Hair, Greg - Werewolf 03 (7 page)

Chapter 14: Requiem

Tsukiko sat at the table in Kilchurn’s Great Hall, watching the number of views for the wedding video increase before her eyes. She kept quiet, never turning around or speaking. She heard Nicholas approach behind her. She tensed up.

“What’s the matter?” he asked, placing his hand on her shoulder. “You’re as stiff as a dead vampire. You still upset about what I did to you in the ubliet, when you interrupted?”

She said nothing, only shrugged her shoulders.

“I’m sorry about that. I just lost my cool for a minute. You know I would never intentionally hurt you, right?”

Tsukiko continued to keep quiet as he sat down beside her. She felt her skin crawl.

“You’re the only one that I’ve always been able to count on,” he said, raising his to her cheek, turning her head toward him. “The only one I can trust not to fail me.”

She trembled on the inside.

“That’s why you need not fear me,” he said. “I know I can be harsh, but it’s for your own good. Sometimes, you just need a little help realigning yourself with my wishes. That’s all.”

He lowered his hand to hers, pausing her work on the computer.

“It’s like when a dog,” he continued, “needs obedience training. The master that teaches the animal is simply doing what he must in order to make his pet acceptable. And the dog is happy to be trained by its master, for the beast knows that he less than his master. The dog is appreciative of its master, which is why they are still so loyal to their human.

“No matter what the master does, the dog is happy to have someone controlling it. It is much like the slaves of the old American South who continued to remain faithful to their masters, and continue the work, when they would receive obedience training.”

Nicholas paused, and looked down at the computer screen.

“I see that our video is receiving a lot of traffic,” he continued. “No doubt Landon has seen it by now. You’ve done well, Tsukiko. I shall have to reward you for all that you do here.”

Tsukiko sat there motionless, saying nothing, staring at him.

Finally, Nicholas got up, and walked toward the ubliet. Nervously she waited.

“Annelise?”

Tsukiko remained quiet as he continued to call for the vampire.

“Annelise.” The name echoed out of the dark pit in the small room where the Danish blonde had been previously held.

What seemed like an eternity to Tsukiko passed, the seconds feeling like years.

“Annelise!” Nicholas suddenly screamed, sending Tsukiko jumping inches off her seat.

The heavy footsteps approaching sent shivers across her body.

“Have you seen Annelise?” he asked, his breath rate increasing with each beat of her heart.

“No,” she said.

She breathed a light, slight sigh of relief as he headed toward the Kilchurn’s exit. Then he stopped.

“Wait a minute,” he said, turning back around. “Come here.”

“Why?”

“I want to ask you again.”

“So just ask me. It’ll still be the same answer.”

“No. I don’t mean verbally.”

Nicholas ripped the clothes from his body as he shifted into the large, black mass. He lumbered toward her chair, his head heavenward, then lowered it. Pressing his great nostrils into her torso, he paused.

His massive arm suddenly pounded against her chest, sending her flying into the far wall. He down shifted.

“Her scent is all over your fucking arms! What did you do with her? Where is she?”

Before she could give any sort of answer, he transformed again.

She felt his razor claws reach into her stomach, grip from the inside, and lift her toward the ceiling. She flew, over the table on which her laptop sat, in what seemed like slow-motion, giving her time to assess her situation and decide what move to make.

If I shift, I stand a chance of surviving; it’ll also make things worse by pissing him off more. He’ll think I’m trying to stand up to him. No, best that I don’t change.

The impact of Tsukiko hitting the gray block wall, shook the entire corner of the castle. Flakes of cinder crumbled and fell from the imprint like ash to the body below.

The hulking werewolf approached, tossing the table and computer like they were miniature versions from a doll house. The beast grabbed her by the hair. The tips of his claws scraped her skull. Tsukiko felt like her scalp would rip away from her head at any moment.

Threads of black hair came out as Nicholas pulled her down the hall, her soft white skin sliding along the cold castle floor. The big black werewolf grunted and groaned, like it wanted to tell her that what he was doing hurt him more than her. She knew different, though. She knew it didn’t hurt him. She knew he enjoyed it.

Suddenly, he dropped her head to the ground. Probably, she thought, because he’s losing his grip on me due to the decreasing amount of hair still attached to my head. And she was right.

Letting go of what little hair he had, Nicholas grabbed her by the jaw, and again began pulling. She didn’t struggle. That’s what he wants. I’m not going to give him what he wants.

She felt her journey down the long hall come to an end, as they entered the ubliet. Nicholas reverted back to human form.

“Look, Tsukiko,” he said, picking her up off the floor by her throat, and turning her toward the empty chains that hung from the ceiling. “She was here and now, as you can now plainly see, she is not. Where is she?”

“Not here.”

“I know that!” He slammed her back down to the floor. “I just said that. I don’t want to hear what I already know; tell me what I don’t know! Where is she?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll kill her the next time I see her.”

“You won’t get that chance.”

