Chapter 20- Fight or Flight

“Fenrir, I will need more time.” Charlotte was grimacing and her words came out as a snarl. “I lifted the restraints on your power, have some fun.”

I glanced down at my paws, the claws and blue fur clearly not my normal human hands. She had lifted my restraints?

I smiled, that meant only one thing. I could finally kill this bastard.

“Fraawwgghhhhhh!”

I screamed an incoherent battle cry, fully shifting as I lunged at the black furred male clearing the top of the stairs. J’s eyes barely had time to take in the clearing, they went wide when he saw me inches from his face.

I left him no chance to block, gouging my claws deep into his neck and left arm. I bit down hard on the other side of his neck, hoping to tear deeply enough to kill in one shot.

From the short fight we had as Charlotte, Mathis, and I fled his ship, I knew this body was incredibly strong. He could probably pick up a star cruiser and fling it into space.

That strength was quickly turned on me, within moments of my fangs finding a new home in J’s neck, he had twisted and flung me from him. Jet black spears of energy trailed after me, aiming to spike me to the wall he hurled me at.

With my heightened senses and shifter reflexes fully active, I barely felt the wall as I bounced off and away from it. I only knew I needed to be clear of that spot before J’s attack hit me.

He wasn’t pulling punches this time, those spears could easily kill me. Did he not have a reason to keep me around anymore? I thought he needed me to bait my father.

“A corpse is more useful than a non compliant fool.”

Maybe I had proven too much of a headache to manage. I smiled wickedly, I could feel the sneer grow on my face. The aura that radiated from me was turning a deeper shade of blue.

I get accomplished at knowing I had pushed him to this point.

The air around me seemed to start rippling, and with a sudden sense of clarity, I could feel the power around me. I knew how to shape it, fold it, condense and release it.

Blasts of royal blue began to rocket away from me. Their aim being the black void where J was concealing himself. His power folding around him like a shield as he saw my attack coming.

I breathed deep, well aware that it had barely been a few seconds since I had launched myself at him. Time seemed to be slowed, Charlotte was well off to my left still building power. The pulses of energy around her growing more intense.

Mathis was still standing in between the battle I had started and Caprice, acting as a barrier for any stray shots.

“Quit cowering behind your shield and fight me!” I bellowed out, sending out a massive wave of energy in place of the smaller shots.

My energy crashed into his with a reverberating boom. The shock wave sent debris flying away from us. The light in the room flickered, then went out completely.

J’s black aura grew as the light faded. Only where I sent my aura into his did he seem to not expand. His entire presence was filling the room, it seemed like he was more than just a physical body. J was seamlessly moving inside the shadow of his power.

“I’m not cowering, I’m simply waiting for the best moment to strike.” J’s voice echoed all around the room.

My ears picked up on a soft scraping, like claws on concrete. I turned to face the noise just as a massive paw connected with my cheek.

The claws gouging deep into my skin, wetness flowed down my neck. The warmth and sudden sting of pain told me it was blood. I knew I should’ve backed away, assessed my injury and probably run away, but I saw nothing but the target of my rage.

My eyes focused tightly on the man in the shadow, the wolf features stitched into the fading wisps of the black aura. J looked for all the world like a demon passing through a shadowy gate, and I was ready to devour him even at the cost of my own life.

Where I should have backed down after that blow, I instead tucked my head down low and spun my right foot up and around. I connected with the solid body of J, the feeling of cracking bone spurred my fighting spirit on even more.

“Graarrgghh!” The bestial roar was one of pain, and a declaration of vengeance.

J swung, I tried to block, the fists rained down on me one after the other. My arm, then my stomach, another found it’s way through my guard and into my face.

The relentless blows kept pushing me farther and farther back. I could only attempt to dodge and intercept J’s blows, he left me no chance to counter.

I noticed something as I dodged and blocked, and sometimes didn’t, there wasn’t as much pain as I thought there would be. His blows all landed with the heavy feel of lead, but the pain I had felt when he hit me before made this time seem laughably soft.

“Is your heart not in it this time, J!?” The taunt came out with a snarl.

