by Amy Cross
Chaucer nodded. "Duncan is the most slippery of all the werewolves. He's the one with the brains, the one who left this estate to go down and live in London, and who then came crawling back up here. That's why we've been waiting, because I had to be sure that he was here before we launched the final attack. But he's here now. He's on the estate. And now we're ready to close the net and squeeze the life out of Duncan and his little friends". Chaucer couldn't help but smile at the thought of his imminent victory. "What time is it?"
"1:15am, Sir," Withers said.
"We'll strike immediately," Chaucer said.
"You don't want to wait until darkness?" Withers asked.
"Definitely not," Chaucer replied. "They'll be expecting that. It'll give them time to plan, time to come up with some devious way to try to escape. No, the best thing to do is to strike right now, because Duncan has a chance to talk the others into making a final stand. They're demoralised, they're ready to die. Waiting is a fool's game. If we move immediately, we can have those final werewolves captured, ripped apart and vaporised by sundown".
"Everything's ready," Withers said. "The troops are all in position, the vaporisers are fully charged, the jets are in position and awaiting your orders".
Chaucer nodded and took a deep breath. He surveyed the peaceful scene of the estate one final time. "It almost seems a shame," he said, "to have to cause such horror and carnage in such a beautiful place". He sighed. "But when a place is invested with vermin, you have to flush them out, even if you do a little damage in the process. This place, this land, will recover once the werewolves are gone. One day it will be a beautiful, barren wilderness again,a place of peace. But in order for that peace to be established, it would have to have a violent birth. The land would have to be cleared. The werewolves would have to be ground into dust and vaporised.
"Captain Lucas will be here in approximately six hours," said Withers.
"Fine," Chaucer said. "He'll be just in time to see Duncan and the other miserable werewolves being destroyed". He switched on his radio. "This is Chaucer. Operation Lupine Howl begins now".
3.
"Here," says Robin, pointing to the grass. There's a large red stain, spreading all across this part of the valley. Blood in the grass, blood on the trees, blood in the soil. Blood everywhere. More blood than you can imagine. Even stepping on the ground here, it's wet with blood and it makes a squelching sound. Robin takes a deep breath. "This is it. This is where the Wolf King fell".
"How?" Duncan asks, his voice solemn as he stares at the blood.
Robin indicates a path towards the crest of the valley. There's blood all the way. "They knocked him out using poison-tipped silver bullets. Then they used knives to rip him open. While he recovered, they dragged him up there. That's where they fed him into their machine. I saw it happen". He pauses. "I saw it happen to others, too. And if we don't come up with something, it'll happen to us. All of us".
I look over at Darla, but her gaze - like Duncan's - is fixed on the patch of blood. I step over to her.
"This Wolf King," I ask quietly, "was he the leader of the werewolves?"
"He was the strongest," says Darla. "And the wisest. The oldest, too, maybe. And he was supposed to be the one who would defeat the humans".
"I guess..." I start to say, but then I realise that there's nothing I can say. It's as if Duncan and Darla were convinced that the Wolf King would know what to do, but now their last hope has been snatched away.
"He was warned," Darla says. "He was told that if he continued to negotiate with the humans, eventually they'd turn on him. But he didn't believe that. He believed in honour. He was honourable himself, and he believed that others would be honourable as well. I guess that's what caused his downfall". She turns to Duncan. "So what now? Have you come up with any great plans yet?"
Duncan just stares at the blood.
"Come on," Darla continues. "You're supposed to be a fucking genius, right? Get us out of this mess. Work out how we're gonna fight off hundreds of humans".
"Darla..." I say.
"No!" she interrupts. "We thought the Wolf King would come up with a plan, and he didn't. He died. And now we're supposed to wait for Duncan to come up with a plan, and so far I don't see anything that gives me much hope". She stares at Duncan. "It's time to stop talking about coming up with a plan, and it's time to actually come up with one. People are relying on you, Duncan, and you're gonna let them down".