Nicholas started kicking, each succeeding strike hurting more than the previous. She felt organs cave, and bones break. Suddenly, she felt his lower claws burst through her flesh and into her stomach, as the mighty kick from the now changed Nicholas sent he flying like a soccer ball into the nearest, where she rebounded and bounced into the dark pit.

Waiting below were dozens of spikes, a mass acupuncture for the falling victim, and the impaled cadaver of the Scottish teen.

As she lay there, on all points, the weight of her body started to slowly slide the dead teen, then herself, down the pikes.

“Stop!” another familiar voiced echoed down to, and around, Tsukiko’s ears. “What the hell are you doing?”

Tsukiko heard shuffling, then saw Serinda’s face peer over the pit’s ledge.

“Stay out of this,” said Nicholas, “it’s no concern of yours.”

“As loyal as she’s been to you,” the vampire said, lowering a chain into the hole on which she could slide down, “you treat her like this?”

“Not that I need to explain anything to you, but she freed Annelise. I’m not going to take that lightly.”

“As your queen,” she said, beginning her descent, “I don’t want to see you treat women this way.”

“Let’s get this straight right now.” Nicholas reached over and pulled Serinda toward him. “You are not my queen. I bow to no man, and even less to a woman.” He let go, and she continued her slide down.

Tsukiko heard Nicholas leave in a huff as Serinda grabbed hold of her. The pain was worse being pulled off the spikes, than being thrust upon them.

Moments later, lying again on the cold floor, having shifted to heal, then changed back to human form, Tsukiko gave Serinda a warning.

“You need to watch your back. You’ve actually pissed him off more than I have.”

“I’m not afraid of him, Tsukiko. Jamie wouldn’t let anything happen to me. If Nicholas ever lay a hand on me, it’ll be the last time he does it.

“Let me ask you something,” she continued, “I know you have your honor and all that, but, I think there’s more to why you stay with someone who does these things to you. Are you in love with Nicholas?”

“Love? I don’t know what love is. And I never will. I have slept with many men, mostly at Burghausen, which is common knowledge, but I have never loved any of them. I did have affections for Nicholas, at one point, but now, it’s mostly…he’s my home. The only one I have.”

“You could always switch sides.”

“No. I am here until the end. No matter how that end may come.”

“What does that mean?”

“Nothing. Nevermind. Look, just listen to me, and watch your back. Don’t let your guard down with him. He was expecting to be chosen as Jamie’s successor. And now you’ve stopped him from killing me.”

“Don’t worry about me. I can take care of myself.” Serinda stood, taking Tsukiko’s hand. “Come on, let’s get you cleaned up. Self-healing does not equal self-cleaning.”

The two women, werewolf and vampire, left the ubliet, the place of Tsukiko’s near-death, and headed toward the kitchen for water, soap, and washcloths. While the internal wounds had healed, the outside still showed the brutality of the beating.

Chapter 15: Requiem

“Yeah,” said Jamie. “She’s gone.”

“How far did you get?” Nicholas asked.

“To Dalmally. Tracked her scent to the pub, but it ends there. She’s not around here anymore.”

“You may have his genes, but you certainly don’t have his nose.”

“What does that mean?”

“Nothing.”

The bright sun beamed down the two werewolves standing in the soft green grass outside Kilchurn.

“You’re right,” continued Nicholas. “She is gone. Long gone by now. It’s time to move on. I suspect we’re only days away now, from Landon and his people coming.”

“So what does that mean?”

“We need to begin preparing. It’s time to construct our army.”

Nicholas suddenly stopped, and began looking and listening in all directions. Nothing. No movement, no sound.

Seconds later, Tsukiko came rushing out of the castle, followed closely by Serinda.

“Do you feel that?” asked the Japanese werewolf. “It’s like a giant wave crashing down on us.”

“I do,” said Nicholas. “Now, quiet.”

Then, emerging on the hills from the south, the dark figures of two, then ten, then twenty, all rising up, then coming down the hill. The numbers kept growing. A multitude of vampires and werewolves.

“Is this it?” Jamie asked. “Is this the fight?”

“No,” said Nicholas. “It’s our recruits.”

Nicholas stopped counting heads after one hundred, though it was obvious the number only went up from there.

“Prepare yourself, Jamie,” he said, walking away, heading toward the coming mass. “They’re going to want a pep talk.” He stopped, turning his head slightly. “You, too…queen.”

Moments later, Nicholas led the recruits to the foot of Kilchurn. Jamie stood before a crowd of hundreds.

“Jamie,” Nicholas began, “you should address the werewolves first. Then, Serinda, the vampires. Finally, bring them together.”

Jamie cleared his throat, and stepped forward.

“This will only take a moment,” he began, raising his voice toward the heights of heaven, “then we can begin our preparations. I was just advised for my wife and I to speak to our own kinds separately, then bring the two groups together. I think the better idea is to say this, to both groups: if you want to live under a new dawn for both our species, welcome to Kilchurn Castle. If you want to die like dogs and leeches, you can wait on the other side of the hills for our enemies to arrive, then be led to slaughter as they will be.

