by H. T. Night
I stood by the door, while this went on for about two hours. Tommy had once again exhausted himself from howling and dropped to the floor and asleep.
Tonight I decided to come in and watch him sleep. I looked at the spectacular, gray wolf sleep on the ground of the cage like any ordinary house dog. This wasn’t a house dog. He was gigantic and very powerful looking. Tommy was six feet in length and built like a pit bull. This beast looked as if it could kill a bear in seconds. His teeth were thick and long, and his claws were the size of no. 2 pencils.
I sat there staring and studying Tommy for what felt like a long period of time. At times he was restless; at times he seemed peaceful. I knew I needed to take this bond to the next level. I hope we’re ready.
* * *
I slipped out of the room as Tommy began to wake up. I wanted to start the night doing the audible commands outside the door to reduce Tommy from going as ballistic as he done the day before at the sight of me. I was counting on him recognizing my voice, and having a mental connection. It would be then that I would enter the room.
Tommy was growling and pulling at his chains. The chains were dragging and scraping on the ground. I took a deep breath. I called out, “Tommy!”
I heard the werewolf stop in his tracks. No sound, no snarls, nothing. “Sit boy!” I yelled from outside the door. I heard him pace for a few seconds. I repeated loudly, “Sit! Then it happened. I heard a flop sound. He sat. I then proceeded to give him the same basic verbal commands that I had done the day before. When I felt he trusted me I entered the room.
This magnificent, giant werewolf was sitting and staring at me as if he was a lap dog waiting for a treat. I rewarded him and threw some beef jerky in the cage. Tommy caught it in his mouth then dropped it to the ground and sniffed it. He licked the jerky a couple of times and then decided to devour it like it was a Twinkie.
When he had finished his snack, I began running through more verbal commands with him. We did this for nearly an hour. There was a lot of trust and interaction between us. I decided to ask Tommy some questions that could lead us to a tactile situation.
“Tommy if you trust me, speak!” I called out. Tommy yelped. Tommy’s yelp did not sound like a typical bark. It was a high-pitched growl. It was a tone that demonstrated obedience and dominance in the same melodic tone.
“Tommy, I said. “Will you attack me if I came in the cage? Raise your right paw for ‘no’, and your left paw for ‘yes.”
Tommy stared at me, and calmly raised his right paw. That was a ‘no’.
“Do you promise, Tommy? Do you promise on the love you have for my sister that you will not harm me in any way if I enter the cage?”
Tommy raised his left paw. That meant he promised.
He was letting me know it was okay to come in. I didn’t know how smart this creature actually was. Could he lie and manipulate me? Was he capable of tricking me into entering the cage and then he would attack me? He hadn’t shown any signs of deceit up till now. He had been 100 percent loyal. I had to trust him. This was my turn to believe in him.
“Tommy, would you like for me to come and see you inside the cage?” I asked.
Tommy raised his left paw. Yes.
Okay, this was it. I was going to go in. He was either going to attack me or allow me to sit with him. I had to trust my gut instinct. I believed him. I was certain he wouldn’t hurt me.
I took out the key from my pocket and unlocked the gate and opened it. I cautiously stepped in and leaned my backup against the front of the cage. Tommy was in the back. There was enough length that he could at the least bite off a toe if he was aiming to attack.
“Sit! Tommy! My voice had both command and love in its delivery.
Tommy panted and then sat. Thank God!
“Tommy,” I said. “May I approach you?”
Tommy panted like a dog happy to see his master after a long day. He confirmed by raising his left paw.
“Tommy, I am going to walk up to you and I’m going to pet your head.”
I took a big exhale and looked at this spectacular creature in his fierce yellow eyes. He didn’t have a drop of fear or uncertainty. He trusted me, and I couldn’t help but feel a powerful bond developing between us. It was different than the connection Tommy and I had in our human form.
I walked up to Tommy and slowly petted his head. Tommy liked being petted. I petted his back, and his face. I knelt down and massaged his forehead in a rhythmic motion. Tommy tilted his head and opened his mouth. His long sharp teeth were exposed. My first reaction was to jump, but I froze instead.
