Crimes Against Magic (11 page)

 "We need to find somewhere to sleep," I said and walked toward the nearest stretch of woodland. It would offer as much shelter as possible outdoors, and much more safety than being out in the open. 

It didn't take long to find a nice spot, an opening about twenty feet square. The thinning trees offered no help against any rain or wind, but the sky was cloudless, and once I'd placed ferns on the floor to keep the cold earth from seeping through my clothes, I was ready to go. 

Thomas did the same as I removed my Jian and Guan Dao, placing them next to me. Then I waited patiently. I knew what was coming.

"I'm a monster, aren't I?" His words were sad, but with something resembling acceptance tucked deep inside.

"That depends on you. If you're asking me if you're a werewolf, then yes, you are. If you're asking me if that is a pre-requisite for being a monster, no it isn't. It's up to you to decide what you'll be."

"What's going to happen to me?"

"I don't know for certain. During their first change, most werewolves do it in front of others of their pack. They find strength in numbers, and help one another. I
do
know that it will hurt, inhumanly. It lasts only a few seconds, but that will feel as if you've gone to hell and back. And after that you'll feel the presence of the beast inside you. During your first change, the beast will be more prominent. It will try to make it easier for you to accept the bloodlust. To allow the beast to do as it wishes. You'll want to fight that."

"And if I don't?"

I tapped the sword. "A beast-driven wolf is exactly what you saw back in Soissons. You will kill and hurt for fun. If you allow that part of you to take control tonight, you'll come after me or someone else. Neither of those options will let you see the sunrise."

Thomas nodded that he understood. "How long before I change?"

"Sunset is in about an hour, anytime after then. Werewolves can change when they like, day or night. But the first time must be on the second night after they're infected. It'll be tonight, I'm sure of that."

"When I was a boy there were stories about men who could change into wolves," Thomas said. "Turns out I should have paid more attention." 

"The stories are rubbish, I know that much. Wolfsbane does nothing, and you don't have to change on a full moon. However, you must change at least once a week, otherwise you'll start going mad. And a mad werewolf is dangerous. Silver will kill you almost outright, depending on where the wound is, as will decapitation. 

Fire will cause serious problems, as it does almost everything else on the planet. And while you can heal most injuries, your limbs don't grow back, so be careful."

"Anything else?"

I searched my memory for anything I'd missed. "Right now you can turn into your beast form, basically one of those we saw back in the city. But over time you'll learn a third form to go alongside the beast and human. The wolf itself. It's the hardest to transform into, as it's the least human. But you're a long way off from that."

"Do I age?"

"You're not immortal, but you'll age slowly now. A hundred years will look like only a couple has passed to a human." 

Thomas silently held his head in his hands. He understandably needed time alone.

I wandered off into the woods, leaving him to sit and ponder my words. When deep enough inside, I set a snare trap by an old tree. The tracks I wanted were easy to discover. It would just depend on whether they smelt Thomas before the trap was sprung. 

I sat up the nearest tree for twenty minutes, perched on the end of a branch, as rabbits and deer walked under me. Each was nervous, tentatively looking around for unseen predators, and not quite sure why. Then my prey trotted past, oblivious to the danger. A quick gust of air from me, and the trap sprang shut, hurling the boar five feet off the ground by its hind legs. 

I dropped to the floor and approached the massive animal from the rear, I didn't want it to see me and go any more insane than it already was. The squealing alone would wake the dead. I removed the air from its muscular body, rendering it unconscious without a fight, which allowed me to examine it more easily. An older male, which was good, I didn't like killing females. Sometimes they're pregnant and sometimes they're too young. Adult males are fair game.

I removed a small dagger, the same one I'd used to kill the first werewolf in Soissons, and slit the boar's throat, avoiding the warmth that escaped. Then I cut it down with a loud crash and dragged it back to the clearing. 

Thomas stared at the dead beast with hunger in his eyes. "What's that for?" he asked.

"Later," I told him and removed the ropes from the animal, leaving it to bleed out onto the freshly leafed earth.

