Burning buildings, people running in the streets and some hiding inside their homes, a chaotic city and the screams of children everywhere. These were the words broadcast stations used to describe what was happening in the city. "It's unlike anything we have ever seen", one woman cried on radio. "The creatures attacking are monstrous and we don't know where they came from. I wish I didn't come out today. The world seems to be ending and..."The signal was suddenly lost and the woman's voice became distorted by static. Even with the interference, her screams could be heard in the background and it was followed by what sounded like a roar. Charlene turned off the radio, her face void of any emotions. She walked out of the now empty Rex building. It was already dark but her father's men were not relenting.Charlene didn't care about the distant screams she was hearing. It was a normal reaction of helpless humans in the face of fear. The zealots had their orders. Only a few humans were
The night was almost over and the zealots had not relented. Their attacks were still very intense and people were advised to stay home. It was reported that the zealots were gaining more ground and if things continued like this, they would completely take over the city."How long are we going sit around and do nothing?" Rufus asked impatiently. "With what's going on, we should address our pack members. Not hide out in a woman's apartment.""Well, you cannot go out there, especially without a plan" Ivy responded. "The plan is to help Calvin here retrieve his powers, right?" The big man asked."We need to get to Calvin's house somehow, Rufus", Lucille said in a loud voice. "We can not take the main road."Though the zealots were after humans, the werewolves of the different packs were not spared. To prove that he was now in control, Adolphus had sent a few of his men to also instill fear in the werewolves. It was working because the werewolf community now turned to their leaders like
"Cheers", Diana said with a raised glass and a proud smile. "To world conquest and domination."Adolphus clinked his glass with her's as he stared at her infectious smile. He didn't think he had ever seen this witch look so happy since they'd known each other. Her eyes twinkled brightly as she held her drink in the air with a glowing smile on her lips. A small giggle escaped from her mouth as she muttered something he was not paying attention to, and Adolphus couldn’t stop himself from grinning back and chuckling along with her."I should have done this sooner if I had known that it would make you this happy", he said. "Thirteen years" Diana said. "It took you thirteen long years and that's how long I had to wait.""We've finally started it now, haven't we?" Adolphus said. "Soon, we will not only have this city, but the entire world would be at our finger tips.""I like the sound of that", Diana said sipping from her glass. Adolphus finally got her to leave the forest and they bot
Talking about little things made the rest of the walk to Calvin's house much more relaxing and less tense than it had been earlier. Ivy was grateful for the effort Calvin was finally putting in and even though he was being subtle, she could tell that he was flirting with her. She didn't mind at all. The act made her heart flutter.They finally arrived, coming through the park exit that went through the woods, where they would be less likely to run into any other people or even werewolves. Calvin observed that it was quiet. Too quiet. All that could be heard was the rustling in the trees and occasional bird song that used to be drowned out by the constant noise of cars passing by on the once busy street. Now, all of that was gone and the place just looked deserted. Whether the humans were dead or just hiding inside their houses, no one could say for sure. Calvin could even hear the sound of his own breathing.He turned his attention to his house. The tree was still standing, which w
"I've been meaning to show you this", Diana said as soon as Adolphus got out of the car. "A tree?" The man asked with a confused expression on his face. The tree wasn't pleasant to look at, so why did Diana think he would be interested in it? What was so special about it?"It's not just any tree", the witch said. "It's a...""Someone's over there", one zealot yelled, pointing in the opposite direction. Adolphus and Diana turned around to see that it was a young woman who was making her way towards them. "Kill her!" Adolphus ordered his men, but Diana stopped them."Stand down!" she yelled at the men upon recognizing who it was. "You know her?" Adolphus asked."Mmm" Diana muttered in affirmation. It was Ivy and the witch was very surprised to see her. The last thing Calvin wanted was for Adolphus to start coveting the power that was hidden within the tree. He was going to come out of hiding but Ivy explained that she would be a better distraction to Diana.Turns out Ivy was right.
