8
-Flashback-
-- 7 years ago --
The T.V. has a lot of static as the news channel reports on breaking news. Cory is currently 10 years old. His abilities as a shifter are growing rapidly. Alexander Corvin turns around to face the T.V.
T.V. Reporter:The scene is horrifying. Two men have been brutally killed. It seems like they have been killed by a wild animal. However, sources confirm that the bite marks on the two individuals aren't from the jaws of a wolf or dog. The size of the bite mark matches the size of a human's jaw but no one knows how such a human can have such ferocious teeth. The skin and flesh were almost completely shredded off the human's body.
Suddenly two men storm through the door.
Unknown Man 1:Alexander. Have you seen…-
Alexander:Yes I see it. Was it someone from our pact?
Unknown Man 2:No. We examined the bodies before the cops got there. The size of the marks weren't from a pure shifter. It's the hybrid pact that did it.
Alexander:So they weren't able to control themselves after all.
Unknown Man 1:Hybrid? Sir what are you talking about?
Alexander:A hybrid that is half shifter and half vampire. They formed a few years ago and moved into this area.
Cory was listening as the 3 of them spoke. Slowly learning about everything. Slowly wanting to know more.
Unknown Man 1:So what's so special about them?
Alexander:They may not be pure shifter or pure vampire, but they have both characteristics at an amplified level. Basically, Naturally, They surpass both. However just like their strength is amplified, so is their thirst for blood and flesh. Their vampire instincts want blood while their shifter instincts want flesh. Most of the hybrids in their pact can't control themselves and that has been a concern to me as well as the other pact leaders in this region.
Unknown Man 1:So what's going to happen now? We can't let them continue. We are going to be discovered and hunted
Alexander:Get the other leaders. We only have one choice. Kill them all. It won't be easy but we can with all the pacts combined.
Unknown Man 2:Are you sure sir? Kill… all of them?
Alexander:We have no other choice. Inform the other pact leaders to meet here at midnight.
Unknown Man 2:As you wish.
Both men disperse and disappear into the darkness of the woods
-- Midnight Arrives --
All the pact leaders in the region are gathered along with all of their top shifters in their pacts
Alexander:Okay. They are all gathered in the area pass these woods. He points north
Pact Leader 1:So we are just going to ambush them.
Pact Leader 2:I guess we will be. Lets see how much of a fight we can put up.
Pact Leader 3:I'm numb with excitement. He grows his teeth and claws
The 4 pacts rush through the woods and into the area of the hybrids. The hybrids being ambushed and outnumbered at the same time are massacred. Tens of them die yet a few were able to escape. The pacts noticed the fled hybrids but were unable to stay on their trail so they gave up on trailing them. By dawn, almost every hybrid of that pact was annihilated. Brutally killed and all the bodies were being burned one by one by the pacts.
Pact Leader 2:Alexander. A few of them got away. What should we do?
Alexander:Nothing. They won't show themselves. Dispose of all the bodies and burn the forest down. The pacts are moving to Bucharest by nightfall. Let's hope none of us get caught and inform our superiors of what happened tonight.
All Pact Leaders:Yes sir.
-End of Flashback-
I walked pass the shifters and headed into the house. I climbed the stairs as I tried to figure out why I was unable to control my own body. I stepped in the bathroom and locked the door. I tore off my bloody shirt and threw it in the trash. I slipped out of my jeans and boxers before I blasted the hot water in the showers. I stepped in and let the hot steaming water hit my head and flow down my body. I scrubbed my body and hair with soap for about 20 minutes before I turned off the water and stepped out of the showers. Wrapped in a towel around my waist, I walked to my room to grab some new clothes I found some more comfortable clothing and slipped in them before I laid down on my bed and drifted off to sleep. My body ached and I wanted rest.
I was awoken by the foul smell in the air. There were too meant scents. Most of them were unfamiliar.
-What the fuck is that… I can't even rest without being awoken for once-
The mixed scents were getting on my nerves and I was getting irritated. I got out of bed to look at the clock. It was about 5 in the afternoon.
