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Adventures In Living With The Mythical |
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A military veteran is adopted by a werewolf and brought into his pack. Insanity ensues. About "Life With A Werewolf" Life with a werewolf is a dramatic blog. As such the characters in this blog are not real but maybe loosely based on real people. The situations represented are not real but maybe loosely based on real things that have happened in my life. There are a multitude of ways to view life, this is simply one of the ways I have chosen to view mine. Updated Every Friday unless I can't or don't want to. If this is your first time reading this...start here: https://www.writing.com/main/books/entry_id/1040400-Welcome-To-The-Pack The first year is available as a compilation in print and on Amazon Kindle: https://a.co/d/gBLLL7E The first year is currently available on audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/B0G3SMJGFN/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWT-BK-ACX0-482... My book, "Dreamers of The Sea" is available now on Amazon: https://a.co/d/0uz7xa3 |
| Hey, everyone. It's Crash. It's time to hear my side of the story. I do admit my plan was mostly off the cuff. In times like this, I'd normally blame Jason, who would turn around and blame someone else completely unrelated to what was happening. "The blame game" he called it. One of the small quirks of living with him. But we had to find out where The Nobility had gone to. Problem was, after that initial attack, they just disappeared. There was no sightings. No more heads on stakes outside of homes. No more harassed and attacked civilians who's only real crime was trying to live quiet lives. It pained me to see Charles and his wife put up that for sale sign outside their home. They loved it in our little community and didn't want to move. But, I understood. Hulderfolk vs one werewolf is one thing. Them going against an entire pack? One which had government support? That was asking for too much trouble. It was far better to just leave than to stand and die. Hulderfolk can't be called geniuses, but they can be very pragmatic. Other members of the community was leaving as well. The minotaur family who lived down the street kept their doors locked. Hell, even Gary and his wife stayed in doors. They resorted to getting their groceries delivered. This from a notorious cheapskate who had once brought his wife to McDonald's for an Anniversary dinner. Part of why he loves those old station wagons and econobox cars so much, I figure. They're always cheap. With everyone leaving, my own pack at their wits end, Jason in the hospital for God only knew how long, and the Rodriguez clan whispering behind my back, I needed some support. Elouise, couldn't do much, but she did stay when others fled. Her exact words were "hell no. Where you go, I go." It made me smile. Something about her made me smile those days. Her and the pack was two bright spots in a world that was increasingly volatile to folks like me. Folks who just wanted to live their lives with as little interference as possible. Folks who didn't want to bother anyone, just didn't want to be told what to do. Rodriguez clan was used to me following orders or going rogue. Sophia herself was used to dragging me along, or having me tag along to her plans. Plans that was always 'smash a few heads and see what comes out.' Those types of tactics were technically illegal. In their home territory, it's almost a war zone, so they can get away with guerrilla warfare style tactics. But there was law in my territory, and I was it. What little control we had left legally in our department relied heavily on our following the law. What the others didn't know, and maybe I should have explained, was that boss was in the capital fighting for our very existence. Alexandre was smart, and had representatives there arguing with the federal government that it'd be easier and far cheaper to hand over the "other law enforcement" to The Nobility rather than running a shadow policing unit. Boss was never very good at politics, mind you. It's the reason he stayed as an area coordinator instead of being promoted. I had no idea what the meetings looked like, but they weren't going well. The last thing we needed was for the unofficial official government branch of the police for our kind losing control when they were needed the most and go back to fighting a war. If I'd explained all that, I wonder if they would have actually listened. Instead, they nodded, smiled, agreed with my plan, then went about fighting in their traditional manner. Halfway through the first day, after listening to my orders and agreeing to them mind you, the Rodriguez clan found