"I have another question for you." Thomas' words were meant for me, but his vision was firmly on the boar. His change would be soon.

I sat back on my ferns, cleaning the blade with some nearby leaves. "Go ahead."

"What is Avalon? And why did hearing their name make you unhappy?"

Now that was the question I'd hoped to avoid. "I work for Avalon. In a sense anyway."

Thomas raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"I work for some people in Avalon, carrying out certain... tasks." Assassination, murder, theft, infiltration and spying, all things I've done in my life. And all things I'd have no problems doing again. "All the gods and goddesses of old, Zeus, Hades, Odin and the like, well, they're all real. Although, not actually gods. They're a mixture of sorcerers, elementals, the fae and other magical beings. A long time ago, all of these deities were left to their own devices and that created constant chaos. Many of them don't like one another, and when you throw in the various other species that exist in the world, like vampires and weres, what happens can be all out war.

"So a few thousand years ago, there was a war amongst the various gods. In the aftermath, they all agreed to join Avalon. They're all left to do what they want, but they have laws and rules regulating them. For example, Ares can't just go and kill Apollo without reason. Unfortunately, those powers are abused. The highest ranking member of each faction is nigh-on untouchable. It's created a darkness at the heart of Avalon, where these people fester away, doing whatever they desire."

"Is Avalon an actual place?"

I nodded. "It's an island off the west coast of England, although it's not on any maps or charts that I've ever seen. But apart from being a place, it's also an organisation, consisting of several different entities all working together. It's a little bit like when the Lords of England bring their men over to fight for a common goal – in this war's case, King Henry's desire to take France."

"Was Avalon being in Soissons bad?"

"It meant all the English soldiers were sent there to die. Someone in Avalon probably contacted King Henry and used his men to do as they wish. Either to provoke all out war between countries or to guard a small girl with humans, because Henry's men are expendable in Avalon's eyes. It's conceivable that it could be both."

"They can get the King to do what they want?" Thomas asked, incredulous.

"Normally the heads of countries are surrounded by Avalon advisers. They ensure that Avalon's needs come first."

"So who wanted the English to be in Soissons?"

I shrugged. "No idea. There are so many gods and goddesses, Lords, Ladies and Knights of Avalon that it could be anyone in a few hundred."

"So, which god do you..."

A scream pierced Thomas' lips, doubling him over onto the ground. He reached out to me, his face contorted with pain. "Help..." he started.

Another scream cut through him, dragging him to a kneeling position before dumping him back onto the earth. Once his screams could no longer leave his constricting throat, the only sounds echoing through the night were that of snapping bones and muscles. His face changed first. His ears grew upward and the bones in his nose and jaw crunched. Tears fell from wolf-like eyes. 

When his face was finished, thick black fur covered it, only then did the rest of his body follow suit. Pain continued to show in Thomas’ eyes, as his arms and legs grew. Increasing not only length wise, but in terms of mass too. They formed huge muscular monstrosities. Long black talons were at the end of each finger once they'd dislocated and grown.

Grunts and groans of pain stopped, replaced with a low growl as Thomas' midsection changed—the last thing to do so. Ribs popped and healed almost instantly, each accompanied by a small grunt. The collarbone snapping brought a howl of pain and Thomas raked at the ground. 

I sat and watched, hand around the hilt of my Jian, as Thomas stood tall for the first time. He was over three heads taller than before, and likely weighed twice as much. An inhuman killing machine, designed to hunt and inflict damage. He looked up at the sky and howled again, showing the razor sharp teeth within his mouth.  

He moved toward me, each step tentative and uncertain, testing out his new body. "I wouldn't do that." I tapped the sword next to me.

Thomas stopped and followed my hand with his eyes, growling slightly. 

"If you're hungry, I brought you some food." I motioned toward the wild boar. 

Thomas dove onto the carcass, claws ripping at the large animal. He tore huge chunks out and fed them into his waiting maw. He sliced open the boar's belly, spilling its insides onto the ground, and pushed his face up inside. The sounds of ripped flesh and snapped bones echoed throughout the clearing. 