-How long have I been sleeping… what time did I get back to the house…-
I opened my door and was rushed by the scents once again but in a more extreme level. I crept down the stairs slowly to walk towards the living room. I stared in to see that no one was there. The smell of my father quickly jerked my head towards the front of the house. I walked towards the door and opened it to see my father along with the whole pact standing at the front of the house waiting for something. Suddenly, the scents grew even closer. The scents were from about 10 individuals that were coming towards this direction. Father turned around to see me standing at the edge of the door staring out into the woods ahead of us.
"Cory. Go inside. Gather some clothing." Dad said with a serious face.
"Why… what's going on…?"
"Just do it first and be quick you don't have much time." I was puzzled but I did what my dad asked. 5 minutes later I had a sports bag filled with some clothing and was standing back at the door once again waiting for my dad to explain to me what was going on.
"Cory… the people who attacked you…"
"Wait. You know who attacked me?!" I interrupted.
"Yeah. I knew all along they were part of that group but didn't think they would try anything."
"Great. Lie to me much dad? Thanks a lot. Now what am I suppose to do?"
"They are from a hunter pact. A group of pure shifters that go after hybrids."
"Hybrids? I thought all the hybrids were dead." I said while thinking about the past.
"How would you know about the hybrids?!" He looked puzzled
"You talked about it with the 2 men 7 years ago. Something about killing them all."
"Okay so you know the story then great. There is one group above me. A group stronger."
"Someone stronger then you?" I was confused again. The other shifters turned around to start watching me and father talk. Some of them seemed confused while some seemed like they understood everything very well.
"Don't worry about it. But yes they were created a few years ago to hunt hybrids."
"Why hybrids?"
"They hunt hybrids that may pose a threat to the shifter race like what happened before."
"Okay so what does that have to do with me?!" I said louder than I wanted to.
"Cory. You are a hybrid." He said slowly.
"That's why mother had wings isn't it. She wasn't a werewolf was she."
"No. The past is more complicated than you can imagine right now."
"I don't give a fucking shit. Tell me what the fuck happened when I was younger."
"Some other time. Right now you have to get away. Go stay somewhere else for a bit."
"They can still find me by my sense of smell." I said quickly.
"Don't worry about that. I have that figured out. Just go!" He was rushing me to leave. I jumped onto the roof and jumped pass the house opposite of the woods. I was new in town. I knew no one almost. I had no other choice. I followed the scent of one person. The only person that even knows me slightly and may possibly let me stay over. The scent was slightly far away from my house but it wasn't a big deal to me. At my speed, I can reach there in 5 minutes. I arrived at a big house that almost doubled the size of mine. It was amazing and flowers grew all over the house. I rang the doorbell and she opened the door.
"Hi there Cory." She was confused yet smiled pleasantly.
"Hey there Ariel. I have a favor to ask."
"Yeah sure. Why don't you come in first." I looked down for a bit before I responded.
"Okay thanks." I walked in and explained to Ariel about the situation in a human way. I said my dad has to get out of town and I cant stay in the house alone because I have a habit of not cleaning and leaving the house a mess so I was asked to stay over a friends place. Surprisingly, Ariel allowed me to stay over and confirmed it with her parents when they got back from work.
"Follow me." She smiled while standing up and walking towards the stairs. I followed her upstairs to a big hall. Her room was the last room down the hall at the right side of the stairs. Her room was very large and organized so well.
"You are going to stay in here with me" She smiled once again.
"In the same room? Your parents don't mind?" I asked.
"No they don't care." She laughed a bit.
"Okay" I said with a happier tone than I expected. We killed an hour or so by fixing up a area in the room for me to sleep on before we went outside to take a walk. She enjoyed walking in the woods so I followed her into them acting like I didn't know my way around the place even though I would never get lost in such a small forest. We talked about so many things and she told me things about the town so I would be more familiar to it. We reached the center of the forest when the sun began to set.
-I haven't felt so happy and free for a while-
I usually had no one to talk to but pact members but everything was changing now. We started to walk but I told Ariel to stop.
"Why what's going on?" She asked.
"Come out" I yelled out into the distance. Two men came out from behind the trees holding shotguns and a pistol around their belt.
"Oh. How'd you know boy?" one chuckled.
"Easy. You smell like shit. I can smell you a mile away."
"Smell me? What are you boy, a dog?" he laughed.
