Ellie
I haven't stopped thinking about the story that Marcus told me. It just resonated with me in a way I couldn't understand. And the pain I felt – so raw, prominent, and uncontrollable. I couldn't stop my cries no matter how much I wanted to. It was Marcus, his arms holding me tight and his voice calling to me that kept me from succumbing. He held me even when my cries settled into whimpers, whispering in my ear that I was okay and that he had me. It was those words, that moment where I was hit with the terrifying and devastating truth. My feelings for Marcus were not platonic. I'm not even sure if they ever were.
My oldest friend hidden in the deep crevices of my mind. The boy I lost, found me as a man. He told me he would never let me go again, and I needed him to know that I didn't want him to.
I think back, trying to find any kind of hint to explain how I lost my memories of Marcus. My body had received many beatings when I was young, so I sort through each incident in my mind. I remember once when I was nine, my father cracked a whiskey bottle over my head. I blacked out immediately and woke up in my bed with an ice pack on my head. The nicest thing my mother ever did for me. I healed fine, but maybe the damage went deeper than the scar tissue. I decide that that would best explain what happened to me until I find a better theory, though I doubt I would.
Koga and I are in the truck, heading north towards Garrison. I had to reroute my grocery trips since that run-in with those hunters. No doubt in my mind that if I returned there, there would be a pair of cuffs waiting for me. Hence, the 45-minute drive to Garrison. When we pass the welcome sign, instead of parking the truck in front of the market, I pull off the road and park between some trees. The area is wooded, not as much as our home but enough to create that scenery that most city folks enjoy. I'm trying to avoid someone seeing Koga and creating another problem like the hunters did. Leaving the windows half open, I walk towards the market. The road turns from dirt to asphalt the closer you get. There seemed to be more people in Garrison than I was used to seeing and strangely, quite a few of them had their sights locked on me. It wasn't unusual, I was kind of used to getting stared at when I came to towns – being the outcast that no one knows, after all. But this is different. These people weren't gossiping housewives, they were looking at me with pure distaste. Some of them sniffed the air as I came close or passed them by then looked at me with hateful eyes. I have half a mind to tell them off but I don't need any more trouble. Just need to get in and get out. The way these people are looking at me, I better do it quick.
I walk into the market and grab a cart. I don't need a whole hoard of groceries since it hadn't been that long since my last trip, but I wanted to make a nice dinner for Marcus, to thank him for everything he's done. I even throw a few candles in the cart, blushing as the thought of creating a romantic atmosphere creeps into my mind.
I got everything I needed to make dinner but on the way back to the truck, I saw a little boutique that caught my eye. I don't shop often and when I do, it's never anything fancy or unnecessary. I've never been one for materialistic things. But I guess today I feel like finding something new. Maybe something that Marcus will appreciate to see me in. It's a weird thought because he doesn't seem like the type to care what I wear, and the way he looks tells me that he would like me in anything or better yet nothing at all, but I can't help it. I want him to see me in something he hasn't seen before. I want him to think I'm beautiful and I want him to stop resisting this pull between us. Even if I have to push him just a little.
I put all the groceries in the truck and check on Koga before heading back towards the boutique. The little bell at the top of the door announces my arrival and I'm greeted with a polite 'welcome' from an older woman organizing shelves of shoes. The boutique is nice and the clothing ranges from casual to a night out on the town. Interesting since the most popular spot in this town is a small movie theater. I skip the racks of dresses covered in sequins and tight leather and head to the blouses. I sort through my size and don't find anything that screams at me. There were so many options with a variety of colors but none of them were what I was looking for. After looking through three racks and coming up with nothing, I start to find the idea pointless and want to leave as embarrassment starts to heat my cheeks. I turn to leave but stop as I notice a beautiful dress on display. It was white with sheer fabric that came down to the floor and a deep v-neckline that connect to thin straps. Before I can talk myself out of it, I grab the dress and run to the changing room. Stepping out, I go to the mirror and do a double take. I've never worn anything like this and it's hard to recognize myself. The neckline accentuates the swell of my breasts, and the waistline hugs my form comfortably. The fabric touches my ankles and I turn around to see the dress cut low on my back but still covers enough to where it's modest. I look …
"Beautiful!" I hear a voice behind me say. The older woman who greeted me earlier was standing behind me with her hands holding her cheeks as she beamed at me. She looked like a loving grandmother rather than a shop owner and that makes me smile right back at her. I purchase the dress and leave the boutique feeling a new level of excitement, like being a teenage girl all over again. I'm so caught up in my thoughts that I don't see the men in front of me until I bump into them.
