by Unknown
“Yeah, Mike saw me jump and asked me about it, but he pretty much dropped it when I told him it was a lucky catch.” I sighed. “No one saw me running the second time. They were too busy messing around.”
“So Connor, what do you think about what happened?”
“I don’t know Dad, I just don’t know. I mean, I know it probably doesn’t sound like a big deal but this wasn’t normal.” I got up and walked over to the mirror hanging over the fireplace. “I know what I can do dad, and I know how my body works. But this was like stuff I only dreamt about or I’ve seen in movies. At one point I even pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.” I looked back at him for a reaction.
“What has you thinking this is…well, unusual?”
“Well the fact that I could jump over a 4 foot person if I wanted to without much of a running start, or perhaps the fact that I was able to speed up like someone had a fast forward button controlling my legs?” I was a bit exhausted talking about this. “Look I know it’s not possible but I also know what I did and there is no mistaking it.” It was obvious I was over reacting and all I wanted to do was go chill out a bit before doing my English paper. I was about to tell my dad to forget it when he gave me his thoughts.
“Do you want to know what your old man thinks?” He said as calm as can be, crossing his leg over and holding his ankle with his right hand. “I think you inherited my genes.”
“Oh, ok Dad. Sure, now I am some amazing athlete because you were an all-star jock.” I chided gently, so as not to disrespect him.
“Yes. You have amazing qualities but they don’t come from my being an all-star, they come from me being…” He stopped short and put his leg down. He scooted to the edge of his feet and looked like he was contemplating the pacing again.
Something about his body language had me thinking back to the crazy thoughts that crept into my mind on the field. What if the military did some science experiment on him and now I’m the spawn of some bionic man? Now I was intrigued. What was he trying to get at?
“I know I can trust you son, but I have to ask you despite it all. If I entrust you with a family secret, could I count on you to protect it and guard it with your life? Would you do that for me and your mother?” His tone was serious and his eyes were searching for my reaction.
I could never hurt my Dad. There wasn’t a time in my life that I remember breaking a promise to him. I mean it has been jus the two of us for as long as I can remember, with the exception of Lisa. But there was something more important about this request. Perhaps it was his vulnerability he was showing that left no question in my mind that I would do as he had asked. I would keep his secret and protect it with every ounce of my being. I was all he had and he was all I had. I would never forsake his trust or faith in me for anything, especially if it was something serious like military human testing.
Although it may seem odd, I wouldn’t betray my mother either. Even though I never actually met her, I’ve always felt connected to her in a way most people wouldn’t understand, except for my Dad and Lisa. She wrote me a journal while she was pregnant with me. I still read it over sometimes, despite having already committed it to memory. It’s a leather bound journal that smells of jasmine and leather. I hold it sometimes when I feel low just to feel her presence. The really odd thing is I dream so vividly of her as if I really had met her. It started when I was young, usually little glimpses of her and later small talk. As I’ve gotten older, the dreams have become more detailed and deep. We talk about my life, school, sports, and my Dad. Most times I wake up not knowing if I dreamt it or it really happened. That’s the really weird part. Lisa says she had the same kind of dreams of her Mom when she was younger. She said as time passed they became less vivid and more like still pictures. She teases me that mine are so vivid because my psyche needs the female advice. She obviously doesn’t realize I get an earful from her, so there isn’t any room left for other female opinions.
“You have my word Dad; I won’t say anything to anyone”. And I meant it, I said it with my eyes and somehow he knew it too. I was ready for him to tell me “I’m a military lab rat and you’ve inherited my bionic genes. Surprise!” But of course, that would have been too simple.
“What I am about to tell you must be kept a secret regardless of how you may react. It is very important that no one finds out. I only say this because this is big, unbelievable and more importantly it involves other people too.” He sighed a heavy sigh that had my nerves surface.
“Connor, I mean it, this is astronomically big and you may be tempted to tell someone just to feel like you aren’t imaging it, but you won’t be able to. Ok?”
“I understand Dad. I meant it, you have my word.” I said making my way around the coffee table and sat down next to him on the sofa.
“Do you remember the stories I told you when you were a little boy about the world of the creatures, werewolves, and myths?” He asked in a low voice as if the house was tapped or something . What if the house tapped?
“Yes I remember them all but what do they have to do with this?” I replied in an equally low voice which as almost inaudible. In my mind I was searching for something in the stories that would make sense of this entire situation. I started to get visibly uncomfortable talking about this. In fact, I started feeling a bit irritated at the thought of getting into some long analogy. I much rather know what the heck is wrong with me. Did my dad do some freaky drugs in the military that messed me up? And in the process of thinking about some mutation, I blurted out.
“Dad, did you get tested on in the military on like Wolverine and now you’re an X-men of some kind?” I said jokingly but the nervousness in my voice revealed my real feelings.
It took awhile before he answered me but he finally said, “ No, but that would have been the easier explanation.” He stood up and started pacing the room.
“So what is it Dad? I mean if it’s not that, then it couldn’t be that bad?” I said encouragingly.