-That's going to be the last time you fucking laugh-
-A dog is nothing compared to what I'm about to show you-
I was about to change until I remembered I was with Ariel. I stopped and stood still as I held my anger in. They both walked over slowly. I stood still as I watched them change their attention to Ariel.
"Oh you have a pretty girlfriend. How about you share her?"
"Careful guys. I bite." She said with a smile. She was very calm. The situation didn't affect her at all. One of the guys lifted their hand to touch her face.
"Get your fucking hand off her" I yelled.
"What did you say boy?" One of them turned their attention to me and started to walk towards me with the shotgun pointed to my head.
"I said get your hand off her."
-And point that gun away from me before I fucking rip your head off-
"Or you will do what? Boy I can blow your head off right now" Suddenly, I heard the other guy scream. The one with the gun pointed to my head turned around. That's when I saw it. Ariel's teeth deep into the guys neck. Her eyes have turned red as she removed her teeth from his neck. He fell down to the floor and I knew 2 things for sure now. Ariel was one of them and she just killed that guy.
"Told him I bite." She smiled again showing her teeth while she licked the blood off her lips.
"what the fuck are you?!" the guy screamed. He grabbed me and put his arm around my neck.
"Stay away from me" He was frightened.
"That's a bad choice." She said. At that moment, I thought she might know what I was and what I was capable of. I smirked and the guy was now confused.
"What's so funny?!"
"You were better off running away."
"What the fuck are you talking about?!" he was sweating. I was able to smell it.
"Well to start off, this is for touching her." I grabbed the arm he had my around my neck and completely tore it off his shoulders. He backed up and screamed in pain. I turned around to see him on the floor shedding tears. He used what energy he had left to lift up the shotgun and pull the trigger. The bullets hit my chest and I saw blood coming out of my body.
"How's that monster!" he was still horrified.
"How's this." I changed into howling form as the bullets came back out of my body and my wounds healed at a immense rate. Soon, there were no bullet marks as well as no blood dripping from my body. I walked towards him and heard him scream.
"This is for calling me boy. I hate being called boy." I leaped forward to grab his other arm. I didn't tear it off his body but instead I twisted it backwards breaking the bone. He screamed in more pain and I was beginning to wonder if there were any people nearby. I took a quick sniff to realize that there was no one around. I looked down to see him lying there crying in pain. He deserved the pain he was feeling and I was going to make him feel more pain. I picked him up and bit him in the neck but not to the point where he would die. I let go and let him fall to the floor.
"I'm not nice when I'm pissed off. You won't survive long."
"a…h…" he was barely able to speak.
"Werewolf venom isn't exactly pleasant to deal with. 5 minutes and you will be dead." I watched him slowly as he lost consciousness and soon his heart stopped as well as his breathing. I changed back into my human form and stood up. My shirt was ripped but my pants were fine. I turned around to see Ariel still smiling and looking at me.
"Why are you so happy to see that I'm a shifter?"
"Why not? Am I supposed to be mad or hateful?" she said while still smiling.
"Well… I thought vampires hated shifters."
"What difference does it make? You are a werewolf and I'm a vampire. We never had any conflicts between ourselves. We can't just hate each other because people of our kind hate each other. Everyone living thing is different but that doesn't mean we have to kill each other for it. We didn't kill each other when we found out what each other was. Thus showing that we don't have the intent to." I understood her logic and I somewhat agreed but I wanted to know one thing.
"How did you know I was a werewolf?"
"I followed you the day that you stormed out of the school and ran into the woods."
-Was my senses that bad at that moment?-
"Oh I see. And you said and did nothing."
"Why do I have to? I have no grudge or anything." She smiled. "Besides, my parents know what you are and they tell me to stay away but I don't listen to them much."
"Wait… you're parents know?! HOW?!" I yelled louder than I expected.
"Shifters have elemental powers but vampires have the ability to read minds."
"Oh… then were you able to?" I was a bit confused.
"Nope. My abilities in reading minds haven't grown that strong yet." She said pleasantly.
"Okay great…"
"Oh yeah there is one more thing." She had a big smile on her face.
"What?" I asked with eyes wide open.
"They told me that you thought I was cute."
