Occult Rising: A Howling Werewolf

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the author created characters and concepts. Thanks to Mistycharming and SA June for their OC's used in this fic.

A cold and harsh evening set upon Numin City as the sun dropped and a full moon rose. Due to some form of emergency, Gabriel Cadia, had called an emergency club meeting, requiring everyone to come to school late at night. It appeared as if the Occult Research club was about to face it's first mystery.

Only earlier this morning had Nyssa transferred to the school to keep near her fellow rangers, unfortunately for her, she hadn't been placed in classes with the others. Currently the four rangers sat waiting for the late arrival, Ray. The door creaked open as they waited lazily as their human ally walked into the club room.

"Sorry I'm late, but I don't have any of that cool magical travel you guys get to use." He explained as he took a seat next to Joe.

"It's fine Ray, you're good for your knowledge on the occult, so I think we can overlook it. Onto why I've called everyone here." Gabriel told him before drawing a folder from his satchel. "I don't think any of you know, but there's been a little werewolf issue in Numin for a few generations now. Around a full moon, they can't really control their transformations like they usually can. Recently there's been some reports of a giant dog running around the city at night and wrecking the place. The thing is, the werewolf nearly got someone last night. Someone intervened, but both disappeared quickly after that. Seeing as tonight's the full moon, I thought it'd be the best time for you guys to go out and see what you can do about this."

"So you're wanting us to go and lure this werewolf out, just so we can keep it from being a risk to people. Shouldn't this whole thing blow over in a few days?" Joe asked, not optimistic about being wolf bait.

"If by us, you mean, we'll use you as bait so the rest of us can get a jump on the mutt, yeah." Saya responded harshly.

"Makes sense to me, it's not risky seeing as you'll survive." Nyssa agreed, standing up. "Let's get to it then."

"Hold on, don't I get a say in this!?"Joe asked, shocked at how quickly his teammates would put him in harm's way.

"Sorry Joe, but put it this way, you can't get hurt, everyone else here can. I'm just an ordinary human, I'd love to be in your shoes." Ray said, trying to reason with his friend.

Joe gave a sigh. "Fine, but next time, one of you guys has to be the bait." He finally agreed, slowly standing up.

As he finished his sentence, a stern expression grew over Nyssa's face. "Did someone just say they were human?"

"That was me. I don't think we've met yet. I'm Ray, just an average guy who knows his stuff when it comes to the Occult. Nice to meet you." He said with a smile while holding out his hand.

Her expression remained unchanged as she stood there. Joe had an uneasy feeling about what was about to happen. "Nyssa, don't tell me you've got an issue with humans. I thought this wasn't gonna happen again. Just don't hurt him or anything." He pleaded.

With one swift swing, her fist landed right in front of Ray's face, stopping just before making contact. Ray's heart pounded quickly in a small panic as he reacted by raising his arms up in a cowering defense. After a few seconds of silence, in which Nyssa hadn't moved an inch, she retracted her fist back to her side and smirked.

"Don't think I'm mean all the time, okay Joe. Besides, I've got nothing against humans, so as long as they keep out of my way. Either way I've gotta have my fun some time, right?" She replied as she leant back on a table.

"Sure… We better get to finding this werewolf then. Otherwise it might do more than just tear up a few yards. Ray you stay here with Mr. Cadia, we might need your brain." Joe ordered as the four rangers revealed their Sigil rings.

"Alright, good luck out there you guys and for the record, they're called Lycanthropes." Ray added as the four were transported away by their aura sigils.

[Occult Circle]

Within the Underworld, the younger sister of Saya, Sakura Leviathan sat in her room within her family's palace. She sat at an elegantly carved desk as she wrote upon a piece of paper.

'Saya, sorry if the last letter I sent you spooked you at all, but you know all too well that sisters like us can't hide from each other, especially ones like us. Listen, things aren't going too well here, Dad's really stressed recently and I heard House Phoenix is looking for you, and you know why they are. You need to come back as soon as you can. I think you coming back is just what everyone needs right now. So come back soon, I can't wait to hear about everything that's happened when you do. Hope I see you soon sis.' She said in her head as she wrote out the letter.

When she finished, she closed up the letter and stamped it with her family seal. A small blue eyed raven sat on the ledge of an open window as Sakura walked over, giving the bird a small pet before tying the note to it's leg.

"Alright, same place as last time." She ordered the bird, which quickly turned around and spread it's wings before taking off into the sky. 'I hope you come home soon sis.' she thought to herself as she stared out of the window. A short knock at her door startled the young demon as she scrambled to the door. "Coming!" She called out.