"There must be a way," Duncan says slowly, but his voice betrays the fact that he clearly doesn't believe his own words. He looks at Robin. "It must be a trick. The Wolf King has done this so that he can fool the humans. They think he's dead, but really he's... he's... he's in hiding somewhere, he's planning something, he's... he's..."
"He's dead," says Robin.
"That's what he wants everyone to think," Duncan says, an air of desperation in his voice.
"He's dead!" Robin says again, more firmly this time.
Duncan closes his eyes.
"I saw it with my own eyes," says Robin. "The humans are ruthless. They knew exactly what they were dong, they went straight for him. At first he stood strong. He killed many humans, some of this blood is theirs. Most of it, though, is his. You know what he was like. For a moment, I actually thought he was going to succeed. I thought he was going to single-handedly take down every single human. But..." Robin takes a deep breath. "Even when they overran him, he refused to go down without a fight. He was so proud. So brave. But there were so many of them. I think he knew, at the end, that he wasn't going to make it. They hauled him to their machine, and there was a look in his eyes. I swear to God, he was defiant until the very last moment and then, right as they were throwing him into the machine, the expression in his eyes changed. It was as if, right at the very last moment, he was... scared".
"He wasn't scared," Duncan says. "The Wolf King would never show fear".
"Maybe," says Robin. "But you didn't see his face. And the humans were celebrating. They knew that if they could get the Wolf King, they'd break the resolve of most of us. And it's worked".
"It hasn't worked!" Duncan spits back at him.
"You haven't seen the others," says Robin. "Morale is down. They all think it's inevitable now, that there's no way we can fight back. Some of them are just trying to work out what would be the most honourable way to die". He takes a deep breath. "Tell me, Duncan. What's the most honourable way for an entire species to die?"
"That won't happen," Duncan says. "There's a way. There's always a way. No matter how bad things look -"
"Yeah yeah yeah," says Darla. "No matter how bad things look, there's always a way out. You keep saying that, but things look pretty bad right now and I don't see any sign that you've got an answer".
Duncan says nothing. I don't think I've ever seen him as shocked as this. He was truly counting on being able to meet with this Wolf King creature and come up with a plan. Now that plan is ruined, and Duncan is on his own. Suddenly the weight of the whole pack, the weight of the future of the entire werewolf species, has fallen on Duncan's shoulders. I don't think he was expecting such responsibility, and I'm not sure he can handle it.
"The humans will attack at sundown," Robin says firmly. "We don't have long if we're going to come up with a plan".
"Sundown?" Duncan asks. "Why would they wait until sundown? They'll probably send in ground forces any minute. Hell, they're probably already moving in. They're probably on their way right now".
"So what do we do?" Robin asks.
Silence descends upon our little group for a moment. It's a sad, desperate silence as we stand in that valley of blood. All around us is a red stained reminder of failure. Of death.
"This might sound crazy," I say eventually. "But isn't there some merit to the idea that we could just... run?" Everyone looks at me as if I've just said something crazy."I'm serious," I say. "We get all the survivors together, and we run. We regroup. We find somewhere else, and we live to fight another day".
Duncan shakes his head. "By now, this whole place is going to be surrounded. There's no way out".
"But we could try," I insist.
"No," says Duncan. "It wouldn't work".
"There's no shame in running!" I say. "We can regroup, we can buy some time!"
"You're both right," says Robin. He looks at me. "You're right that there's no shame in running. There's little honour to be had in fighting a battle you can't win". He turns to Duncan. "But you're right, that the time for running is over. They have all the exits covered. You're lucky you were even able to get in here in the first place".
"Yes," says Duncan, seemingly confused by the situation. "Almost too lucky, if you think about it. Almost as if -".
"So we hide," I say, interrupting.
Duncan shakes his head again. "They're probably using thermal cameras, sonar, everything. There's nowhere to go, there's nothing to do except fight or..."
"Or die," Darla says. Everyone looks at her. "That's the one thing none of you have thought about, isn't it?" she says. "Maybe it's our time".
"Darla..." I say.