His eyes bulged as his rage towards me intensified. Perfect, he had slipped up. One minor pause of his fists let me slip past him.

I rammed my head straight up into the bottom of his chin, the grunt and clack of something solid smashing caused me to smile. I had less than a heartbeat to duck and twist away from the brute who was currently twisting his head back down towards where I had been.

He found nothing but a trail of my aura, the bleeding blue light leaving an after image of myself as I darted to get back between J and Charlotte. Mathis was still standing sentry over Caprice’s sleeping body. I took a few deep breaths, trying to reset myself before being attacked again.

“Enough!” J bellowed, angry growling rumbled out of his throat afterward. His shadow was pulsing and flowing like flames in the wind. “I’ve had it with this game. Submit, or I’ll begin with killing the traitors before taking you back with me.”

“Why would I do that? I’m winning, you just haven’t figured it out yet.” I tried hard to sound confident, but I still wasn’t used to being condescending.

“Ha! I’m glad you’ve got spirit welp. I can see it in your eyes, the defiance, the bravado, the lurking fear underneath it all. You reek of that last scent, and no amount of your filthy words can change it. Your father was the same way when I finally had enough power to usurp his throne. Should I teach you the same lesson?”

It was a distraction, and I fell for it. Of course I was still afraid, this monster was still trying to hunt and kill me and my friends. What did he mean about my father acting the same way though?

The moment I blinked, his shadow disappeared. When I opened my eyes he was gone, no traces to follow, no sounds to track. I looked left and right, then behind me. Charlotte was still concentrating on her energy ball, but her face had shot upwards when I looked back at her.

Above me?

J crashed down on my head before I caught a glimpse of him. Solid weight crushing me down to the floor, his wet snarling breath on my neck. For a moment I saw nothing but a bright flash of light, my head spinning as I tried to resist becoming just another coat of red paint on the floor.

“Trust your instincts, and submit to me.” J growled out low and menacingly.

“Krraagghh…” was all I could get out.

Hot pain flared up in my back, where there had been an immense pressure, now I could feel a razor sharp claw burrowing into me.

“Rrraaahhhh!!!!” I screamed, and screamed. Then screamed again as J dug another hole into my flesh.

“Your blood smells of power and piss, I thought you’d hold out longer before you wet yourself again. You’re a filthy half breed mutt, Moros should never have let pups like you live. I showed him what happens to pups that grow up without learning loyalty to their master. Now you have a choice, be my loyal bitch or die. And don’t worry, I won’t kill you here, not yet. Your friends will have to be disposed of though.”

Jet black streaks shot out, aiming for Charlotte, Mathis, and Caprice. Shadows that would pierce and kill. I couldn’t stop them, I was about to watch the only people I knew and cared about, die.

“Noooo!” I reached out, screaming with my voice and power at the same time.

Blue and gold shimmers appeared in the air, blocking the shadows from striking. Shields, placed nearly perfectly to keep them alive. If only I had been able to make one for myself.

While I made an effort to defend my friends, J had been waiting to strike a final blow to me. He snapped my head around, breaking the bones in my neck.

For a moment, I didn’t feel anything, but being twisted to look up at him while lying on my stomach made my brain do some funny things.

It seemed like ages that I looked up at the man who just fatality broke me. I saw his eyes, still dark and sadistic. The shadows around him seemed to dance in glee at my demise.

My tail, the tip of it all I could see, was pinned between us and it twitched trying to get free. It was no use. It was over, I was about to let out the last of the breath I had left, then I would be dead.

Just as I started blacking out, J’s weight lifted off of me. A blur of fur and vicious snarling was the last thing I remembered as darkness took me.

“She has a tail!” Children laughed.

They always laughed.

“It’s fake!” A little boy yelled out.

“I saw it moving.”

“It looks like the tail from my dog.”

“Did you see her big ears? She must be part dog!”

Children can be cruel without meaning to be. Their parents taught them to point out the differences in people. To distrust what wasn’t the same as themselves.