“If you are here, and I see no one running for the hills, then I say welcome my brothers and sisters. Let us prepare for the coming of Landon Murphy and his minions. I am Jamie, your king, and this is my wife, Serinda, your queen. We have been joined as one, just as both species have now come together as one, living, breathing entity, ready to destroy that which comes to destroy us. They are bringing the battle to us, and we will be ready…to greet them with the death they deserve. And now, Nicholas and I will go to create conscriptions and add to our already swelling numbers. Again, welcome to Kilchurn, and a new beginning. As gods!”

The crowd roared to life, hundreds of hands raised high, chanting Jamie’s name.

“Good speech,” Nicholas said, trying to hear himself over the throngs of werewolves and vampires.

“I’ve been paying attention to how you speak,” said Jamie. “Educated and eloquent. I didn’t want to sound like a teenager. So, how do we go about creating the other part of our army?”

“You know how. We go to the surrounding villages, and turn every person we find. We will have a force that will make Heaven and Hell tremble.

“Serinda and Tsukiko, take our guests to Dalmally. There’s plenty of lodging there, now. I’m sure they will want to eat. Jamie and I will spare the next village over, so that our people may feed, and gain strength. We will be back tonight. Training begins tomorrow, at dawn.”

“Yes, Nicholas,” said Tsukiko.

“I love how you still want to give orders to your king and queen,” Serinda said.

“You know what?” said Nicholas, snapping his body toward her. He felt Jamie move in closer. “You’re right,” he continued, smiling. “I owe you, Jamie, and Tsukiko an apology for my behavior. I should not treat women the way I do. I should lift them up, raise them from the ground, and put them on a pedestal for all the world to see. And I should remember this is a team, and you and Jamie are my queen, and king, respectively. Now please, Jamie, we must hurry if want to be back by dark.”

Soon after, having left everyone speechless, and the castle of Kilchurn behind, Nicholas and Jamie traversed the Scottish countryside, moving from village to village, leaving a trail of blood, screams, newly formed werewolves, and orphaned children, those deemed too young to fight, in their wake.

Returning to Kilchurn, hundreds of villagers in tow, Nicholas and Jamie led their conscripted followers through the open field.

The majority of the villagers that trailed the two werewolves, were nude, their clothes having been ripped from their bodies during the attack. A few still had some shreds of attire to protect what little dignity they had left.

The villagers walked slowly, some limping along, others almost carried by their fellow Scots. A few would drop periodically and crawl, helped back to their feet by friends and relatives. A handful had fallen, and died, by the wayside during the journey, the impact of their situation to much to bear. One woman, a member of the fallen, had actually continued on the march, her body dragged by her still living husband who couldn’t seem to part with her.

Many of the Scots wailed over the loss of their children, at least those descendants that were too young to join and were, therefore, deemed extra baggage and left behind to fend for themselves. Nicholas listened to the crying, the screaming, the heartbreaking prayers thrown toward Heaven. It was like music to his ears—like conducting Ode to Joy to the movements of a brutal attack.

Looking back at the Scottish Trail of Tears, Nicholas thought about the one historical event he regretted being unable to attend.

What must it have been like, he thought, to stand there when the rail cars arrived at the camps? All those transports filled with the weak, those human liabilities. Oh, the work I could have achieved had I been a part of that movement. If only I had not been working for those insufferable Consuls at the time. It is quite okay, though. It would have been more difficult to arrange a believable coup against Hitler had I joined him, and had he succeeded. Landon is much easier.

Then, Nicholas had an idea. He quickly turned around to face the following crowd and, a single claw extended, began leaving on the forearms of each villager a scratch—his own version of those infamous numbers.

“What are you doing?” asked Jamie.

“Marking my territory.”

Suddenly, a local dropped to her knees, grabbing Nicholas’ legs.

“Please, sir,” she wailed, like a banshee in her Scottish accent. “We’ve done no wrong. Please let us return to our children. Or let my teenage son return to them. Spare him. Please, have mercy. Mercy!”

“It is mercy you wish to have?”

The woman looked up, locking her eyes onto his, a glimmer of hope in her stare. She nodded.

“I shall give you mercy.”

Nicholas suddenly grabbed the woman’s son as the boy stood beside her, beheading him immediately. The teen’s head rolled away as his body slumped to the ground.

“There is your mercy,” he said, barely audible to even himself over her screams. “Had I allowed him to live, the time between now and his death would have been only days, but would have seemed like eternity. The anticipation of an event is worse than the event itself. Therefore, your mercy, my lady.”

Nicholas bowed to the broken woman before continuing on.

Finally, Nicholas and Jamie reached the front gate of Kilchurn, and entered.

“I want the locals from the various towns kept sequestered,” said Nicholas.

“Why? They need to train.”

“I have my reasons.”

“Where am I supposed to put them?”

“I trust you will find a place.”

Then Nicholas went one way, while Jamie searched for food.

Serinda brought a plate of stacked meat to her husband, like a woman having dinner prepared for her hard-working man upon returning home to her and the children.

Nicholas kept to himself, waving Tsukiko away as she approached. He entered his chamber, and closed the door behind him.