Megan POV

As I fought against the heavy chains holding me hostage, the tight metal collar burnt my throat. My bones were chilled by the icy wind that bit at me. My fur coat didn't keep me warm and was falling out due to tension, worry, and panic. It was also becoming extremely thin. My predicament was not made any better by the absence of food and drink. I haven't worn my human since I arrived here. We were kept in wolf shape, shackled. I was unable to shift back because of my weakness. I felt like I was being punished as they tied me outdoors and treated me like a dog. Technically speaking, I was being punished for being a wolf and for existing.

I tried to warm up my tight muscles by pacing about the little area I had, the snow and ice crunching under my paws. Today I had to battle once again. They treated us like abused pit bulls or fighting dogs. They put bets on us to see who would win and who would bleed first. The mending bite mark from the battle was still aching me in the shoulder. Despite my victory, there was no ultimate prize. If you are one of their favorites, they may award the victor with a little cup of tainted water and a small piece of decaying flesh. I was a favorite of theirs.

I waited to be led to my battle while sitting down on the ground with my head down. They have kept me here for over two years now.

Nearly as long as I have been here, there is just one other wolf. I've never seen her and have only heard the guys chatting about her after her battles in the background. The others are quite new, and most only live for a short while before passing away. Every day, new ones are introduced. The only one I could see was around 300 yards distant. She was a little wolf with a copper coat. We both realized she wasn't going to live long because of how frail she was.

As soon as I heard footsteps coming toward me, I snapped my head up. It was Butch, a rather tall, hefty guy. He used to accompany me to the arena every time.

'You know the routine. I'll murder you if you attempt to flee. He took my scruff by the scruff and unhooked the collar chain. It hurt very severely. The tight, metal collar left the flesh on my neck raw and red. He led me through the jungle till we came to the arena, which was a large open area. The earlier battles had left the pristine snow-stained scarlet, giving the air an ironic fragrance. Butch pushed me toward the center of the group of guys. As I moved into the middle of the improvised arena, they began to grab me, hit me, and pierce my ears alternately. A huge brown wolf, perhaps a gamma's daughter, was standing across from me. She had a thin coat that was stained with dried blood and filth. We were then enclosed in an open circle by the guys, who shut both sides.

Put your money down today! Our two oldest are engaged in this conflict. I saw the guys pulling out wads of cash and giving them to the ringleader. As she did the same to me, I observed my adversary and searched for her flaws. We were both driven to succeed because we both understood what would happen if we lost. "You are aware of the regulations! Go!"

Immediately, the brown wolf charges at me. She surprised me and threw me to the ground. She was clenching her teeth and slamming her jaw at my neck as she attempted to pierce my flesh. I stretched out my rear legs and buried my teeth into her belly's tender skin. Warm blood began to saturate my fur as I tore off a chunk of her flesh, and she cried as it did so.

I drew blood while the guys applauded. They were unwell. With my guard up, I shoved her off of me and circled her. As she attempted to approach me once again, I let out a growl. She attempted to scratch my face with her front claws as she pushed herself up on her hind legs. To avoid it, I bit into her front paw. She hissed and buried her claws close to my ribs down my side. We began to thrash around, snarl, and tear and bite at whatever skin we could reach. She made the error of leaving her neck unprotected, which I took. I bit down hard on her neck with my teeth.

My mouth was full of her blood, leaving a taste of metal. As she fought me, I threw my whole body weight on her, pinning her firmly to the ground. As they yelled at me to kill her, the men's shouts became louder. She tried valiantly to throw me off as I sunk my canines impossibly deeper. She screamed and hissed loudly as I felt her bonce crush under my grip. I gave my head one final twist before snapping her neck, causing her bleeding corpse to go limp on my lips. I laid her corpse on the ground when I was certain she was finished.

As they lost their wager, the guys were shouting at one another and applauding loudly. I shut them out. Why would they celebrate killing someone? I never meant to murder or rob anybody of their right to life, but that's how things were done here.

Either you murder someone or you are killed.

The night's calm was broken by a scream. The guys were shrieking instructions at each other and the other women were yelling in terror, which I could hear. My hackles sprang up in fear when I smelled burning oak trees wafting across the woodland. Most likely, the males were participating in one of their so-called "buzz parties." In the middle of nowhere, they build a large campfire and become quite intoxicated. I'm not any more relieved as a result. They would sometimes leave us alone, get so wasted that they would simply pass out, come back the following day with terrible hangovers, and spend the whole day sleeping. Most of the time, they would circle and choose one of us, beating us mercilessly; if you managed to live, you were fortunate. I've already witnessed it once. They smelled strongly of alcohol and vomit. I felt queasy at the mere notion of it.

Then I saw the guys sprinting through the woods while holding torches over a roaring fire. My nostrils burned from the gasoline odor that remained on their clothing. The trees were set on fire by them. One guy came up to the little copper wolf, doused her in gasoline, and set the surrounding area on fire. We could hear her whimpers and painful shouts over the crackling fire. I watched her desperately straining at her chain before the flames engulfed her.

Then, as someone poured gasoline on my back, it began to burn and soak into my newly opened wounds. Then a man approached me from behind.

He had a long, deep scar that stretched from his forehead to his neck, and he had a vicious smirk. As he attempted to approach me, I growled. His eyes glittered like a wild animal as he smiled. His face was illuminated by the flames. My eyes felt like they were on fire as the gas flowed into them and down my face. My eyesight became hazy, and I moaned. I overheard the guy giggling.

"Sorry, sweetheart." He tossed the flame in my direction, but I was able to deflect it. It strikes and ignites the tree to which I was bound. He was chuckling as I heard him go away in a whirl. The smoke entered my lungs, and I coughed. I pull vehemently on the chain, my breath being stopped by the metal collar. My eyes were watering from the gas and smoke in the room. The snow was melted by the fire as it spread over the ground, and the dead, yellow grass underneath it was also burned, becoming charcoal and ashes. It moved quickly toward me. The sweltering heat was palpable to me; it was a stark contrast to the cold. The tree was moaning as a result of my continual pushing and had become feeble. The flames were consuming it and destroying it.

I fled as the ancient tree eventually collapsed with a loud 'SNAP'. I jogged and ran quickly. Though my eyesight was still blurry, I had to keep moving on. I was aware that I would be killed if they discovered me. The other was sobbing and moaning in agony, pleading with me to intervene, but I was unable to. I shall always be haunted by their somber tones. My chest was pounding, and I could feel it. Even though my legs were screaming in pain from the exertion, I persisted and pushed myself even more.

Before collapsing from weariness, I ran for over a half-day. I was finally free, albeit my body was weak and sickly from being confined in such bad circumstances. Then my exhausted body was enveloped in the darkness of slumber. Even if I wasn't safe, at least I was at last free.