AN: Here's another installment (I love that word!)

Oh, just in case if I don't update this before Christmas...

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year:D

Thoughts

Chapter IV : Birth of a Monster

I sighed as I continued my trek through the busy market, trying to buy food for my family that night. Turning toward one of the many stands set up in the square, I opened my mouth to ask a question but all that came out was a gasp of pain.

My head started to throb in agony and my vision pulsed in and out, before an odd feeling overcame me. When I looked around, I realized I was…on the ground? I tried to stand up, but I couldn't. The townspeople around me were in a state of alarm when they stared at me, but I only snarled viciously in response to their expressions.

Wait…snarled? I slowly turned my gaze down to my feet, only to find that black course-furred claws were occupying the space where my feet were supposed to be. This isn't…right.

That was the last thought the echoed through my head before I leapt towards the nearest bystander, sinking my long teeth into her flesh.

"Ah!" I bolted upright, thus making me fall out of a bed in the process. Wait – Bed? Wasn't I…

Oh, that's right. I remembered falling unconscious after I defeated that white-furred monster. What was it called again?

Oh yes, a werewolf. How could I forget that?

A pang of guilt and loss hit my heart when I remembered that Blaze got lost in the blizzard, and it was very unlikely that I would be able to find it again.

I sighed in frustration and attempted to rise from my position on the floor, but that only caused me to yell in pain and tumble back to the floor in a heap.

"Sir! You shouldn't do that, you should rest!" I looked up, temporarily ignoring the sharp pain in my ribs, to discover that a poorly dressed woman came in and held a duster in her hands. A servant, I guessed.

I just smiled at her, as if it would dissipate her worries. She wouldn't have any of that though. "Sir, please…just rest. The Elder Council would like to see you when you have recovered. We only found you a few hours ago in a snowstorm by a stroke of good luck, and we found a black horse standing over you. It took a few of our soliders to get the beast away from you, but we managed…" she trailed off, as if unsure what to say.

Ah, so this is where I am. Imperial City.

I smirked, "That horse belongs to me, it seems like he isn't stubborn just around me. That's reassuring, I guess"

That earned a small smile from the lady, but she still scolded me to get some more sleep. I shrugged my shoulders and did as I was told. I knew I was going to have to explain a lot to the council when I got better from my many wounds, but it wasn't going to be an easy task.

I whimpered under my breath when the servant lady closed the door behind her and I calmly fell back onto the bed.

---

"Ah, Nim' Loki. You are awake and well, yes?" Asked one of the members of the Council when I showed up to the evening meal later that day.

I scoffed under my breath before plastering a fake smile onto my face, "Yes, I am doing well, sir"

...I hate royalty and the Council.

The same Elder Council member beamed and clasped his hands, but didn't say another word.

We had just finished eating the food, and I could not eat anymore. I didn't have another nightmare when I slept again, and I was thankful to the Nine Divines for that. I still had to figure out what that was all about, but I had to attend this…this meeting.

My ears twitched as I continued to 'listen' to the Member discuss something that I didn't care about.

Why can't they just ask me the questions and let me leave? Or better yet-

"So, Champion of Cyrodill…what do you think on this matter?" The head member cocked his head as he stared at me with interest.

I blushed slightly and stuttered, "Could you please…uh…repeat the…err…matter? I was preoccupied with my thoughts…" I trailed off, as if in fear of being yelled at.

The head of the Elder Council did not find anything wrong with my mistake though, and he happily repeated the matter at hand.

"As you might already know, Champion, terrifying creatures have been appearing all over the country murdering innocent civilians and soliders without hesitation. We have gotten reports saying that they looked like monsters of legend…Werewolves. Have you heard of the tales?"

"Yes, I am aware." I voiced with a raised eyebrow. Where is this going?

"There have also been reports that if one bites you or hurts you in any way, you can be turned into one of them as well…" the man continued.

There were murmurs of anxiousness across the long table in the grand circular room and I caught myself wondering what this is going to lead to. Another mission?

"Yes, I have heard of the rumors regarding to that. Please continue, sir." I had to fight the urge from strangling the man, he was making me angry…and I did not know why.

The head of the Council put a finger to his bottom lip, as if in thought, before speaking again, "One of the soliders that found you had said that you had a bite mark on your arm, and the nurses confirmed it. Now I ask you, were you bit by one of those creatures that we talked about earlier?"

I tensed, now fully alert about the situation. They were accusing me of-

"No. That was just a regular white wolf, sir. I was searching the Bohr Mountains for any signs of the missing soliders when it attacked me." I practically barked at the old man, and he flinched slightly. One of the younger men narrowed his eyes at me and raised his voice, "Don't talk to the Head like that, boy. Show some respect!"

I huffed, frustrated with the situation, and apologized to the Head. I had to find a way out of this, now that I knew what the heck was wrong with my body.

---

I shuddered as the bitter night breeze brushed up against my bare shoulder blades, but I continued to trudge past the bridge to the Imperial City. I had decided that I had to get as far away as civilization as possible. The last thing that I wanted to happen was for me to infect other members of the country.

I had barely managed to get the Council on my back, and I even used a little bit of magic to make the bite look more wolfish instead by a werewolf. Nobody detected it, most likely because there were not any mages in the vicinity. When I took my leave, when I was allowed and I was finished being questioned, I made a bee line to the room in the Inn I was being cared for in, only to start packing up my belongings.

I found the whole situation ironic and slightly amusing. At the beginning of my adventure, I was a lowly prisoner, only to later rise as a Hero. Right now, however, I am a threat to society and the Country of Cyrodill. I am…a monster.

AN: Absolutely no action in this chapter, but some plot elements. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask!

Once again…Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! 'Till Next Time!

Oh. Review, please.