Chapter 7: The Beast Within
It was midday. Tyradus's happiness took his mind off of his pain. His brother trudged right along with him. Nothing could ruin this moment...
And, as Tyradus thought that very thing, something did indeed ruin the moment. An arrow struck Kh'aaru on the back. The young fighter fell with a grunt onto the ground.
Tyradus's head jerked left and right. As he turned, he saw a heavily-armored Argonian charging at him, bearing a greatsword. He looked back down at Kh'aaru, and he was immediately filled with rage.
Yes... That's it... A familiar voice filled his mind. Let the anger overtake you... He may have killed your brother...
Tyradus's eyes narrowed. As he reached for his blade, he suddenly lost control of himself. He unwillingly threw off his armor.
"Giving up, are you?" The Argonian scoffed as he continued charging. "Good... Now you'll be easier to slaughter!"
"Not even... close..." Tyradus seethed with rage. "You... scaly bastard!"
His pupils faded, and a tint of red overtook his eyes. He felt his fingernails lengthen into claws.
That's it, my child... Let it consume you!
The Argonian stepped back. "What's... happening to you?"
Tyradus grew taller, and his muscles gained weight. He felt fur sprout all over his body. His face lengthened, as did his teeth. A deafening roar filled the air.
The beast grabbed the Argonian by the head and squeezed. The bandit could do nothing but helplessly grab at the wolf's fingers in an impossible attempt of escape. He felt the intense pain of Tyradus's claws slowly seeping into his fragile skull. The Argonian let out one final cry of agony before he stopped struggling and his body went limp.
The beast dropped the body and began licking the warm blood off of his claws. He felt that tasting the blood of his victims gave him strength.
Tyradus felt an arrow strike his back, barely able to pierce his thick hide. He turned and looked around. Kh'aaru was gone, but he saw a Dunmer bowman, trying to hide from view by crouching in a tree. He was obviously another bandit, dressed in hide armor and bearing a simple long bow.
"Fresh... prey..." The beast uttered. The words came out highly distorted, yet still understandable. He skulked to the base of the tree and looked up to see the bowman aiming a shot, yet still visibly cowering for his life.
"H-he can't get me up here..." The elf whispered, desperately trying to calm himself.
The wolf looked up with an unsettling grin. His jaw opened and he shouted out a loud and terrifying roar. The elf shouted as he jumped, and he lost his balance. The sheer vibrations of the noise knocked him off of his perch. Several audible cracks were heard as he smashed into the ground.
The beast slowly approached the elf, as he lay on his back. He couldn't move. His legs were broken and his left arm fractured.
"So... this is how it ends, eh?" He whispered to himself. He grunted in pain as he reached his right arm into his pocket and pulled out a bottle of Skooma. "Might as well... take one final hit." He popped the cork out with his thumb and threw back the narcotic. He faintly laughed as the wolf came into his view and stood directly over him. "Alright, monster. Finish me." Tyradus raised one paw and brought it down on the Dunmer's chest. Other than a soft grunt of death, the elf went quietly.
As the wolf feasted on the bandit's carcass, he heard a voice behind him. "I'm sorry."
Two combined blows. Blackout.
Tyradus opened his eyes, to be greeted by an orange sky. He lay in the grass, and felt a pounding in his head. His armor was on him, but he felt the clothing underneath gone.
"You're already awake?" Tyradus jerked himself up, to see Kh'aaru in front of him.
"What? Did something happen, Kh'aaru?" The Khajiit nodded. "Something weird?"
"That would be an understatement..." Kh'aaru sighed. "You must've been infected."
"Infected?" Tyradus was confused.
"Tyradus, back in Cyrodiil, did you ever run into a werewolf? Ever gotten bitten by a strange-looking person?"
"Well, I have been bitten by some questionable people, but the last time that happened was when I turned into a vampire. Boy, was that a hell of a journey to get rid of."
"Yeah, well, at least we knew how to get rid of that one. Now, I'm not sure..."
"What are you talking about, Kh'aaru?" Tyradus looked confused.
"You don't remember any of that?!" Tyradus shook his head. "You... turned into a beast. A werewolf, I think."
"A... A werewolf?" Tyradus looked at his hands. There was dried blood on them, most noticeably on his nails.
"Brother, I saw you change. Your body just... grew into a monster. It wasn't just your hands, either. Before I cleaned you up, your face was a mess of bodily fluids." Kh'aaru pointed to his left. When Tyradus looked back, he saw a dead body lying on the ground.
"What's that?" He asked, getting up to examine it. It was the Wood Elf, with bloody gashes all over his body. A deep hole was in his chest- his heart was torn out. There were large holes in his throat, showing where Tyradus had bitten him to draw blood.
"That was you, Tyradus. You killed that Elf."
"M-Me?" Tyradus could barely look at the body.