I stared down at the wolf’s gigantic jaw. His mouth was wide open and I was unsure what would happen next. I could see him salivating. I wasn’t sure if he was going to bite, but I remained calm. Then his long tongue came out of his mouth and he began licking my hand. Not in a way that he was preparing to devour it, but in a loving way that told me he was pleased that I was there.
I knelt down and Tommy licked my face. I laughed out loud as his long tongue tickled my nose and cheeks. I hugged him in a way a seven year old would hug his brand new puppy on Christmas morning. This wolf, this six foot tall, 250 pound werewolf was loving on me, and I was loving on him.
“Tommy,” I said. “Are you aware that I’m Josiah?”
The wolf looked at me strangely.
“I’m Josiah,” I repeated. “Do you know me?”
Tommy once again licked my face.
If he didn’t know me as Josiah his friend, he definitely knew me as Josiah his master. “Are you hungry, boy?” It was funny calling Tommy boy, but it seemed like the most natural way to talk to him in this state. I had prepared a couple of steaks for Tommy earlier in the evening and went out of the cage and closed the cage door, but didn’t lock it. I mean after all, he was still chained in. Baby steps, I thought.
I came back and threw both steaks in the cage. Tommy went to town on them and enjoyed those steaks more than any human ever could.
The rest of the night Tommy and I played in his cage. He was still chained in, but at no point did I ever feel I was in danger. This was once again becoming an extremely productive night. This just might work.
The sun was about to come up, and I was very curious to watch Tommy transform back to his Carni form, being I had slept through it the night before. Tommy had put his head down and rested. I wasn’t sure if he was asleep, but I decided to unlock his chains. If he was going to attack me he would had done it by now. I unlocked all the chains that were tightly placed on his elbow and ankles and chest.
Tommy didn’t wake up and was completely still. I walked out of the cage and instinctively locked the door behind me. I stopped, and decided to unlock the cage. Not only did I unlock the cage, I left the door open. I was going to trust Tommy one hundred and ten percent. Tommy the werewolf and Tommy the man were no longer two separate things and were becoming one. I sat down outside the cage and rested against the wall. Tommy was snoring away. What a night! I was exhausted.
The sun was peaking up. So I decided to study the werewolf as he slept. Tommy startled himself awake—within second—he went from werewolf to man. I almost didn’t catch it. It was a much quicker transformation than when he had turned into a werewolf. He laid there in his boxers completely soaked from head to toe. He looked up at me. “Josiah,” he said, “I remember everything.”
Chapter Fourteen
Tommy and I agreed we would talk after we both rested. Tommy showered and went up to his room to sleep. I went to the guest room, crashed on the couch and pondered the night—wondering what it all meant.
What was all this for? Would this give me an advantage against Krull? Or was I saving Tommy from himself? I didn’t know. Was Tommy ‘the werewolf’ slowly morphing into Tommy ‘the Carni– or man?’ If this was true, there might be a chance that Tommy may be able to transition the way Mani can. Who knew what could happen then.
I had dozed off and unless I had a vision, I didn’t dream.
“J
osiah.”
I opened my eyes.
It was Tommy. “Hey, what’s up?”
“Want to talk about last night?”
“Definitely, Tom.” I sat up, stretched my arms, and wiped my eyes.
“Damn Josiah, you’re paler than I have ever seen you.”
“Not seeing sunlight in six weeks can do that to a person.” I laughed.
“So what do you think?” Tommy looked at me intently as if I was given details by the Triat personally.
“I have a lot of thoughts,” I answered. “I’m just not sure if any of them are valid.”
“Valid or not, let me hear them.”
I got up and walked to the kitchen. Tommy followed. I poured myself a glass of water, and then sat at the table with Tommy across from me.
“It’s like this.” I said. “How many immortal species do you know of? I mean is it only Mani and Carni?
“There are rumors of other species, but the only ones I know for sure are the Mani and the Carni.”
“Okay, let’s assume we are the only ones. We are both immortal right? So whatever DNA—or whatever it is that’s inside us—that allows us not to die of old age is similar to one another. It has to be.”