He raised his left eyebrow in an expression that said, You wanna bet?
“There are truths in those stories.” He said slowly and all I could do was look at him puzzled.
“I know Dad. ‘There are lessons to be learned from these stories and truths we can apply in our real life problems’” I said mimicking his tone and the words he’d say whenever we got done reading the fables.
“I perhaps didn’t make it clear. They were not make-believe stories, and they were not figments of my imagination. They all really happened.” He told me with utter seriousness.
My eyes got real wide and my mind started shuffling through all the stories. I jumped up and walked to the kitchen. I was prepared for maybe some truth in them but to realize they were all true was too much to take in. How could I possibly have a response to what he was telling me? Could werewolves truly be real? Could the myths of witches and supernaturals be true? He had to be joking with me. My father is not a man to tell lies or jokes but this had to be a joke. But if it wasn’t then surely this couldn’t have anything to do with me. I mean these stories were from a long time ago. My heart finally eased and I calmed down at that realization.
He followed me into the kitchen and sat up on the barstool. I kept my back towards him and both my hands on the fridge and my head leaned against it.
“I’m sure you can understand why I never told you this. If you didn’t know me, you would have probably thought that I was a crazy.” He said to me with an even tone. Ironically I never once thought to question my dad’s sanity.
“Why are you telling me this now? Why didn’t you tell me this before?” I felt numb, like someone just punched my guts out and there was an empty nervous space in its place. “And what does it matter anyway if these things happened once upon a time?”
“I had no other choice but to keep this secret from you. It was for your own good.” He started tapping his finger on the table. I knew he was uncomfortable about this conversation too. “And this didn’t just happen once
upon a time.” He paused for a moment and continued “It still happens, and we can't risk the public finding out about this.”
“Wait. You're telling me that there are supernatural beings still alive? Today? This isn’t just something that happened in the past?” I felt the floor drop from under me and I sagged down to sit on the floor. I turned to lean my back against the cool fridge. I couldn’t trust my legs to support my weight. In fact, my body was feeling a lot like Jello. Then the rest of what he said dawned on me.
“And hold up, what do you mean we? What are you telling me Dad?” There was a lump in my throat. And I had to ask, “Dad what are you?” I finally looked up at him anticipating his answer.
He stood up and looked down at me. “I am the original Alpha leader of the werewolves. I keep the order amongst the werewolves. There are certain powers I possess which I’ll explain to you some other time.” He rushed out the words like they’d been choking him. And I guess they have, for years it would appear. And now my mind was officially blown. My Dad was not only a werewolf but he was the werewolf. Ok, Connor, one life altering fact at a time, I tell myself.
“How old are you?” I asked with a million more questions ready to follow.
After a long pause he answered, “Well this has to stay between us but I am 3,010 years old. ”
My eyes went wide and mouth dropped from what he just told me. “How is that possible? And why aren’t you wrinkled and gray?” What in the world did I just ask my dad? This was so surreal to me. I took a breath. “Do all werewolves live that long” I asked.
“No, because they get hunted or worse killed by their own kind over dominance. I’ve lived this long due to the fact I’m the leader of all the wolf packs. I’ve managed to keep a strong alliance among the Weres, and it helps that I have the strongest pack mates.”
“Does that mean there isn’t anyone above you on this Were chain of command?” My curiosity was helping me deal with the conversation we were having.
“Yes, I am the top of the Were food chain. No one dares to kill me because with age comes strength. I’ve fought in the bloodiest of wars your history books don’t even cover. I’ve been in more battles than my memory permits me to remember.” He replied matter-of-factly.
I just gaped at him and at the amount of power he must have and here I was just gawking at him cause he has always been just “dad” to me.
“As for the how, we are supernatural creatures. No one really knows why we are able to live so long without aging too rapidly. I think it must have to do with our ability to heal ourselves once we reach maturity as a wolf. I guess it’s only ourselves even from the effects of aging and disease.”
I got an uneasy feeling with what he said about wolves killing their own for dominance. How sure can my Dad be that others would not vie for his position? From what I recall from his stories, Alphas were challenged by rogues more than their own packs. Usually the rogues go to any length to take out the Alpha in sly ways. I wonder if they would ever come after me to get to my Dad or I they had already tried and I just didn’t know about it.
“You said ‘we’ before, are there more of you?” I said after clearing my throat.
“There is a whole pack of us, son.” He replied seeming fairly calm after getting everything off his chest except his eyes still showed the utter seriousness of the situation.
“How many pack members do I know?” I held eye contact with him because from the stories he told me that's how you show confidence and dominance. I needed to show him I was handling what he was telling me like a man.
He smiles with pride when he saw what I was trying to do.
“I only assigned two wolves to watch over you at school. Your football coach Jason Hersch and your history teacher Mrs. Caitlin Stenner. I had to keep an eye on you one way or another so that the rogue wolves couldn't get to you.” He let out a slight chuckle. Now I know he could sense why I had asked. He knew I was considering the possibility of my being bait to some rogue wolf.
