Black Bear Rising: A BWWM Paranormal Romance (Black Bear Saga Book 1) by Tia Wilson

of angry bees buzzed in his ears, he shook his head weakly. He could feel the sound wasn’t coming from around him but inside his head. He arched his back and shouted as hot spikes of pain ripped through his body. His body swung back and forward on the ropes and the metal rings moved wetly in his flesh. The buzzing increased inside his skull. He could feel the bones in his wrist began to move under his skin as shattered ends reattached themselves and hardened at the break points. He roared again at the pain as his wrist repaired itself. A half human half animal sound erupted from inside him. What is happening he thought to himself as he began to jerk around on the ropes trying to free himself. The buzzing increased to a deafening wail inside his skull. He felt like the top of his brain was going to ram through his skull.  

    The tips of his fingers on his right hand split open as new sharp claws emerged from the surging red of the torn flesh. Nasak yanked and jerked like a trapped puppet against his ropes. He could feel his internal organs move and shift inside his body, a warm liquid pulse as they rearranged themselves into a new configuration. The dull snap of multiple bones breaking and knitting themselves together filled his mind. I’m going mad he thought to himself as he felt the vertebrae in his back crack and move.  

    Thick course white hair began to sprout on the back of his clawed hand and Nasak tried to shout again. It came out in a burbled and bloody roar as his gums bled and several teeth fell out as new ones pushed them out from below. He twisted and jerked against his bindings begging for it to end, he couldn’t take any more of the searing pain, the breaking bones and the images of screaming faces dancing in his mind. “Please make it stop,” he said, his lips pulled back in a snarl. He was engulfed in a hurricane of pain and he could feel his sanity slipping away and the darkness spilling back in as his body was ravaged by the changes tearing him apart.

    The buzzing in his head stopped suddenly replaced by the sound of his blood pumping in his body. It was like he could hear every inner and secret part of him working together to bring forth the change. He arched his back as a devastating wave of sheer pain tore through him. This is the end he thought to himself feverishly. His body sagged and spasmed for a few seconds as the last throes of pain left him. He had closed his eyes tight and then he slowly opened them. The pain was gone, the sound of his heart beating didn’t blare in his ear, the organic tide inside him had ceased moving.

    He raised his head and his vision began to clear, one side still had a milky blur running from top to bottom. The people surrounding the pit came into focus. Women covered their children’s faces against their bodies, men’s mouths hung open in wide O’s as they stared at Nasak. The crowd was completely silent and frozen in place waiting and watching. He looked across the crowd and Nasak could see the mens surprised expressions quickly darken and turn to out right rage.

    “He’s a mongrel,” a man’s voice shouted from the back of the crowd.

    “Cut him down,” shouted a woman’s voice.

    “Banish the freak,” shouted a gang of men with blood red faces.

    Nasak looked at the crowd, hoping to see a familiar face, someone, anyone that could help him. “Help me,” he said and his voice came out sounding foreign to his ears. It was deeper than before, more commanding with a slight snarl at the end of his words.

    “We don’t help freaks,” someone else shouted.

    People near the edge of the pit spit onto the sand below them.  

    “Father,” Nasak cried in a long and ragged roar.

    “Enough,” a voice shouted. A voice Nasak and everyone in his clan knew. It was the leader of all white bear kind, Tannis.

    Nasak twisted painfully and looked in the direction of the leader. He stood flanked by his two commanders. On his right stood Nasaks father, his