The One Alive

If Aspen wanted to describe the events that followed the tense battle at the Golden pack, she would not have had any words to do so but in the moment after only two words came to mind traumatic and painful
She heard a scream but she wasn't sure who was doing the screaming, her whole body ached from the fall, she lay there not moving trying to see if her limbs were broken which would not be unusual at all but surprisingly she was fine, twinges from pain but nothing that she could not overcome
She dragged herself up, trying to stand up, she gasped at the shot of pain over back almost immediately.
Taking a deeper breath she rose to her feet and dragged herself across the clearing, she used her nose to pick up scent, for Emily or Bruce.
She caught his scent first but it was followed by so much blood that she started to shake. She shuffled to the clearing,where much of the blood came from, thick and soaking the grass, she shouted unable to help it.
On the floor they were, Bruce wasn't moving, she wasn't moving. Something was wrong but yet she could do nothing frozen by fear and shock. Someone came she heard them speaking to her but she wasn't sure what was being said
" It's not just her blood, Aspen relaxed slightly but all, this wasn't making her feel better but if it was more than one persons blood then there were alive.
The more she looked at Bruce, his face pale ,blue veins forming over his face she knew he was not, would never come back. He would never be well. They had lost him to Veilha.

Aspen walked away from them, she needed to settle down, to take a deep breath. Logan was still talking to Alpha Briar but she couldn't tell what had been said .
All around her, she heard the sounds of chaos and people crying out from the pain , she swallowed deeply, trying to keep up with Logan who had Emily in his arms holding her close, she blinked trying not to make a sound and not display any emotions. She just wanted to be out of here.
" Keep it we might need it" Aspen nodded, swallowed and moved in with us, we found a back door slightly open an arm stretched out across the floor. Aspen blinked at the sight, she wasn't sure how but she followed him and got into the castle with them, they were directed to a room.
We took her to bed, and a physician saw her almost immediately, he ordered her clothes to be torn off and moved to undress her, cleaning the wounds as he did, blood poured out of the large gashes on her back she turned to Logan just as Beta Sia came and said something to him. He looked to her and she sighed nodding towards the door. She would stay.
" Go, I'll stay with her " Aspen muttered, dragging him with me, Logan didn't notice anything as he left,he was too wrapped up in his head and Aspen couldn't blame him, she was wrapped up in her head as well.
" We need this mess over and done with " she gritted beneath under her breath and she hissed
" Is she your sister " the nurse asked, she paused contemplative trying to pick her words
" I would like to think so, she is my closest friend" Aspen nodded sadness tugging at her gut, her eyes filling with tears so that it itched her
" Will she be ok" she asked. If Emily died like Bruce, she wasn't sure she'd know what to do
" She will be well. It will take time to mend but she will do well" she nodded
" Thank you"
She sat down by her bed , Emily moaned in pain, shivering, likely from the fever that was setting on her, the nurse cleaned her up and pushed her dress up and paused gasping softly
" What" she asked
" What" she hissed when the submissive did not respond
" What is it " she hissed grabbing her shoulder and squeezing hard until the girl winced from the pain
" It's , she is bleeding," she mumbled, looking down , Aspen followed her gaze and tried not to gasp Emily was bleeding badly between her legs blood staining down the thighs
" Why, why is she " she asked pausing as Emily moaned softly in her sleep
" She's miscarrying" the nurse said and she froze softly, blinking.
Emily had been pregnant, how and had Logan know this. Had Emily known this.
Oh she'd be so sad, was it worth it telling her. Should she not mention anything.
She swallowed
" Clean her up, get water and let's clean her up " she ordered.
They did the work together, stripping her and washing her clean before dressing her completely.
The door opened and in rushed town familiar face lined with worry, she strolled towards them and stopped in her track,
" Is she ok" her mother asked and she clutched her hand
" She is fine, just sleeping" she had no idea how to tell them about the baby so she kept quiet
" You can go stay with her " she offered and got a nod in response.
Her mother hurried away clutching at Emily's hand.
" Why are you here" she asked Sam who sighed
" we heard about the raid , mom wanted to see Emily, and when Alpha Ren attacked it was more of a compulsion " he offered and she froze
"Alpha Ren attacked the pack," she asked and he entered the room
" It was an ambush " he mumbled and she nodded
" you can go see your sister " she said as she pulled away from them , giving them privacy
Once she was she walked out of the room to find Logan. If Bruce had been here she'd have met him first, talked to him and asked for his help.
But he was not here and she was all alone. She walked to the meeting room and opened the door, the room was loud and noisy everyone seemed to be talking above themselves trying she stood to the corner listening to them when Alpha Briar roared
" All these people have families, and I'll be damned if we fight in this war when you can't guarantee that you won't at least try to reduce the risk of dan–"
" I lost my best friend " he roared shutting her up Logan roared and she rushed towards him as he kept on shouting his face pale and lined with sadness
" I lost my friend and I almost lost my mate" he hissed
" They were my family, and I almost lost them. You are not the only one with pain. You are not the only one who is broken –" Aspen gripped his arm tightly, once she reached him and he stopped talking and roared his frustration stalking out of the room and she followed behind him.
Another thing that would have been nice to have Bruce here for .

He banged the door behind as he walked away from the noise and the chaos behind.
He turned to her, he looked exhausted as hell, as she walked to him her hand shaking, it was hard to hide it, she was not sure how she was going to do it.
" What is it" he asked and she sighed. To hell with it,
" There's two news, none of them good" she mumbled and he sighed
" What is it " he asked and she huffed in frustration
" Apparently there was a coup back home, Alpha Ren took over the pack with the help of Beta Tom and a few elder men" she mumbled and he swallowed, his face hardening like stone
" That was why we didn't have enough men" he asked and she nodded
" And the other news " he asked and she looked at him scared of it all , then she just did it, said the words that were stuck in her stomach.
" Emily was pregnant" she mumbled and he stilled
" What do you mean pregnant" he asked and she sighed. This was going to be a pain to explain wasn't it
" She was pregnant. With child, not now anymore " she offered and he swallowed
" I see"
" Will we tell her " she asked and he sighed
" What will be the point, "
" She deserves to know " she hissed and he sighed
" Maybe after she is done, after she is well" he mumbled and she nodded.
They walked into the room, Aspen felt dizzy her ears buzzing, she kept seeing images of him, of Bruce.
He took her hand and they walked into her room, it looked like the room she had in the pack, someone was calling her name, but she wasn't sure who not with all the light everywhere.
Bruce took her hand pulling her into his arms, he kissed her neck inhaling deeply
"I'd like to take you somewhere quiet, somewhere we can just be together " he said and she chuckled
" I doubt we'll find a place like that but go on searching, that would be nice" she mumbled and he gulped
" I'd like to be able to have breakfast in bed and kiss you all night" he grinned and she laughed
" So would I. We'll set a date" she replied and he nodded
The book in her hand tugged her attention. It was the only book she ever read. Given to her by Bruce himself, a collection of poems and Aspen looked at it running her hands over its cover
" For now , I'm going to read this" Aspen mumbled raising it to him, he kissed my cheek
" I can't believe you love your books more than me " he grumbled and she laughed
" That's very rich coming from you but ok" she mumbled as he charged her kissing her deeply

" I love you" he mumbled,
" Aspen " she heard Logan's voice ,this was not real, non of it was real. The room spun before her eyes and Aspen collapsed on to the floor.