a cheap motel to stay in. Their excuse was that the house was too crowded. And I'm going on the record in calling it an excuse. Yes Roam, I'm calling you out on that. Less than three hours after they moved out, we started finding werewolf bodies without heads. They usually smelled Nobility but sometimes it was hard to tell. The Nobility had begun to stop using that scent marker they always had to identify themselves with. It could have been innocent people just getting caught in crossfire. Which, I'm certain was being argued up at the capital. With each body, I kept seeing boss losing ground in his arguments. It's part of why I left the clan. Roam and Tanika never understood, but you can win every engagement and still lose the war. That's what I was afraid what was happening. And with boss so busy up there he couldn't return my calls or give me updates, that's what I saw happening. The same time the bodies turned up, Roam and his entire clan stopped returning my phone calls. The humans still gave rides and watched over my pack, but didn't do anything else. My entire office had been reduced to me. Just me. Patrolling an entire county by myself while a rogue military unit claims their trying to "fight a war for you" behind my back without orders or oversight, undermining my authority and control when I needed it most. The bodies kept turning up in a couple of areas. There was a small town to the south of the county that was mostly farming folks. It was the kind of place where the greatest concern were crop prices and when county officials would finally figure out it was an election year so they could get out and fill the pot holes on the roads they claim they'll repave one day. They were polite, self-reliant, and had never met a stranger that wasn't a future friend. This town, which for the sake of this blog (and to make Jason smile when he finally reads this) we'll call "Cityville." Normally, it's an easy area to patrol. I roam through, pat a couple of dogs, (okay, I'm a dog loving werewolf, so sue me), and be on my way. But, when I went through to check things, all of the humans kept acting scared. They're not easy to scare. They loved hunting, that enjoyed being outdoors, and fought their own battles. I've had to walk around a couple hunters in that community and on one occasion was nearly shot. The town crazy began talking of "sasquatch" and roaming the woods even more, shotgun in one hand, bottle in the other. When drinking, he'd mutter to anyone who would listen that he "almost shot Sasquatch! That sucker must have been..." My size kept growing with each retelling. At his last iteration, my size was bigger than the ogre that Mitch took out a year or so back. But lately? No hunters. The town crazy had disappeared, and everyone pretended to not know who the guy even was. No one dared go in the woods anymore, especially after dark. Anyone my size was given the kind of respect demanded by gang leaders in after school specials. They stepped back and let me to the front of every line. Gave me discounts or free goods on sight. And winced whenever I looked at them longer than a second, even if it was to smile. That wasn't Rodriguez work. If you held my feet to fire and forced me to guess, I'd tell you it wasn't Nobility either. The Nobility always acted better than normal humans. They had their cute slang terms for them. "Norms" they liked to call them. Sometimes called "pets", "kids", or "pups". Usually said in a manner a person would use to talk about a beloved dog. Cityville was a proud and strong people. Why were they suddenly acting like peasants on a medieval farm? Where was the Rodriguez clan? My only help had gone rogue. I was chasing an enemy who's only evidence I could find of their existence was humans too terrified to speak and a few headless bodies drifting in the creek. With no witnesses, no scent trails and no evidence to follow. I had won every battle, but was still losing. I needed answers. And by the second morning of the Rodriguez clan "assistance", I was determined to get them. After a tough shift and three more headless corpses, I shifted into human then jumped into my Cadillac. The engine roared and the tires screeched as I drove towards the Rodriguez motel. I'd rarely driven my Cadillac that fast. But then, I'd rarely been that pissed when driving. The old motel seemed to sag in the middle. An old battered building that was weary of its existence and had given up. Two sad stories stacked on top of each other like generational neglect. Gravel parking lot choked with weeds. It scraped by on the kind of clientele that the local police probably knew on a first name basis. The kind of clientele that I thankfully didn't deal with. The only new portions of the building was the