[Occult Circle]

Joe stood in the middle of a street, houses stood on one side while a small wooded area stood opposite, this had been the sight of the recent troubles for the past few nights and was the likely place that this Lycanthrope would show up tonight. The red ranger whistled sharply to try and gain the attention of the werewolf.

"You sure this was a good idea?" He asked, calling out to the others behind him that stood in the shadows.

"Now you mention it, we should've dressed you in some stakes to draw the doggy out." Ellie joked as she hung from the lamp post above him, concealed in her bat form.

"I don't think we need that, look ahead of you." Saya pointed out as a fast moving wolf-like animal charged quickly towards them.

Joe quickly turned heel and began running as fast as he could, unfortunately the Lycan was gaining on him in an incredible show of speed. "Any time now you guys!"

Leaping down and transforming back to her usual form, Ellie gave a nod as Saya and Nyssa stepped out of the shadows with their Sigil rings at the ready. "Occult Breakout!" The three called, transforming into their ranger forms behind an impressive display of colour.

Joe skidded to a halt and turned around, bracing himself for impact as the other three Occult rangers charged their weapons to deal a strong enough blow to take the Lycan down. As the Werewolf neared however, an even faster blur seemed to intercept it, sending both tumbling to the side. Dispelling their ranger suits and weapons, the four joined up and turned to look down the road the Werewolf and whatever had stopped it had tumbled into.

To their surprise, there wasn't only one, but two Lycanthropes on the road, while one seemed stunned, the latter that had clashed with the first one appeared to stand up and place a silver object onto the back of the first one's head.

After a moment, the one still on the ground appeared to shrink as transform back into a human. Turning their attention to the still active threat, the four braced themselves. Fortunately for them, this one also seemed to shrink in size before them and return to human form.

"This is all happening, right?" Joe asked, not sure whether or not to believe his eyes, the others nodded in response, confirming that everything they had witnessed was indeed real.

The four walked down the street until they stood before the two Lycans. The one that was on the ground was female, while the other was male, both of them looked to be around the same age as the rangers. Nyssa placed her hand on her chin for a moment as the young man helped the other Lycan to her feet before they both turned to face the Occult rangers.

"Sorry about all that, you guys aren't hurt at all are you?" The young man asked while looking at them, noticing in particular the bright red tone that Ellie's eyes had taken on from using her power. "Wait, you're like us aren't you?" He asked, getting confirming nods from the four.

"I'm pretty sure I've seen you two in my classes earlier this morning. You're siblings aren't you." Nyssa added, remembering their faces from earlier that day.

"Yeah, you're that new girl everyone's talking about. Sorry to cause you trouble, but it's the week where the moon affects us Lycans the most. Maxcine here accidentally got a look at the moon, she lost it and transformed, losing her hairclip too." He explained, adjusting a pair of glasses on his face that had a certain metallic glint to them.

"I'm guessing like your glasses, her clip's silver. Usually you all get away from silver when this kind of thing happens, so it makes sense." Saya deducted, getting an affirmative nod from the young man.

"What does a hair clip and a pair of glasses have to do with supernatural transformation?" Joe asked cluelessly.

"Lycans wear objects made of silver to keep their other halfs in check, like a limiter so they don't unexpectedly change." Saya explained as she kept her eyes on the two. "That doesn't mean they should be treated any differently.

"Again, sorry about all this, we'll be on our way." He replied, turning and guiding his sister back home at a slow pace.

"Hey, we didn't even get your name yet!" Joe called after the siblings had taken a few steps.

"Name's Maxwell Silverbolt." He called back as they disappeared into the night.

Nyssa crossed her arms and turned to the blue ranger. "You sure don't like a lot of other beings, do you hold a grudge or something?"

"It's personal. As long as none of you try anything, I'm fine to fight with you all. It doesn't mean I have to like any of it." She replied. Nyssa didn't look calm any more and Joe was afraid that at any moment there'd be more infighting between them.

Unexpectedly, a sharp howl pierced the general calmness of the night, it seemed to be distressed, prompting the four rangers to rush towards the howling nearby.

[Occult Circle]

Light from the full moon pierced through the windows of Numin City's church. The light seemed to make ghostly rays as it cast down into the dimly lit hall. Sat at the end of one of the isles was none other than Seraphim Twelve. She had her hair down and looked as if she was ready to go to bed. Her eyes were closed and she had her hands clasped tightly together as she said a silent prayer in her head.

The young teen was lost in her thoughts as slow footsteps came nearer to her. A man clad in the robes of a priest approached her and tapped her on the shoulder, getting her attention as she finished and opened her eyes. Turning to face him, she gave a small smile.