"Sorry." I mutter.
I try to step around them, but they block my path. I look up to see three men, each appeared to be in their mid-twenties, and each looked at me with such intense distain it almost made me flinch. They stood shoulder to shoulder, blocking me in. The one in front, with sandy blonde hair and dark eyes, took a deep inhale then made a face as if whatever he was smelling was foul. His eyes got impossibly darker.
"You came to the wrong place, westerner." He seethed at me.
Westerner? What was that about?
"I'm just leaving." I say keeping his glare.
"A little late for that, bitch." His voice low and threatening.
I can feel another presence behind me, looking over my shoulder I found another man staring daggers at me. They had me surrounded.
"You got a lot of nerve coming here, westerner." The one to the left of me growled, he also had sandy blonde hair but his eyes were hazel. He looked like he could be related to the one in front.
Why the hell did they keep calling me a westerner? I don't even know what that means, and I've never seen these guys before.
"I don't know what you're talking about. Let me pass." I said to them, my voice also low and threatening. I'm not about to be pushed around by some punks I have no qualms with.
"Bullshit." The one in front hissed at me, "You think you can just come into our territory without facing the consequences?"
"History doesn't forget, you scum." The one behind me spoke.
What the fuck were they talking about?! My patience was running thin with their hostility.
"You got the wrong person. Now, move." I replied with a growl of my own.
The one in front of me stepped even closer, getting in my face but I didn't cower.
"Tell you what. I'll give you a 5-second head start."
'What? A head start?'
"Give you a moment of reprieve before I bite that pretty face off."
He smirked and that smirk sent a chill down my spine. His eyes sparkled with murderous glee. He wasn't kidding.
I think about standing my ground but I'm outnumbered. These aren't some out of shape drunks, they were lean with muscle and probably fast. I run and it doesn't take 5 seconds before I hear them running after me. If I get to Koga, then I have a chance of getting out of here alive. I try to bide my time by cutting through trees and zig zagging, trying to throw them off but they remain on my tail; I run even faster. I hear vicious growling and snarling behind me and I dare to look over my shoulder. What I see has my blood running cold.
Their bodies were – changing. Their skin ripped away from their bodies revealing not flesh but fur. Their muscles multiplied in size, making their forms insanely large, ripping their clothes completely off. I could hear their bones cracking and adjusting, their faces morphing into canine shape. Within a second, they were no longer four humans chasing me in the wood. They were monstrous creatures, they looked like wolves but two or three times the size of an average wolf and their physique made me believe that they could snap a tree in half. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. My foot caught on a boulder, sending me tumbling down into the dirt. I scramble backwards, panting and refusing to blink as the four large animals stalked towards me. Panic surged through me and I kept scooting backwards until I felt a tree against my back. Sweat beaded my brow and I was breathing fast. They each spread out around me, covering any corner I could escape from.
'Think, think, think.'
I couldn't figure a way out of this situation. Cold dread clutches my heart at the prospect that this is the end for me. But I dared not to cry. I wouldn't give these creatures the satisfaction to see me beg for my life.
One of the animals, its fur the color of sand, stalked closer to me until I could smell the stench of its breath. Saliva dripped from canines the size of my hand. But before those jaws could clamp around my throat, something ran into its side, knocking it away from me. My eyes widened as I see Koga crouching in front of me protectively, growling loudly at the other creatures. The panic grows until I couldn't breathe. There's too many of them, and they're all bigger than him. He can't take them all.
We can't run but if we stay here, we will die.
One of the animals lunges forward towards Koga but his reaction is quick. A swipe of his claws and the offending creature whimpered as blood stained the fur on its face. Another attacked and Koga swiftly slid underneath its body and bit its hind leg. It howled in pain and I could see blood spreading down the fur and Koga's large head shaking back and forth until that hind leg snapped and Koga ripped it clean off its body. It fell with a howl and Koga snarled at the fallen creature. I've never seen my sweet boy so vicious. I couldn't be prouder of him, watching him hold off his own. But my pride is short lived as the sand-colored beast rammed into Koga's side, returning the action he did when he arrived only much harder. I cried out as Koga flew from the impact, his body slamming against a tree. He didn't have a moment to recover from the assault as the other two creatures still standing pin him to the ground. Koga snarls and bites at them but they're too big for him to fight. The sand-colored monster turns his attention from Koga to me.
