Prompt 27 – "This is non-negotiable."
Troy had encountered wolves trying to get on his property before. Normally, it didn't take much to scare them. This was different. Very different. The wolf didn't flee. It just kept charging, leaping at Troy and knocking him from his horse. The wolf was impressively strong. Troy got a look in its eyes mere seconds before it tackled him from Lana's saddle, and he saw something strange. Something human, but also not. The wolf's fur color didn't match that of a normal wolf. It was a pale brown, rather than gray. Troy managed to get his gun from its holster, firing multiple times before the animal was dead on the ground next to him.
Not all the blood was from the wolf, though.
Troy watched as a flash of golden light enveloped the wolf. The light faded to reveal a man, bruised and covered in ragged clothes. It hadn't been a normal wolf at all. It was a werewolf. Horror was quick to overtake him, but it was more because he had just taken someone's life than because the man was a werewolf.
He became dimly aware of the bite wound on his left shoulder. It was hot and throbbing, but it was too soon for this to be infection. Lycanthropy was a curse spread through bites. He began wondering if this was the beginning stage of being cursed, and hissed out a curse in Greek before standing up. First things first, he needed to get the man's body taken care of. He hoped the guy would get a proper burial, and he hoped the man's family, if he had family, would forgive him.
"Sam!" His wife, Shauna, came sprinting over. "Oh my goodness, Sam, are you—" She stopped, looking first at the body, then at the wound on her husband's arm. "No… oh, no… No, no—"
"It'll be okay, sweetheart," Troy said. "This is curable. We just have to… find a magic healer-doctor-something. I think." He was still in too much shock to feel he was making sense. He was also scared, but didn't want to express that. "Shauna, call the sheriff, please."
Troy managed to get the wound hidden with bandages before the town sheriff showed up, but it still burned like hell. The pain was spreading up and down his arm, but he kept his composure while explaining what had happened. He didn't know the person who had been turned into a werewolf, and felt sorry for them. At the same time, the wolf form would have torn him to shreds if he hadn't done anything. Now that his adrenaline was coming back down, Troy understood that what happened was unfortunate, but there was no way it could have gone better. Once he and Shauna were left and the body was removed, Troy looked toward the house. "Where's Antheia?"
"She's doing her homework. Why?" Shauna asked.
"Don't tell her what's happened yet. Call Moffitt."
"Sam, it's nearly three in the morning over there!"
"Call Moffitt. He knows magic people who can help."
Shauna looked hesitant, but ran back to the house. Troy clenched his left fist, finding it extremely painful to do so. He cursed before heading inside as well, hearing Shauna quietly urging someone to pick up on the other line. It came as no surprise that Moffitt didn't sound happy about being woken up. After a frantic conversation, things quieted down, and Shauna slumped into a chair. "Jack said he's going to ask a friend of his, Evelina, about what to do."
"Good. She's an expert on magic." Troy winced as the burning sensation surged through his arm. "Damn it, this hurts!"
"Should I try cleaning it?" Shauna asked.
"No. No, I don't want you getting cursed, okay? Don't touch it."
"Sam, you're in pain—"
"I'm well aware of that, sweetheart!" Troy snapped. He paused, and sighed. "Sorry."
"It's okay, Sam, I—"
"Are you still there, Shauna?" Moffitt asked through the phone.
"Yes. I-I am. What did Evelina say?"
"She said that you don't have to worry about Troy actually turning into a werewolf. The jackal spirit will keep that at bay."
Shauna breathed a sigh of relief. "So, he's not cursed?"
"Yes and no. The curse is going to live in his body until the next full moon. He will be fully capable of transmitting it if he were to bite someone hard enough to break their skin, or if any of his bodily fluids came into contact with someone else's open wound. On the next full moon… all I can say is that once the sun rises, he will be free of it for good, but he's going to be in a lot of pain the whole night."
"Is there anything we can do for him?"
"Unfortunately, not much. Giving him the standard lycanthropy cure would be dangerous because the curse isn't truly infecting him. It will have to work itself out on its own."