"It's been awhile since you've been here to pray, you hardly leave the catacombs. Did something happen?" He asked Twelve as she moved up to give him some space to sit down.

"Things are getting worse. He's disregarding the safety of everyone else just to go after strong targets. There's something else. He keeps making me go after a special target, an immortal. I keep failing, but this immortal, he doesn't look like a bad person from what I've seen. I'm doubting that Seraphim are the good guys, and I just don't know what to do. I guess I was just wanting some guidance tonight. I also know if I try and leave, there'll be consequences. Can you say anything that might help? I'm kinda scared about what might happen if things change any more." She explained to the priest sitting beside her.

"I'm here to help you and your fellow agents out when you start to lose sight of the bigger picture. Even if your orders don't make sense, you have to carry them out. Seraphim was made to protect humans from those who threaten us. Just trust in your faith and your oath as a Seraphim agent, do that and I promise you'll be safe." He explained, standing up as he finished. "Now, get some rest, it'll help you out."

Twelve stood up and made her way to the entrance to the Seraphim headquarters. She gave a nod to the priest before heading out of the room. 'So they just want me to follow everything they've said blindly, even when it isn't right? I don't know what I should do, they aren't what I thought they were, but this is all I've ever known. What do I do?' She thought to herself in her head.

Back within the main hall of the church, the priest who had just spoke with her drew a small handheld radio and held it to his face. "Sir, it looks like Twelve's starting to think for herself, I'll get someone watching her for any other strange behaviour right away. Yes, I'll also look into her conditioning, along with what went wrong there. We won't have another defector, you can count on me sir, one way or another, Seraphim Twelve won't be leaving us."

[Occult Circle]

The four rangers arrived quickly to the place the howling was coming from. They saw the injured forms of Acolytes on the ground dotted around the area. Max was now stood opposite his sister Maxcine, who had somehow taken on the form of the Lycanthrope once again and seemed to be in an enraged state.

"What happened? I thought you said everything was under control now!" Ellie called over to Max, who held the silver hair clip in his hand.

"These goons jumped us, and in the mess, she saw the full moon again, making her transform. I'm too exhausted to transform without losing control, think you could lend a hand?" He asked, keeping an eye on the enraged Lycan his sister had transformed into.

"Alright, we'll keep her distracted, you stick her hairclip on." Joe agreed as they readied their Sigil rings.

"That's something I bet you didn't expect to say." Nyssa joked as the Lycan Maxcine turned her attention to them.

"Not the time." Joe retorted as they drew their hands over their rings, activating them.

"Occult Breakout!" The four called, transforming into their ranger forms and drawing their weapons.

"Right, Nyssa, for now just pick off those Acolytes and shoot near her feet when you're done. Ellie, Saya, we'll take her on and try to hold her while Max fixes this." Joe commanded, readying a strategy for taming the angry wolf.

Nyssa spread her black feathered wings and flew overhead, drawing back her bow to finish off the Acolytes as she did so. Meanwhile, Joe waved his hands, calling over to Maxcine to get her attention, happier that he at least had his ranger suit as protection this time around.

At least that's what he thought. The Lycan form of the young woman in question dropped down onto all fours and charged straight forward at the three, colliding into them and knocking them to the ground with a heavy thud. Each of them groaned as they struggled to get up, demorphing from the heavy impact. Nyssa swooped down, trying to distract Maxcine, but the strong paws of the Lycanthrope clashed with the black ranger, knocking her into a lamp post and consequently to the ground, where she too demorphed.

'Alright, it's all up to me. Just wish I had my strength right now.' He thought, as he readied himself to face up against his sister, who was far stronger than him in this form, a small sphere of amber light seemed to come from nowhere, making it's way toward him.

Reaching out, Max took ahold of the sphere. Opening his hand once more, he found a ring almost identical to the ones the Occult rangers wore, except this held an amber gemstone. "Alright, here goes something!" He exclaimed as he slipped on the ring and drew his hand over it. "Occult Breakout!" He called, becoming absorbed by amber energy.

When it died down, he stood wearing a similar suit to that of the other Occult rangers, though it appeared most like Joe's. A solid amber torso and pants along with black sleeves. His boots were black with a silver banding and his gloves were also black with silver banding around the wrists. A sliver crescent moon outlined in black was printed upon the chest of the ranger suit. His helmet had the design of the wolf, also having a silver trim around the fanged visor. Following the theme, his belt was silver, with the design of a crescent moon linking it together. Clipped to his suit was a what looked to be a battle axe, now holding the gemstone of the ring in the axe head.

Max looked himself up and down, admiring the suit he was now in. "This is pretty cool! Alright, I think I can feel my strength coming back too. Get ready sis, I'm coming at you with all my strength, so you better brace yourself."