"What?!... Let's get going." I started to walk. I couldn't believe her parents just blew my spot completely and embarrassed me like that. She followed me back since she knew that I knew the way anyway. We barely walked for 2 minutes until my nose picked up more scents. I thought they were just humans until I realized that the scents were moving towards us at a very fast speed. Speed that even matched my own. I looked up and Ariel stopped as well. I think she was able to tell that something was coming. We stood still for a few minutes until 1 person showed up. I couldn't believe it.
"Brother…" I said while staring straight forward.
"Hi there Cory." My brother said while looking at Ariel. My brother, Michael Corvin, was always stronger then me but never bothered to care about what I do or who I am with. This time, he came all the way here for some reason that I didn't know. I needed to find out what it was.
"What do you want…? I thought you couldn't make it back…" I asked. He smiled.
"Who's your friend?" He looked interested.
"Ariel. What does it matter to you?"
-I have a bad feeling about this…-
"Nothing. Anyway do you like your other abilities?"
"I don't know what you are talking about." I bit my lip.
"Come on now Cory. If I'm a hybrid so are you. I'm sure you've used them."
"I don't know how to use them…"
"You haven't seen the true extent of your abilities then" He smiled.
"Huh?" I was confused.
"Let me show you brother." He reached into his light blue jeans pocket and took out a needle. Inside it was a bright blue substance. He looked up at me and the next thing I knew, he was right behind me standing with one hand in his pocket and the other hand holding the needle against my neck. He injected the substance directly into the side of my neck and it was now in my bloodstream. I fell to the ground and put my hand where the needle pierced my skin.
"What the fuck did you inject me with?" My body began to feel extremely hot. My fangs started to grow and so did my claws. Once again I felt my back and realized wings were growing again. I was shifting but I wasn't doing it on my own will.
"It's like ecstasy for hybrids." He laughed.
"What are you fucking talking about. Why am I shifting?!"
"You'd be surprised what can happen if you mix shifter venom with silver."
"You injected me with silver?!" I was barely able to stand as my body finished the change.
"Relax Cory. Your vampire attributes arise to its maximum to stop the silver while your shifter attributes arise to its maximum to stop the shifter venom from affecting your vampire half. In other words, it forces your body to release both halves to its maximums."
-Wouldn't that make me stronger? There has to be a twist to it…-
"But of course… If both halves are at its maximum, both side's thirst is at its maximum as well. Let's see how long you can control yourself around your vampire girlfriend" He smiled.
"How the fuck did you know?!"
"Bye Cory!" He disappeared in a split second and I was finally finishing the change. Ariel stood as she watched me finish my change. I couldn't tell if she was more scared or shocked. I finished my change and the thirst for blood and flesh was immense. My body was already beginning to react on its own instincts while I tried my best to control myself. Every time I took a small glance at Ariel's beautiful yet shocked face, I almost lost control. I had to make myself weaker for the time being so that I wouldn't be strong enough to kill her.
I stood up and stood still. I felt strong. I felt strength I never felt before. I felt superior compared to other shifters, but I didn't want to hurt Ariel. I wasn't able to control myself anymore.
"Sorry…" As I mumbled that one word, I leaped forward opening my jaws wide open showing my teeth as they shined in the moonlight. My claws were fully grown as I extended my arm to grab Ariel. My claws were just in reach of Ariel until suddenly, I felt a strong punch at the right side of my jaw. I flew like 10 feet until I stood up again and looked around.
I saw one person standing on a tree branch above Ariel's head. He wore a white suit and his silver hair swayed back and forth on his head like grass on a field. He had round glasses with no rims. He was holding what appeared to be a samurai sword holder with the sword sheathed on one hand while he used the other hand wearing a white glove to fix his glasses.
"Who the hell are you?!" I stood there staring at him and demanding.
"Calm down boy…-"
-He just called me boy…-
"… I'm not here to fight you…" He showed no emotion as he fixed his glasses once again.
"Besides, you should be thanking me. She could've killed you if I didn't stop you."
"How?" I was confused but my anger was still building up. I couldn't take it anymore. I jumped up and for the first time used my wings to fly straight towards him. As I extended my arm once again so I would be able to claw against his face, he lifted up his sword holder and blocked me without even trying.
I tried to attack him again and again by sending a fury of attacks constantly towards him. He blocked every single attack with just the sword holder and he didn't even move an inch away from where he stood. He used the hand holding the sword holder only while the other hand was in his pocket. I stopped attacking and stayed there suspended in the air 5 feet away from him. I was furious.