"No," she insists. "Think about it. Werewolves have lived on this planet for longer than any of us know. But maybe that time is over. All things have to pass eventually. Maybe it's our destiny to leave this life, to leave this place. Maybe -"
"We won't die," says Duncan, interrupting. "We'll -"
"Yeah yeah yeah, we'll find a way," says Darla. "I know. You keep saying that. And you keep saying that when it comes down to it, you'll find a way for us to win. Well, look around, Duncan. We've reached that point now. There's no more time left for promises, no more time for saying you'll come up with something later. We need that plan now. Right now. So come on, out with it!"
"There's still time," Duncan says.
"No there isn't," Darla says.
"There is," says Duncan, but I'm not sure even he believes it any more. He turns to Robin. "Where are the survivors?"
"I'll take you there," Robin says. He starts leading us through the trees. Duncan sticks with him, but Darla and I hang back a little.
"There might still be a way out, you know," Darla says to me, keeping her voice low. "If you want to run, you might still have a chance. It's a better chance than standing here and -"
"I'm not leaving you and Duncan behind," I say.
"If you want to live," she replies, "you might have no choice. Duncan's not going to leave, is he? And I feel like I have to stay, even if every bone in my body is telling me to run. But you? You've been a werewolf for a few weeks. No-one would blame you if you turned and tried to make a break. You're not a full werewolf, we both know that".
I shake my head.
"It's true," she says. "No matter how much you deny it, I can see it in your eyes. Your human side is strong. Most people, when they get converted, they embrace the wolf life and their human side falls away. But you, you can't do that. Your human side is strong. I don't think you'll ever get rid of it entirely. So maybe you don't belong here".
We walk on.
"I can't," I say. "I chose to come here. I'm here. Now I have to..." My voice trails off. The truth is, I'm not quite sure what to do. I feel a little bit like I've followed Duncan all the way to Scotland without asking enough questions. I assumed that he'd be able to come up with an idea, to make everything okay. But he seems lost and confused, as if all his plans have fallen apart. Looking at him, he doesn't seem to be in any position to work out a plan. And that worries me.
Suddenly Duncan and Robin stop ahead of us, and they both turn. Darla and I turn, but I don't see anything behind us.
"What?" I ask.
"Shit," says Darla.
"What?" I ask again.
"You hear that?" Darla asks.
"No," I say, starting to panic.
Silence for a moment.
And then...
"Run!" shouts Duncan, and at that moment I finally see what they're talking about: about a dozen humans rush over the horizon and head towards us, firing machine guns. I turn just as Duncan, Darla and Robin shift into their wolf forms. It takes me a fraction of a second longer, but soon I'm in my wolf form too, and we're all running as fast as we can. It's hard to keep up at times, because Duncan and Robin seem to know this land so well that they don't even worry about where they're going. Darla and I have to be more careful, even as we run at full speed between the trees, and I have the added disadvantage of still being new to this, of still not being quite so sure with my footing.
There's no time to look back, no time to check if the humans have kept up with us. For a moment, it all seems very easy. But just as I begin to wonder if we've given them the slip, I hear a whining sound and a series of bullets hit the tree I'm running past. The humans are still shooting at us. No sooner have I got used to that, than I see Duncan and Robin suddenly veer sharply to the left. Just as I react and follow them, I see another group of humans up ahead, then another. Duncan and Robin manage to get past them, but Darla and I are a fraction behind and we both have to jump over the soldiers. We make it - just - and we manage to keep running as we land.
Eventually Duncan and Robin slow down ahead, and the four of us come to a halt between the trees. Looking back, I see that there are no humans behind us... for now. My heart is pounding so loud, I can hear it. And now that we've finally stopped, I find myself running out of breath.
Still in our wolf forms, we head to what appears to be a small cave. Robin leads us inside. It's dark and it takes a while for my eyes to get used to the situation, but I slowly become aware of other wolves in the cave. Eventually we reach a large cavern, where around fifty wolves are gathered. It's still pitch black in here. A human wouldn't be able to see a thing, but wolves have much better vision in the dark so I can just about make the others out. Some of them look like they're just children, young wolves, not yet fully grown. It's shocking to see all these wolves together, and to realise: this is it. This is the end of an entire species. Gathered here, every werewolf left on the planet. Chased here by their respective governments, forced to live on this estate. Those who chose to stay in the rest of the world were hunted down and killed. And this is all that's left.