By the time Thomas finished, the boar was almost picked clean, a few hundred pounds of animal devoured in no time at all. Still covered in blood, he fell asleep soon after. Even though he’d only been a wolf for an hour at most, exhaustion took him.

I waited until his body had transformed back into his human form, a process much less painful, before covering him with some ferns and letting him sleep. 

*****

I managed to get a few hours rest before waking up. Thomas slept soundly, still covered in ferns. He needed to change regularly for the coming months, until his body allowed it to happen within a few seconds instead of the dozens it took the first time.

By the time Thomas woke, I'd dragged the boar into the woods for whatever carrion decided it was hungry enough. When finished, I had a wash in the nearby stream. The cold water certainly helped wake me up.

"My body hurts," Thomas said as I entered the clearing again. He staggered to his feet, ferns and leaves clinging to him.

"It will do that when you first change form. There's a stream about a hundred yards that way." I pointed into the woods. "I put some clothes on a tree stump. Go wash the boar off and get dressed. I can't have a naked Englishman covered in gore walking around with me. People might get suspicious."

Thomas nodded and walked briskly into the woods, leaving me alone to eat some bread and fruit. 

"Where'd you get the food?" Thomas asked on his return.

"There's a village not too far from here. I stole it from a house down there as everyone was sleeping."

"That's wrong, you shouldn't steal."

"I think they'll get by with the loss of half a dozen apples and some bread."

"And the clothes?"

"Those are stolen too. They seem to fit ok." 

Thomas looked down at the peasant outfit I'd found. It was mixture of browns and greys. When dressed, he looked as inconspicuous as I've ever seen a person. He might not have been happy about my thievery, but he'd get over it. Or go naked the next time he ripped his clothes apart mid-change.

"So where are we going?" Thomas asked as we set off.

"There's a larger village about two hours walk away. I'm hoping they'll have a few answers for us."

Thomas returned to the previous day's mute as we started our walk. But as we passed the village whose wares I'd stolen the night before, he piped up. "You mentioned knights. Are they like the Knights of Arthur?"

I stopped walking and turned to face him. "They
are
the Knights of Arthur. The legend is real. Neither Arthur nor most of the knights are human. And many of them are still involved in Avalon's running and continued wealth. Arthur... He is a separate matter. He's no longer involved in day to day matters."

Thomas' jaw dropped open. He stood silent for a moment as the information sunk in. Greek gods are one thing, but the Arthurian legend was something every Englishman knows. To discover it was real must have been quite a shock. "Why isn't he involved?"

"He got hurt long ago." It was true. Although not the full answer. Arthur was betrayed and seriously injured. Only magic keeps him alive. I turned and started walking as thoughts of Arthur filled my head. Arthur's betrayal had taken many forms over the years, Mordred, Guinevere, Morgan and Lancelot. All more than any one man should suffer. But it had been my betrayal that had led to my King... my friend, fighting for his life.

Chapter 12

The walk took a little longer than I'd anticipated, mostly because Thomas was sore. He grimaced and winced with every other step on the hilly terrain. Normally werewolves rest for a few days after their first change, but Thomas didn't have that luxury. 

We walked past several men and women. Some rode on carts or lone horses, but most were on foot. None of them gave Thomas a second glance, but they avoided me. "That Guan Dao is scaring people," Thomas said after the fifth person purposely left me with enough room to swing a horse. 

"Oh good, for a moment I thought that my rugged handsomeness was scaring folk off."

Thomas' laughter filled the air and was cut abruptly short when I stopped walking. "What's wrong?"

"Soldiers," I said. The road we were on moved with the land. The sides rose steeply the further it went, leading down to an open field below us. The forest, which had been on either side of us for much of our journey, ended a few hundred yards before the road split in two. One side of the road followed the steep decline to the lower ground, and the second curved sharply, leading toward a small village. A soldier stood guard at the village limits.