A rock flew in from somewhere, in the haze of memory I don’t remember if one of the children had thrown it, or if it came from where the adults sat watching us. It didn’t hit me, but it bounced near my feet.

I had been staring at that small patch of ground. The soft dirt was cool on my feet and knees, even in the warm afternoon light. I had been trying to listen to the birds singing beyond the playground. Trying to tune out the hateful things all of the other children had to say.

But that rock, landing hard inside my personal bubble of solitude, broke my focus as if it had shattered the calm surface of a pond. Now I couldn’t help but hear what was said about me.

“Freak!”

“Animal!”

“Loser!”

Different.

All of them could tell I was different. None of them accepted it.

Wetness touched my cheek, the salty flavor of a tear gracing my lips as I tried not to let the dam of them burst. Why did I have to be so different?

Why couldn’t they all just ignore my differences? Is it just humans nature to judge and become condescending towards what they think is inferior?

Another rock landed near me, the thudding pebble was smaller than the first, but grazed my leg as it bounced past.

Did they want me to get angry? Did the adults not care if I decided to lash out?

More rocks, one finally struck me on the shoulder. Maybe I should just start punching at the laughing kids. None of them even seemed to notice the rocks.

I looked up towards the adults, they were gone.

A fuzzy white haze had settled all around the group of children, with me at the center being pointed and laughed at.

Another rock hit me, this time it landed squarely against my cheek. It hadn’t been thrown by anyone I could see.

I stood, spinning around to try and find the attackers. By the time I finished a full loop, the haze had hidden the children away and I was alone.

What? Where did they all go?

I looked down at myself, no longer a child, but a budding teenager. My body had grown, slightly, and I could tell I was older now.

Was this a dream, or maybe I was dead?

“Hey freak!” A voice yelled out of no where.

A car whizzed by, materializing from the haze. Three boys were in it, one was hanging out of the passenger window. He threw what was left of a soft drink at me.

The ice and pop landed across my chest, soaking my clothes. I could do nothing but stand there and blink. Before I could turn to shout something back, the car had disappeared into the haze.

I turned around again, this time finding a green field in front of me. White lines were painted up and down it, as well as across it in a few places, marking out a soccer pitch.

I remembered this game. It was the only one I actually got to play in, it was the first time I had actually been praised for something.

I saw myself running out into the field, and suddenly I felt uneasy. Watching it unfold, being on the outside looking in, it made the experience of this match all the more damning.

The whistle blew, two girls in white uniforms passed the ball between themselves as they moved to the center of the pitch. Our blue uniforms, several shades lighter than my hair, seemed to glisten in the bright afternoon light.

I watched as my teammates missed, letting the opposing team move closer to our goal. I was running from the back corner, moving out of my defensive position and intercepting their pass.

I had kicked the ball well out of anyone’s range. It bounced several yards beyond midfield, our attackers all turning too slow to chase it. I wasn’t slow though.

I ran, as hard as I could, and from the view I watched from now, I saw as I put my hands down to the ground, the dirt flying up behind me as I tore across the turf.

I was the one who sent the ball flying, and before it came to rest, I was the one giving it a strike right towards the goal. It rocketed towards the poor girl defending their net. I watched, from the sideline, as it smashed into her face and continued on into the net.

The crowd was cheering, my coach was pumping her fist and shouting “good goal!” The medical trainer was rushing out with his med pack to pick up the now unconscious goal tender.

The goal counted, we won the match, but it was the only one I ever played in. None of the parents wanted such a brutal girl playing with their own. I was labeled as a cheater for using my hands to run.

My whole high school sports career could be summed up as: one game played for three minutes, one pass interception, one goal.

The coach never apologized, just said that due to circumstances they couldn’t control, I was out. I wasn’t allowed to practice with them, and wouldn’t be allowed to participate in games even if I showed up.

The one spot of praise, the cheering and the excitement from my goal, died as quickly as it began. And in the halls of the school, a bubble formed around me.

Not a real one, not physically real anyway. I never had friends or people that wanted to be around me in the first place, but now it seemed everyone went out of their way to avoid me all together.

