This is a short story that came to my head during bio. We were watching a documentary about the Wild Child, Genie something. I dunno. I though it was interesting. Then this idea popped into my head. Don’t even ask me about how my mind works. I’m not even sure. Anyway, tell me what you think. Oh, and the next chapter of Pirates is about 60% done, I’ll probably post it Saturday. Peace.

Lycan

A Shadow Side Fiction

“Monster”

“Burn him!”

“No!”

“Give him hell!”

“People… plea-“

“Don’t let that son of a bitch live another second!”

The wild screams of the villagers easily overpowered the cries of the mayor. Hate burned in every eye in the crowd. Teeth were bared; torches and pitchforks grasped in every able hand. There is going to be a fight tonight, that’s a given. The only question was; who will get out alive?

“People settle down!”

The mayor had lost control of the situation long ago. The best he could do would be to delay the inevitable.

Perhaps I’ve given you the wrong idea. These people were not crazy, or savage, or unreasonable. In fact, their hatred was completely justified. But certain questions may arise. What happened to cause such a metamorphosis in the behaviors of these people? What event could be so catastrophic, that it destroyed all sense of empathy and compassion?

I suppose I know the simplest answer. The birth of a Lycan.

The first thing you must consider is that Lycans are not born in a conventional manner. We’ve all heard the stories of how Lycans are born. When a Lycan bites a human, without killing him/her they are transformed themselves into the half man, half wolf creature. While this does have its basis in fact, those are not true Lycans. They are more properly called Werewolves. Yes, there is a difference.

Werewolves are mainly man, and lose their powers of reason and civility in their wolf forms. Lycans, however, are mainly wolf, and lose their sense in their human form. Werewolves are also cross sterile, meaning that any children they have will be normal humans. This is not true for Lycans. The only way for a Lycan to be born is through the sacrifice of the mother’s life.

This creates an interesting dilemma. Because the mother is killed naturally after labor, the majority of live Lycans are male. A Lycan born of two Lycan parents will have extreme amounts of physical power and the ability to use magic in their wolf form, but lose the benefit of immortal life. Lycans born from a human and Lycan pair however, first have only a fifty percent chance of becoming a Lycan, have less physical strength than that of a full Lycan, no ability to use magic, but live forever unless intentionally killed.

There are, of course, ways to get around these limitations. Male, full Lycans have the ability to live forever, if they consume the blood of an immortal. The most powerful Lycan, the king if you will, was born a full Lycan, but killed his own father to obtain immortality. But that is a tale for another day.

Back to the original issue. The child in question was chained to the inside of a metal cage, suspended above the stage where the mayor stood. He was discovered two days before as the result of a campaign to discover the culprit behind the recent disappearances of neighborhood livestock. The Lycan child was found in his human form, feasting on the carcass of a freshly dead sheep. When confronted, he attacked, sending the two patrol men to the hospital with critical injuries. A larger squad was sent after the boy, who was then captured and tortured until he was forced to return to his native wolf state. After further torture, it was discovered that he was still mute in his wolf state, and could not give them any information. When they were done with him, he was sent here, to his “trial.”

“Kill the bastard!”

“Mr. Valence, sit down!”

The passionate 53 year old barkeep grudgingly took his seat next to his wife. It was their son who was just found dead in the hospital now.

“Now, would someone with a valid opinion like to speak?”

Practically everyone in the crowd jumped up at once, shouting messages of hate towards the boy.

“I’m not going to tell you to sit down again!”

The mayor outstretched his hand. Instantly, everyone fell to their hands and knees, overcome by the sudden increase in gravity.

“That’s better. Now… if no one has any obje-“

He was stopped in midsentence by the sight of a man. But not just any man. His name was Vlad Rale, 23-year-old medical prodigy. He was the only one in country genuinely skilled in the field of medicinal magic. He stepped to the small podium in the middle of the bicameral seating arrangement. His white suit danced subtly in the slight breeze, his icy blue eyes were locked on the mayor’s face.

“That’s… impossible…”

“Look… mayor… Sir… either you can ask me a hundred different questions about how I’m immune to your spell, or you can let me make my proposal.”

The mayor quickly regained his composure and released the gravity spell. Angry citizens rubbed their sore limbs as they took their seats, having lost most of their interest in the current case.

“You may speak.”

“Thank you. As we all can see, this here boy is a monster.”

The town’s people murmured in agreement.

“But is it right to kill someone, even if that someone is half beast, for following their instincts?”

Valence, who everyone saw as the pseudo mayor, jumped up again.