"The humans have made their final move," says a voice nearby. I turn to see one of the wolves has shifted into his human form. When I look back, Duncan, Robin and Darla have done the same. I follow their lead, returning to my human shape.
"We're all here now," says another voice, a female voice. "It's time to make a decision. It's time to work out what we're going to do".
"We should negotiate," says a third voice. "We should tell the humans that we'll accept their terms, and we should surrender".
"They're not interested in us surrendering," says another voice. "They only want to kill us".
"We should fight," says a voice directly behind me.
"Fighting would be suicide," says another voice.
"Then we should run," says the earlier female voice.
"Running is no longer an option," says Robin. "The humans know we might try that. They have weapons and machines that can track us, whatever we do".
"Then we have no option but to fight," says another voice, an older voice, from behind us.
"If we fight, we die," says another voice.
"If we don't fight, we die," says Robin.
"So is this our only choice?" asks the older voice. "To decide how we die?"
"At least there's honour in such a choice," says another voice. "If we have to die, we can at least take as many humans with us as possible. We can die with their blood in our mouths".
"They won't kill the children," says a voice nearby.
"Of course they will," says another voice. "They'll kill all of us, regardless of age".
"We don't have to die," says Duncan.
There's silence in the cavern for a moment.
"Do you have a plan?" asks a voice eventually.
"I'm working on it," says Duncan, not very encouragingly. He doesn't sound too confident.
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"Time's running out," says Darla.
"Give me a little longer," Duncan says.
"You got any ideas yet?" Darla asks.
"I told you," he says, "I'm working on it".
"Scouts report humans gathering at the entrance to this cavern," says another voice.
"Are there any other routes out?" asks Duncan.
"There -" another voice starts to say, but there's a sudden whistling sound and then a huge explosion above us, cracking the roof of the cavern and sending large pieces of rock raining down on us. The whole place seems to shake, and for a moment it occurs to me that we might all end up being buried alive. But the ceiling seems to hold up, just about.
"Missiles," says Robin, before a second explosion. This time, a large section of the ceiling collapses. Wolves from the far end of the cavern race away from the danger.
"We have to get out of here," Duncan says. Already wolves are starting to run towards the exit. Duncan turns to me. "Just keep going, jump over anything that's in your way, and you'll be okay," he says. "I promise I won't let them take you".
"Spoken like a true gentleman," says Darla. "But are we really supposed to believe that you can protect us?"
"I didn't offer to protect you," Duncan says to her before turning to me. "But Jess, you know I'll make sure you're okay, right?" He smiles. "Come on. It's me. I got cut in half and buried, and I still managed to crawl out of my grave. You know it takes more than a flesh wound to stop me".
I nod, even though I doubt he really has the power to keep me safe. Hell, I doubt he has the power to keep me alive for too long. "If we get separated," I say, "I'll meet you back in the Underworld, and we'll just stay down there with all the creatures. Forever. Like we should have done in the first place".
"Sure," says Duncan. "And we'll raise little baby werewolves".
"Watch it," I say. "Little fast there, Mister. I'm willing to fight to the death against the entire human race with you. Doesn't mean I'm interested in anything too serious".
Duncan smiles. "Agreed," he says.
The other wolves are gathered, ready to run. Duncan, Darla and I shift into our wolf forms, and then everyone runs. Fifty or sixty wolves storming along the tunnel. The sound is thunderous. For a moment, it's hard to believe that anything can stop us. But then we emerge from the darkness, into the light, and a hail of bullets from all sides immediately cuts down half the wolves ahead of me. I keep going, knowing that to stop for a moment, even to slow down, would be dangerous. The wolves who fall will die, but some of us are going to make it. Bullets fly through the air around me. Any second, one of them could slice into me and I'd be brought down. But I'm one of the lucky ones. I make it away from the cave and I follow the other wolves. I lose track of Duncan and Darla, but I just have to hope to God that they made it as well.