camera system set up by Eleanor. I ripped into the lot, stomping the brakes and throwing small gravel stones at the crumbling building. By the time I got to the second story, Eleanor greeted me on the landing of the stairwell. Her face showed the barest of concern. But her scent, and her heart rate both said "panic". "In my defense, it wasn't my idea," she said. "I told them it was a bad idea, and they didn't listen." "What the hell are you talking about," I asked. "Roam and Tanika eventually sided with Sophia. They thought you were too government to do what was necessary. So they felt the best way to fight was to do it outside of government supervision." Part of me wanted to scream. I clenched a fist instead that began to hurt from the nails turning to claws and digging into my palms. "It's lost. Everything. It's fucking lost." Eleanor ran a hand through her hair and rubbed the back of her neck. "We have been keeping an eye on your pack for you. It was why I was about to call you in fact." I swallowed hard, a chill of fear breaking through storm of anger. "Talk. Fast." "Well, we patrolled the areas. Fought the Nobility. And investigated properties. We narrowed things down to three different properties," she said. Tears formed at the edges of her eyes. "And, we thought we'd kick in the door to all three at once. You know, handle your problem for you. Kill the Nobility and clear this area again. But..." I wasn't liking where this was going. I clenched and unclenched a fist as I listened, gritting my teeth. "But?" "They were ready for us. We attacked, and then, everyone went silent. Everyone. Donte even tried following up, but he's gone. But that's not the worst." She turned to the parking lot, her voice breaking. "Zack wanted trackers on himself and your pack. You know, in case something happened. So, I put them on him and Sean and Kris. Not as bait. But as just in case you know?" She shook a bit as she spoke, staring down at my car. "Those trackers disappeared this morning. Right after everyone went to work." I looked at Eleanor. I'd known her a long time. She never cried. The best way I could describe her, is "Dariah having a bad day." She used sarcasm as her defense mechanism and emotional outlet. It was her sword and shield against a world that had done pretty horrific things to her before she fell into Roam and Tanika's pack. And here she was, crying. "I tried to tell them it was a bad idea. I tried to..." I embraced her gently, the shock wrapping me in its cold blanket. My pack. Her pack. Everything and everyone was gone. What were we going to do? My phone began to ring then. I looked down at it and ignored it. It wasn't the time for phone calls. The phone rang again. And again. I let her go, and touched her chin gently. A move I hadn't done since I was a teenager and she was a terrified child trying to get the nerve to go to a public school again. "We'll get through this. Don't worry." She nodded and sniffled. "I'll get you those areas. I know the area that they're in. But none of our addresses match it." Figured. She stepped into her motel room, and I grabbed my cell phone. It was a number I didn't recognize. When I answered it, Vic was on the other end. There was noise coming through the phone. It sounded like a war zone. "I'm at the hospital. Get your furry ass down here!" My throat went dry. I worked my mouth for a moment, words wouldn't come. "Nobility?" I finally managed to say. "Yes, Nobility! They're taking the damn hospital! I managed to get Jason safe, but...shit!" The line went dead. I had taken a step, about to sprint downstairs, when Eleanor screamed "wait!" She balled up the list she printed out and threw it at me. I caught it, and raced down towards the car. They had ignored everything. Had disappeared for it. My pack was gone. Jason was all that was left and he may have been taken or killed when I was on the phone. I dialed two numbers. It was all I had left. I knew they'd fight with me, they always did. But would two werewolves and one rougarou be enough against The Nobility? I didn't know. I whispered a desperate prayer as I started my car and began to dial. |
