Shade's Loss

by Christina Worrell

  Shade rolled her eyes, even though she knew he was teasing it still annoyed her. Her friends were always mocking her about her size, especially not having a butt like theirs. She didn’t point out their obvious flaws.

  After breakfast Mikhail drove them to the city park and showed her some basic self-defense moves. With her size issues some of the steps were impossible for her to learn. She had no fat and little to average muscle, so girly and delicate, a wisp of a thing.

  Mikhail pushed her to try harder. He could see determination on her face but it was being battered by humiliation. She felt inadequate and he could understand that perfectly well.

  He repeated the steps of the ones she could handle until he was sure she would be able to do those blind. What he taught her was incapacitating but non-violent. She would stop the guys in their tracks if they touched her and not be held responsible for anything. He felt sorry for any guys who upset her now. Shade was no longer de-clawed or tame.

  Mikhail then took her to the library where they found books on cooking and basic food knowledge. Shade was redder than the checkered picnic cloth on the front of the book, ashamed she had never thought of this as she set the books on the check-out desk. She could do circles around her math teacher but boiling water was over her head. Anything artsy-crafty was out, sewing, drawing. Growing plants of any kind and animals were forbidden after the tenth one died. All except dancing, she was a professional when it came to dancing.

  He wouldn’t say she was klutzy just not capable of simple basic things.

  It took less than ten minutes to get the older librarian to come to the front and issue them their books.

  They went back to the house to clean up before heading to the movies which were only eight blocks away, so they would foot it. Shade changed into a skirt and changed her hoodie for a thin black sweater.

  The house still smelled like burnt food. It would be days or weeks before the smell dissipated. Mikhail propped a few windows open to let the place air while they were gone.

  Their short walk gave them time to discuss things like his not have a girlfriend yet. Shade was adamant about finding him a woman.

  In the theater they found seats halfway between the screen and back exit right in the middle. Shade had very little preference when it came to movies but horror was out. She did not want to be watching zombies when she knew she would be home alone some nights. She had a vivid imagination when she chose and flesh eating zombies terrified her.

  If they existed then she was screwed because she couldn’t run fast. She would have to find a butt kicking super chick to protect her. Guys would only be distracted so she would definitely partner up with a zombie smart female.

  The movie was a new action flick, not a zombie one, that had their adrenaline soaring. Hyped up as they were they chased each other playfully taking the shortcut through the woods. Shade had hesitated at first, looking at her brother who only smiled and took off. His silly challenge was obvious. A catch me if you can little sister taunt that she had to pursue. She was used to his big brother teasing and found obliging him the far better option in her opinion.

  Of course Shade could never reach him, even when he barely put forth effort unless he let her win. She ran around a tree and he disappeared around another.

  Shade giggled girlishly and was immediately horrified. She was not a giggler. Teeny boppers were so childish and annoying.

  Mikhail could hear her only a few feet in front of him, just out of sight. He kept an ear trained on her the whole time. He was athletically built giving him a far better advantage at games like this.

  Mikhail stopped when he realized that everything was dead silent. In the middle of the park where oddly there were no night sounds of scurrying animals or people. It was not quite midnight yet so he expected there to be a few people at least. Squirrels could always be heard chattering if you stopped talking.

  They had left the well-lit path a few feet behind, still in sight. The moon was the only light in this area and it was filtering through several trees giving the woods an eerie glow. Fog whispered against the ground in random patches giving him the chills. He had seen enough science fiction movies to know this was where one would encounter trouble.

  “Wait, Shade,” he called, easily catching up to her and pulling her back from the shadows where their wayward chase was taking them. He was becoming nervous and his instinct was to protect his sister at all costs.

  Something was definitely wrong. The air was thick with mute tension. The tiny hairs on Shade’s neck rose. Chill bumps broke out on her arms.

  Shade looked around having completely forgotten the disturbing feel of things before they had stepped into the woods moments ago, and her feelings of loss the day before. She eased back closer to his comforting presence and height.

  “Something’s not right,” she whispered, clearly becoming afraid, remembering her earlier thoughts of zombies.

  There was a menacing snarl from up ahead that made them reach for one another. Mikhail had never heard a dog sound so deadly in his life. Whatever it was sounded massive, like the size of a bear or a wild boar which was not unheard of for a city park but rare.

  Shade realized zombie dogs were just as disturbing.

  “When I say so run back the way we came and don’t stop until you get back to the street,” he whispered harshly gripping her arm tightly until she nodded. Whatever it was it was making her fearless brother anxious and scared, she would do whatever he said. He could defend himself but she would just be dog bait, a hindrance to her brother. She would slow him down so she would do exactly what he said but if he didn’t follow her she would literally drag someone back in with her to save her brother.