-What the fuck?! Why is this guy so strong-
"Stop trying to attack me boy. I don't want to kill you. You're no use to me dead." He lowered his arm again. I took the chance to attack once again but this time he swung the holder at me and I got hit straight across the face which sent me spinning backwards. I stopped spinning as soon as I was able to regain control and looked at him again.
Why does he have so much power?!-
"I have power and strength because it is necessary."
"What the fuck do you mean by it is necessary and how the fuck did you know I was thinking that?" I remembered what Ariel said before and realized what this guy was.
"Remember this well. Power is necessary because conflicts continue to exist."
"You're a vampire aren't you? How can a vampire be so strong?!"
"Perhaps I am but that doesn't matter."
"What do you mean it doesn't matter?!"
"Love is wrapped in the seconds of time, if you don't stop for a minute, you might just miss it. If I didn't stop you from attacking you would've died and your thought of this cute girl will be gone."
"I still don't get it. How would I have died?!" By the looks of it, I would've been the one doing the killing.
"Inside that silver fang of hers is a special kind of silver made specifically to kill shifters even if they are hybrids. It's a liquid substance. Once it touches even a little werewolf blood, it starts to solidify. Therefore, if it reaches your heart, it will stop your heart completely unless you can get it out. But don't worry anymore. Only she knows how to make it. She has no intentions of killing you either. Be glad."
"I don't understand any of this fucking shit. Who the fuck are you?!"
"Just tell the boy who you are Odin."
"Seriously. You're going to make the boy shit himself."
"Aww he has a cute girlfriend." I looked up and saw 4 people. Two guys and two girls. I had no idea who these people were.
"Come on Odin. What the fuck is taking you so long. I'm getting impatient."
"Shut your mouth Robert. Before I shut it for you." The white suit guy said.
"Anyway. My name is Odin Jayoku. Leader of the last remaining members of my clan."
"Last remaining members?! No way. You are… the last people of the hybrid clan?!"
"Yeah and I don't understand why fucking Odin wants you in this clan." The guy named Robert said.
"That's Robert Kaerichuu. The two girls are Ruby Onshuu and Shirley Jayoku. The final guy is Xen Soujuu. Robert is new and he doesn't know how to watch his mouth."
"I don't give a fucking shit. You never showed how you're worthy of being leader."
"You do realize that none of us question Odin's decisions right?" The guy named Xen said.
"Seriously and why can't you just listen to oniisan's words for once." Shirley said.
-What the fuck. Are these guys Japanese?!-
"Sorry Cory. You have a lot to learn. First off. Oniisan is Japanese for brother. Second off, remember how your little girlfriend knows how to make that silver? The person who taught her is dead. She died 2 years ago. Isn't that right? Ariel."
-He knows her name?!-
"Yes. She was killed by a man who survived her remedy. That man's name was…
Odin… Jayoku."
"She put me through hell with that silver. Pain that I felt from that was indescribable. But I survived after enduring all that pain while curing myself at the same time. She deserved her death."
"What the fuck is going on?!" I screamed out.
"Oh my fucking god. Shut up. I should just get rid of you so the group can move on." Robert charged towards me as he shifted in a split second. I stood still but right before I was able to attack back, Odin appeared right in front of me and in front of Robert.
"Robert Kaerichuu… You learned of our law yet you defy it. You deserve the penalty of death." I almost wasn't able to keep up when I saw Odin unsheathe his sword and sheathe it once again. It was so fast and the sword was beautiful. It shown of silver and suddenly I saw Robert fall to the ground. He didn't say anything and just died quietly.
"What the fuck?! Why did you kill him?!"
"I gave specific orders to not hurt you when they see you. He had my trust but he broke it."
"Okay and what's the law that you guys live by?!"
"Trust is everything. Betrayal means death." The guy named Xen said.
"He pissed oniisan off. I guess he deserved it." Said Shirley.
"What an idiot." Ruby wasn't even looking. She was more interested in her nails and hair. I was so confused and I had no idea what just happened. I tried to gather up my thoughts as Odin stood there in front of me. He said one final thing before I was knocked unconscious.
"Will you join us? Cory… Corvin." He knocked me unconscious and I blacked out thinking about that one question.
-Will i….-