| Crash laid the plan out. It seemed reasonable on the surface. A basic plan that could be molded to fit the weird situations we find ourselves in. But, it didn't feel like a traditional "Crash" battle plan, over thought with extra contingencies to keep the rest of us safe. This felt more like one of Jason's "throw spaghetti at the wall" type plans. Crash, in his own crazy way, was protecting us from The Nobility and trying to preserve our innocence at the same time. But, I'd been kidnapped them before. I knew what that felt like and what they'd do. There is a cost in each of these conflicts, a chipping of yourself that exposes a different self beneath. One more world weary, more battle hardened. I went in to these things feeling like Busby. But after so many countless battles I was feeling more like Masterchief. Crash and Jason could try and protect me, to preserve the innocence of my soul. But I wasn't a child. And that innocence had died long before either of them ever entered my life. Crash had left for one of his patrols that afternoon. He was leaving earlier and earlier, getting less and less sleep. I wasn't certain what was going on. All I knew was that his boss hadn't checked on him after he left us that morning, which was unusual, and Crash didn't take a single phone call before leaving which was even more unusual. I watched him walk down the hill and fade into the woods, knowing he'd shift in the tree line. After he left, I went upstairs and grabbed Kris and Sean. "Come on," I told them. They both shrugged their shoulders and headed downstairs with me. They didn't understand my plan. But I guess there was something in my eyes that told them not to argue. Then, all three of us huddled around Eleanor, who was on our couch with her laptop. An array of devices sat next to her. I recognized the Apple Airtags, but I didn't recognize any of the other things next to her. "Oh, you got everyone," she said. "Great." "We're ready," I said. "Tag us." She winced. "First, don't say it like that. This isn't some 'catch and release' program in a nature documentary. Second, if I smell a whiff of you three going wild out there, I will tell Crash." Kris rolled his eyes. "We've been kidnapped by those assholes before. Just tag us so we can get rescued quicker this time." Sean butted in. "We're not searching for trouble. It just finds us. We want to be prepared." Eleanor nodded. "Okay, but if you get yourselves kidnapped on purpose, I'll have you bitten. And it won't be who you think who does the biting." I smirked. "As long as Donte had his shots." She had started to work already. Eleanor took a shoe from each of us, and was fastidiously inserting the small tracker into them when I said that. She gave a bark of laughter. "No, it'll be Elouise." We laughed, but I did a nervous swallow after. Elouise would likely do something like that. Part of my downfall though, was the false confidence I had. I really thought I knew The Nobility. But, I guess just because you understand an organization, doesn't mean you know everything they'll do. The Nobility are one of those old organizations, technically older than any country in the hemisphere. Their tactics though, really just reminded me of the Enclave in Fallout. They call themselves superior, and our guardians and such, but their purity standards are more or less brutal. They don't outright kill those who they deem unworthy or unclean or whatever they call them. But to demand someone remain lonely and single until their death to preserve the bloodline is insane. To demand anyone non-human and non-werewolf to leave an area is also insane. I suppose, I expected them to do the exact same thing they did last time. For me to step out of work, someone to throw a bag over my head, inject me with something, and for me to wake up tied up in a basement. I wish that's what happened. I really, really wish that's what happened. When they grabbed me, I'll give them one thing: I didn't see it coming. And it was much more brutal than before. It was a sunny morning when Donte drove me to work. There was a conversation about video games, but it was mostly me being talked at. I tried to keep up, but he can talk fast and sometimes talk over you when you're trying to just respond to the previous question. I felt like I was trying to hold back an avalanche of words with my bare hands. So, I fell back to my old stand by. Smile, nod and try to say "yeah" in the right places. It only half worked. "I'm a little too much right now, huh?" I gave him a sheepish smile and nodded. He laughed in response. "Okay, I'll try to bring it down a couple levels." By that time, I was at the factory. He pulled up to the front door, and smiled. In a deep voice he said, "You have arrived suh." I laughed. "Not a good lurch impression." "No? Damn, I'll have to work on that." I thanked him for the ride, got out and walked into the building. The lights were on, but no one was in the hallway, which was weird. Normally, there's someone standing around, drinking coffee and talking about what quotas we have to hit that day. The lights were on. But the hallway was empty. The offices empty. My hand touched the door that would bring me to the factory floor. The pushbar clicked. But before the door opened, something hard struck me in the back of the head. I was out before I hit the floor. When I came to, I was in a plain white room. White concrete floor, white walls, white ceiling. I was naked, and tied up in such a manner, that the only choice I had was to sit in the corner and wait. I banged my head once against the wall in frustration. Tears stung my eyes. They did it again. The bastards had done it again. |
