Nadine began to sweat as the lycanthropes menacingly came nearer. She pointed her pistol at any one that moved swiftly.
“I didn't kill any members of your pack.” Nadine said, trying to pacify them.
“Yet here you are, dressed like the lycanthrope hunters of old.” Trent sneered.
“I'm supposed to believe that you didn't kill Gary, Eve and Camille? Liar!” Dani roared as she pushed Nadine to the wall.
Nadine fired, and a silver bullet lodged itself in Dani's shoulder.
Dani screamed and released Nadine. Then, Dani began to convulse, and her eyes rolled over, showing only the whites.
“What the fuck?” One of the lycanthropes asked, suddenly wary of Nadine.
“She must have shot Dani with a silver bullet.” Trent said, going over to where Dani was, writhing uncontrollably in pain.
Trent held her, and in the next moment, he punched Dani in the face, effectively knocking her out. Th
“Take it easy.” Nick said as Nadine continued to howl. She took a look at her body and discovered that she had turned into a full-fledged lycanthrope. Nadine jumped up from her makeshift bed in the cave and rushed outside, to find some people staring at her.Nadine was about to run away when she felt a blunt force to her head. Nick had hit her from behind. With a whine, she fell.* * *When next Nadine woke, she looked at herself and was relieved to find out that she was human, “Thank God, it was just a bad dream.” She said, touching her smooth, hairless cheeks.“Not quite, I'm afraid.” Nick said, standing beside her.“What are you trying to say?” Nadine asked, alarmed.“That I bit you and turned you into a lycanthrope.” Nick said solemnly.Nadine couldn't believe her ears, she grabbed Nick by his shoulders in a movement that was too fast for the human eye to trac
Nick took her to a clearing in the woods where his people usually met to sit, discuss and tell legends to the young ones.When everyone saw the duo, an uneasy silence descended on the gathering.“Well, I just wanted to inform you that we have a new member.” Nick said confidently.Then, the pack began to murmur.“Silence!” Nick barked.“But my Alpha, initiating humans into a pack has not been done in more than a century!” This came from an elder.“Yes, but the circumstances were dire.” Nick said.“That's not what we heard! Trent should have killed her.” A teenage boy spoke up, looking at Trent with hero worship.Nick saw Trent smirk, and realized that while he had been tending to Nadine, Trent must have used the opportunity to tell the pack what had happened in Maya's house. Nick knew without a doubt that Trent had twisted the story to make him seem righteous.“Killing her was not an option!” Nick shouted.“She killed Eve and Camille! They were my friends! She should die!” A teenage gir
Three days later,Nadine was sitting on a rock and admiring the moon. As a human, the moon had never held a lot of fascination for her, but now she was a lycanthrope, she found that she could sit at a place for hours, lost in its otherworldly beauty.She did not notice when Nick walked up to where she was, from behind.“It's beautiful, isn't it?” Nick asked.Nadine nodded, “So alone, yet so unafraid. I wish I could be like the moon.” Nadine said, sighing.“Well,” Nick said, sitting down beside her, “You're not alone. You have me.” He took Nadine's hand in his.Nadine looked at their hands, and looked at Nick, returning his piercing gaze. There was something in his eyes, she didn't know what it was, but she strongly felt it too “Nick, I appreciate this.”They sat there for a moment before Nick spoke up, “I almost forgot. The whole pack is at the clearing. We're listening
One week later, Nadine had fairly gotten used to life as a fugitive. She knew Nick was searching for her and she was sure Dani would see this as a golden opportunity to get her revenge.Nadine's heart went out to her parents. Although they were overbearing most times, Nadine knew that they loved her. She loved and missed them too. She knew they'd be wondering where she was, but she also knew that she couldn't visit them. After all, one of her hunters could be keeping watch over them, waiting for her to visit.Nadine also did not go back to her apartment. Nick and Dani knew where it was, and would expect her to go back for her essentials, such as her phone and her credit cards.Since her escape from Nick's pack, Nadine spent her days walking from one convenience store to another, eating at soup kitchens although processed food was not what her body craved, taking clothes that were donated to charity.Most of the clothes were faded and stained, but Nadine d
Pastor Jonathan Crane took the last bite of his food, took his plate to the sink, and kissed his wife on the cheek, “I won't stay long.”“Ok. I don't see why you're needed for the Bible study group meeting.” His wife grumbled.“They're having a hard time picking out a new leader. They want my guidance.” Jonathan said, rubbing his wife's shoulders.His wife nodded, and he kissed her hair before leaving.When he got to his destination; an old house, he parked his car and walked out.He knocked on the rotting front door and it was opened by a man who bowed when he saw Jonathan, “Welcome Pastor.”“Thank you, my child.” Jonathan said.In the old empty sitting room, there were nine men waiting. The oldest man among them was the only one sitting down on a wooden chair.“Jonathan, you're late.” The old man chided, waving his cane about.“I'm sorr