“How dare you justify the actions of a creature that killed my son, and sent four others to the hospital?”

“Must I remind you that I am the one who worked on those cases? I am sorry for your loss, but your son clearly initiated the attack. This boy was merely defending his life! And he had a good reason. Look what you did to him. He’s so bruised he can barely sit up straight. And by the looks of it, you must have starved him too. Tell me, would you appreciate this kind of treatment for defending yourself against an attacker?”

“He killed him!”

“He’s just a boy.”

“If he can’t be held accountable for his actions, then who can? You? The mayor? The city? There is no one to blame but himself, and I’ll fight to the death to see this son of a bitch get his head bashed in!”

The crowd was in an uproar. People were trampling over one another, milling in an enraged trance toward the boys cage. The Lycan boy growled defensively. Mob members rattled at his cage, scratching and clawing at him. Blood trickled to the floor as the boy began to retreat towards the center of the cage, pulling himself together as compact as possible.

“Yeah! Kill ‘em dead!” Valence’s voice could be heard over the loud shouting of the mob.

Suddenly, a green ring appeared around the cage. It extended itself to the floor, making a tall pillar. Gradually it widened, pushing the mob away from the boy inch by inch. This didn’t stop their fury however. They punched, kicked, and clawed at the wall, desperately trying to destroy the thing that stopped them from their goal.

The sound of gunfire rang into the air. Everyone paused. There was only one person in town rich enough to own a fire arm. And that was Vlad. Valence tuned slowly, only to end up staring down the barrel of Vlad’s pistol.

“Next one’s going through your skull.”

His wife stepped forward defensively, but Vlad raised the other one at her.

“You wouldn’t dare.” Snarled Valence.

“Go ahead and try me.”

He wiggled the gun pointing at Valence’s wife.

“Come now, take one more step and see what happens.”

Valence conceded and stormed off into town. His wife scurried off behind him, but not before shooting Vlad a poisonous glare.

“I’ll take charge of the boy. You won’t have to worry about him attacking your livestock anymore.”

The crowd murmured in shock and anger.

“Anyone have a problem with that?” He waved one of the guns around haphazardly. Everyone shook their heads in unison. “I didn’t think so.”

With that, the mob dispersed and headed back to their homes. Vlad holstered his guns and held out his hand for the key to the cage. Reluctantly, he took if from around his neck and placed it in Vlad’s hand.

“Are you sure you want to go through with this Vlad. I know you’re an important asset to our small village, but you’re still subject to the law, and-“

“No disrespect mayor, but I think I know what I’m doing. Civilizing this creature will be a fun little task for me. And besides, this way you won’t have the blood of another innocent on your hands.”

The mayor stood there, awestruck at the doctor’s brazenness. Vlad unlocked the cage and helped the boy to the floor. After healing the Lycan’s wounds, Vlad carried the chained beast back to his home.

“I’ll call you Luna.”

The boy looked up at Vlad, before falling asleep in his arms.

“Today is the 10 year anniversary of Luna’s arrival. I can hardly believe his progress. He still can’t speak, and I’ve never seen him transform into his more intelligent wolf counterpart, but the progress he’s made on the human front is astounding.

“He is an avid reader, and although he doesn’t understand everything, he asks the right questions. He’s learned to write basic sentences, and follow my commands perfectly. If you saw him in a crowd, you wouldn’t even recognize the fact that he’s different. Well… maybe not here.

“Even after a decade, the town’s people still refuse to accept Luna as an equal. I can’t remember the last time I was able to leave my home without people whispering rude comments when they think I’m out of hearing distance. I suppose it’s only natural; they are only humans.

“I was forced to quit my job as a physician long ago. It’s been rough, and I know the villagers resent me for it, but I know it was for the better. I trained many to take my place, not that they’re as skilled as I am, or was, but they’ll have to do, at least until Luna is self sufficient. And besides, it’s not like I’m lonely. I have Luna. He’s great company. Every day we go run through the woods.

“He seems to respond well to colder temperatures. One day I caught him playing in the snow, completely naked. I’m going to have to keep an eye on that, it might become a dangerous habit.

“He’s becoming a bit more responsive to light stimulus. Before he would sit on the roof and stare at the sun for hours, waiting for it to set and night to fall into place. Now, he sits outside for less and less time, although his eyes seem to be fine. Perhaps he’s picking up human characteristics from me now. I’m still not sure if that’s such a good thing.

