Author's Note: Well, thanks for all the reviews for the last chapter everybody, much appreciated as always. Glad you enjoyed it, though it was much shorter than I had planned. *throws chapter plan out of window, then quickly runs out and gets it, shoving it in her mouth* Wouldn't want anyone to see that now, would I? Despite my not using it exactly anymore. But enough of that… on with the show, 'eh?
Raven Silvers: Course we're still friends. Lol. Just a misunderstanding combined with a bad day. They don't mix, but sadly, sometimes it happens. All is forgotten and forgiven. I'm glad you like Dmitri.
RogueSparrow: Would you believe me if I said that wasn't the line? *pause* Didn't think so. *cringes* Ooh! Brownie! *takes one* Thanks!
Sethoz: Hehe, goddess, original, and for that you get credit. And referring to the Landon quote… nice! Splendidly played, my friend! Slipped that in there seamlessly, and I'm impressed, lol. Glad you loved it.
Graymoon74: *snatches paper from you* Who gave you this? These are my notes! D'oh! *locks notes away into impenetrable safe* Hmm… now I'm suspicious. But seriously, how do you do that? Lol.
The pacing was starting to irritate Dmitri, and he watched the Frenchwoman from his seat at the dining table, hands knitted casually on the surface before him. His eyes never left Anise's form, and he raised an eyebrow. What had her so troubled? Tom Sawyer was concerned for her; she should appreciate the affection. She was lucky to have someone who – apparently – cared for her enough to know when to keep her locked away… not that they were really locked away. The three of them could escape at any given moment. They had only ample oppurtunity.
Lei was restless, and paced about as much as Anise did, only behind Dmitri instead of in front. It was some small grace, for it meant the Russian avoided a headache induced by dizziness from watching the two move. He had had about as much as he could take, remaining silent and simply watching everything fester and build within his companion, and he finally said, "I would much appreciate if you could stop."
Anise did so, but only because his voice startled her. She turned her head to him briskly, and blurted, "Pardon?"
"Your pacing," Dmitri explained, waving a hand vaguely in her direction, almost lazily, "it is making me dizzy. And it is not a pleasant sensation." He offered her a teasing smile, one she did not return.
Lei came up beside Dmitri then, and regarded Anise with narrowed eyes. "Why did you agree so blindly?"
"It was not blindly."
"Call it what you will, but you allowed yourself to be ordered like some lower animal."
Anise and Lei glared coldly at one another, though Dmitri knew it ran deeper than it seemed, what they were feeling. Trust was always an issue with people like themselves, and Lei always seemed defiant to be independent, understandably. She was a strong-willed young woman, and did not like to be ordered around. Anise, respectively, liked to feel in control, but with her shadowed past – what little of it Dmitri was aware of – she was always keen to try and grow close to others, to try and build up what she hoped would be solid, definite relationships… and Sawyer most definitely fell into that category.
Dmitri hated to admit it, and he would never tell her this, but she had his scent all over her. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to feel about that, but he told himself he should feel happy for her. She had – so it seemed – found someone. He almost envied her… almost.
"Why do we allow ourselves to be guarded like criminals? Like prisoners?" Lei persisted. "It is not our place to obey. We will do what we please, and I intend to free myself of this… this vessel."
"But it is not safe," Anise countered gently, and she hung her head as she said this, almost as though she were not convinced by her own words. It was as though there was some falsehood in them, a lie.
"And who says it is not safe?" Lei moved around the table, drawing Anise's eye with her own. "Listen to me, Anise… we have grown to trust one another, is this true?" At a nod from her friend, Lei continued, "I thought as much. I do not trust to this… League. They are secretive and too mysterious for my liking. I wish to be free of their company. And I intend to leave this vessel of theirs… now. I pray you trust me enough to follow, or at least consider it."
Anise looked to Dmitri, and then back to Lei, who seemed to catch something in the Frenchwoman's eyes that the Russian missed; "You think you love him, Anise… but think back on your past. You were blackmailed into using him, and he does not fully trust you. He may be using you for his own devices, driven by the company of his League. You think you love him… but I see in your eyes some uncertainty."
Dmitri stood from the table, feeling the charge in the air, the anticipation… he knew what she was going to say before the words even passed from her mouth, and within five minutes, Nemo's guarding sailors were unconscious, and the three were making their escape…
Three sets of gleaming, eerie slitted eyes watched from the shadows of the New York alleys as the Russian, Asian and French individuals descended the ramp, fleeing their confines without so much as a thought to their own safety. A growl of mirth slipped from the throat of the alpha female, and she tilted her canine head in anticipation. The two males glanced sidelong at her, and followed stealthily as she broke from her cover to give chase, movements silent and athletic, hearts and minds set on the goal.
Falx, Gladius and Lacertus ran in formation, the female central, and the males on the edges should anything ambush. The two outer lycanthropes travelled on all fours, whereas Falx stayed bipedal, more human in her travel. Her eyes and acute senses were fixed on her target and her objective, and they did not stray.
