On the outskirts of another town approximately forty two miles from Rovina in a local bar known for its delicious steak and beer, Connor sat nursing a glass of scotch with two other individuals mumbling amongst themselves about the latest attack they pulled on the pack by the small city's border.
"You know it's dangerous for us to meet up in a place so open like this, anyone in here could be a fucking mutt for all we know," one of the men grumbled looking up at his leader with dread in his eyes hoping they would leave and go to their usual spot that wasn't so conspicuous. "Do I sense fear on you, Kevin?" Connor asked his brow quirking in amusement as he took a sip of his drink. The man which the question was directed to scoffed sitting upright in his seat, his expression hardening, "Fuck no."
"Good, besides my bullets have been dying to get lodged in their skull in the last couple of days so don't worry. If anything they should be fearful of us."
"So what happens now? One of the men went down into the community pretending to be passing through and said he saw nothing," Kevin said looking expectantly at his leader upon what to do. Their little group of hunters had been formed amongst humans who solely believed werewolves existed and had bloodlust to see them perish. They were determined to get rid of them pack by pack and would do anything to prove the rest of the world living in the dark that they were supernatural beings who lived amongst them. Connor in particular had been disgruntled and mortified to find out about their existence when he not only lost someone close to him but his own seed left to be with one. That thanksgiving dinner his whole world was turned upside down on its axis after all the childhood tales of werewolves existing had been confirmed; leaving him a changed man. A man that was determined to get his child back and save them from the beasts' obvious use of sorcery. It hadn't been hard to gather an army of other humans who may have never seen the supernatural beings but believed based on other evidence that they existed.
"It's either they're playing the long game with us or our attack didn't scare them enough?" the leader mumbled rubbing his chin in deep thought on what to do.
"Are you sure there's true proof they exist. I mean the guy we shot wasn't even in wolf form but was moving around an area on the outskirts of the city. For all we know he could've just b –"
"Where are you getting at, James?" Kevin demanded scrunching his face in disgust at what the other man was alluding to. "I'm just saying all of us have been hunting these things for quite some time and we haven't actually seen anyone turn into one. Did it ever occur to you that we're hurting innocent people?" the other man questioned breathing heavily; deep down he was scared to air out his view. When it came to how their group worked it operated as more of a dictatorship with Connor giving them orders that they were expected to blindly follow.
"You're starting to sound like the rest of the world who think we're lunatics for knowing the truth! I had to watch with my own eyes as the people I cared for were taken away by them!" Connor seethed tightening his hold around the glass till his knuckles were white. If James wasn't careful that glass would be bashed into his skull and he resorted to staring at the table ashamed for having stepped out of line.
"The whole world is going to see for themselves that they're in the wron –"
"So boys, are you ready to tell us about how the world is flat?" one of the other patrons bellowed causing everyone else in the bar to snicker. "Or how about the moon landing, was it fake boys?!"
"Personally I'd like to know if you guys think Biggie and Tupac are secretly alive?" another chimed in causing an eruption of laughter amongst themselves at the expense of individuals they believed were insane for thinking werewolves existed.
It took Connor placing his hand firmly on Kevin's arm to prohibit him from standing up to engage in a fight with the men who he believed were wrong. But one firm shake from his leader had the man plopping back in his seat grumbling under his breath like a child that had been chastised.
"Don't listen to those idiots, far as anything is concerned I do believe we aren't alone," a deep voice spoke up causing the men to see a man already looking at them who had been seated at another table. None of the men especially Connor could recognize him and he began to come to the conclusion he must have been an outsider since it was a small town to the extent everyone basically knew everyone. "Please," Kevin scoffed, "I bet you're just like the rest of these idiots and you secretly see us as nuts."
"No," the man replied shaking his head leaning forward to keep his eyes trained on Connor whom he noted was the leader, "I don't. I used to live out in the countryside with my grandparents. They used to tell me never to venture out into the woods and one night I decided to check it out – pretty stupid as fuck but," he chucked humourlessly, "when you tell someone not to do something you only increase the desire in them to do it. And what was in there…" he shuddered looking off to the side unsure of what to say relaying such a tragic memory. Eventually gathering his thoughts he ran a frustrated hand through his hair and looked back up at the men who had placed their full attention upon him, "Let's just say I've seen enough to let me know they need to be destroyed."
Intrigued by how genuine he seemed Connor gestured for him to come join them and figure out this stranger. "Why don't you join us…?" he left the question hanging only to have the man stand up from his seat to reach out to shake his hand and say, "Reagan, my name is Reagan…"