“It’s wrong of me to be having second thoughts after a decade of living together. But I’ve been wondering, what if we’re wrong. What if the Lycans had the right idea? The prospect of living solely to eat, sleep, and reproduce is one devoutly to be wished. Don’t get me wrong, I love being able to live the way I do. But perhaps that is because it’s all I know. Perhaps I shouldn’t be repressing Luna’s natural instinct. Who’s to say we are the more civilized species?

-Vlad”

The mayor closed the letter and put it back in the envelope. He threw it in the box with the others, and stuffed it back in the crawl space.

“That kid may be a genius, but he has no idea how to write a letter.”

He slowly pulled himself out of bed, and into his white ceremonial garb.

“Good thing he reminded me. I’m going to have to write that address to the public. It surprises me that they still care about this. If anyone’s it should be my prerogative… I really wish you’d say something. It’s okay though, I can wait until you’re ready. I’ll see you later sweetie.”

The mayor gave the picture of his wife a kiss before walking out of the door and onto the balcony overlooking the town square.

“Hello good people… It was a decade ago that…”

“Hey, Luna.”

The boy was sitting on the floor, rolling a ball between his hands.

“I was thinking, do you want to go into town today?”

He simply kept rolling the ball.

“If you want to, we can. I needed some things from the market, and after we could get some drinks.”

Luna let the ball roll away from him.

“Okay, it’s decided. Go get your clothes.”

Together, Vlad and Luna walked into town. It was surprising how little recognition either of them got. Everyone was still upset that Luna was allowed to exist, but no one recognizes him when they see him. How ironic.

As they walked to the tavern, they passed the town square. The ex mayor was standing on his balcony, rambling on about something. A few children stood under the wooden platform, taunting him and throwing pebbles. He just looked past them, no, through them, continuing his babble. Luna looked over at the scene and tugged on Vlad’s sleeve. Vlad kept walking, pretending not to feel it. No one could know their connection. The mayor was the only human he could confide in, mostly because everyone still believed he had gone crazy.

It had started to drizzle by the time the pair reached the tavern. They walked inside, dripping wet. Slowly they approached the counter and took their seats.

“Well, well, well… would you look at what we have here.”

It was Valence, the tavern owner. He leaned casually on the wooden counter, silently chewing a toothpick. He had a sneer on his face, fondling a shot glass with his free hand.

“Two beers please.”

“You have some nerve, walkin’ in here after what you did.”

“I didn’t come here to fight. I just want a drink.”

“Shut Lycan lover. We only serve human folk here. And if-”

Vlad jumped up from his seat and slapped Valence hard across the cheek. He held his face in shock, and didn’t bother to turn and face Vlad again.

“Don’t ever talk to me that way. You have dishonored me and therefore I am forced to challenge you to a duel.”

Customers began to mill to the far end of the bar, not wanting to get in the way, but also trying to keep in view of the imminent fight.

“I accept, wolf scum.”

With that, he bent down behind the counter. Vlad stepped back and drew his sabre. Valence emerged, brandishing a gigantic black two handed sword.

“Step back Luna.”

He growled under his breath.

“I mean it. Get back.”

Valence jumped over the counter and rushed at Vlad. Vlad calmly held his sword in front of him, easily parrying the first strike. He ducked under Valence’s blade and spun around behind him, smacking him in the back of the head with the sheath of his blade. Valence stumbled forward before regaining his balance. Vlad of course took advantage of this momentary stun to strike at Valence’s back. As his sword cut through flesh, Valence managed to twist out of most of the damage and return a counter strike. Vlad of course parried it and stepped backwards gracefully.

“You’re too old for this.”

“Shut up wolf boy.”

Valence raised his sword above his head and swung wildly at Vlad. He managed to jump out of the way, but the sword managed to break through the floor, sending debris into the air. Vlad coughed in the impure air before stumbling out of the cloud of dust. Valence was waiting, swinging at him as soon as he appeared. Vlad tried to dodge, but the tip of the sword cut into his shoulder drawing a small amount of blood.

The fight continued in this fashion. Vlad fought swiftly and skilfully, dodging and parrying attacks. Valence, however, was old, and had to resort to dirty tricks. Tables and chairs were thrown, property further destroyed. Most of the customers fled and watched from the safety of outside. Luna watched helplessly as his only friend was assaulted. He was sitting in the far corner, shredding pieces of the paper bag the groceries were in.

There was an opening. Valence was tipped off balance from a swing gone wrong. His sword was stuck in the ground, and he was seconds from falling over. Vlad jumped forward and head butted Valence in the chest. The fell backwards, sliding into the partially destroyed counter.

“It didn’t have to end this way.”