Someone’s bag hit me out of no where, slamming right up into my face. Unable to see, I stumbled straight into the wall of lockers. Everyone else was laughing, nobody stopped to help or check on me. The person that struck me was already gone and blending into the crowd, I wouldn’t ever know who hit me.

A rage suddenly blossomed in me, standing in that hallway with all the kids around me laughing. I screamed, loud and long, the howling echoed inside the cramped space.

It made most of the kids stop laughing, a few chuckled even after I shifted. My fangs and claws on full display. They must’ve thought it a joke, they wouldn’t think that after I ripped a few limbs away from torsos.

I let my rage guide me, this was still a dream and I could do what I wanted. What I wanted, was to destroy every thing that made me upset. Those who laughed at me, hit me, or looked at me as if I was a smear of shit on their favorite heirloom.

I lashed out, taking an arm from one boy, then gouging out another boys stomach. Blood flowed and sprayed all over me as I turned and bit down on a girl trying to run past me.

I ripped the flesh away from her collar bone, letting out a satisfied howl at the taste of blood. It felt good to tear, dismember, and feed on their essence.

I could feel their life energy flowing into me as I took another life. I suddenly felt full of power, like I was about to explode with it. I let it go.

Blue energy streamed all around me, vaporizing the other students. It get good to release all of that energy. It felt like I had taken all the hate that had been directed at me my whole life, and turned it around and sent it all back at once.

The scorched remains of the hallway smelled of sulfur. I was the only one still standing in it. I suddenly felt completely hollow inside.

I had killed everyone that was making fun of me, I had released all of the hate I had inside. Why didn’t I feel better for it?

The school disappeared, a shaded valley surrounded by tall trees took its place. I could smell the fresh water running not far off, and the earthen scents of wild and natural growth.

I marveled at it all for a moment. I did not know this place, though it seemed familiar enough. I took deep breaths, trying to savor the fresh air while I could.

I wasn’t getting the feeling of fresh oxygen in my lungs though. It felt more like slime, sticky and hot. The air was thickening as I tried to breath harder.

The more I struggled, the more it choked me. In panic, I ran, searching for the water source. Hoping a drink would clear my throat. I never found the water, only a wall of shadow.

I ran the other way, coughing and slower than normal. I ran into the shadow wall again. I could see nothing beyond it, just the blackness that created an absolute barrier.

I screamed, trying desperately to be heard. That was a mistake, as the shadow took the opportunity to condense, then plummet down into my body.

It washed over me, slamming straight through me and into my very soul. My essence and energy went wild as the two forces interacted.

“In Death’s shroud, walks the one whom saves you all, and dooms the universe in its entirety.”

The voice was soft and fleeting, like it was being carried upon the wind from far away. I barely registered what it said, the shadow energy was blocking out my senses.

I raged, expelling my own aura outward as hard as I could. It blasted through the shadow, revealing a soft patch of snow covered ground.

“In the seed of the ice, your future and past are held. If you wish for it, it will flee from you.”

That voice, nonsensical and ethereal, kept speaking. I couldn’t hear it anymore over the maelstrom of energy swirling around me. I had a few feet all around me of calm, beyond that was a raging cyclone of energy that I could not pass through.

I had no idea what lay beyond, or whom spoke. Suddenly, I felt completely isolated and alone again.

I slumped to the ground, finding the snow there to be soft and warmer than anticipated. I closed my eyes in hopes my death would finally end this nightmare.

“Get up! Fen! Let’s go, come on!”

A tug on my arm roused me from slumber. Why did they have to be so forceful, I wouldn’t be late for school, the alarm hadn’t even gone off yet.

I bet they want me to make them all breakfast and go lunches. Typical humans, they just want me to do things for them. I wasn’t getting up until I felt more rested.

“Fen, damn you, we need to move now!”

Fen? My foster parents didn’t call me that, they hardly ever used my name if they could help it. What was going on?

I slowly opened an eye, streaks of light and dark auras streaked across my vision. This was not my room, nor was it even my planet. It was a metal room, wide and with a ceiling I could barely see.