  The nearby shoulder high bushes shook all of a sudden and the constant growling turned to another ripping snarl as he pushed his sister behind him back the way they had come and yelled run.

  It did not help that it was dark and the moonlight scarcely showed through the trees.

  She was not a runner and her heels made things that much slower. She carefully but quickly made her way back to the entrance leaving her brother alone to fend off whatever was making such ferocious noises.

  Mikhail took a familiar stance and strained to make out whatever was rushing at him. It was only seconds and it was on him, snapping at his throat. His first thought was to run or scream.

  He became shocked when blood-red humanoid eyes stared back. It was so horrifying, straight out of a fantasy movie that he hesitated a brief moment frozen by fear. At least it had run straight to him and ignored his defenseless sister who was hopefully among other people by now.

  “Impossible!” he screamed as the monster upon impact. He believed those to be his dying words, even as his thoughts were of Shade hoping he had given her enough time to make it back to the street, to safety.

  He was strong but nothing compared to the half human half wolf creature whose hot breath and thick strands of drool coated his face, jaws clamped around his neck.

  It was wolfish in appearance, on all fours until the creature reached him. When it reared up it was nearly even with him. He scarcely noticed the dark fur and tail because he was focused on the black claws and white fangs.

  If he didn’t know better he would say it only wanted to bite him not eat him, but as he was supporting the inhuman being snapping at his throat he was not entirely sure.

  Mikhail’s throat burned like someone had poked him with a thousand branding irons all at once. Sharp claws pushed him back, shredding his shoulders, his shirt now nothing but tatters. His breathing was labored and resembled a choked gurgling sound. He felt as if the wolf-like creature’s bite was burning him, like flames from a gas incinerated fire. He would die alone in the dark and empty city park. His sister would be all defenseless and abandoned in the world. He was torn with grief at reality and life. Why was life so cruel?

  The wolf had stopped attacking and now stared straight into his eyes. He did not understand why the fearsome creature was not
trying to kill him, just maim him.

  A rough bark echoed around his head and all he heard was ‘mine’. He did not realize the wolf had spoken.

  A loud explosion echoed next to his ear at nearly the same moment running his attacker off. Whatever it was that made the sound he was absolutely grateful for it, even if the creature was no longer attacking but merely there in his face. A dark shadow helped lower him to the ground when his knees refused to hold his weight anymore. He was going to die he felt it deep down inside.

  “Will he be alright?” his sister asked his rescuer, somewhere behind his savior in the shadows.

  NO! Mikhail screamed within his head. She had not gotten away and there was no telling where the creature had gone. He tried telling her to run but nothing came out of his fatally shredded esophagus. Not even a grunt or moan. His voice box was most likely inside the creature’s digestive tract by now. The wound was growing numb and he was becoming lethargic. He knew he was bleeding out and within minutes he would be a corpse, his slender sister left alone in a cruel world to fend for herself. His ridiculous lessons were more or less to make her feel less defenseless not to fend off idiots. Her attempts could only anger some and make things worse. Damn him for not trying harder, for not doing more by her.

  Their parents would never forgive him. He knew he could never forgive himself.

  “Give me a moment,” was the answer, the voice hoarse and scratchy with what seemed little use. It was a male that put cool stony hands to his throat stanching the flow, as shakes began to consume him. His body was seizing up and beginning to thrash madly, going into shock. This was making the stranger’s job almost impossible.

  Shade realized her brother was dying. A single frantic sob escaped her throat as she scrabbled for her cell phone. Her fingers could barely hold the tiny plastic piece of technology, the thing that might just save her brother’s life. Her frantic desperation slowed her down.

  She should have thought of her cell phone as she was running away.

  The stranger reached back and took the cell phone and crushed it into tiny fragments. He threw them into the woods and turned back to her brother to hold him still while he thrashed. Shade looked completely mortified. Mikhail’s only chance at survival was dependent on the cell phone which laid crumpled in pieces somewhere off in the shadowy distance.

  “Have to hide him. Afraid it is too late for this one.”

  She nearly refused to believe the man. He was going to let her brother die? Fury rose in her beyond anything she had felt before. The love she had for her older brother was enraging her and leaving her feeling capable of anything.

  When the stranger turned to look her in the eyes though, she felt herself comply. All she noticed when she looked into his face was the strong jaw bone structure and long hair reminding her of a famous actor.

  Shade followed him as he lifted her huge brother effortlessly, only now becoming aware of the strangeness of his words, the affect he had on her.

  “What do you mean out of sight? He needs medical help...” she begged.

  Shade looked around and still not a soul was in sight but the three of them. She had no choice but to follow.