“Just finish it. I can’t live knowing I lost to a wolf lover.”

A sneer flashed across Vlad’s face.

“Fine then… goodbye… barkeep.”

Vlad thrust his sword through Valence’s chest. His eyes widened, and blood spilled from mouth. Vlad withdrew the blade from the dead shell of a man. He cleaned the blood off on Valence’s shirt.

“Now where the hell is my beer…”

“Hey! What the hell is going on in here?”

A patrolman stepped through the broken window. In a flash, Luna burst from the corner and jumped on top of the man. He punched him in the face repeatedly. Blood spilled from his eye.

“Luna!”

Vlad dashed over and scooped him up by the waist. Without a second to spare, he teleported both of them back to his house in the mountains.

“Damn it Luna, what the hell was that?”

Luna was sitting in the same position he was earlier, playing with the same ball.

“You can’t just go around attacking everyone you meet!”

Luna picked up an ink pen and scrawled “BAD” into the carpet.

“Damn it all… I know exactly what happened to you before, but he wasn’t the same man. You can’t…”

He quickly wrote the letter “Y.”

“Because, it’s not right!”

Luna continued playing with the ball.

“Look, I know you’re upset, its just, you can’t do that. You just can’t. I know they wronged you. And I know you know what our situation is. Damn it, you’re not even listening to me are you?”

He still played with that same ball, back and forth, back and forth.

“Are you? Answer me when I’m talking to you!”

Vlad ran up and slapped Luna into a wall. Luna curled up into the fetal position, a single tear streamed down his cheek. Vlad walked over to him and embraced him warmly.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it I just-”

“Duel.”

It was Luna. His first word. His voice was low and scratchy, but the word was clear enough. He said, “duel.”

“What…?”

Luna’s eyes shined a deep green. He bared his teeth, his mouth elongating into a snout.

“Oh god…”

Luna wildly swung his arm at Vlad. He went flying across the room, crashing into a wall. Luna continued to change. White fur exploded from his skin. His clothes ripped off of his rapidly growing body. Stripes of brown fur appeared on his shoulders and lower body, right before a tail exploded out from behind him. His pupils were small and red, surrounded by a black backdrop.

“Luna… please!”

Without warning, Luna dashed over to Vlad’s cowering body, sinking his ivory teeth into his neck. The last noise heard was the cracking of bone, overpowering Vlad’s fading screams.

“It’s time’s like this we have to wonder; is civilization the answer? Our culture is not fueled by the desire to improve, but the human emotions which make us weak. Vlad was killed because of a concept foreign to the Lycan, my son, Luna. If it wasn’t for our desire, our fear, he might still be alive today. Now there’s no one left for me. You’re gone, my love. I realize that. Luna was all I had left in this world.”

Luna sat in the middle of the city square, looking up into a dimly lit window. The streets were deserted, everyone was at home by now, making merry with their families.

“Hah. I know, it’s funny. It was his birth that caused your death. I didn’t want this to happen. When he was born, I just couldn’t, I couldn’t face the fact that you were gone. Every time I looked at him, it was a reminder that I lost everything I held dear to my heart. You, my love. I… I’m not proud of what I did. But I didn’t have a choice. What could I have done. There was no way I could hide him from the people. I would have been run out of town. And I couldn’t well raise him as a vagabond. You know that as well as I do.”

He lept up onto the houses balcony in a single bound. Slowly he pushed back the curtains. A man was sitting there, cradling a wooden box in his hands, focusing on a single point on the desk he was sitting at. Luna strafed around the man, who was completely unaware of his presence. The item on the desk happened to be a picture, preserved in a golden, garden pattern frame. The painting was of a female Lycan, which looked strangely like Luna, only with longer fur and a longer torso. She was sitting down, body turned slightly askew, with blood soaked paws.

“It seems like I have served my purpose. I have nothing left to keep me tied to this world. I rule a dying race. It has been years since I’ve actually seen one of us. And when I do, the only useful part of him is his blood. I think… I think I want to end it. End it all, you know? Maybe Luna will find something useful to do with his life. After this, he’s going to have a lot of it.”

The man was still completely unaware of Luna’s presence, or at least it seemed that way. He was mumbling something in the human’s language, but it was too low for Luna to make out. Luna crept up directly behind the man, his warm breath brushed across the man’s pale neck.

“Well, this is my final goodbye, my love. Hopefully… hopefully I’ll see you soon.”

Luna’s teeth sunk deeper around his victims throat. His last breath passed through his lips as his blood drenched ceremonial garb fell to the ground.