knees, Charlotte attaching a mana dampening cuff to his leg to keep him from shifting.

"I'm not going to just fucking sit here and let you say whatever the fuck you want, you demon. You've always been the reason-" in a flash, his mouth is gone, replaced by a smooth piece of flesh. I turn and find the Warlock that broadcasted the race smiling.

He shrugs before offering an explanation. "It didn't seem quite his turn to do the talking."

The rest of the pack of silent, looking at me some of them nodding their encouragement.

After taking a deep breath, I continue what I was saying. "Your only concern was training me to be like you one day. Only I didn't want to be you. I'm not politically savy or talented at hand to hand combat, but I'm clever, and charming, and I know how to fucking talk to people. I know how to respect and love people for who they are, not for who I think they can be. When you degraded me. When you refused to acknowledge me or call me your son, I was willing to look past that to love you, because I knew your anger came from your love and passion for our pack and your need to make sure of our strength. But when you beat us and told us we deserve it, when you had my own mother heal me so you could over your tracks, when you had her lie and turn her back on me, I knew that my love wasn't doing anything but being wasted. When I saw the way you treated the very pack you claimed to love, that was the last straw. But still James loved you, still, James aches for your approval and all you do is beat him and tear him down. He's done a phenomenal fucking job running this pack, even mending a decade long feud YOU started with our sister pack. He's twice the Alpha you'll ever be. And with acrylic nails, extensions, heels or not I'm a hundred times the man you could ever dream of being. Cody is my Luna and I am the Alpha. So don't show you face back here. I'll leave Charlotte, Titan and the Warlock to escort you to the border. Try anything, and I'll ship your ass to Vilin so fast, your head will spin till you see a double fucking rainbow. I hope you die in sweet sweet agony, daddy. See you never." I tell him with a calm heart and full smile, giving him a wink as Johnathan hands him off to Charlotte, Titan and the Warlock at the rear as they go to transport him to the Rougelands.

As they walk away, I turn towards the crowd and realize who the crowd is waiting for. I go to switch back with James but he stops me.

'No, don't run. You're the one that stood up for us. For Cody. For the pack. I shouldn't be the one to take credit for that.' James argues and I watch with tinted cheeks as Cody rushes towards me, crashing into my chest and wrapping his arms around me.

"You're amazing." He tells me, as he cries into my chest and I hold him back, so grateful he didn't give up on us, so happy my pack stood by me when I needed them to.

"Alpha Richard is done terrorizing this pack. Sloan isn't twenty yet, his graduation is in a few more months, but I believe he and James should be named official Alpha." Alex says, motions towards me and I look around, almost fainting when I see the elders off to the left, their eyes on Cody and I like hawks.

'That's why you didn't want to switch, you didn't want to deal with the old wrinkly bastards.' I say, calling James out but he conveniently doesn't answer.

"I agree. Things have been more peaceful here in the past two years than all of Alpha Richards time. We knew how he was when he was a kid. It our faults for ignoring it." One of the Elders admit, and I watch in awe as the entire crowd slowly agrees until the Elder nods. "Then let it be so. We will host the ceremony in one months time to give time to prepare. However you and everyone else, Sloan & James Woods, shall know you henceforth as Alpha James Woods of Autumn Falls." She decrees and the crowd erupts on cheers.

I can tell they want a speech and for celebrate, some people always trying to make their way over to speak to me, but Johnathan and Timari intervene.

"As you just heard, the ceremony will be in one months time, and we would ask you all to save any congratulations, questions or concerns for said occasion. Alpha James and Cody will be retiring for the day. Enjoy the party and celebration." Alex says, his Beta title secured once he turned eighteen since his father had already passed. I breath a sigh of relieve and offer a silent thank you as I turn and lead Cody, still attached to me, towards the pack house.

My head is spinning from all that happened and I find myself feeling a little giddy, the reality of my freedom really dawning on me. I hug Cody tighter as I lead us towards his room, knowing that his support and words of love helped me today, along with the support of my pack.

My pack.

Not just James'

But mine.

It feels goods.

We finally make it to Cody's room, and I close the door behind us before laying us down on the bed, Cody's head resting on my arm as we face each other. He sniffles a little bit before leaning forward and planting a kiss on my nose.

"Hi, Sloan. I'm really proud of you. And I also appreciate you standing up for me." He tells me softly, his hazel eyes studying my face, his fingers playing with my hand.

My heart fills at his words. Affirmations so few and far between in my life, so meaningful to me now. I try not to get choked up, but I can't help it, and my voice shakes as I answer. "Thank you, Cody. For your words. For being there. And I'm sorry you had to go through that." I apologize, my heart squeezing in guilt, shame washing over James as we think about what he went through because of our weakness.

"You have nothing to apologize for. I witnessed and felt only a small part of the pain and abuse you felt. I will gladly go through it again if it meant it helped you and everyone else get the closure you need. I've been blind to this issue for too long. I'm glad I could help."

"Fuck, Cody-bear, you're too good for this world." I tell him, sighing into his hair as I squeeze him tightly.

"Celeste spared me, twice now. I guess I don't want that mercy to go to waste." He tells me and I can tell he wants to ask but he doesn't want to be rude.

"Would you like to talk to James and check on him?" I ask him and he nods, relief dropping his shoulders as he releases the burden of having to ask. "Thank you for everything, Cody. Take care of him, please. He needs you." I tell him before fading away and bringing James back, fading away to give them privacy, my heart full, without an once of fear.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Maaaaan this is once tense chapter. So instead of Jessica saying something to James at school, she finds out here, and this is how Richard being exiled goes down. What do you think of this new version?

Thoughts?

Comments?

QOTD: favorite dystopian world?