| With the entire Rodriguez clan inside the living room, Crash standing at the doorway, as well as Kris, Sean and I standing by the other doorway, the living room had never felt so crowded. Kris and Sean had made it downstairs with the commotion, their faces drawn. They huddled close to each other, as if trying to weather the storm of pain. They hadn't heard any of the commotion outside. Crash and I attempted to fill them in on Valyur's last stand, and Jason's condition in the hospital. But, the noise of others jumping in with what they knew and what they heard turned a quick update into a chaotic shouting mess. They both weathered the storm of the volume together, hiding winces as people became more and more passionate in their telling. No one could tell one from another. It was a lot to take in after having a fitful night sleep. "Alright! Everyone, enough!" Crash shouted, stepping to the center of the crowded room. When the volume died down, I looked at them both. "Jason is in the hospital. Valyur is dead. It's The Nobility." They winced, this time not from the volume. "Is Jason..." Kris asked. Crash shook his head. He had shifted into his human form, and was wearing his traditional overalls. But, if he had been in wolf form, his ears would have folded back. "Doc says he needs a day or two to recover at least. There was an explosion. Luckily, he was shielded from most of the blast." "Will, like Those Nobility dudes try to get him in there," Sean asked. Crash shook his head. "He's well protected where he is," Crash said. Sophia was standing in the doorway, leaning her back against it. She was in human form as well, her arms crossed . "Can I go do my thing already?" "No," Crash said. "This is going to require everyone." "I'll do whatever you need," I said. Crash nodded. "Good. Cause mostly, I need you to do your normal." He looked at the group. "I've divided my territory up into sectors. We're not going to kill them. Yet. We need to know where they go. Humans will be watched by werewolves as you go about your day. You won't see us, but we'll always see you." "What do you mean, where they go," Kris asked. "Well, The Nobility has a new base of operations around here somewhere," Killian said. "They buy property and businesses in the areas they're conquering. Then they begin to push other residents out they deem unworthy. Either through harassment or just killing them." "So, why territories," I asked. "Well," Crash said, "We're going to patrol. Any Nobility that we see or smell, we will knock the tails off of, but we won't kill them. We will send them limping home with the fear of God and hellfire in them." "And we start monitoring the direction they head," Sophia said, then nodded. "It's crazy enough to work." Donte held up his hand. "Far be it for me to interrupt this little pow-wow. And I love the energy of you furballs out there. But, we normals don't have much to do other than sit around here." "Of course you do," Crash said. "You can work on your Addams Family jokes. While you accompany my humans about their day to day. And I'll need Eleanor to..." "Way ahead of you," she said. "I'm compiling a list of newer businesses and areas purchased within the last six months inside your territory. It's going to be a long list. This could take a while." "Yeah," Kris said. "Besides, I want to do more than be the damn worm on your hook." "That comes later," Crash said. "Right now, we can't interrupt your lives anymore than we have before. Besides, they wanted you to run." He looked at the rest of the humans. "They wanted you all to flee with your tails between your legs from the big scary werewolves. So, the best way to respond to their asinine threats is to..." The moment hung in the air. We all looked at each other. Sean smiled. "We rebel against them by continuing to just be us." He looked at Kris. "Don't you get it? We don't run. When they tell us to flee, we don't run. And when they try to make us run," Kris nodded. "We tell them to get stuffed. Yes, I got it." Crash smiled at him. "Exactly. Not every rebellion needs blood. Sometimes the best ones are the cleanest." I admit to wanting a little bit of blood. But, mainly, I wanted justice for Jason. I'd learned my lesson after last Halloween. There's a very fine line between vengeance and retribution. I crossed that line wanting to kill Milton's corpse because I didn't get a chance to kill him personally. Jason can be annoying. He can act like a bit of a