"Evelynn's no longer a human… she's a monster, like us, now. A lykan-trans, to be exact. Lykanthropy is a magical quality of lykan-trans, a special ability that they have that allows them to turn anything with human DNA, including humans and other monsters, into a lykan-tras through their saliva. Most lykan-trans have their salivary glands removed… but I guess that wasn't Redd's case."
"Lykan-trans children are raised only with other lykan-trans children until they're old enough to have them safely removed. But Redd was an orphan, living on the streets. And somehow she managed to stay an operator without anyone noticing she still had them… someone needs to be fired for this," Charybdis ranted, her claws curling into fists. Her nails were so sharp and her grip so strong that the latex covering them began to tear and even draw blood.
"Wait… so you're telling me… she's a monster just like the wolf who attacked her?" Axel said, in utter shock.
"That can't be right," Macy said, a nervous laugh escaping her mouth. "Evelynn is just the same old Evelynn we know… right? How do you know?"
"Do you really want to wait until she transforms to find out?" Charybdis snapped, then looked guilty. "Sorry. I suppose this complicates matters quite a bit. I think I'm going to step outside for a while. Pardon me."
Without another word and without looking back, Charybdis strode out of the room and closed the door sharply behind her. She disappeared around the corner as she leaned against the wall, arms crossed over her chest. She tightened her grip, hugging her elbows in an attempt to stop shaking.
"What's with her?" Axel snarled, shock giving way to anger. "Why's she so emotional about this? She doesn't even know who Evelynn is. And she even admitted that she's part of an organization that wants to experiment on us like animals. Who does she think she is?"
"All of us need to be in pristine quality before the experiment. That way, we're worth the most money," Silas explained, trying his best to keep his own anger out of his voice. "It's not Evelynn she's worried about, she's worried about her money."
"Filthy trash," Axel muttered under his breath. "Swear, when we break out she's going to be the first to die."
"Hold on, hold on, nobody said anything about killing anyone," Macy stuttered, but was placated by a glare from Axel.
"You're so rational, Silas. It's really amazing. But we have to think on the bright side, right? Otherwise, we'll let it get to our heads. Evelynn is now a monster, sure, but maybe it won't be so bad."
"It won't be so bad? Are you fucking serious?" Axel screamed suddenly, stomping on the floor and causing the coffee cup Charybdis had left on the table to rattle jarringly. "Do you have any idea how much this changes? What if they decide to kill us all after they're done experimenting on us? What will happen then? Where will Evelynn go now now that she's not a human?"
"Hold on…" Silas said. "What if we infected ourselves with lycanthropy, too?" A sudden idea popped into his head. It was stupid and quite possibly suicidal, but it was just crazy enough to work.
"What?" Axel and Macy said simultaneously.
"I mean, think about. We're in an organization dedicated to killing humans. If we're no longer humans… they have no reason to kill us. And we won't have to deal with being hunted down anymore. There's a place for us in society, and we could live normal lives, whatever those are. Doesn't it seem so simple?"
"No way, are you out of your fucking mind?" Axel said.
"That sounds an awful lot like giving up, Silas," Macy said quietly at the same time, underneath Axel's indignant shout.
"Do you really want to become… that?" Axel reasoned, gesturing to Evelynn's severe wounds. "I'd rather die than become a crazed monster who rips people up like that."
"Think about it, Silas. If what Charybdis says is true, then that means we're the last humans in the entire world. If we give up now, yes, our lives will be saved. But that means that humanity as a whole will be extinct. All of our history, our culture… gone. The monsters will have won. I remember what you said about giving up. There are times where we can give up, but now is not one of them."
"We carry the entire fate of humankind on our shoulders. That's what Rekka told me. We can't give up. This is one of the things where we have to either do or die trying," Macy said. Her cold hands clutched at Silas' sleeves by his elbow. All the little energy he had left drained out of him.
"Please… don't fight," she said.