"Cole!" Jay's shouting became quieter and quieter by the hour. The sun was already setting, but we didn't give up. We couldn't give up. Cole was dragged into this creepy mess of trees and bushes, and you can bet, we're going to get him out.
Jay sat down on the moss, exhausted. We had been roaming around since morning and we hadn't had a proper lunch. A couple of sandwiches thrown together in a whim. Not to mention, we didn't have anything with us that could be qualified as dinner. A few walnuts and a half empty water bottle was all we had now.
"Should we ask for Zane's help?" I was this close to giving up. There was no way we could find Cole with our own forces. Jay was a bit more optimistic. "No! At least, not yet. He has his own plans, we shouldn't bother him. Besides, werewolves are still people, they won't eat him or anything."
He's so sure about that. But what do we actually know about werewolves? They roam around in the forest, attack people with silver, have the same weaknesses as vampires. That isn't enough to formulate a fool proof plan of attack against them. Especially if they don't react to silver.
A rustle in the bushes caught our attention. They were covered with long shadows, created by the setting sun. I tiptoed towards them. If that was werewolves, I will whack them with my backpack. If not, I will still whack it with my backpack. Too much carefulness isn't going to hurt me.
A large wolf jumped up from it's hiding spot. It had black fur and emerald eyes. A werewolf! Jay yelped, paralyzed in place by fear. I grabbed the backpack and yelled at the creature. "Alright, we've found you! Now tell us, where is Cole!"
The wolf looked at me as if questioning us. Did he seriously forget about his friends capturing my friend just this night? I stood upright, attempting to scare it into caving in. It didn't work. The wolf straightened themselves and toxic green light engulfed my vision. Was it using magic or something?
When my eyes could see again, I noticed a man, slightly older then us, standing in front of me. He had bright green eyes, sickly pale skin and dark clothing. A streak of neon green ran across his shaggy, black hair. He looked at us, surprised at our accusation. "And who might this Cole be?"
"Our friend. Black hair, brown eyes, black clothing. The one you kidnapped." The guy in front of us blinked twice. "We didn't kidnap anyone, that's not our way of running things." What the hell? Not our way of running things? Is there another group of werewolves? "Then who's is it?"
"Yang's. He frequently captures civilians to use as hostages or convert into werewolves. His whole pack is centred around this philosophy. If he has captured somebody, a fight is going to break out. I need to alert Bansha about this." His explanation had descended into unknown territory for us, normal people. Jay was confused, but his fear won over. He wasn't going to interrupt the stranger's rant.
The guy looked at us and straightened his stance. "If you wish to help with your friends retrieval, I'd advise you to follow me. The Preeminent will sort out the plan." Seeing the looks on our faces, he rolled his eyes. "If your mother always told you not to follow strangers, my name's Morro. Now I am not a stranger. At least not for our purposes."
Jay cleared his throat. "If you promise to not attack us or anything. Kai has a backpack, and he can get violent, when angry." Morro's face twisted into a smirk. "I promise." Jay took on step towards him and looked at me. I sighed. There was no escaping this, was there? "Sure, I'll come along."
Morro turned around to face the darkness, from which he came. Green light covered his figure yet again. The wolf we first met was standing before us, gesturing towards the thick bushes. Jay clutched his flashlight tighter. I nodded. Morro leapt straight into the bushes, picking up the speed. That's where our track to Neverland began. No, wait, was it Wonderland this time?
After half an hour of miscommunications and waving around in the dark, we reached our destination. A circle of stones, neatly arranged in a clearing. Some were occupied by people, but some obscured the sleeping forms of animals. There was a large bonfire in the middle. It was the only source of light in the surreal setting, making the shadows longer, the suspense – heavier, and the atmosphere – darker.
For a split second, another light source joined in, but disappeared as quickly as Morro had finished transforming. This turned heads our way. Jay yelped, garnering even more confused looks from the werewolves. The attention didn't stay on us for long. All of it was redirected towards a tall woman, sitting on the largest of the stones.
Her height was not the only intimidating thing about her. She had black hair, forest green eyes and a long, black, ruffled dress with a large, green jewel resting in the belt she wore. Her expression was calm, collected, and serious. She was the type that radiated authority and power.
The woman stood up and walked towards out party, evaluating our current status. She stopped right in front of me. The woman towered over me, scanning me with her glare of evaluation. She took a step back and turned to Morro.
"So, what has Yang done this time?"