Now, I feel I should clarify something. I keep calling these werewolves boys, because, to me, they are. Due to the recent peace between our species, they haven’t had any experiences that would cause them to mature and be less idiotic. They’ve been spoiled rotten, and are too dumb to even realize it.
However, in all actuality, they are in their mid to late 20’s. And, like most fantasy creatures, and to my dismay, they are quite good looking. So, for the women walking through the door, these guys that were sauntering towards them seemed too good to be true. Just as I had seen the boys’ hormones stand up and take notice before, I watched as all of the women practically swooned. Well, all except Emily, I was pleased to note. She just sighed and rolled her eyes. She had easily spotted how small these boys really were, and probably would’ve just ignored them if given the chance. Unfortunately for her, and for me, she was outvoted by her peers, and the two groups quickly introduced themselves and split into pairs. Since my luck was going so well today, it didn’t surprise me that Emily ended up getting stuck with the pack leader. Once again, I just barely kept myself from beating my head against the table.
The next hour was practically torture for me. I had to watch as he flirted and danced with my woman. And to make matters worse, Emily seemed to be having a good time. Oh, I could tell it was mostly an act, and she would probably have had a better time at home, curled up on the couch watching a movie and eating popcorn. But the fact that she was trying to have fun with this creep was eating me up. I continued to down glass after glass of alcohol, all in an attempt to prevent me from getting up, throwing him through the nearest wall, and tossing her over my shoulder like a caveman (or cavewoman in this case) to take her to my den. It didn’t help to remind myself that I hadn’t actually made a claim on her, and was in reality trying to get as far away as possible. At that time, I really, really wished I could get drunk.
I was so focused on Emily and her “date” that I never noticed how the others in the group were faring. It completely slipped my notice until it was too late the other groups had slipped out into the night, leaving the leader and Emily the last two to make their exit. When I finally noticed we were the only ones left, I took some comfort in the fact that the others wouldn’t do anything without their alpha. After Emily and her werewolf date had left, I waited for a few seconds before making my own exit. In all actuality, I should’ve waited longer in order to make sure I wasn’t discovered, but I just couldn’t leave Emily alone.
Outside, I quickly stepped into the shadows of the bar’s exterior. The entirety of the group was standing on the opposite end of the gravel parking lot, with the girls gathered around Emily. They seemed to be pleading with her about something, but unfortunately with the traffic nearby, I ended up being too far away to hear what was going on. Eventually, though, Emily reluctantly nodded her head, to the screams of the rest of her girlfriends and to the smiles on the boys’ faces. They all piled into cars and drove off, heading towards to the northern part of the town.
Great, I thought. I’m going to have to follow them on foot now. I silently cursed myself for never learning to drive, always preferring my own two feet to travel. I was old fashioned like that. Luckily, the werewolves had an easily traceable odor, so actually following the trail wouldn’t be that difficult, even with all of the other city smells. I just hoped I wouldn’t be too late to prevent something, anything, from happening.
I followed their scent to a nearby park. Ironically, this was near the place Emily often came when she was younger. When I put my hands on one of the hoods, it was still warm, so I knew the group wasn’t too far ahead of me. I continued to follow the trail as it led deeper into the forest.
Finally, I came to a clearing, and hiding in the shadows, took in what was going on. The full moon was shining bright enough so I could see everything clearly. I noticed the groups had segregated again. The boys were on the side farthest from me, talking intently with each other. The women were in the middle of the meadow, appreciating the night sky without the glare of city lights, content to ignore the men for the moment. The vision of Emily, her face glowing in the moonlight as she tipped her face to the sky was entrancing, and unfortunately is the reason why I was unable to prevent the first leap of a turned werewolf into the group of girls. I reacted as soon as I noticed, though, quick-stepping into the group and throwing the wolf as far away as I was capable, but the damage was already done. One girl held a bloody arm to her chest, teeth marks clearly present on her pale arm. Another girl was unconscious, knocked aside during the lunge and hitting her head on a rock. All of the others were in various stages of shock or fear, huddling together for protection. My attention was drawn back to the werewolves when the leader spoke.
“Bloodsucker, what are you doing here? You're trespassing on our territory.”
So, that’s why we came so far into the forest, I thought. Out loud I said “You forget, pup. You have lands due to our good graces. There is nothing in the treaty that prevents us from coming and going as we please. Besides, you broke the rules by bringing these women here. No humans are supposed to know about our existence. I’m going to have to report this to your alphas and to my elder. They will decide on your punishment.”
Jason barked out a short laugh. “We do not acknowledge any treaty with you bloodsuckers, and this land is ours because I said it is so, not because you “gave” it to us. In the olden days, a trespassing vampire was killed on the spot. That was the law of the pack, and one we are more then happy to follow tonight. Oh, and as for the woman, don’t worry. They won’t remain human for long. Say hello to the new Alpha females of our little pack.”
I noticed then that the all of the others had shifted to their wolf form, leaving only the leader as human, though I could tell from his stance that he was ready to change at any moment. Crouching down a little, I growled out a reply. “You’ll have to get through me first, boy.” The wolves were more than happy to comply, as, to the startled screams of the women, they rushed as one towards us.
Normally, seven full-blown werewolves would be more than enough to tear me limb from limb. Add to that the fact that if I killed one of them, the treaty between our people would be null and void, and that was something I wanted to avoid at all costs. However, they were used to trying to overpower their opponent, and had never fought someone with my speed and finesse. I, on the other hand, had 200 years of fighting skills at my disposal. I also had an almost uncontrollable rage at the thought of what they were planning to do. In the end, it seemed like child’s play to me.