Nadine entered a 24/7 store, smiled at the salesman and entered the bathroom. There, she brushed her teeth and washed her face.Nadine sighed with frustration as she scooped water from the faucet to her face. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had an honest to goodness bath or slept on a bed.She spent her night sleeping on kerbs or under bridges.Nadine looked at her reflection in the mirror above the sink. She noted with disdain the circles under her eyes and the lines on her face. The life of a fugitive was certainly not good for her.She finished her morning rituals, slung her backpack over her shoulder, and left the store.Outside, she ran into someone.“Watch where you're going!” Nadine said rudely. She was not a morning person. The person wore a jacket, with the hood pulled up to obstruct the person's face.The person disappeared without apologizing to Nadine. Nadine shook her head and wondered what the world
When Dani regained consciousness, she was aware of three men standing over her, with their swords to her throat. She remembered with mortification the beating Nadine had given her, and that only strengthened her resolve for revenge.These men weren't lycanthropes, and their swords seemed to be made of silver because she felt the skin on her throat redden and swell painfully.Dani cursed her acute allergy to silver. Silver affected all lycanthropes negatively, but with Dani, it was worse than usual.One of the men leaned down and removed the shirt that gave her a semblance of cover.The men gasped when they saw that every part of her body had painful red rashes.“What sort of eyesore is this?” One of the men asked, disgusted.Dani didn't reply, instead she asked a question of her own, ignoring the pain the silver was causing her, “Who are you people?”“We are the Lycan Annihilators. A secret order tasked w
Nadine found herself looking over her shoulder and keeping a closer watch on anyone who came close to her, or seemed to be watching her from a distance.Being that paranoid made her restless, and therefore, she tired easily.Two days after her fight with Dani, she found that all her injuries had healed completely. Nadine still marveled at how quickly she healed. When Trent and his cohorts had broken her wrist and her knee cap, she found out once she regained consciousness that her bones had healed, and left no residual pain.Nadine snapped out of her reverie when she realized that she'd been in a spot for too long.She saw that she was sitting on a park bench.Immediately, she took her worn out backpack and left, surveying her surroundings.She frowned when she noticed a muscular young man looking at her, then, she remembered how grungy and disheveled she looked.Yeah, well, she thought, not everyone's life was a bed of roses.Nadine walked to a phone booth and was about to make a call
The police chief faced the cameras, cleared his throat and began to address the journalists he'd assembled for a press release, “As you all know, there's been a spate of killings. Hundreds of people lost their lives. One of our own, Detective Nick Law found out who the culprit was, and he died trying to prevent the killer from killing more people.He found the killer, one Jonathan Crane, at an abandoned house, which we suspect was his hideout. We think they engaged in a scuffle, and the killer blew himself up.Detective Law will get a befitting burial, and a posthumous award from the governor of our state.”The journalists began to pepper him with questions.* * *Nadine was at her parents', watching the police chief's press release. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she remembered Nick's body lying on the ground before her.She still had nightmares that entailed being tortured by Jonathan, or seei
Nadine wished she would die. Since Jonathan had first pricked her skin, he'd been at it nonstop. He'd used the scalpel to inscribe the word 'Devil' just above her breast repeatedly, he'd cut open her abdomen crudely, and had taken out her appendix.While he'd been at it, Nadine hadn't felt any pain. When Jonathan had seen that her heart was about to give out, he'd injected the antidote to the Neuromuscular Blocking Agent.Nadine's breathing had stabilized just as the pain Jonathan had inflicted on her shot up to her brain, causing her to cry and shout incessantly, before the injuries began to heal rapidly, thanks to her being a lycanthrope.It had been like that ever since. Jonathan would paralyze her, experiment with her, leave her to heal, before beginning the process anew.“Please! Let me die!” Nadine begged Jonathan. She didn't mind begging him. She'd lost her pride long ago, after she'd peed herself.Jonathan grinned, feeling
Nick woke up refreshed and happy, until he noticed that Nadine wasn't with him.“Nadine!” He yelled as he padded about the apartment, looking for her.When he didn't find her, he went back to the bedroom dialed her number. Her phone was switched off. He threw his phone kn the bed in frustration and began to pace worriedly, wondering if she'd gone out for a walk or something, or if she was in trouble.Thirty minutes later, he gave into his anxiety and decided to look for her. Without bothering to bathe or shave, Nick dressed up and let himself out of Nadine's apartment, sniffing the air for her scent.* * *Nadine woke up with a huge headache. She tried to bring her arms down, and found out that she'd been manacled and hung from the ceiling. She was bewildered by her position for a moment, before she remembered what had happened to her. She pulled against her cuffs, but nothing happened. They were really strong, or she was really weak. Either way, she was trapped.She wondered wh
