Get of Fenris
Bloody Roar/Werewolf: The Apocalypse
Part One: Shadow Lord
Written by Doctor Kenshirou Yukiharu





Phoenix told me
Carried me in his claws
High above the world
I could see beyond tomorrow
And I looked
And I beheld the future
I saw the decimation of our kind. Hunted beyond hunting, death beyond death, to the last one. There were no more children or grandchildren or fathers or mothers. This was the first sigh Phoenix had gave me, that Children of the Weaver, the humans, would give to us, the Garou.
I looked.
I beheld the future.
I saw the Children of the Weaver birthing. A great tide of humans, rising. I saw more and more, until Gaea had groaned at having to carry them all. Their houses overrunning, their rakes raping, their hands clawing at the parched Earth, trying to feed from Her. This was the Second Sign of the Last Days, that Phoenix had showed me, that the humans would do.
I looked again
I beheld the Third Sign.
So many. So many children. So many humans. And they fell against each other, one to one. And the Wyrm brought forth corruption and gave each a measure. And the strange Fire I saw. out of control, the great Plume that rose from the wilderness, spreading death wherever it shone in that dark and cold land. And I heard the agony of the Sea as She keened, for some drunken fool had poured a lake of black death out upon her.
I turned my head away in disgust, but I could not help but to look again.
I beheld then, the Fourth Sign.
The Wyrm grew powerful, its' wings fanned the breezes of decay. It spread its' diseases and they were horrible; the Herd became afflicted with diseases of the head and the blood. Children were born twisted. Animals fell sick and no one could cure them. In these final days, even the Warriors of Gaea could not escape the palsied talons of the sickness-bringing deathbird.
A tear in my eye, I looked again and the Phoenix showed me the Fifth Sign.
I saw other Plumes rising like death-spears toward the beautiful sky, piercing it, letting Father Sun scorch and parch Gaea. The air grew hot; even in the darkness of Winter it was warm. The plants withered in the sun. A cry of pain and disease arose from the dying forests; as one the relations cried tears of mourning.
Then, as though a veil were torn, the Sixth Sign showed itself to me.
In these last days, Gaea shakes in rage. Fire boils from the depths. Ash shrouds the sky. The Wyrm skulks in the shadows made by these...and rears to strike. The Old Ones are gone, the Guardians of the Pathways and the Crossroads are finished. In these final days, the Sixth Sign will make itself known in the Packs that form. Each Pack will have unto itself a Quest, a Sacred Journey it must perform. Such is the Will of Gaea.
And I saw the sky turn black, and the moon was as blood.
And the Seventh Sign I glimpsed, thought I could not look on it in full. But its' heat I could fell.
The Apocalypse. The Final Days of the world. The Moon was swallowed by the Sun, and it burned in His belly. Unholy fires fell to the ground, burning us all, twisting us and making us vomit blood. The Wyrm made itself manifest in the towers and the rivers and the air and the land, and everywhere its' children run rampant, devouring, destroying, calling down curses of every kind. And the Herd ran in fear. And the Dark Ones, the Children of the Wyrm, crawled from their caves and walked the streets in daylight.
I turned my head from the sight. Phoenix told me: "This is as it shall be, but not as it should."
Phoenix left me then.
Now, I cannot dream. I can only remember the Signs, each one in perfect detail. These are the Last Days. May Gaea have mercy on us."
The Prophesy of Phoenix





"We welcome our honored guests to the Great Hall of King Jonas Albrecht. Glorious ruler of the Garou and of the Silver Fangs." The chancellor announced, his arms extended to Yugo and his friends. "Although they are not of our true blood, their sense of justice against all corruption is what seats us under Gaea's merciful wonders."

There were all walks of Lycanthrope life in this throne room, anything from the werewolves to the werespiders, the Ananasi. On the throne was a large man covered in white furs and had a silver tiara and an eyepatch over a scarred face. He had a large sword at his side, a silver sword. In Yugo's eyes, he didn't feel welcome here, he was a wolf-zoanthrope pretending to be a lycanthrope... in some respects. By his side were his foster-brother, Kenji Ohgami, the Lion-blooded Alan Gado and the martial artist Long Shin. They walked to the throne and bowed to the king, he raised his hand in respectful salute with a regal smile on his face.

"Arise."

They did just that, Albrecht stood up from his throne carved in the large oak tree. "I know through scientific methods your beast powers were brought out. But as long as you fight for the right causes, you will have the Garou at your beset." He working eye looked at the door, a frown found itself on Albrecht's face. "Shadow Lords." He cursed. Yugo and the others turned around to see what the commotion was as large men in black armor and cloaks walked in, carrying the flags of the Shadow Lords. With them was a tall figure all shrouded in a black cloak, his face concealed in the shadows of its' hood. His hands were out however, they were locked in almost a contemplative fashion. The man was wearing silver gauntlets, but instead of the markings and glyphs of the Garou, they had arcane symbols and Celtic runes.

"The Mage-Garou?" Few of the members of the crowd muttered amongst themselves. "It is true! He does exist!"

