Chapter 3
Dropping his head, Biryuk lowered his eyes and turned away from Lis.
"Sooner or later, I would turn into a mindless-"
Smash!
Biryuk turned around angrily, sharp pain to the back of his head and warm trickle of blood down his face as Lis glared up at him with another bottle to throw at his head.
"Turn into a monster you say?" She said coldly.
"Who do you think you're talking to?"
She smiled as she dusted herself off the ground.
"You're talking about your beautiful, genius friend here Biryuk. There is no way I would let my precious friend turn into a monster."
She stood tall, filled with confidence.
The back of his head hurt and he dusted the glass shards off his mantle, but he couldn't help but feel assured by her. Arrogant was the word he often muttered under his breath about Lis, but it wasn't without reason. If not cunning, she picked up things quickly. She learnt about the situation wherever they went, knew what to say to certain people, and she seemed to possess endless knowledge and wit.
A rustle in the bush made the two turn sharply at the noise. Were there any other Worgens?
Biryuk knelt down, silently picked up a pebble and flicked it towards the noise. A loud yelp escaped the bushes and using this chance, Biryuk pounced over and pinned a small boy by the neck, onto the ground.
The boy, no more than 15, looked up in fear, tears welling in his eyes.
"Please don't kill me!" He wailed, too afraid to struggle.
Lis stepped over and peered at the boy.
"Survivor?" She scanned him head to toe, placing her finger on her chin.
Before Biryuk or the boy could answer, Lis's face lit up in anticipation.
"Infected?" asked Lis filled with hope.
"No. And even if he is, you should not think of experimenting on a child, you heartless shrew."
"Damn!"
Defeated, Lis knelt down before the boy.
"Hey, I know you, you're Serena's boy. Damien right?"
The boy's eyes focused on Lis and looked more frightened.
"Yup he recognizes me. Alright brat, what are you doing here."
The boy opened his mouth to speak.
Lis smiled sweetly.
"And if I think you're lying, we get to gut ya." She said, dripping with sweetness.
The boy's complexion turned pale and he stammered few words. He couldn't believe it was that Clumsy Lis. The girl who walked into doors, tripped on air and fell for every prank the children thought of. The girl who shrieked and shook in terror when she saw a critter scuttling past. Here she was, wrapped in blood and playing with corpses.
"I… I heard there was going to be an attack on the wolf men…!" He said bravely. That clumsy Lis was going to kill him if he didn't say the truth.
"So… I thought I could he-help." He swallowed a large lump down his throat.
"Idiot." Lis said mercilessly. "Well Bi, I leave him in your care. I have more samples I want to collect." With that, Lis walked over to her corpse and sat down with her trinkets.
Biryuk slowly released the boy, but didn't lift his piercing golden eyes off him.
"So… You… You're Clum… I mean Lis's… friend…?" The boy quickly scrambled up and fled few steps away from Biryuk.
"Correct." Biryuk stood up too, towering over the boy.
The boy looked nervously at this figure, smeared with blood and who somehow, smelt of death. He wasn't stupid to try and run for it, but he wasn't smart enough to figure out what to do next.
"It's still dangerous in these forests boy. I suggest you stay with us so we can escort you home. Or, if you wish to take your chances, I won't stop you." Biryuk said and turned to Lis, cut a tree down to create a seat for him.
The boy gaped at the two, now fighting over the poor dead tree, and looked at the path he came from. When he learnt of the fight, his blood was pumped for excitement. He was going to prove to his mother and the townspeople that he was not a child, he was strong to protect everyone. He was top of his class at swords, he was the strongest. There was no reason for them to hold him back from joining the guards. Despite his mother's concern, he snuck out from the town, ran as fast as he could, playing the scene where he would return home a hero over and over again.
However when he got to the fight, it wasn't what he dreamt of. It was a nightmare. The guards managed to strike some down, but the wolf men moved so quickly, and didn't seem to be fazed by swords or magic. They simply stumbled back and snarled with their terrible roars and threw the guards into the trees like a doll.
It wasn't glorious, it wasn't an epic battle, it was slaughter. Dropping the sword he proudly swung around back at town, he fled, ran and hid, cursing his body for shaking so much. He shut his eyes and prayed it will be over, that he wouldn't have to hear their screams.
And in few minutes, that man, clad in black fur destroyed them all.
"So you decided to join us?" Lis asked without looking up. She scraped the dead guard's tongue with a swab and put it in one of her test tubes.
All the boy could do was nod.
Biryuk stood up and unclipped his fur cape and wrapped it around the boy before he could object. The boy looked up in surprise and was about to refuse, when he noticed his shaking finally stopped.
"Th-thank you." He stammered.
"Sit." Biryuk pointed at the stump, which Lis muttered "Tree-killer" under her breath.
Not wanting to seem rude, the boy did what he was told and sat on the large stump. Biryuk sat on the other edge, silent.
"So, Damien." Lis said, pouring a liquid from one test tube to another. "You breathe a word about this to town, and I'll turn you into a slug."
"Ye-Yes!" He felt panic rising in his again.
"So… why are you here then? Why are you pretending to be a clumsy, silly person?" Damien asked, hoping she would turn around and hurt him.
"Because she's looking for a cure." Biryuk spoke up. Lis muttered something angrily under her breath again.
"A cure?"
"She's is foolishly doing everything for my sake."
"Hey, I'm right here, I can hear you." Lis complained.
"Are you sick sir?"
Upon closer inspection, Biryuk did look sick.
"I am cursed."
Damien looked confused at Biryuk.
"You have seen what I can do, that is my curse."
"You mean, those moves, how you moved so quickly, how you killed those wolf man… that's a curse?"
"Yes. Curse means you have to pay something dear for it."
"How is that a curse?" Damien forgot about his fears, he was incredulous. If he could have the strength like Biryuk, he would give anything.
"You must pay a horrible price." Biryuk smiled bitterly.
"For your strength, I will pay anything!"
Damien did not notice that Lis's hands stopped moving.
"You say that because you don't understand." Biryuk said calmly.
"If it was me sir, I would be able to handle it! I can do it! How did you get your curse sir? Could you teach me? I swear I won't regret it, and I'll give anything!"
"Memories." Biryuk said silently. "You pay with memories."
Damien fell silent, trying to understand.
"Memories are what makes you. If you have no memories, you won't recognize who is your friend or foe, you won't recognize who you are. You will become a mindless monster, just like these Worgens."
"That's it?"
Lis was standing over Damien. With fury in her eyes, she immediately lifted her hand in the air and was about to strike his face. Biryuk caught her hand.
"It's okay Lis." He smiled gently.
Lis's gritted teeth and her anger faded slightly.
"But, Biryuk." She said sadly.
"It's alright. I have you. So it's alright."
Lis sighed and dropped her hands. Without a look, she sat back down.
Damien fell silent and glanced over at Biryuk.
"I… I'm sorry." He muttered. "I don't…"
Biryuk smiled. "Power isn't everything. Power means nothing if you don't have a purpose for it."