know-it-all sometimes and damn does he ever not shut up. But, he's our annoying know-it-all. He's our annoying motormouth. He's our annoying, lovable, will do almost anything for you housemate. Our brother. Our friend. And they nearly took him from us. Yes, I do want to see them bleed for that a little. But, I'll be damn satisfied to see justice is done for it, whether they bleed or not. The territory was divided up. The routes explained. Crash's boss stopped by as well. Something major had happened. I'm not certain what, but I did overhear that he was fighting for his own job. I have no idea what the big guy does in the office. I honestly don't even know his name. He is large, intense, and gives me a look that reminds me of one of my older brothers right before they did something mean and painful to me. But, I get that's the point, though. His job isn't something I'm supposed to know. I'm not supposed to know what he does or how he does it. Crash's job always felt like the CIA to me. If I knew what they were doing, then they are definitely doing it wrong. All I'm really supposed to know is that I'm safe. Lately it started feel a bit like the CIA being replaced by the KGB or something. An organization who only cares about being in charge, not about doing the work that they claim to be doing. It's true, we'd be still be safe from the meaner things out there. But what about the werewolves? Vampires? Trolls? Yes, Charles is annoying, but I don't want him to get hurt or die because of that. Or the lawn gnomes. Like Valyur. He didn't deserve that. He didn't deserve to die. If he was going to die, he should have got to do it with Jason. It should have been him who got to see him off. They had shared something deeper than friendship. Yet, Valyur died in front of me, the guy who spent the least time with him. On purpose. Lawn gnomes creeped me out ever since Kheid's last attack on everyone. But, Valyur was nice. Polite in his own way. And way more than I could ever handle, even in death. Jason was the one who spent hours at night sometimes just sitting with him and talking. And any goodbyes that Jason could have gotten was stolen from him. Any goodbyes that Valyur could have gotten from his closest human was stolen. That thought is what made me do it. I stood, and approached Crash, pushing through the Rodriguez clan who had found where the bacon and eggs was and was in the middle of a discussion/fight about who was going to make biscuits or pancakes to go with them. Crash's boss stopped talking and looked up at me. They were sitting at the kitchen table. It was midmorning by then, and I should have already gone into work, but they understood with what happened to Jason and everything. I nodded at Crash. "I like your plan. But, just one thing: I want a gun loaded with silver at all times. And I want to be bait." Crash smiled and patted me on the shoulder. "Don't worry, Zack. We'll get you something to do." "I mean it. Wire me up. Or whatever it is you guys do. They're looking for one of us humans, right? Well, what if they found one of us?" Crash's boss gave a low chuckle. "What if they skinned you alive? Slowly? For fun? Over a period of days, just to see how much pain you could take before you went insane or died from the effort?" That comment made my blood freeze, I'll admit. I stared down at him, unsure of what else to say. "I do appreciate it. But we don't need human false bravado. We need to play it smart and keep you safe. You want to help? Stay safe and innocent. Go to work, home and do whatever it is you do." He finished a cup of coffee, then looked back at Crash. "I need to get going soon, and you need to get those werewolves on patrols." I gritted my teeth and bit back the reply. Then, I turned and pushed back through the clan to Eleanor who was still sitting in the living room. She moved to an easy chair, had her red hair pinned back in a hair band of some kind while she worked. I stared at her for a few moments, trying to think of something to say. "I will not be party to any plan that goes against or undermines the current one," she said. "I'm sorry. Should have I just said hello?" She never once looked up at me. "I just want to make sure I have trackers on me," I said. "You want to try that again," she asked. I shrugged. "In case this doesn't work." She arched an eyebrow at me. "Or in case you get suddenly, 'lost'" she threw air quotes around the word lost. "Being stupid endangers family in these situations," I told her. "You know what Crash will do if this doesn't work and I go missing." She sighed and rubbed her eyes for a moment. It was as if she didn't believe me. "Well, I got a few new tricks. We'll see what we can do." |
un: 
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