“Fenrir!” Charlotte was shouting, inches from my face, but I could barely hear her.

“What? What happened?”

I was slowly remembering where I was, who I was. The ship, Charlotte helping me escape, then telling me about my father.

“Where’s Caprice?!” I jolted and started looking around.

“Still unconscious, but with you knocked out, Mathis had to step in to fight.”

Charlotte turned to look at the brawl unfolding between the two males. One black as pitch, the other humming a golden bronze color. Both had fully shifted and were blasting small jets of energy at each other. Not like the massive waves J and I had been shooting.

J would punch or kick out at Mathis, the physical blows wouldn’t come anywhere near him, but a small jet of black energy shot out. I thought at first they were striking home, but as I watched, I saw the shields around both males.

Thin veils of energy that would absorb the aura attacks. It was a stalemate, I could only stare in awe at the way these two fought.

“It is impressive isn’t it. If only Mathis knew more of his past, then maybe J would’ve never fallen into such brutality.”

“That seems a better way to fight him off then I tried.”

“It is, and it isn’t.” Charlotte paused, looking down at me and extending a hand to help me stand. “They don’t waste all their energy blasting giant waves at each other. Instead, they know to be wary of the physical strikes of the other. And knowing that their opponent is going to evade or parry each blow, they fire off small and precise blasts of their aura. The rest of their energy is used to build a shield around themselves to absorb the essences that are being blasted at them.”

“Is that why I couldn’t beat him? Because he had a shield up?”

“No. J had barely any defensive energy about him, but because you lacked any defense at all, he could blast at you with full force and no concern for consequence. A major weakness of those who throw the hardest punch first, is that no matter how good they are, that was the hardest they can hit and each subsequent blow afterward is less powerful.”

“So I was reckless?” I could pick up on what she was really saying without having to hear it.

Charlotte bit her lip, then looked away. It looked like she was trying to hide something, or maybe was scared of something. I glanced over to where she had turned to look, and Caprice lay there unconscious in a heap.

“Die, Traitor!” The shout brought my attention back to J and Mathis, their fight suddenly one sided.

J lobbed attack after attack, his black energy slamming hard into the diminishing shield Mathis had up. I watched as Mathis tripped, falling backwards as J lunged at the opportunity.

“No!!” Charlotte screamed beside me.

That was all I needed before my body moved. I forced myself to dash in between them, to save Mathis from the blow. I wasn’t going to make it in time, they were too far.

I reached out with my right hand, wishing it to reach out all the way to my friend. That big warrior was fighting for my sake, about to die for my sake. So why couldn’t I reach him first?

A burst of blue flowed out of me, racing towards the fallen male. J was only a foot away from him now, but my aura had latched onto his. Instinct drove my next thoughts.

I pushed hard, screaming out as I did.

“Rrraaaaaawwggghhhaaaaaaa!!”

The jet that hit J was bright enough to blind me. I only knew it hit because I had a loose sense of feeling something smack against my finger tips.

When I stopped, Mathis was still lying on his back, J was against the far wall in a crater twice the size of his body.

“Take her, run!” I panted as I spoke. Words not seeming to matter, just getting my friends out of here.

Mathis, proving his loyalty, didn’t even hesitate. He spun, taking Caprice over his massive shoulders, then sprinted towards the stairs up to the docking bays. I watched him go, feeling a sudden pang run through my heart.

What was that? Why did it feel like my entire chest had just dropped out through my feet? I hoped it wasn’t a premonition of never seeing them again…

“Girl, never turn your back on an enemy.”

I stiffened, the low growl was right in left my ear. The stinging pain, a different pain then my chest, suddenly began to feel wet. I looked back towards where J had been, then down at his hand sticking through my left arm.

His sharp claws had pierced through the soft flesh of my mortal body, they stuck out nearly enough for me to see his lupine fingers. Not seeing wasn’t an issue though, I could feel him wiggling his hand in my arm. I felt my stomach pass my heart on an elevator or madness as he grabbed down on my muscles.

