Echoes of the Outcast: Abandoned Bonds, Lycaon's Resurgence

Chapter six

Flight

Dozens of arrows were pointed at the wolf. Demigods had pulled their weapons—those of them who carried one.

Annabeth and Grover stared with wide eyes at the brown wolf, frozen in shock.

The wolf growled; its eyes pinned on Tilly. The Hunter took a small step back with her bow drawn.

He took a small step forward, and the creaking sound of multiple bowstrings being pulled back, could be heard. He stopped and seized his opponents.

"Percy?" Annabeth took a small step toward her boyfriend. The wolf turned to her.

Annabeth.

The wolf snarled. She stared at him with wide eyes.

"That's why you didn't heal," she whispered. His eyes moved onto Grover who shivered under his gaze.

"No!" Thalia yelled. And reached out to one of her Hunters but too late.

The wolf jerked back when an arrow was released. The tip grazed his snout and he let out a whimper in surprise. He licked his snout.

Tilly lowered her bow and watched the werewolf. His eyes landed on the blonde-haired girl; a low growl erupted from his vocal cords.

"Why did you do that?" Thalia asked. "He hasn't done anything!"

"Come on, it's a werewolf," Tilly said.

"It's Percy." Annabeth looked at her.

"That thing is a monster," Tilly spoke and pointed at the beast. The wolf snarled and jumped down from the table. Tilly lifted her bow and grabbed a new arrow. "Stay back," she ordered.

The wolf slowly approached her. The demigods who stood in his way, quickly backed off when he snapped after them.

"Percy," Chiron spoke up. The wolf snarled and fixed his eyes on the centaur. Slowly he crouched down. Watching. "Percy. Take back control." The centaur approached him slowly.

His lips curled up in a snarl.

Stay away. Percy wanted to say.

Chiron stopped a few feet away from him. His brow were furrowed as he watched the crouched down wolf.

"Percy—" Chiron started to say, but the wolf interrupted with a growl and pounced at him. Chiron jerked back just in time, and the wolfs teeth closed around air.

Tilly let another arrow fly and it bore into his already hurt paw. He whimpered in pain and glanced at the Hunter. She was ready with another arrow. Her chin was raised. Percy's ears were perked. Then he leapt at the Hunter, and everything turned black.

∞

When he woke up again, he was lying under a bush, licking his hurt paw. He could vaguely remember the fear he had felt, but he had no idea how he ended up under the bush in the middle of the forest. Though he did have an idea of why he was there, and he did not like that.

He looked at his paw. The wound was burning. He knew it'd take some time, maybe days, before the wound would heal again. He laid his head on the ground and watched the forest in silence and listened. He had lost the Hunters and demigods while he ran through the woods. Teeth and arrows, glinting daggers and blood flashed through his mind as he thought back. After the Hunter, Tilly, had shot him in the paw, he had passed out and the wolf—the beast, had taken over.

He could faintly hear it growl in the back of his mind. He began licking his hurt paw again. The pain didn't subside.

His ears laid down flat as he tended to his wound.

He had nowhere to go. He was sure he couldn't go home to his mom. Annabeth and Grover would warn her, and even if he could go to her, he might even hurt her if the beast took control over him.

It sneered at him. He ignored it and looked at his bleeding paw.

Then he heard a twig break. He looked up, his ears were perked. He searched the forest for anything that could move. He pressed himself closer to the ground to make himself as small as possible. If it were the demigods, he was doomed if they found him. His heart raced in his chest. He sniffed the air but couldn't find their scent. Were they behind him?

He looked back but couldn't see anything from under the bush, only tree trunks and other bushes. He looked forward again, and his heart almost leaped out of his chest. There in between the trees stood a wolf. Its eyes were fixed on him. Its ears were perked, and it wagged its tail lightly.

Percy watched the wolf as it slowly approached him. He curled his lips and growled. The wolf stopped. It watched him.

Then before his eyes, the wolf began shifting. Its bones began rearranging and the fur disappeared. In its place a man stood. His hair was windswept, and his brown eyes were fixed on Percy. He had a tan complexion and wore a ragged shirt and a pair of long shorts. His feet were bare and covered in dirt.

He digged his hands into the pockets of his shorts. His mouth curled up in a sly smirk.

"Now you know how we feel." The man spoke. His voice was deep. Percy just watched him carefully. "People are scared of us, even if we don't mean to hurt them." He stepped closer and sat down on a log. "In their eyes, it doesn't matter if we once were mortals or demigods, or even immortals, if we're a monster now. They all judge us on our appearance, but not on our personality." He ran a hand through his hair.

"You're one of us now. You better get used to the looks and the silver." He shivered slightly at the mention of silver. His eyes landed on Percy's wounded paw. "You need to accept what you've become, before you can heal." He nodded towards the paw.

He looked down at his paw. Accept himself? How could he? He was a monster.

He looked back at the man when he spoke, "My name is Azrael." He smiled slightly. "I'm one of the Betas of Alpha Lycaon's pack." He introduced himself. "Your name's Percy... right?" he asked. "You're quite small of a werewolf," he commented.

Percy watched him, unsure of how to reply to him. He didn't even know if he could shift back to human. Lycaon had told him to empty his mind and focus on shifting to his human form. He had done it once, but that didn't mean he could do it again.

The man—Azrael—watched him from the log.

"Empty your mind," he said. "Close your eyes and relax, think of something you love and turn back to human." He instructed.

Percy glanced around, unsure if he should do as Azrael had said. He decided it was worth a try. So, with that, he closed his eyes and tried his best to empty his mind. Something he loves...

Blood. A voice deep inside his mind spoke quietly. He shivered and ignored it.

"Just empty your mind and think of something you love. It can be a person, a smell, a feeling, anything really," Azrael spoke up.

Something he loves... a smell... a feeling... the color blue popped up in his mind, and he remembered whenever his mom would bake blue cookies. The smell reminded him of home. Where he was safe.

As he focused on the memory, he could almost smell the blue cookies in the oven of the kitchen.

He flinched as he felt his bones start to shift. To move. Crack. It felt as if ants crawled underneath his skin, as his bone shifted, and the fur disappeared from his skin. When he opened his eyes again and looked down, he saw his hands. He was back to normal.

Azrael nodded. "Very good. A bit slow in the transformation though."

Percy looked up, a frown adorning his face as he looked at the man.