A gentle thunder played as they padded in a light gallop along the streets of nighttime New York; staying to the shadows and the mysterious alleyways where only the drunks and the whores dare roam. They were too caught up in their own devices to notice the rumble of a growl, or the slight brushing of disturbed air past their hair or cheeks, misplacing it for a breeze or their imaginations. Little did they know their luck, for on any other night, the three would have gorged on the flesh and blood of these lowlifes.
But no… not tonight. Even as lightning briefly lit up the darkness, and they were revealed in the blink of an eye in their awesome terror, the three werewolves charged after their quarry, the intent burned into their minds, no thoughts of their own, save for the commands of their master and general.
With another flash of brief lightning, they were gone, lost in the chase and the shadow.
The storm that had been threatening started to break into full being now, and thunder rumbled dominantly in the heavens, as if to wrench it apart, the lightning that followed flashing, forking and streaking across the sky like otherworldly flares.
Anise, Dmitri and Lei weren't sure where it was they intended to go, but their feet had some ideas. They had slowed from the jog into a steady, fast-paced walk now, and they were heading through a large clearing in the buildings, some kind of park, silent and mysterious in the night.
But as one, the three of them stopped, turning their heads to listen, sight around, or smell the air. They froze completely, eyes scanning the shadows and the darkness for any kind of threat. Lei growled, a light sound that disappeared on the breeze, carried away into nothingness.
They were not alone… they knew it; they could feel it in the air. Their senses had alerted them to the presence, and they recognised it. A growl rose from Dmitri this time, and Anise glanced to her large companion. He was ready… they all were inwardly, but externally, Anise was hesitant… she didn't want to fight unless she had to.
That was when something burst out of the bushes behind them, crashing down onto all fours with a bestial roar, limbs bristling with dark hair, yellow eyes flashing in a feral manner. It opened its maw threateningly, saliva dripping from its treacherous fangs, and the hackles rose up along its spine. The roar died down into a loud, rumbling snarl.
Dmitri gave in to the transformation, his shirt torn from his torso as he shifted, body growing and shifting into the werewolf form. His face extended, and he bellowed in a challenge as it did so.
He stepped in front of the two women protectively, and Anise – if she hadn't been so stunned – would have given him a sharp kick for the masculine instinct. She could take care of herself. But she supposed he knew that, and was just doing what he thought was right.
But before the two wolves could descend into combat, a pair of shadows melted from their concealment on either side of Anise and Lei, large and intimidating, illuminated only by the brief lightning. The Asian woman succumbed to the lycanthropy in a heartbeat, her body shuddering and changing shape. The form of the woman was lost, and the beast within took over, giving a shake as it did so, crouched low in a predatory stance. She snarled at the wolf to her left, a tall bipedal, gangly creature.
Anise looked to her companions, and then to their opponents – for that was what they seemed to intend; a fight – wondering if transforming was the best solution. Not that there was much else she could do. She looked to the wolf on her right, a grey, shaggy-haired individual, muscle and thick bone covered by his coarse coat, and he stretched his jaws open wide in a horrible display of power and challenge. It was almost as though he was daring her to change.
A terrifying sound to her left caused her head to snap in that direction, and she almost gave a shout when she saw Lei pounce upon the bipedal lycanthrope, trying to tear into it with all she had. Her speed was admirable, but the large creature was ducking and dodging backwards and to the sides, avoiding the blows Lei tried to land on it. If Anise had to guess, she would have said the bipedal was female.
Dmitri gave a bellow of impatience, and ploughed his entire body into the original challenger, who gave a bark of surprise as he was rammed to the ground with the force of an anvil, enough to break human bone.
The final wolf took to circling Anise curiously; edging closer and closer, until her patience wore away and she kicked it hard in the snout, hearing its jaw crack shut. It pounced upon her, which was precisely when she decided that giving in to the wolf was a smart decision.
The other creature was upon her before it had completely taken over, and slammed her into the ground with enough force to jar her head against something solid. She gasped, and felt her senses thrown out of alignment. Her vision swam with colour and light, and she had trouble making sense of anything. The wolf receded within her, and the transformation was lost. She felt the weight pinning her, the hot breath on her face. She could smell the rancid stench of his exhalations, but no teeth or claws tore into her. It had no intention of killing… only trapping.
She heard the muffled sounds of combat all around her, and wished she could see.
Lei snapped and slashed at her fellow combatant, finding only air meeting her teeth and claws where they should have contacted with flesh and bone. She found herself growing angry, impatient and rash. She gave a sharp snarl, and launched herself forward again.
Lei felt the sudden stinging across her side, and shifting told her that she had been slashed along her shoulder and body. She ignored the pain; it would dissipate and heal, she knew. It bothered her little.
She tried to close her jaws around the arm that had slashed her, but her teeth crashed down on nothing, before a blow to the head sent her to the floor in a heap. Something in her already-wounded shoulder weakened, and she suppressed the yelp, a sign of weakness. She would not let it out.