'Stupid mutt. Now, back to you.' I can hear an unknown voice in my head. But I pay it no mind.
I already accepted I wasn't likely to make it out of this alive, but they hurt my boy. Fury like I've never known burns hot through my body and I stand, growling back at the filth who dared to touch him. I will kill them with my bare hands even if I die trying.
'Golden eyes … no way … it couldn't be …' That same voice in my mind speaks again.
It doesn't back away, only stares at me with confusion underlying the blood rage in his eyes.
'YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD! EVERYTHING HAPPENED BECAUSE OF YOU!'
The voice shouts in my mind, the ferocity of it makes my ears ring. I want to scream, find out what the hell is going on but I can't lose focus now. Koga needs me.
'DEATH TO THE WEST!' It lunges at me and I duck down, the creature ramming head first into the tree behind me. I move quickly to the side as he shakes off the hit. My eyes are racing, looking for anything I could use as a weapon but I find nothing. Reaching behind me, I feel it. A hunting knife I keep strapped to my belt. In my panic, I forgot all about it. It's not much, but right now, it's better than nothing. I unsheathe the knife as it makes another jump at me. I'm surprised by my quickness, adrenaline and instinct driving me as I turn away from the creature and bring my knife upwards, slicing it as it flies past me. I hear its yelp of pain but it's not enough to take him down. Blood seeps from the open wound at his side and it growls furiously at me. I get in a defensive stance before he charges at me again. I try to sidestep him and bring my knife down towards his spine but he must've anticipated my move because his body shifted away from me at the last second. He was so fast that all I saw was a flash of sand before I felt hot, blinding pain in my hip. It had me locked in his jaws and all I could do was scream before he threw me against a tree. The breath in my lungs rushed out of me at the impact and I become dizzy. I try to move but the pain in my side is too much. I can hear Koga trying to fight the hold they have on him, trying to get to me.
'GET AWAY FROM HER!' Another voice shouts frantically in my head. This voice is different, young and sweet. I heard it once before when it said 'mama'.
I crawl, pushing past the pain in my side to get to Koga. I have to let him know it's okay. I have to tell him to run when he gets a chance. But a heavy weight drops onto my spine, crushing me against the hard ground. I can't breathe, I can't move. I turn my head to see the sand colored creature snarling at me, its giant paw pressing against me. It lowers its head down to mine, its rotten breath fanning my face.
'Farewell, princess.' The voice says in my head once more.
This is it. The end of the road.
'LEAVE HER ALONE!' The young voice screams in my head.
I strain to look at Koga once more. He fights with everything inside him. I'm grateful that they're not hurting him, only holding him down. But it kills me to know that he has to watch. I nod at him, trying to convey that it is okay.
'Run, sweet boy. Run and don't look back.'
He fights even harder but the hold on him is not budging. I close my eyes as I wait for death.
'Goodbye, my sweet boy.'
Just as I'm expecting those teeth to rip my head off, a roar shakes the ground beneath me. The sound moves the trees and has all nearby critters scattering about for safety from what's to come. The roar of a dragon before it burns everything to ash.
Something hits the thing holding me down, sending it flying into a tree so hard that the force breaks through the thick bark. Though I can breathe again, I don't dare to move. Whatever threw the creature off of me stands over me as I lay still. A paw, easily twice the size of my head, steps over me. The power from a single step vibrates against my cheek. I hold my breath as it stands over me. Perhaps if I'm still enough, it will pass over me. Its claws protrude and dig into the dirt. Those talons could tear through flesh like paper. The heat from its body warms my cold skin and fur tickles my back. Something presses against my side, and I wince. The bite mark on my hip. It noticed my reaction and it growls. The sound promising a world of pain, I whimper at what's to come. But instead of – whatever I was expecting – I flinch at the feeling of a large tongue gliding against my wound. My whole body locks. It's probably just sampling my blood before it decides to devour me. Something slides up my side towards my face, it's not a tongue. It's – a nose. A snout, really. It nudges against my cheek and my eyes slowly move up, finally discovering what I'm at the mercy of.