Looking at his fingertips, it looked as if the suit also possessed a unique feature to it, small but powerful claws attached to the ends of the gloves, perfect for a show of force like this. Charging forward, Max collided with his enraged sister, tackling her to the ground where he pinned her to the floor, just barely managing to place the clip on her, returning her to human form.

"Alright!" He cheered, while giving a small howl of his own. "That's how you take things on, Silverbolt style.

[Occult Circle]

After the hectic night of fending off a Lycanthrope out of control, the rangers were happy that everything had been resolved. Now with the five Sigil rings they have active. The rangers were a full team, as soon as they could convince Max to join on full time at least. Ellie had headed to the attic to rest up while Nyssa was snoring downstairs on the couch. Gabriel however, had locked himself in his study for the night. Likely something to do with the five rings being actively used now.

Joe walked down the upstairs hall, on the way to his own room when he came across Saya's room, her door was open and the demon was reading the recently arrived letter from her sister.

"Is everything alright?" He asked, causing the blue ranger to freeze up. "What's wrong, is this the stuff that's personal? Listen, if you don't talk about your problems, you're never gonna solve them."

"It's from home, things aren't looking good and they want me to come back. Some old rivals of my family are making trouble. There's a reason I left there, you know. I'm known as the Heiress Apparent of House Leviathan. Meaning that as soon as my father dies, I become the head of my house." She explained to him as he took a seat in her room.

"Okay, so are these rivals after taking your dad out and then controlling you somehow?" He asked, to which she nodded.

"Roughly. My mother signed a treaty with them, to unify us with them, shortly before she died. I didn't want to go through with it so I ran away. If I did return to the Underworld, then I'd have to go through with it, something I absolutely refuse to do." She gave a sigh and looked away.

"What's the condition then, it can't be that bad." He asked, placing a hand on her shoulder to try and reassure her.

"I would've had to marry a son of House Phoenix, the rivals I mentioned. It's why I never stayed in one place long and covered my tracks."

"If you've been running from all this, then why stop now, because of the Abyssal Cult?" He asked, trying to understand exactly what had changed.

"Funnily enough, because of you. When we first really met, the events made it so I didn't have to run. Their contract is void since our little mishap wed us. But nobody else knows that. We need to go to the Underworld to clear this all up, but I don't think that it'll be as easy as turning up and explaining things. House Phoenix always have something up their sleeve."

"I can tell you one thing, I'm not afraid of some snooty demon lord's son if things get heated, and I know you're definitely not afraid. Just try think happy thoughts, if you can do that anyway. The others are gonna back you up anyway, so let's just go and screw with some demon politics already!" He enthused, getting a small smirk from her.

"Sure, but give me some time to contact them, besides, the weekends are best for a trip to the Underworld." She joked as they sat there, preparing to face up against perhaps the trickiest group of demons there are.

|Occult Circle|

Supernatural Being - Lycanthrope - A curse passed down through the centuries to humans bitten by Lycans, the curse allows them to transform into stronger and faster wolf-like creatures, however their strength is quickly worn down and if they stay in this form for too long lose control over their animal side. If they see a full moon, they will transform and instantly become out of control, only then can a limiter item made of silver revert them back.

That's chapter 6 everyone. Here we had them devise a plan to trap one Lycan, only to find there's two. Fortunately one became a ranger in time to save his sibling. Ray got off lucky with Nyssa not being concerned about him being human, but she has a weird sense of humor to say the least. Seraphim Twelve admitted she doesn't see Seraphim like she once did and is now questioning what to do, though she confided in a crooked priest, something which may have further consequences if she decides she's had enough. As for the ending there, that's a little teaser as to the upcoming arc. I thought it's high time we get it out there why she ran away and what's to come might be a little cheesy in places, but it's Phoenix versus Leviathan in this next little arc focusing on Saya. Last but not least, the character of Maxwell along with Maxcine were made by Ranger Red 2.3

In other news, I'm finally free of college for christmas, that means no stress and no work. Also it means I can get more other stuff out too, but oh god, earlier this week was hell. At least the holidays are coming up, though that might not be too much different to hell too. Till next time then everyone, and in case I don't get anything out, merry christmas or [insert other holiday greeting] everyone.

Next Chapter: Occult Betrothal: An Underworld Welcome

Synopsis: After contacting her father, Saya and the other Occult rangers are escorted to the Leviathan palace in the Underworld, where they have their first encounter with two demon Houses and get in over their heads with the politics that surround them. Can they find a way to break the deal promised to their cunning foes? Find out next time on Power Rangers: Occult Circle.