"He's in pain right now from the bite itself!"
"Alright, alright, please, stay calm, Shauna. You can clean and dress the wound. Use cold water."
"Okay. So… is he going to hurt for the next month?"
"He might, but the worst of it will be on the date of the next full moon itself. When that happens, you and Antheia need to stay away from him."
"Jack, he's—"
"This is non-negotiable. He won't turn into a wolf, but the curse itself wants to be passed on, and it may drive him to become aggressive. He will need to spend the night alone. I'm sorry." Moffitt sighed. "Is he with you?"
"Yes."
"Can I speak with him?"
"Sure." Shauna's hands were shaking as she handed the phone to Troy.
"Thanks, sweetheart." Troy took the phone, biting back another wince. "Hey, Moffitt."
"Troy. Are you alright?"
"It hurts. Really bad."
"I can imagine. I'm not all that knowledgeable about werewolves, but I've been told the bite burns when it happens."
"Yep. It burns."
"Did you hear what I was telling Shauna?"
"Yeah, about… about the jackal spirit thing keeping me from turning."
"It's made you somewhat immune to lycanthropy. If your animal actually was a wolf, you wouldn't have any issues at all."
"That doesn't help."
"My apologies. I'm only repeating what Evelina told me. Everything will be alright. You just have to be careful."
"Good to know. I'll do whatever I can to keep Shauna and Antheia safe, even if they won't like it."
After ending the conversation with Moffitt, Troy and Shauna went upstairs to get his wound cleaned in the bathroom. The cold water helped the burning sensation significantly, allowing Troy to start processing what had happened. Wolf got over the fence. It didn't run when I tried scaring it. It jumped and knocked me off Lana. Bit my arm. I shot it and it turned into a man. It's a werewolf. I was bit by a werewolf. No worries, though. Being the jackal in the prophecy means I'm immune to lycanthropy, but it's going to hurt. Troy grimaced as Shauna pressed on his arm with a washcloth to wipe away the blood. "Easy, sweetheart."
"Sorry," Shauna said. "The blood started drying out."
"Okay. Do what you have to."
There was a knock at the bathroom door, followed by Antheia saying, "Mom? Is everything okay?"
Shauna paled. "We need to tell her," she whispered.
"I know. Go ahead," Troy said.
Shauna hesitated, then opened the door. "Come in, lass. There's… something we need to tell you."
Antheia had to sit down while Shauna and Troy explained the situation. Her face became pale like her mother's, and tears welled up in her eyes. "Is Dad going to be okay?" she asked, sobbing.
"Yes, but we'll need to be careful when the next full moon comes around." Shauna gave her daughter a hug. "Tell you what, why don't we arrange for you to take a trip and stay with someone else for a few weeks?"
"I don't know. I want to help take care of Dad."
"Neither of us are going to be able to be around him when the next full moon comes. This is the best we can do to minimize the chances of someone getting hurt."
"You can stay with whoever you want," Troy said. "Your mother's right. I am not going to allow this curse or whatever make me hurt someone, especially you."
"What about Mom?" Antheia asked.
"I'm charging myself with watching over your father," Shauna said. "Someone has to."
"Okay." Antheia nodded, tears still running down her face.
"This isn't permanent. This'll be over next month. Now, we'll give you a week to think about where you want to—"
"Sweetheart, I'm pretty sure we already know where she'll pick," Troy said with a slight grin.
"Well, I don't want to assume anything!"
Troy looked at Antheia. "You want to stay with Moffitt and spend a week or two with Jules. Am I right?"
Antheia didn't respond right away.
Troy's smile faded, and he let out a sigh. "Antheia, sweetie… there's nothing anyone can do apart from waiting this out. It'll only be a month. I don't want you getting hurt. I'll make this an order if I have to."
Antheia nodded a little, then turned to hug Troy. Despite the pain in his arm, Troy hugged her back. "It'll be okay," he said. "Just gotta be patient."