"Yes, you. You've got some sort of... thing."
"Thing?" Tyradus gave his brother a questioning look.
"I don't know what you'd call it. Disease, curse, power, transformation, gift, ability..."
"I'm not sure what it is, but I know I want it gone. We need to return to Whiterun as quickly as possible, to tell Father about it."
"Right. He may know what to do. If not, we can try the Companions, or Arcadia. Maybe priestess Danica could help us."
The pair hurried back to their hometown. As they reached the gates, Tyradus saw Fjori on duty once again.
"Fjori!" Tyradus stopped, and Kh'aaru did the same. He could barely talk over his heavy breath. "Wh... Where's my... Father?"
"Engar? I saw him heading into Jorrvaskr about an hour ago. He's probably still there."
They dashed into Whiterun, and hurried up the path to Jorrvaskr. Most of the Companions didn't seem even startled when they barged in, with the exception of Engar and Skjor.
"Father!" Both of the brothers shouted.
"So, I see you've found Kh'aaru!" He laughed heartily. "And, you look like you've had yourself quite an adventure!"
"Father, we can catch up later. This is important. We need to talk somewhere else."
"Just tell me right now, Kh'aaru. I don't think Skjor here will care anyway."
Kh'aaru seemed a bit agitated. Tyradus spoke up.
"I've been infected with Lycanthropy!"
Engar turned pale. Each of the Companions turned to stare at him.
"What, isn't that how you say it?"
Engar didn't hesitate to grab his son's arm and stand.
"We need to speak outside. Now."
They walked out the back, Engar quite hurriedly. Tyradus couldn't shake the feeling of awkwardness with the warriors' eyes constantly on him.
"What do you mean you've been infected?"
Kh'aaru spoke up this time. "Some bandits attacked us, and knocked me down. He got so angry that he just turned into a wild beast! He tore the bandits up, and probably would have done the same to me, if I hadn't paralyzed him."
One Companion was sitting outside. He wore armor just like Skjor's. "You finally gonna tell him?" He asked.
"I guess now's as good a time as ever..."
Tyradus looked confused. Engar looked down with sorrow.
"Son, you got your Lycanthropy from me."
"What?! But... I don't remember you biting me!"
"No, Tyradus. You were born with the power. I became a werewolf years before you were born."
Kh'aaru said nothing. His mouth hung open, and his eyes were about as wide as they could get.
"But... how is that... possible?"
"The Companions... the members of the circle, at least... We're all werewolves. It's a secret we've harbored for generations..."
"You're telling me that, after all these years of aspiring to be a Companion... Feeling like I just wasn't good enough to join such an honorable group... You were just a bunch of dirty dogs devouring people?!"
"Look, Tyradus it isn't that simple. We-"
"I don't want to hear what you have to say, father! I'm leaving! Tonight! And, don't expect me to return anytime soon!"
Kh'aaru finally spoke. "Tyradus, what are you talking about? We just arrived, and now you want to-"
Tyradus turned and began walking away, completely ignoring Kh'aaru. As he passed, Kh'aaru saw the emotion in his brother's eyes. Anger, confusion and despair mixed into one expression. He couldn't even imagine the anguish. Kh'aaru shot a glance at Engar before leaving to follow Tyradus.
Tyradus barged into Breezehome, took off his armor and threw on his robes. He stuffed his journal into his pocket. As he turned to leave, Kh'aaru stopped him.
"Tyradus, you're being a little rash about this. How is leaving Whiterun and never coming back going to help you?"
"I'm going back to the College. I'll see if the mages can find a way to cure me, then I'm going back to Cyrodiil. That will end it all."
"Never speaking to your father again isn't going to make your life any easier, Brother."
"He deserves it. I looked up to him, thinking he was an honorable warrior. And now, it turns out that he only survived because he's a bloodthirsty monster, and brought his whole family into it. If I'm a werewolf, then so is Aeta. And, I doubt she'll find out in a way very different than this."
"Tyradus, what would have happened if he had told you when you were younger? We were stupid when we were young. You would have tried to access your power early, and could have killed yourself, and everybody in Whiterun in the process!"
"That isn't what matters now. I respected my father under the illusion that he was a brave and honorable warrior. Only to find out that he's too afraid to tell his own family about something that affects all of us!"
"Calm yourself, brother! Unless you want to find yourself turning into a beast again!"
Tyradus scoffed and pushed Kh'aaru out of the way. He raised his hood and walked out toward the city gate. He saw one of the Companions there.
"Out of my way, now." Tyradus stated plainly, but with a certain force.
"Kodlak Whitemane has requested to see you," The Companion said as he pushed his black, greasy hair out of his face.
"I have no time, Companion."
"My name is Farkas, imp. You'd do best to remember it. There's no refusing a summoning from Kodlak."
"Ugh, fine, Farkas. I'll speak with your leader."