The other werewolf kicked out at her, but Lei rolled swiftly to her feet, and pounced, slamming full-body into her opponent. The two were sent backwards with the force, Lei using her own weight to throw the other fighter to the ground, only to find herself rolled over and nearly crushed. The air was sucked out of her, and she dug her claws on her free arm into what she supposed to be the back of her challenger.
Her eyes caught sight of Dmitri in the midst of his own combat, faring well. Then she saw Anise, near unconscious and pinned beneath the final creature. She tried to free herself to help her friend, kicking out at the bipedal beast, and feeling her feet come into solid contact with the abdomen. It gave a bark of a noise, and was thrown away.
Lei scrambled to her feet and tore across the space from where she had been lying, to where the grey werewolf was pinning her companion. With a bellow, she launched, and slammed into the pinning creature, sending him reeling, her claws raking across his back to boot.
Lei came to stand beside Anise, who she could see was now badly dazed. She moved to step forward, perhaps to assist her friend, when she felt the claws lodge themselves deep into the small of her back, causing her to give a roar of agony.
After the weight had been lifted so suddenly, Anise's first instinct had been to suck in a deep breath, which had been when she'd noticed Lei's presence. The roar of agony tore her from the slight relief, and she gave a scream, trying to rise to help. The bipedal werewolf almost grinned manically.
Lei writhed, trying to twist to defend herself, before the grey wolf slammed his weight down on top of the Asian, and opened his mouth wide with a chilling snarl, eyes blazing with rage and intent, intensified by a flare of lightning and a booming crack of thunder.
"No!" Anise screamed at the top of her lungs, even as the wolf brought his jaws crashing down around the back of Lei's neck, tightening and tearing. "Dmitri!"
But looking to where the Russian had been fighting told her that he would be of no use. He had slumped, unconscious, to the ground, incapacitated by the original opponent. The creature paced towards Anise now with a predatory glint in its yellow eyes, cocking its head at her frantic behaviour. She tried to rise, the strength to transform having bled out of her with the blow to the head.
Before she could get to her feet in time to help, the beast had pressed a large paw-like foot down on her shoulder and forced her back to the ground, gazing at her, before glancing to the other sight.
Lei was struggling, and had managed to turn onto her back on the ground, attempting to lash out with claws as she was choked, before the teeth really tore into her throat, and blood bubbled from her mouth with a strangled, gargling sound.
Anise let the tears surface, no longer able to struggle, only sob quietly as she watched Lei, even as the grey wolf twisted his jaw and wrenched upward, muzzle soaked in thick blood. He gave a snarl and a chilling howl of triumph, joined in the cacophony by his fellows. It was brief, but enough to tell Anise that they had fully intended to kill only one… Lei was dead, and the Frenchwoman forced her eyes to look away as the wolf form lost its stability and started to give in to the human shape.
Even as the three werewolves crowded around her, Anise allowed herself to give in to the darkness that lingered.
They had only been gone from the Nautilus half an hour before Tom Sawyer suddenly stopped, body tensing and his hand gripping so tightly around his Winchester that Quatermain moved over and touched a hand to his shoulder to try and calm him, before the weapon was accidentally set off.
"What is it, Sawyer?"
Tom's eyes widened, and he suddenly turned his head in the direction from which they had originally come. "Oh god…" He took off without another word, leaving the others to give chase behind him, wondering what had come over him for him to act so oddly. Mina was the only one capable of speeds comparable to Tom's, and she kept pace just behind him, having heard a noise on the wind herself… she tried to tell herself it hadn't been a howl, when in reality, she was more than convinced.
They passed small crowds of pedestrians, who leapt aside as Tom and Mina darted past them. They called out words that Mina had always thought should be avoided in polite company, but they were long gone, and far from retaliation.
Tom's heart was racing in his chest; Mina could hear it, tried to tell herself she wasn't hungry.
But when they broke into the park, all thoughts of food were lost as a terrible sense of dread settled within the pit of her stomach, and weighed her down considerably. Something was wrong… terribly wrong.
Tom looked left and right, closing his eyes for a moment, before jogging off again. Mina took a moment before following, recognising the mingling of scents. All werewolves… six scents all together. Five fading…
When she caught up with Tom, she realised why, and her face fell into a melancholy expression. Tom simply stood, hovering over the mangled corpse, eyes never wavering. He didn't make a sound, barely breathed, simply stared… transfixed in some kind of horrific way.
Mina heard the pursuit of the others, and turned her head to see Quatermain, Jekyll, Nemo and Skinner catch up. She threw an icy glance in Skinner's direction before he could complain, and glanced back to Tom.
Quatermain and the others saw the scene laid out before them, and stopped, frozen in their sadness and dismay. They recognised – only by process of elimination, no doubt – the bloodied corpse at Tom's feet.
Before any of them could speak, the silence hanging heavily like a tremendous weight between them as the rain started to tumble from the black heavens, Tom moved only slightly, and the Winchester fell from his grasp, his eyes closing as he realised his apparent failure.
And in that moment, Mina's heart went out to him…