The witch took a step back and threw a bout of magic meant to hurt Ivy, but she was quick enough to block the attack by crossing her arms. Diana's eyes widened in shock when she saw how Ivy deflected her spell like an expert. Where did she learn to do that?She quickly regained herself and cast another blast towards the girl, this one faster and stronger, but still not enough. Ivy was able to duck before Diana could follow through with the next strike, and that just frustrated the witch.“You ungrateful thing!” Diana snarled angrily, “How dare you?!”"It's called self defense", Ivy responded in a rather calm voice. "I see you've not only picked up new magic tricks", Diana said. "You now have a sharp tongue, huh?""I've always been like this", Ivy said with a shrug. "For someone who raised me, how can you look so surprised?""How dare you?" Diana whispered the words. "You think you've found yourself? You think you've found love? Because of that Calvin Moss?""This is not...""Be quie
"Since the invasion of the monsters in our streets, the death tolls have significantly risen. Many have locked themselves up in their homes due to fear and the fact that they cannot go about their daily lives is another problem. Specialists have predicted that fear might not be the only problem if this continues. Hunger and cold will most certainly make things worse."The reporter's voice faded as Mark turned down the volume of the television. He was restless and he didn't think sitting around was going to help the situation. "But seriously, how long does it really take to retrieve a wizard's powers?" Rufus asked no one in particular."They've not been gone for too long, so let's wait a bit longer", Phiri said."They've been gone since last night" Rufus continued to complain. "Everything started yesterday evening and look how much it has escalated. Very soon, werewolves would be identified as the cause of all this and all of us would be seen as the enemy.""He's right", Mark said. "
Charlene slowly let go of Calvin's shirt as Ivy approached them. She had her eyebrows raised daringly and she shot Ivy her most intimidating glare, but the girl look unfazed. As for Calvin, he was relieved to see Ivy. He had seen the witch drag her off, but he didn't go after them because he was confident that no harm would come to Ivy. After all, the witch had introduced her as her daughter and even tried to protect her from Adolphus earlier. It was when he heard the heavy breathing beside him that he realized what Charlene's presence could lead to. Remembering that these two were at logger heads, he figured that this meeting was going to end up in a fight, especially if Charlene found out that Ivy was actually his mate."Don't you think you're standing a little too close", Ivy asked Charlene as soon as she was standing beside them."You", Charlene seethed. "Good to see you too", Ivy was rather nonchalant. Aggravated by her attitude, Charlene attacked her, pulling at her hair and
The struggling sounds ceased when Ivy got to the entrance of the building. She touched her back to feel her injury, but it was not completely healed. She knew she had to be careful as the wound made her vulnerable. She could go into shock if she bled anymore so she threaded carefully.Inside the building, Ivy gasped when she saw Adolphus's head detached from his body. She didn't know how to feel about what she was seeing. Adolphus, leader of the zealots and the origin of everyone's problems was finally dead. She quickly turned her head when she heard heavy breathing coming from the opposite direction. When she saw that it was Roman, she quickly ran to him and held him in her arms.She looked him over and saw that he was seriously wounded. Ivy figured that it was Roman that had killed Adolphus. Way to go, she thought proudly. He didn't use to be grand alpha for nothing."Shh. Shh. Shh", she whispered when he tried to say something. She wanted to encourage him by telling him that he wo
As the coven of witches storms the premises, the atmosphere crackles with tension. The werewolves, sensing danger, prepare to defend themselves. Knowing that werewolves draw their strength from the moon, the witches draw clouds over it, hiding it's light.Diana had given the witches an explicit order before this night. They were to invade the premises and put an end to the werewolf race if anything were to happen to her. The women of the coven sensed that their leader was already dead and so, they planned on carrying out her order.The moon, hidden behind dark clouds, casts an eerie shadow over the grounds, adding to the already intense atmosphere."They're here", Phiri mutters as she rises to her feet. Even Adolphus and Roman were now looking in the direction of the gates, while Calvin was more concerned about Ivy. She was still unconscious so he couldn't care less about the presence of witches.The witches, adorned in their mystical cloaks and wielding powerful spells immediately la
Calvin still didn't understand all the screaming and running that was going on around him. He also didn't realize that Diana had just saved his life and was even killed in the process.He had just taken his hand off Ivy's back because it felt wet and when he looked at it, he saw blood. He looked at Ivy and saw that she was unconscious. He shook her gently but he got no response.Calvin called out her name in a whisper, but she still move. He wished her eyelids would just move or even a low moan would have sufficed, but he got nothing.Ivy's unresponsiveness made Calvin panic. He knew that she was still alive but it wouldn't remain that way if she continued losing so much blood. And the fact that he didn't know what to do in order to save her made him feel useless."Help", he wanted to scream, but the words got stuck in his throat. He only breathe a sigh of relief when Lucille and Phiri came to him, both kneeling by his side."Please save her", he pleaded. He was literally begging but