Vomit and blood spewed from me as J ripped back. I can’t even form a sound, though I’m trying to push everything out of me. The breath in my lungs is gone, the bile in my stomach now lay spawn across the floor.

My left arm, now a bloody mess of meat, flopped down loosely as I dropped to my knees.

“Nooo!” Charlotte’s scream was even more desperate this time.

The tears in my eyes now have yet another reason to flow. Through the pain, I think about the hope she had in me. The things we had talked about, and how it had been such a short time since. Was I nothing but a false hope?

The room swirled rapidly, I didn’t even notice the blow that sent me tumbling. I bounced off of the floor a few times before the motion stopped.

How was I supposed to fight that? How had I done it before? This was nothing like what J had been before. He was a true monster. I was just a girl with no family.

“Stop! Don’t do it!”

Her voice was a reminder that I had some family now. The blast of energy that hit me the moment after was a reminder that I was nothing but a play doll for J.

“You be quiet! I’ll get to your punishment next.”

Warmth against my chest reminded me of someone else, another special connection I had just made. One I don’t want to let go of. One I needed to live through this, in order to see continue.

I’m not sure if it’s because of my shifter blood, but I guess these few people that I see as special would be considered my pack. Charlotte's instance that I was Alpha meant I had to stand up to that title.

Caprice saw me as someone who needed help, but it wasn’t like that here. This was something I know I can do better than anyone, if it’s to protect my pack, I’ll stand again.

My vision was blurry, I’m pretty sure my left eye was stuck shut. The taste of blood in my mouth brought a copper tang of resolve. I spat, hoping the large fuzzy shape in front of me was J.

“You brat.” His menacing growl was unmistakable.

“You giant oaf.” I spoke slow, the pain in my jaw making it hard to keep my words steady.

“Go to sleep already. I really don’t want to kill you, but if you keep it up, I will.”

“Promises, promises.”

I collapsed backwards, dodging out of the way of the huge fist that was aimed for my head. Kicking upward, I struck J in the side with one foot.

I’m not sure who took more damage, him or me. The pain shot up from my ankle all the way to my knee. The flinch caused me to lose my balance and land on my back. J reached down, grabbing me by my collar.

“One.”

He slammed me down hard into the ground, then lifted me a few inches.

“Two”

Slam, again I impacted the ground.

“Three…. Four…. Five….”

Each count was followed by a slam into the ground. At some point I saw Charlotte come up behind him. Was that a tear running down her face?

“Six!”

Just as I hit with extreme force, J collapsed beside me. His body went limp, one arm pinning me down.

“Enough, J. Go back to your hole.” Charlotte was holding a small amount of energy in her hands. “Fenrir, Alpha, please try to breathe and remain conscious.”

Ha, that was a big ask right now. With the fight suddenly coming to a stop, my heart was beating through my chest and fire was threatening to poke holes in my lungs. When Charlotte sent her ball of energy straight through my chest from the outside, everything on the inside seemed to stop.

“Ghhaaaaahhhhh!” My eyes went wide as I tried to suck in air. The pain from before was a simple novelty now, but the sudden rush of the energy into my body was a rush of something indescribable.

Somewhere between the first time you look down from a twenty story roof, and the heartbeat of a flat out sprint for two miles, is where my body was trying to take me.

“Stay calm! Don’t panic, Fenrir, can you hear me?”

“Rawhat did you do?”

“What I had to, I can explain later. Can you get a handle on it?”

A handle on it? A handle on what? Something wasn’t right, and maybe it was? The pain was going away, and not just my face, but my leg and arm too. My arm, the tattered flesh that it had been, was neatly folding and stitching itself back together.

Charlotte's aura was helping shape the muscle back to where it needed to be. She really was incredible.

“Where are the other two?”

“At the ship, we need to leave now. Chevella is getting our flight clearance set up already.”

I tried to stand, the woozy feeling took me for a second. I stumbled, but Charlotte was there to help steady me. Her arms felt nice to be in, something I was becoming attached with.

She hoisted me up and dropped my left arm over her shoulders. We started walking to the stairs, without J causing havoc, it was actually quiet for the first time in a long while.