“No wonder I kept getting good grades when I knew I didn't deserve them.” I said laughing at what he said to ease the tension.
He starts to laugh with me and somehow hearing him laugh with me at this all makes me feel more relaxed.
“So what’s happening to me, Dad? I mean, do I have some of your werewolf genes that give me super athletic talents.” I chuckle. But he doesn’t laugh with me this time. And now I am really worried.
“I’m sorry son; I thought you figured it out. Connor you have all wolf genes, probably more than me” He said calmly but firmly.
“Are you saying that I’m a werewolf too?” I said. I must be losing it. I mean it is one thing to learn werewolves and other supernaturals are real. Hell, even learning my Dad is an Alpha wolf is something I can handle, but me being a werewolf is completely crazy.
He walked over to me with a picture in hand of my parents and me. Seeing my Mom calmed the anxiety I was feeling, I somehow was able to breathe again. My Mom was so beautiful. I was only 4 when she died. I wonder if the story about her death was real but I wasn’t ready to open up that can of worms just yet. One life altering fact at a time, I repeated to myself.
“When your mother and I found each other we never thought that we would be able to have kids. A long time ago our kind was cursed by Mother Nature herself. Our kind will never be able to conceive a pure born wolf.”
With all the information he was giving me I had to sit down to cope with everything.
He continued by saying “200 years passed since we met and your mother was in the forest hunting when she came across a wounded deer. She had decided to stay in the forest to take care of the deer instead of killing it. No matter the weather she wouldn't leave the deer’s side until it got better. While in the forest she hunted no other animal and kept her diet to plants. She became a protector of the forest. When the deer was better and able to run and jump again your mother came home. She told me what she had done and why she felt the need to do it. The next morning when she woke up there was a beautiful flower lying on top of her stomach. She believed that it was me that had left it there but she was wrong. I believed it was a sign that Mother Nature had seen peace and hope from the werewolves through your mother’s actions. After a few weeks had passed a full moon arrived and she did not change. We found out she was pregnant.”
I interrupted before he could continue “How? You said in the beginning that we were all cursed from conceiving a pure born?” The more I listened the more I wanted to know about the family history.
“I still don't understand how it happened. But what I do know is that Mother Nature gave us you. You were all your mother and I cared about at the time. When the other wolves heard rumors that your mother was pregnant, everything went to hell. Some female wolves accused her of using black magic and threatened to begin a war between the packs. I had no choice but to eliminate them.”
“You mean that you killed them?” I asked.
“I had no other choice but to do it. They were threatening to kill your mother. I couldn't allow that to happen. When the rumor spread to other packs further away there were lone wolves sent to investigate. I managed to keep them away for awhile.” He stopped abruptly and I knew it was because of something to do with my Mom. I didn’t want to press him on the subject so I just let him have his moment of silence.
“Now that you are about to transform you will grow strong enough to take care of yourself.”
“What do you mean strong enough to take care of myself” What is going to happen to me?” I asked but my mind immediately recalled what happened today at practice.
“Your body is going to start changing. You will have increased speed, strength, and your senses will be so intensified you will be able to hear, see, and sense things that a normal human would not be able to. Even your sense of smell will become more precise.” He replied.
My heart started speeding up and I had to take deep breaths. I tried to focus on everything I was just told. “Today at pra
ctice when I was able to run faster and jump higher…it all makes sense now.” I said in almost a whisper.
“Many changes will happen within the next weeks because of the full moon.” He added.
“I will change into a wolf?” I asked. I got up and started pacing back and forth. I was more curious than I was afraid of the outcome. Having a tail can't be that bad. Right?
“Yes, you will completely change into a wolf. When the changes start like they have for you, the transformation follows with the next full moon. To be honest, I do not even know what will happen exactly because you are the first of your breed. There was never a pure born alpha descendent wolf before. There are many myths about a pure blood having more powers and abilities than other wolves but nothing has been said of a pure born alpha descendant. It will be something that not even I’ve seen in my lifetime.”
I felt a strong shiver go down my spine. I need to focus on the full moon approaching. I have only a couple weeks. “Will the transformation hurt?”
“The first time you complete the change it will hurt. Your body will have to adjust itself to your new form which will cause your bones to break and expand. After the first full moon it will become faster and less painful.” He answered.
I started thinking of my bones being broken and forcefully expanded. And I feel cold beads of sweat forming over my eyebrow.
“You are my son and I will help you get through anything. I am sorry if I’ve seemed pushy these past few years. It was because I was preparing you for this day and the things to come.”
I knew he was trying to let me know he was sorry and something about that comforted me despite of the fact I was about to turn into some animal I used to have nightmares about. But I guess it can’t be that bad, after all, my Dad is a werewolf and he is the greatest guy I know. “That's okay. I understand Dad.”
CHAPTER 2
“Sleep on it, okay son? Tomorrow is another day right? Besides I hear Lisa coming up the steps for movie night and it’s my turn to set up the junk food buffet.” He said light heartedly. I hadn’t noticed the day passing by. It was late afternoon already.