“Okay,” Tommy was interested.
“What if the Mani is just a more evolved species?”
“Like you’re smarter than us?” Tommy said, insulted.
“Not necessarily smarter; it’s more like the Mani just know themselves better because they have been around so damn long.”
Tommy stared at me. He was slightly put off, but Tommy was a smart guy. I just needed to explain myself better.
“It’s like this,” I said. “The internet wasn’t invented in a day. First, there was electricity—then telephones—then computers—then the World Wide Web! What if the Mani are in the internet stage of the evolution and the Carni are still at the Benjamin Franklin—kite in the sky—electricity stage? Benjamin Franklin was one of the most brilliant men that ever lived; he would crap his pants if he knew what we could do now with electricity.”
What if the Carni haven’t figured out how to transition at will the way Mani can? What if Carni always had it in them? They had just been slaves to the full moon. What if they could resist the full moon and turn into a werewolf whenever they felt like it the way Mani can? What if you could control it by transitioning back to a Carni form when it’s a full moon and transition back to a werewolf during the day?!”
“Wow, I never thought of it that way.”
“We made huge ground in just 48 hours. I took your chains off and let the door open and you just slept peacefully.”
“I know. I was calm.” I remember feeling safe, like I was home.”
“That is because of our bond.” I paused and looked at Tommy. “I have a question for you?”
“Okay.”
“You remembered everything last night, right?”
Tommy was hesitant, “Yeah, I think so.”
“You’re aware that you were licking me like I was a 50/50 bar.”
Tommy laughed “Yeah, about that,” Tommy stammered a bit. “All I can tell you that it’s instinctive. I can’t high five you or even give you a bro hug. When I’m in that state, doing that seems perfectly fine.”
“As long as you only do the licking as a werewolf, we’re cool.
“Don’t flatter yourself, pretty boy.” Tommy knew calling me pretty boy pissed me off. “Are we done with that?” Tommy said, a little embarrassed.
“Yeah, were done, sloppy kisser.” I said with a chuckle.
Tommy shot me a look that pretty much said, ‘quit it dude.’
“Okay, okay,” I said. “Now I’m done.”
“Josiah, there is one more full moon left. Do you think we can accomplish what we need to in one more night?”
“I hope so.”
Tommy nodded and went upstairs to take and a nap.
I decided to watch a Scorsese marathon on the tube. “Raging Bull” followed by “The Departed.” Damn, he was an intense director. I loved me some Marty.
Tommy came downstairs as “The Departed” was finishing. I looked up at Tommy and said, “how Mark Walberg didn’t win the Oscar for that movie I don’t know.”
Tommy ignored my sentiments for Marky Mark and had other things on his mind. “Yari called me,” he said. “She said they will come back tomorrow.”
“She called you? Are you guys like best friends now?”
“Relax Josiah; you can’t put a claim on every woman in this house.”
I laughed. “I’m not jealous, Tom.”
“Then what are you?”
“I don’t know what I am.” I said.
“Look, I know you two slept together. I know she followed you for two years, but it’s obvious that you have feelings for Lena.”
“Huh? I said acting surprised.
“Jo, you have serious feelings for Lena. Anyone can see that.”
“I’ve never ever said anything to lead you that conclusion.”
“Josiah, I’ve known you for a long time. You have the same look in your eye you had for Krista Gregory. And you had it bad for Krista Gregory.
He was right, I was crazy about Lena. I cared for her in a way I didn’t completely understand. Every time I think about her, I get exhausted with the longing in my heart. “Yeah, I guess so, Tom.” I said.
“You guess so?” Tommy answered back.
“What do you want me to say?”
“You don’t have to say anything. I get it.”
“My sister?”
Tommy nodded his head and stared off. I knew he loved my sister deeply. “After I lost to Atticai and Goliath had beaten me further and left me for dead. I was lying there in a pool of my own blood. I had inner peace inside me, I figured I was done and I was about to go to the ever after. Then something extraordinary happened. I saw your sister. She was reaching out to me. I was dying and knew the end was near. I knew I was moments away from being with her.” Tommy stopped talking. He tried to speak again but he was too choked up to do so. This was hard for him. Hell, it was hard for me to hear. “I could see her face, Josiah. I could see your sister’s face. She was reaching out her hand to me. She was there to take me with her. It was the most wonderful feeling I ever felt. I reached out my hand and she took it.”