Antheia was still a bit reluctant, but with help from Troy's younger brother, David, she was off to Britain to stay with Moffitt for a few weeks, along with her pet ringtail, Mahogany. As expected, Troy had days when everything hurt, and days when he was fine. His most painless days occurred around the new moon, but as the full moon drew nearer, things gradually became more difficult. Pain would surge, sometimes all over his body, and sometimes in specific places. It was the worst headache he ever experienced, and typical methods of relief weren't working. The most he could do was lay on the couch, covered entirely by a blanket with the air conditioner running. Pain in his joints would wake him up at night and make it impossible to go back to sleep, even after Shauna massaged them.
Stomach pain wasn't exactly surprising, but it wasn't the type of pain that would occur with the flu or indigestion. It felt more like someone had punched him repeatedly. Troy felt bruised, but there was no actual bruising to be seen. There was similar pain in his chest, which confined him to lying down as working would simply aggravate it. Overall, those four weeks were miserable, but he could count on Shauna to make an attempt to keep him comfortable.
That ended the night of the next full moon.
The agreed-on plan was that Shauna would lock herself in the bedroom for the night. Neither of them were sure how the whole process of the curse destroying itself would go, as the last thing Shauna wanted was to hear her husband screaming in pain while she couldn't do anything. She would have to, though. As they said to Antheia a month ago, there was nothing they could do apart from waiting. Once the sun began setting, the wait began.
Troy heard the bedroom door shut and lock upstairs. He was lying on the couch, with the air conditioner on. He felt feverish, though he knew this wasn't a typical fever. His heart was beating fast and hard. It was the only sound he could hear. Pain was searing through his body. That combined with the constant sound of his heart pounding in his ears was maddening. He tried to keep himself to the couch, but gradually accepted that wouldn't be possible. He eventually stood, hands shaking as he grabbed his head. Sweat was running down his face. He felt like needles were being shoved into every joint. In a way, it seemed like the curse was frustrated it couldn't function.
Time felt like it was passing slowly. Too slowly. The sun had just finished setting, leaving many hours to go. Many hours of nothing but pure, excruciating pain. Troy felt like running until he collapsed, but he also felt ravenous. Opening the refrigerator and feeling cold air blast over him provided some relief, along with control. Keeping the fridge open wasn't a good idea, but it wasn't like this was a habit to begin with. He took advantage of the control to eat something, hoping that would help. A welcome feeling of relief flooded him when he took a bite from the leftover ham that Shauna made a few nights ago. He was still in pain, but he felt he could stay in control.
He wanted to sleep, but he wasn't tired. He wanted Shauna's company, but knew that could pose risky. He hadn't become a werewolf, but the isolation made him feel as though he had. But, it was for everyone's good, he kept telling himself.
It was getting close to midnight when the burning heat spiked again. Troy bit back a cry, feeling as though molten metal had been poured into his veins. He clenched his fists, twitching as he fought a desire to scream. If this was what it felt like to be burned alive, he felt even more sorrow for the Germans he had killed in North Africa whenever a fuel convoy was set alight. For the briefest moment, he wondered if this was a punishment for all those horrid deaths.
No. Don't think that. This was all an accident. It's going to be okay. You can tough it out, Troy thought. He kept biting back urges to scream. He didn't want Shauna to hear him in this sort of pain.
He thought back to when he was wounded in Korea, how he had been conscious when brought to a field hospital. He remembered feeling everything the doctors were doing as they operated to dig a bullet out of him. He had been numbed significantly, but he had asked to remained conscious for reasons he wouldn't learn until dealing with the magpie prophecy a few months ago. The feeling of the bullet slicing through him had been bad, and the whole experience was downright terrifying. This was worse. It was worse because it was encompassing his whole body. It was worse because it was threatening to take control away from him. It was worse because it could result in the people he cared about most getting hurt. It was worse because he felt so close to death, even though he knew that wouldn't happen. And I don't hear that damn river.