Ivy wasn't sure who the target of Calvin wrath was. There was Roman, who was standing in front of him, acting like a live shield for the second possible target, Diana. The witch was definitely in Calvin's bad books. Irrespective of anything, Ivy didn't want either of the targets to get hurt. While she considered Diana to be the closest thing she had to a mother, there was also Roman who she had shared her first friendhip with. Though he obviously wasn't himself, she still didn't want anything to happen to him.Therefore, she tried to reach out to Calvin's mind again. She really wished that it would work this time, but it didn't. It felt like he had shut the doors to his mind and reasoning that even she couldn't get through."I think we have to evacuate", Ivy heard Lucille whisper. "Because we really don't know how dangerous one attack from him would be."Ivy looked around at all the people. Many of them had shifted into wolves as they could perceive the danger lurking with the formi
The moon hung high in the night sky, casting an eerie glow over the quiet city. From where he was, suspended up in the air, Calvin looked down to the werewolves. He saw them as ferocious beasts which the world no longer needed. But then, there was another side of him that was like a soothing voice whispering in his head. It made him feel like he was one of them. One of the werewolves.For hours, Calvin had battled to maintain his sanity, but he could feel himself slowly losing it. His wolf was trying to accommodate his retrieved powers, but it was too much. Since it proved impossible, the alpha wolf was fighting the sorcery and it just felt like an internal battle.Being a wizard, Calvin was a master of arcane arts and he had dedicated the early years of his life to mastering the powers of magic which he possessed. However, even as powerful as he was, he could not bring himself to connect his powers with his wolf side.Why he was up in the sky, Calvin didn't know. He was unaware of w
Charlene's heart skipped a beat when she saw the Pentagon members. She was even more terrified when she locked eyes with Richard's brother, Mark. He obviously still bore a grudge against her for killing his brother and she instinctively drew back."Ivy" Lucille called, ignoring the presence of the Hayfords. "What happened? We've been waiting for you and Calvin.""He got his powers back. The tree died and he just lost control", Ivy explained. "He doesn't seem to recognize him and he was just roaming the forest all day."While Charlene was trying to make sense of what Ivy had just said, her brother snuck back into the premises to report the Pentagon's arrival to his father. "So that's what happened?" Rufus asked rhetorically as he looked up. "What could he be planning up there?""The question should be how do we get him down here?" Mark said as he looked away from Charlene and up into the sky. Phiri was quiet as she looked from Ivy to Charlene. The latter was supposed to be the succee
"There you are".Ivy slowly came out of hiding when Charlene called out to her. If she were to have it her way, she would have preferred to stay out of Charlene's way. With everything she had been through that day, she didn't have time for this drama.Ivy had been keeping an eye on Calvin ever since he regained his powers. Apparently, things had not turned out the way anybody would have expected. It all spiraled out of control and she was here make sure Calvin didn't hurt anybody.Just hours ago, when Calvin regained his powers, she had tried to talk to him but he had stared at her in a very strange way. She had searched his eyes, but there was no recognition of any sort. It appeared that he had been possessed by something. Everything about him felt different. His eyes, his gaze, his aura... It was all different but Ivy just couldn't describe it. All she knew was that something wasn't right with him.Calvin wasn't himself anymore but even at that, she had tried to get through to him
"I saw a vision this afternoon".Adrian turned to his sister with a curious gaze. They were still outside the Rex building and he wondered if she was sleep talking as she stared at her feet as she spoke. "Stop looking at me like that", she said and then sat up. "Well, I was checking to see if you were sleep talking", her brother responded. "I only did that when I was child", Charlene said with scoff. "I've outgrown that.""Okay. So how could you have had a vision when you havn't gotten any sleep?""I don't know", she answered with a shrug. "It just came to me. It wasn't a reality, so I just concluded that it was a vision.""Was it a good a one?" Adrian asked her. "The vision. What was it about?""In the vision, I saw..."Adrian turned to his sister when she remained silent for too long. She was staring up into dark sky, so he raised his head too, towards the big white moon. "I saw that", Charlene muttered. "What?" Adrian asked, turning to face her and then followed her line of si
The Pentagon members exchanged glances before turning their attention back to the phone screen. They had been following everything that was happening in front of the Rex building."Roman is making us look bad", Mark said. "He's lying to the people.""He's obviously not himself", Phiri said. "I think the witch has somehow manipulated him.""This is not good", Lucille added. "If they succeed in brainwashing everyone, then it's over.""Where is Calvin for heaven's sake?" Rufus growled. "It's been almost twenty four hours. We cannot do much on our own.""Patience", Phiri said with a sigh. "He'll come.""He'd better hurry up" Rufus said under his breath. *******Right outside the Rex building, Adolphus's children and his men stood on guard, mounting every corner of the place, fully prepared for every surprise.As expected, military vehicles soon arrived at the scene, demanding to know what was going on at such late hours. The zealots had their orders. They were to prevent any kind of int