My eyes widen. A beast with dark brown fur, impossibly larger than the ones that attacked us. I should scream, but its eyes stop me short. Melted chocolate.
'You're safe.' A deep voice flows through my mind like silk, and my body relaxes without hesitation. Those eyes turn away from me and lock on the animals that are holding Koga down. I feel the growl rumbling through its chest and realize that it indeed promises pain, but not for Koga and me.
Faster than I could comprehend, our savior rushes the creatures on top of Koga. He knocks the two of them off of Koga, letting him stand as the attackers try to shake off the impact. The majestic beast nods to me, telling Koga to go to me and he obeys. Koga crouches low in front of me, not letting his guard down.
We watch silently as our savior unleashes hell upon our attackers. He bit, ripped, and dismembered without mercy. Their cries of pain were music to my ears. A sonata written in blood and I wanted to dance to it.
He could've killed them quickly, I know he could've; but I could tell with every tear of flesh that he wanted them to suffer. Slowly. I could taste his rage. He claimed their lives the minute they touched us. A god amongst beasts.
Koga snarls at something behind me and positions himself over my body. I turn away from the bloodbath to find the sand-colored monster creeping towards me. Its controlled breathing is reduced to heaving pants. Blood dripped from the open wound on its side, and I see a wince in its eyes at every step. No doubt the single strike from my savior did more damage than what I did. He moves with a purpose. He thinks that though he may die here today, at least he could take me with him.
A smirk curves my lips, "Stupid mutt." I repeat the words spoken in my mind earlier when they touched my boy. I want his blood. I crave it like the sweetest aphrodisiac. My body thrums with excitement as I watch the creature step closer. I can't hear the delicious sounds of tearing flesh behind me anymore. It's grown quiet and I smile in the presence of death.
A blur of brown and crimson red flies over me. Strands of my hair blow across my face but I don't take my eyes off of him. My savior. I watch his huge form tumble with the sand colored creature before coming out on top, the poor thing whimpered and pushed against the bigger beast as his massive paw presses against his rib cage until I hear cracks. His pleas drowned out by my savior's growls. It was too late for him. Those blood covered canines sank into the smaller beast's throat and with a single bite, its head rolls away from its body, its blood soaking the earth's soil.
My savior stood over the decapitated filth and snarled, as if its death wasn't enough to quell his bloodlust. He snorts at the corpse and turns to face me. Those hard, vengeful eyes soften as he looked at me. His steps toward me were slow and cautious, doing what he could not to frighten me. But there was no need for caution. Nothing in me told me to run. Something inside me told me that I knew this beast. As he got closer, I could see a storm of emotions swirling in those dark eyes as recognition sparked in my own. I know those beautiful eyes.
"It's okay. I'm okay." I say softly to him as I reach my hand out to caress his large snout. Blood caked onto his fur, but I didn't care. The beast shivered at my touch and his body vibrated with a purr, reacting to my touch as if he were longing for it.
I tried to stand but the pain in my side made me stop short, a small gasp left my lips. I pushed my upper body up and Koga moved underneath me, using his body as a crutch and helping me stand to my feet. When I stood, I kept one hand on Koga's body, in case I fell. Even at my full height, the beast in front of me had another foot or two above me. He was massive.
He leaned down towards my hip and started to lick at my wound. Each lick made the sting from the bite fade away as the seconds passed. Within moments, the pain was gone.
"Thank you." I said to the beast.
He bowed his head to me, and instinct told me to touch my head to his. So I did. A long exhale left him. I wasn't afraid, and I think at this moment, he understood that. The beast stepped away from me a few feet, I was worried he was going to leave and I'd never see him again but I watched as something extraordinary began to happen.
The sounds of cracking bones was deafening but it only lasted a couple of seconds. His body morphed and his brown fur fell away to reveal human skin.
A man was crouched on the ground where the beast once stood. He was naked and covered in dirt and blood but his face remained downward. He got to his feet standing to his full height in his naked glory. I tried not to look at the appendage between his legs and focused on his face. I forgot how to breathe as I looked into the chocolate eyes of a man. A man who lives in my subconscious mind. A man who holds the key to locks I have yet to discover. A man who could turn into a beast.
"Marcus."