When Troy didn't think he could fight it anymore, he left the house, stumbling down the porch steps and frantically looking around. The cool night air was refreshing, but he gave in to the desire to run. He would run until he was exhausted, and he prayed that exhaustion would allow him to sleep. But, when would that exhaustion come?
He ran into the woods on the northern edge of his property, and kept running. He wasn't sure how far he had gotten when he began to feel tired, but he welcomed it. He fought the exhaustion, to make it worse. What he wasn't expecting was it to come so much more fiercely than it would at any other point. He finally started slowing down by one of the small lakes nestled in the woods. His energy was completely sapped. Despite having eaten earlier in the evening, there was a dull but intense gnawing sensation in his stomach, as though he hadn't eaten in far longer. He felt dehydrated, hot, and an overall feeling of sick. There wasn't a better way to describe it. His knees buckled, and he found himself tumbling into the lake.
Night-cooled water enveloped him. Troy was dimly aware of the fact that he needed to avoid staying under for long, and came up to the surface of the lake briefly to breathe, before sinking back under. The relief of the cold water was so great that he wanted to stay, and decided he would, coming up occasionally to breathe. The exhaustion returned, but Troy knew he couldn't sleep here, lest he drowned. Here, he felt in control, but as much as he wanted to return home, he knew that if he left the water, he would be right back where he started. So, he stayed, doing his best to keep his head above the water.
The next thing Troy knew, the sound of crickets had been replaced with birdsong. He opened his eyes, seeing the pale pink sky. Morning. He noticed he was no longer in pain. He no longer felt exceedingly hot. He was soaking wet, though, and it was uncomfortable rather than refreshing. He stood, clothes heavy with water, and noticed he had been lying on the lakeshore, despite not remembering coming to a stop there. Regardless of what happened, he was glad he was alive. The curse was gone.
Troy returned home to find Shauna in the kitchen, getting water for the coffeepot. She immediately dropped everything and sprinted over to hug Troy. "You're alright!" She kissed him. "Why are you all wet?"
"I fell in the lake," Troy said. "Are you okay?"
"Better now that you're alright." Shauna hugged and kissed him again. "I don't want to go through that again."
"I don't, either, but nobody got hurt. That's all that matters." Troy kissed Shauna's forehead, and remained locked in a hug until deciding he was ready to get changed into dry clothes. Upstairs, he noticed that the bite wound from the werewolf a month ago had healed with barely noticeable scarring. Good, he thought. We don't need any reminders of this. After getting dried off and dressed, Troy headed downstairs. It felt and looked as though nothing happened, but he and Shauna both knew that wasn't the case. He went up behind her like he normally did, giving her a hug and kissing the side of her head. "Sweetheart," he murmured.
Shauna touched his cheek without looking up from what she was doing. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah. You?"
Shauna was quiet for a moment. "I expected to find you down here, in the living room. When I saw the front door was open, I… wondered if you ran off and I wasn't going to see you again."
"No. I was coming back. You had no way of knowing that, but that's all in the past now. Won't have to worry about it anymore." Troy wondered if that was the right thing to say. He started feeling it wasn't. "Sorry."
"It's okay." Shauna turned to face him. "I doubt you'll be opposed to me saying I just want to spend time with you today."
"Of course I won't. I was going to suggest that if you didn't."
"Thanks."
The rest of the day was quiet until getting a phone call from Moffitt asking if everything was alright. There were phone calls from everyone asking the same thing, and Troy knew he wasn't going to let Dietrich ever forget about the concern in his voice when receiving his call, which led to Dietrich grumbling about how he didn't appreciate the response to said concern being a round of teasing. He did add that if Troy was teasing him, it meant everything was okay, so he let it go.
Antheia returned home a few days later, and despite having gone on several horseback rides with Jules in Britain, she celebrated her father's recovery from the lycanthropy curse by asking if they go on a ride together. They did, and while Troy enjoyed having his daughter's company back, he was also appreciating the feeling of normalcy. Never again did he want to be separated from her or his wife, or anyone he was close enough with to consider family.