Since most of the people after her were either dead or in hiding, Nadine decided to go back to her apartment.She and Nick spent the better part of the evening cleaning and arranging it. After that, they were so lethargic, they hit the sack, but Nadine couldn't sleep.After rolling around for a few minutes, She gave up trying to sleep and sat up. Nick followed suit, holding her to him as he kissed her forehead.“Hey, what's up?” He asked drowsily.“I can't sleep. You should probably get some shuteye.” Nadine said, as she tried to pull away from his embrace.Nick held on tight and replied, “I don't mind. What's the problem?”“Nick, after this, what else?” Nadine asked.“What do you mean?” Nick yawned.“I mean, after we kill Jonathan, what do we do? Do I go back to being a teacher? Do you go back to being a detective? Do we just pretend that all these needles
Nadine and Nick sat down as Mary introduced her children to them.“This is Samuel,” She said, gesturing to the boy who looked fidgety.“And this is Piety.” She said, gesturing to the girl who looked aloof.“Call me P.” The girl said immediately, as if she didn't like her name.“Hi, Piety and Samuel.” Nadine said cheerfully, trying to defuse the awkwardness that had permeated the room.“So, would you like something to drink? Say, a cup of tea?” Mary asked, still wringing her hands.“No. We're here to see your husband. Could you please tell him we're here?” Nick asked crossly, angry at the fact that he had to kill Jonathan in front of his whole family.“Why do you want to meet him?” Samuel asked, his voice faltering with fear.“It's between your father and I.” Nick said dismissively.“Are you sure you're not thirsty?&rdquo
Jonathan paced to and fro in his cluttered study, wondering what to do. While it was prudent to tuck tail and run at the moment, the idea still seemed cowardly to him.Moreover, even if he escaped the clutches of Nick and Nadine, he knew they were not without help. What if he ran into their cohorts? He would surely meet his waterloo too.Jonathan collapsed onto a chair and massaged his temples.He began to recall how he'd become a lycanthrope killer.* * *Five months earlier,Jonathan was returning from a prayer meeting in the middle of the night, when his car ran out of gas, near a cornfield.He came out and began to survey the area, looking to see if he'd spot a gas station at some point.He didn't see any. He was about to give up hope and reenter his car, when he made out a faint outline of a human figure in the cornfield.Jonathan was about to call out to the person, when he saw a fri
Madam Yvonne was torn. Should she stay and fight Nadine and Nick, or should she run for her life? She thought. She and her aunt had run from the lycanthropes that day in the woods, it was time she stopped running and faced them head on.Having decided to stay and fight, Madam Yvonne left her suitcases and picked up a nearby vial of Dragon Rage. She emptied the contents into her mouth, and seeking out a silver sword, she marched into her shop, surprising Nadine and Nick who were looking around.“Surprised to see me?” She asked, wielding the sword.Nadine frowned in remembrance, “That's my sword.” She said.“If you want it, you can have it!” Madam Yvonne said, lunging at her with it.Nadine ducked smoothly and tackled Madam Yvonne, causing her to fall to the floor and lose her sword in the process.Nick came at her, planning to give her a punch, but Madam Yvonne was faster and gave Nick a kick to his groin.
The next day, at the crack of dawn, Nadine and Nick were already before Katya.“Yesterday, I told my subjects about the threat you mentioned, and eleven of them volunteered to help.” Katya beamed, “I would have come with you, but I need to stay here, to protect my people.” She said.Nick patted her on her shoulder, “You've already done more than enough.” He said.“Thank you, Katya.” Nadine said, sublimely happy that she hadn't rebuffed them.“Anytime. When you're through handling them, if you two want a pack, you're always welcome here.” Katya said.“That's very magnanimous of you. Thank you.” Nadine said, smiling.“Yes. We might take you up on your offer.” Nick said to Katya, while staring at Nadine. Maybe, he wasn't cut out for this Alpha business, he thought. Look at how his pack had ended up. Nick decided that when he was finished with the Lycan Annihilat
Nick didn't let Zaq's nonchalance deter him from going ahead with his plans to exterminate the Order of Lycan Annihilators.“We're going to get my car, and then we'll embark on a long road trip.” Nick told Nadine.“Where are we going to?” Nadine asked.“Kaltland.” Nick said with a grimace. Kaltland was a very frigid place all year round. It would also take them forty-eight hours of continuous driving to reach there.“What's in Kaltland? And why don't we just fly there?” Nadine asked.“Help. And we can't fly over because Kaltland is so foggy that airplanes can't land there.” Nick said, unhappy with the situation.“Are you up for this trip?” Nadine asked.Nick's wound was supposed to have healed completely, but whenever Nadine examined it, she found it red and angry.“Yes! Stop babying me!” Nick snapped.“I'm not babying you! It'll be