Chase the Moon (On Hold)

Three

The night was warm and a gentle breeze blew in from the East. Dark shadows were pierced by the silver light of the moon, leaving little space to hide. 

I stumbled along through the forest, fighting to stay in human form. Perspiration glued my hair to my forehead and my joints screamed in agony as I fought my instincts. 

The moon called to my inner beast like a beacon, but I didn't like to let it come out and play. Not without a fight.

I groaned and fell to my knees as something shifted inside me.

"No," I choked out as I willed my body not to fall apart, not to give in. My fingers clutched at the wads of leaves on the ground as I attempted to keep control of my body.

Only when the moon was full did the Goddess own me completely. But even on nights such as these, she liked to play with my wolf like it was attached to a string. 

On some nights, I'm able to resist the transformation, but the longer I keep my wolf caged up, the worse it hurts when I'm finally forced to change. Nights like these, when the moon still showed the majority of her face, were especially hard. 

It was a waning gibbous tonight, being as the full moon was only a few nights ago, which meant the phases of the moon were on their glorious downward spiral. I'd decided long ago that my favorite night of the cycle was the new moon.

I bit my tongue to suppress a scream of agony as my spine twisted. I let out a groan as I fell onto my chest, writhing in pain. My body started to shake uncontrollably as the transformation began to take hold.

"No!" I cried through gritted teeth, "You don't own me!"

The shaking stopped, but it was replaced by a white hot burn. I opened my mouth and tried to suck in a breath, but my lungs were constricted by my shifting rib cage.

I hated these nights. I hated the monster they forced me to become. On most nights, I could control myself in wolf form, but the fuller the moon, the more savage and bloodthirsty beast I became. No one was safe around me. Not even my own mother stood a chance against me on the first moon I was forced to change. Sure, she was only human, but you'd think I'd have some form of recognition in my eye, some form of hesitation before I ripped out her throat. That was not the case. The beast was in full control that night, and since then, I'd done all I could to deny its existence.

My spine arched painfully and I couldn't suppress the agonized yelp that left my lips. I let out a frustrated groan as I fell back down onto my elbows. I buried my hands in my hair as I stared at the ground. I couldn't help but think I had brought this pain upon myself. If I just gave in, it would be easier. But then I remembered my mother, and all the others that I've killed.

They say having a mate helps. That somehow, having the one you love with you makes the changes bearable. Somehow, your mate is supposed to calm your inner wolf, make them see reason, of a sort. Something about the Goddess showing us mercy. That maybe, if the descendants of the cursed hunters proved to be different, if they proved that they could truly love another, their lives may be made easier.

I'm skeptical at best. If that creature has the audacity to murder my own mother, then what's to stop it from murdering my mate? If I ever do find her, I'll keep her as far away from my wolf form as possible. 

A terrible shooting pain stabbed through my fingertips. I looked down to see jet black claws pushing out of my skin. My shoulder rolled back, and I screamed. Rolling over, I glared up at the moon, clenching my teeth as I screamed up at it, "Screw this!"

I whipped off my shirt and tossed it to the side. I quickly unlaced my shoes and placed them next to a nearby tree trunk. Next went my pants. I tossed them over my shoes and barely had time to remove my boxers before the change took on its full effect. 

My bones started to churn and roll under my skin, barely giving me enough room to scream out a string of profanities. They snapped, cracked, and popped, forming into a new skeleton. Some of the bones grew and elongated to be of proper use and my muscles stretched and bulged to cover the new area. Silver hair began to sprout from the back of my hand. It itched horrendously as it continued up my arm and over my body.

Blood pooled in my mouth as my fangs grew and pierced the skin of my lips. As I spat out the crimson liquid, my nose and mouth stretched into a snout. I let out a guttural growl as my legs twisted into shape. My hands curled in on themselves to form paws and a tail sprouted from the end of my spine.

I let out a howl of agony as the transformation drew to a close. Then I snarled as my new wolf body trotted off into the forest, most of my influence lost to the beast.