The first one to leap at me was taken down with a quick jab to his unprotected throat. He landed with a crash, gasping for air. As long as he remained in his werewolf form, his airway would heal just fine, but it would take a while, and since I intended to end this fight within the next few minutes, he was no longer a worry. As soon as he crashed to the ground, I was already moving to the next wolf. Before this one even had a chance to leap, I was at his side and with a powerful punch, sent him flying across the meadow, only stopping when he crashed against a tree. Amazingly, the tree was able to withstand the impact, and another wolf slumped to the ground, out for the count. Sensing movement behind me, I quickly dropped to the ground and rolled away just as a huge paw swiped through the air where my head once was. I regained my feet, only to jump away as another opponent took a swipe. I continued to dodge attacks from these two, waiting for an opportunity to strike. It didn’t take long, as they got tangled together when they both leapt at me at the same time. Stepping in, I grabbed the sides of their heads and smashed their skulls together, causing both of them to slip into unconsciousness at my feet. Four down, three to go.
The last three, one of which was Jason, warily backed off and regrouped. They had easily figured out that fighting me one on one was not an option, but they would most likely just get in each other’s way if they fought as a group. Their best bet would be to wait and force me to attack them, or else face the consequences of the others regaining use of their facilities. When the two remaining lieutenants rushed at me, I decided that these pups were truly idiotic, and just possibly deserved to die so that they couldn’t reproduce and pass on their genetic code. It wasn’t until I saw the leader jump towards the group of girls that I deduced the true purpose of the attack; diversion so that the leader could fulfill the original purpose of the outing, which was to change the girls into their werewolf brides.
To this day I am still unsure as to how I defeated the two I was fighting without killing them, and still be able to get between the leader and his leap at Emily, who was bravely standing between the huddled group of girls and their attacker. One moment I was fighting the two wolves, and the next I was swatting Jason away as if he were a fly. Unfortunately by then, all reason had left me, and all thoughts of treaties and promises disappeared deep into my rage-empowered mind. All I could think about was that this pup had dared to attack my Emily. All of the frustrations, jealousies, and furies of the night rushed through and consumed me. Maybe if I’d had more practice with controlling my emotions, things would’ve turned out differently. Maybe not, I don’t really know.
I evaded two of his clumsy swipes and one biting lunge at my figure before I plunged my hidden dagger deep into his heart. A look of surprise crossed his wolf face before he slumped to the ground, my dagger still is his chest. I stared incomprehensibly down at his form for some time, only coming back to myself when Emily approached and put her hand on my arm. Even though my first instinct was that something else was attacking me, somehow my body knew her touch, and the rage that had so entirely consumed me disappeared like the passing wind. It was then that I realized what had transpired, and that I had committed the most atrocious of acts. The treaty between our species was broken, and a war was most likely unavoidable. Emily must have sensed my sudden unease because she cupped my face, much like she had done the night before, and turning my face to hers, asked with concern “What’s wrong?”
Looking into her caring blue eyes, I wanted to lay everything before her. However, my need to protect her from the dangers to come had me taking a different track. Putting my hands on her shoulders, I said “I need you to do something for me, Emily.”
Showing no surprise at my use of her name, she quickly replied “What is it?”
“I need you to take the rest of the girls out of here. Somehow convince them that what happened tonight wasn’t real. Get them drunk and tell them strange men attacked you, or something. I’m sure they’ll be more than happy to forget what they’ve seen tonight. But none of you can tell anyone what happened here. Do you understand?”
She nodded, and I’m sure she approved of the idea of forgetting the night altogether. “What about Linda? She needs to be taken to a hospital, and they’ll ask me questions that I won’t be able to answer” she asked, pointing to the girl with the bloody arm.
“Linda comes with me.”
“What? Why?”
“Emily, she was bitten. I’m sure you’ve seen enough fantasy shows to know what happens next. She can’t remain with humans.”
Tears slowly filled her eyes as what I was saying filtered through her mind. Unable to handle the sight of her crying, I gathered her to me and hugged her as tightly as I dared, hoping to transfer some of my strength into her. Losing your friend to death or hardship is one thing. Losing your friend to the unknown, and not even being able to share your sadness with someone would be unbearable. I was giving Emily quite the task, and could only hope she was strong enough to endure.
Eventually, she pulled back and wiped the tears off her face with her sleeves. When she looked at me again, the moon sparkled off her tear-stained eyes like diamonds, and I could no sooner have stopped my lips from lowering to hers than I could have stopped the dagger that I had plunged into the wolf’s chest. This kiss was even sweeter than the last, since both of us were active participants this time. I would’ve been more than happy to continue but my internal senses were telling me that the other wolves would be regaining their facilities soon, and I wanted Emily and myself long gone by them.
Reluctantly pulling away, I deposited one last kiss on her forehead and said “We need to go.” I was about to turn away when her hand grabbed mine desperately. When I turned to face her again, she asked “Are you coming back?”
Unable to resist, I gathered her to me once again and whispered in her ear “Wild wolves couldn’t keep me away.”
Chuckling a little at my jest, she pulled away and let me go this time. I quickly scooped Linda up in my arms, the other girls too catatonic to realize what was going on. I looked towards Emily one last time and said “I’ll be back as soon as I can. I promise” before running out of the clearing.
Her reply of "You'd better. I need my Dark Angel to continue protecting me" was lost to the wind.