Mabel.I could feel everything, see everything, hear everything.Every action, my claws at him and his at me.Every angered growl that passed through my throat.Every blow I landed on him.Lev.Running through the forest, I felt a strong pull.For some reason, the only thing I could think about was pinning him down, and it wasn't for good reasons.The fight was hard, bloody... Lev stood his ground, something that I wouldn't have ever imagined.But I got the upper hand, or better still... it got the upper hand, pinning him down to the field.I saw his face beneath me... bruised, bloodied, but still Lev... I could no longer take it, the real me let out a cry, more like a cry for help.But nothing came out.The beast had taken full control.My arms moved without my command, cruel and untamed.I watched in horror as my claws tore through his chest again, he grunted in pain, not shoving me back.His eyes dilated... wild, then it flickered blue, I saw him... Lev, right through his eyes.And
George.I didn’t move.I couldn’t.I stood still, even after the beast fled.Even after everything calmed down, the noise... the violence, it all seized, calmness returned to the forest.The atmosphere felt heavy... uncertain, only broken by the shallow, irregular breathing of the man I used to follow without question.Lev.Collapsed, still... eyes calm and human again, if only it would last.I wanted to rush over to him, to help him.But something in me hesitated.Fear? Probably.Anger? Absolutely.From the corner of my eye, I noticed a slow movement among the bushes.Cora.I turned in time to see her crawling out from behind the oak, her arm pressed against her sides.That pushed me into action.I reached her in three long strides, squatting down and as gently as I could, I lifted her upright with one arm while my other still batttered from the earlier battle.“Cora.”“I am alright,” she said immediately, her breath heavy, “I am fine.”“You are not, you are limping... bleeding and y
Cora.Sensing a presence around me, I remained vigilant, hearing sounds around me but no one in sight.Their steps too light to be scouts, but yet so organized, more like a set-up not an accident.My fingers held tightly onto the dagger I had as I crouched near the edge of the riverbank, the moon light illuminated the forest, the trees offering no cover.And out of nowhere, I heard quick feet running to trap me.Three... no, five...no 10.Alot of them, shadows passing between trees.I got into action quickly, with the dagger in hand, slashing at the first one before he got close, he yelped, stumbling back as blood gushed out from where I cut.The others looked very much unbothered.I twisted, ducking a claw going straight for my neck, turning and burying my blade into another’s thigh, he howled, falling, but another quickly lunged at me from behind.A heavy fist landed on my ribs, I gasped, stumbling backwards, swinging wildly, another caught my wrist and twisted it, cracking the bone
Mabel."He woke up, but not fully, I couldn't explain...he wasn't really himself."Cora’s voice could be heard from miles away as she stepped into the hall, breathless, her eyes filled with fear.George stood silent behind me, his blood bath ruining his shirt, but we didn’t even put too much attention into it, not even looking its way, all attention was fixed on her."W-what?" My voice cracked...my legs moved before I could even register what I was doing."Lev—he was awake but it was just for a moment," she said, reaching for the wall, to support herself. "He looked at me, he spoke...but then-" she paused, swallowing hard, "something happened, his eyes changed, his breathing tweaked...rising, he almost shifted right there on the bed, in my presence, just before he blacked out again."The air around me felt so heavy, clouded, and suffocating. "Is he-""No, he is alive, but..." She hesitated, "he is not stable, we don’t know if the next time he wakes up, it’ll be Lev…or whatever he is
George.The moment the words left the scout’s mouth, everything inside the room shifted.“Cora’s gone.”Everything seemed to slow down, even Lev looked fixed to the spot. The silence lasted for a second. Then he jolted right into action, his energy level rising immediately.“Where?” His voice came out cracked, low, like something was unraveling within him.The scout straightened, his eyes wide.“Toward the East creek, she left on patrol…and never checked in, this was found near the bank,” he extended a blood-streaked dagger belonging to Cora.I stepped forward, hurriedly snatching it from him before Lev could, the scent was fresh…it hasn't been that long.Lev turned around, and without a word, headed straight for the door.“Lev, wait…”He didn’t.I was on him before he reached the stairs.“Stop!” I barked, catching his shoulder.He turned around sharply, eyes on me…eyes wild.“She is out there...they took her, George!”“I know that.”“Then why are you standing still doing nothing?”“B
George.“You stormed out like you would to tear down the walls.”I stepped into the hallway and saw her...Malia, along the hallway, her strides sharp with her fists clenched. Rage obviously simmered off her skin like heat from an oven.She didn’t stop.“Malia.”Still nothing.She walked past me, jaw tight, lips arranged in a furious straight line.I reached for her arm...not harshly, but firm.“What happened?”She yanked her arm back.“Let go, George.”“Talk to me.”She shot me a look, sharp enough to scare off a pack of wolves.“There is nothing to say.”“There is.” I moved in front of her, standing in her way, blocking her path. “You walked out of his room like you were about to shift and tear someone into pieces."What did he say to you?”She scoffed, her eyes flaring up, “it’s not what he said, it’s what he refuses to see.”I blinked, confused, “huh?”She shoved past me again.I grabbed her wrist...not hard, just firm, not letting go this time around.“Tell me, Malia, damn it.”
Lev."You could have died, George."Cora’s voice broke through the darkness before the pain did, faint at first, like it came from afar, then sharper and then closer."You think that would have solved anything?" I kept my eyes closed, it was easier that way.The weight of my body felt foreign, each limb too heavy, each breath took longer to pull through, my ribs ached when I tried to move, so I didn’t.But I listened."I handled it." George’s voice... steady, quiet, and frustratingly unbothered."She was safe." Cora’s reply came fast and full of heat."That’s not the point! You were reckless! What if they had killed you? You think your blood on that ground would have made her safer?"A pause.Then George answered in a tone I knew too well."You are not angry I fought, you are angry I fought alone."Silence followed.Then Cora’s voice again, but this time softer, shaking. "That’s not it...you shouldn’t carry this alone, George.I frowned without opening my eyes.There was something in
George."You are not where you are supposed to be."Her head turned sharply...startled.Turning, she saw it was me but still maintained her position…shoulders not dropping.Standing just outside Lev’s room, her disposition now more relaxed, her arms now wrapped around herself like she was holding onto herself.I don’t blame her, especially after last night...what she unleashed, the power I saw."Couldn’t sleep?" I asked, stepping towards her, standing right by her side.She shook her head."Could you?" she muttered, her eyes looking away from mine, fixed on the door.I tilted my head to the side to get a good look at her face, staring at her, I said,"No one sleeps well when their thoughts are heavier than their heartbeat."She blinked but said nothing...still not maintaining eye contact with me, but no longer peering at the door. Now, just staring at the hallway.I didn’t push it.Instead, I placed my right hand on her left arm, gesturing toward the hallway with my left."Let's go o
Mabel.“That section is restricted.”I froze, the old leather book still in my hands, the dust dancing in the light.“I—I’m sorry", I stuttered, quickly trying to slide the book back into the cracked shelf, trying my best to hide my tracks.The voice stepped closer, low and weak, but not angry, coughing at the same time.“You knew, didn't you? But you came anyway.”I turned slowly to face the direction from which the voice came from, the man before me wasn’t someone I recognized.He looked significantly older than myself, greyed hair, wrinkled skin and his back slightly curved, forming a hunchback. Silver coloured hairs stained his beard and hair at several spots, his eyes shadowed by time. But he still possessed a degree of sharpness in his steps and the way he looked at me...like he had read a thousand secrets and carried them all in silence, he looked like an embodiment of the books in this room. “I didn’t come to steal anything, I swear,” I said carefully. “I just…needed answers.”