Quiver

4

I was coming to, but not quite the way I had expected. I was being jostled a lot and I certainly wasn't laying on an operating table. I had expected to be in pain and to wake up to Claire's malicious face with her telling me the operation had been a success and I was 'fixed'. Instead as I pried my eyes open, I was met with the flickering fluorescent lights of the Jaecars compound, a blaring alarm and a very unfamiliar face. He was..an odd sight, I noticed, and as I inhaled... I found he, too, was Lupus. He had shaggy, smokey hair and one dark green eye that might have been greener if not for the eerie black flecks within it, flecks that seemed rather unnatural I thought. His other eye was covered in a black eye patch. His face was peppered in dark, rough facial hair and his mouth was a firm line that wavered only slightly as he seen I had awoke.

"Rori, right?" He grumbled, his voice raspy, but in a soothing way.

"How did you-"

"The Jaecars really do like to talk about the Lupus who they have to keep alive under orders of Claire. Now then, this your brother?" The strange wolf asked, nodding to the cell, that did in fact have Cole in it. He seemed to be better, breathing at least, but he wasn't awake. I nodded and the wolf set me on my feet after making sure I could stand.

"I'm Elliere. Elliere Braim," the Lupus muttered and with that he swiftly opened the cell, having a knack with breaking into things. He walked into the cell and quickly grabbed up Cole and jogged back out. I looked at him a bit confused as to why he was helping, but I didn't have the time to ask questions now, we had to get out of this hellish place.

I nodded my head for Elliere to take the lead and he moved swiftly, taking passageways and corridors that appeared very little used in there dark state. Everything seemed to be going utterly smooth until we hit a dead end in the passageways. Elliere skidded back around and motioned for me to follow, but just as we turned around we were met by four Jaecars, all vicious and blood thirsty. I flinched, but Elliere didn't look fazed, if anything he looked bored...and annoyed.

"Are you sure you guys don't just wanna... turn around and walk away while you can?" He asked, boredom lacing his tone thoroughly as his one visible green eye flicked around.

The Jaecars grunted and all looked at each other with smirks lining their faces.

"What are you gonna do, dog?"

Elliere huffed and turned to me, lifting Cole out towards me. I quickly took him as he didn't weigh much, especially with my Lupus strength. I gazed at Elliere skeptically, but there was something about him that told me he would do just fine against these Jaecars. Elliere sent me a wink and a small smirk that seemed odd on his stern face and then turned back to the hated humans. He gripped the eye patch he wore and tossed it behind him. I struggled not to gasp as I spotted his other eye... I had originally thought he was blind in that eye, but really he was anything, but. Instead of being green, his other eye was entirely black. It glittered in a menacing way and sent shivers down my back. I watched as even the Jaecars shuffled nervously. Elliere didn't seem fazed, as though this reaction was common.

A crunch hit the air followed by more rapid ones. I watched in disbelief as Elliere's bones shifted and grinded into a different place. He released a pained cry, probably from the fire like serum, but he did not stop his change. This time I did gasp as his clothes ripped and shredded from his enlarged body... a body.. far different from a normal Lupus. Elliere was a different type of Lupus all together and I had all the more questions about this mysterious wolf. He stood on two paws, like the 'werewolves' you seen in old movies. He had thumbs and long claws tipping his fingers, larger fangs than the average Lupus. His body and head was still very wolf like, just in a humanoid stance. His smokey fur was longer, like hair that trickled over his body and his eyes the exact same as when he was human. He gave a deafening growl that made every Jaecar stumble back in fear. I was sure they had never seen the likes of him.. and I was also sure, Claire had made him into...the different sort of Lupus he was.