“She took your hand?”
“I thought it was hers, but it wasn’t. It was Yari’s.”
“Yari took my hand and wiped the blood from my eyes. I reached out for your sister, but Yari was the one there. Jo, Yari saved my life. I was left for dead. She risked everything to get me out of there.” Tommy stopped talking. “It was like your sister acted through her. Her touch was Yari’s touch.”
“Wow.” I said.
“I still can’t believe that seven foot bean pole kicked my ass.”
“Atticai did look like a bean pole, but that was where it ended. He was the strongest man I have ever fought.”
“Stronger than Krull?”
I thought about it. “Yeah, definitely. Krull seamed more seasoned. Atticai had the heart of a lion.”
“All I know is that heart of a lion, scarecrow-looking, motherfucker kicked the shit out of me,” Tommy said, disgusted. He stared at me and didn’t say anything.
“What?” I asked.
“How were you able to kill him?”
“I was able to kill him only because I had become ‘the eagle’. Man vs. vampire, he would have manhandled me. I don’t know if I could take him even now.”
Tommy’s expression was one of disgrace and confusion. He stood up from the table. “Anyway, so what’s the plan for tonight?”
“There is less of a plan for tonight and more of a plan for today.”
“Okay?”
“I just think we should hang out today.”
“Just hang out?” Tommy repeated slowly.
“I’m thinking we just hang out together and forget about the sun going down. We just spend quality time together. I wa
nt to see if the bond we have right now can easily translate as you become a werewolf. I think if there is no change in your reaction we will be on to something.”
“You sure, Josiah? What if things don’t go as smoothly as they did last night? What if I don’t respond to you? Then it’s ‘Josiah vs. werewolf ‘part 1.
“I am going with my gut again on this one. This is going to work.”
Tommy was definitely unsure about my decision but he went along with it anyway. “All right. What do you want to do?”
“I thought we could either do some old school MMA training, or I could kick your ass in Scrabble.”
“You didn’t just lay down the gauntlet?” Tommy grinned from ear to ear. Tommy and I have had some epic scrabble matches in the past.
“You have a board?” I asked.
“What do you think? It was the first thing I bought when I got the place.”
“Okay, Tommy boy. It’s time to triple letter your ass.”
“Triple letter? Son, I’m going to triple word your face into submission.”
Tommy and I loved to play our Scrabble. Tommy went and got the board out. It was 6:00 pm. There was two hours till sunset.
Tommy laid out the board on the living room floor and we took our pieces to begin the match. I went first. I got double points; I spelled “rhythm.” There was no way Tommy could get a good word off of that. Tommy took his time and then had gleam in his eye. Oh no, he was going to get major points, I could feel it. Tommy used my ‘y’ in ‘rhythm’ and made the word ‘oxygen’ going down and played the ‘x’ on the triple letter.
“Look, who just got his ass triple lettered,” Tommy said, as cocky a man could playing a game of scrabble. “That’s 32 points, son. Shabam!”
It was on! Tommy and I were going to have another epic match. We played a long time and it came down to the wire once again with the score being ‘312 to 317’ with Tommy ahead. I had a ‘Q’ left and was down by five. There was an ‘A’ and a ‘T’ in the far right corner of the board. ‘QAT’ was a scrabble word. I had no idea what the word meant, but I recalled seeing the word in the Scrabble dictionary. I was staring at the ‘Q’ with deep thought and had my head down. I closed my eyes and thought about it for a moment. Should I put it down? If I was wrong, I know Tommy would challenge it. I opened my eyes and said, “Okay Tom, you’ll probably challenge this but I got to do it.” I was expecting Tommy to say, ‘challenge’. But, there was a problem, Tommy wasn’t in the room. I got up and looked for him in the cage room, and sure enough, there he was. He had turned into a werewolf and I didn’t even know. I was too busy pondering the ‘Q’.