Long's eyes focused on a trio of snow-haired people. One of them was a very tall man with long white hair and an eyepatch on one eye. The boy next to him had brown hair and a scar on the bridge of his nose. The other boy next to him was very delicate in features, with long white hair in Geisha hairpins and wearing a very ornate Chinese robe with a tiger pattern on the chest. The others in the crowd noticed the men in black too. Uriko pushed her way to the balcony and looked down. "Who are those weirdos?" She asked Shina, who stood next to her.

"I have no clue." Shina frowned argrily. "Keep silent."

"Sorry for being tardy." The man shrouded in black spoke up with a low voice, he bowed his head in respect to the King.

"I was hesitant for letting you, Shadow Lords into the ceremonies. But since you do serve Mother Gaea whole-heartedly as the rest of us and your sense of justice isn't as clouded as one thinks, I allowed you to enter, Mage-Garou. But even within your devious ranks, I trust you far more than I would trust your First in Station, the Margrave."

"I am honored, Sire." The shrouded man tipped his head forward.

"Go have a seat." Albrecht ordered the Shadow Lords.

"As you wish." They stepped aside and took their places, the man in the cloak looked up at the lovely young man in white, while the lovely was looking at him. Long noticed the stares that the beauty was giving the man. They were not hostile in any sense, they were very enamored and loving in nature.

"Now, for business." Albrecht began, before he was so rudely interupted by a sudden outburst.

A young man with long black hair pointed the cloaked figure sitting amongst the Shadow Lords. He was obviously tiffed about something. "How can you let that man walk amongst us!?"

"Be silent!" The large man instructed the youngster. "The Mage-Garou has every right to be here with the rest of us!"

"Look at him! He's got the powers of the cursed Namebreakers AND our honorable powers!! He's a hybrid, a freak!! And freaks DIE!" The young man drew a dagger made of silver and rushed toward the cloaked figure. "Fight me!"

"You wish to fight me?"

"In a duel of Klaivaskar!"

The cloaked figure grabbed the edges of the hood and pulled them down from his face. He had short black hair with spider-leg like bangs. He was unearthly bishounen and he had the prettiest yet the most mournful midnight blue eyes. He had a gold tiara on his forehead, a tiara that was of Celtic knotwork leading to a small, dime-sized piece of green crystal. He looked at the angry young Garou with a disheartening frown on his face. "You really wish to fight me?"

"Yes! Step into the ring!"

"Hey!" Uriko shouted down at the others. "Stop this! There's no need to fight!"

The young man pointed to Uriko and shouted back at her. "Stay out of this, freak!"

"...that's no way to talk to a young lady." The Mage-Garou stepped forward, his movements were almost fluid. He reached behind him and pulled out a greatsword made of silver with both arcane and Garou markings on the blade and handle. The young man's eyes nearly bulged out of his head upon seeing the powerful sword. The dagger in his hand dropped to the ground, he was mortified. The Mage-Garou's angry expression told him that it was a bad idea to begin with.

"Splinter-in-the-Mind's-Eyes!!" Albrecht yelled from his throne. "Put your Grand Klaive back in its' holster! We have honored guests!"

"Yes, Your Majesty." The Mage-Garou put the greatsword back in its' scabbard and turned toward the exit, putting the hood back on his head. The offending young Garou leapt at the Mage-Garou, howling in rage as he morphed into a tan and white werewolf. "I'm not finished with you yet!!!"

The Mage-Garou didn't turn around, the a strange black energy surrounded his forehead. Then with a quick and sudden yank, he head bobbed backward. The Garou's head exploded before he reached the Mage-Garou, the lifeless corpse hit the floor in a heartbeat. The Mage-Garou exitted the courtyard before questions were raised.

"W-what is he?" Yugo asked, stammering on himself.

"Splinter-in-the-Mind's-Eyes is an exceptionally rare breed of Garou." The King began, sighing. "He has the powers of the Highest Ranking Shadow Lords, yet he has the powerful magic of the Namebreakers... er... Mages. Yet he harbors an even deadlier power than those of us or the mages. A power that is even rarer than his own Mage-Garou Breed."

"What's that?" Kenji asked, turning toward the king.

"...Psionics."

Long's eyes were still focused on the man and his teenage boys. Suddenly the beauty in white darted back into the shadows, as if he was after something. The martial-artist turned toward Yugo and tapped him on the shoulder. "Yes, Long?"

"I hate to be a bother, but I feel rather peckish. I'm going out for some fresh air."

The boxer turned toward Albrecht, the king nodded at Long's request for absence. Long headed for the door in a calm, orderly fashion, his eyes getting used to the light of the torches. He came to a walkway leading down to a small lagoon, that's when he saw two figures in the moonlight. Long hid behind a statue of a Bastet warrior and looked back at the figures. He recognized both of them, the cloaked figure from the Shadow Lords and the beauty shrouded in fine snow white silk. They were in loving embrace, the lovely young man's head on the cloaked figure's chest.

"Basara... you shouldn't be out here with me." The cloaked figure whispered softly and lovingly. "The Bastet will exile you."

"I don't care." The lovely young man's hands slid on the cloaked figure's muscular chest, the Amethyst Cross glittered in the pale moonlight. "I love you, Brad."

"I love you too." They kissed deeply, their arms slid back around each other. The wind knocked Brad's hood off, revealing to Long in the moonlight, sparkling tears streaking down his cheeks.

//I wonder how long he's lived with this ridicule.//




-Continued-