  The man simply ignored her and continued on to a small building. Once inside he pushed a button and the floor gave away showing a dark, deep stairwell. The creepy factor was maxed out. Shade followed simply because she felt it was the right thing to do deep inside, something about the monster who had bitten her brother completely horrified her, it was not from her world so in her mind she assumed maybe that her brother could be saved. The man was acting like this was not uncommon for him, maybe he could save Mikhail. Yet his words suggested otherwise. It never occurred to her to run away and seek help elsewhere.

  The steps were uneven as though it was not a professional who had built the inner chamber below the small building for park rangers.

  The steps ended suddenly causing her to stumble into the strange man before her, her arms held out before her. Whom she had also ran smack into on her way to safety.

  His back was cool to the touch and very muscular. His shirt was thin creating a very thin barrier between the two of them. The stranger hesitated long enough for her to regain her balance.

  She mumbled a hasty apology and continued down the dark and narrow hall with him to a brightly lit room not much bigger than the room above them. Despite the gravity of the situation she felt calmer than she should have, more complacent than normal. Something in the man’s eyes… which she could not remember one detail. Not the color or shape.

  The stranger laid her brother on a table and strapped him down.

  Wait? Why were there straps?

  When she meant to refuse, to stop him, he turned and was instantly at her side holding her tiny wrists hostage. She fought like a wild, feral kitten.

  Brittle was the word that came to Damon’s mind as he held her tightly, for her own safety.

  Her metallic purple shade of hair distracted him momentarily. The style of this age continued to shock him. With her oddly colored eyes and full lips she reminded him of a Gothic porcelain doll.

  He controlled his thoughts and focused on calming the strange female.

  “He was been bitten by a Lykan, will turn at any time. Listen! Ninety-nine percent go mad. We know not why, only that few ever recover becoming Lykanthrope. He will kill you and anyone else within his reach. My job is to stop them from multiplying. You have an hour before he has changed. Say your goodbyes. Be careful not to wander too close. If he begs, screams, threatens, or becomes angry you cannot get close or you will either become food or like him. I must go find the one who did this to him,” he said gently, his accent unlike any she had ever heard before. His words were stilted and nearly unclear. It sounded as if he forgot to use words or he did not speak English well.

  A sudden and aching void opened up in her chest causing her to stop her ineffective assault on the man. Screams echoed within her. She looked away from him as vertigo built up. She did not know if she would be sick or pass out.

  After a moment Shade nodded in response, unable to find coherency at the moment. She began to sway and rush towards the floor, knees weak leaving her incapable of controlling her own body but Damon easily lifted her and carried her to the only chair occupying the room. He kneeled before her, supporting her until she regained her senses. Fainting was not like her, but this man was saying her brother was transforming into some kind of mythical creature, like out of some B-rated movie, like the thing that had bitten him.

  “Do you remember what I told you?”

  Shade nodded but still refused to look at him. Well she remembered most of them. She had to say goodbye to her brother before he died, her parents and now Mikhail. Why?

  Something inside her told her this was wrong… this was not how things were supposed to be but she could not form any thoughts. Fear, loss, and betrayal bounded through her randomly becoming stronger until she gasped for air.

  Damon stood and instantly disappeared. Shade glanced at the still form on the table that was Mikhail.

  Surely he was wrong…it was pure madness. Her brother swore he would stay with her. A bite could not separate them could it? A single bite from an unbelievable creature…

  Damon Lothos shook his head at tonight’s events as he hurried to catch the creature that bit the boy.

  Never in his seven hundred years had he hesitated to kill the maddened ones. The percentage was so low that they would be a normal shape shifter that he just killed them outright and immediately caught the one who had changed the victim. He had lost time and if the old one was loose more than a few hours the public could know, and he would be in a very bad way.

  It was the one unbreakable rule of their kind. Not as in vampire, the whole paranormal community. His one Master, nearly an equal, was a Lykanthrope and he was a vampire. Gideon was over a thousand years old and one of the oldest of their kind. Only a handful of werewolves were older than him, most hunted to extinction.

&n
bsp; Damon pulled out his cell and called the cleaners. They were as their name implied. Silent and anonymous paranormals who cleaned up the messes left behind with futuristic weapons. It was some kind of ray that vaporized everything leaving only a large hole as evidence. The city merely filled the holes in covering any dust that had fallen to the ground.

  Up ahead a chilling howl broke the silence. Animals could sense this one’s evil and would avoid it all costs, even if it meant death by other means. The twisted werewolf ahead would be a pile of ashes in mere moments.

  He stopped to call the cleaners and let them know to head this way shortly, confident of his success.

  Damon changed to the only form he could manage, a were-panther. Black, shiny coat with icy blue eyes and massively bigger than some bears. This form was faster, stronger, and more deadly only because he had four sets of claws and two fangs instead of just the fangs. His human nails were deadly only to mortals.