Griff
“It’s m-me they want—they need,” Haven slurred as though he were in a drunken stupor.
“What?” asked, nervously scanning the room as he finally freed himself and got to his feet. “What do you mean?”
“W-Wolf with Two Powers,” muttered Haven, eyes still closed as he struggled in his bindings. He repeated the same four words over and over.
almost forgot they weren’t alone.
“Another is here,” Luna announced from across the room as she left her trance state. “One of yours , Haven. I can feel it now.”
One of what? wondered to himself as he bolted for the grand doors of the ballroom.
Luna chuckled from behind him. “I take pride in running my campuses with student safety and security in mind.”
Pulling at the handles and fumbling with the lock, realized the set of double doors wasn’t opening. He turned around to see Luna jiggling a set of skeleton keys. “No one gets in or out without my say so now,” she said as she glided across the room, moving closer and closer.
“What is it you’re trying to do, anyway?” asked, clutching his pendant in his hand as his heart beat rapidly. “Some kind of ritual, I take it.”
“Hm. Very aware for a freshman,” Luna laughed, tossing the keys to the opposite side of the room. “I pulled your file long before we met tonight, . I know exactly what you are.”
“Then you should know better than to mess with me,” said through gritted teeth, the purple hues that glowed from his necklace now pushing out between his fingers.
“Oh, precious ,” Luna feigned a worried sigh, one hand to her chest as she placed the other on the door next to him. “Don’t worry. I mean no real harm to you.”
“Then why are you doing this?” asked, stepping away from the doors and backing into a banquet table. “An-and how are you controlling everyone?”
“The Era of the Lycan is upon us, silly witch,” Luna hissed, her eyes darting from the retreating freshman to the muttering Haven and back again. She pulled the straps of her dress over her shoulders, pushing it to the floor and kicking it aside before beginning to remove her underwear. “Soon, werewolves will have dominion over witches, over vampires, over humans as the superior race. I’m here to make sure of it, darling.”
“So, let me get this straight. You’re trying to bring about some great enlightenment for werewolves by—what? Making them your mindless slaves?” taunted. “This whole thing, it’s just—it’s giving Charles Manson vibes, Dr. Dark Moon.”
“There’s a difference between him and I,” Luna began as her manicured nails were punctured by large claws.
So much for fixing that manicure, thought to himself.
“I mean, he’s a werewolf, too. Sure. But folks like him—they always fail. I’ll succeed. Oh! And please, as I said before, do call me Luna.” With each word she spoke, the doctor’s human body gave way to her wolf form.
“Werewolf, huh? And here I thought you were giving me a strip tease just for the hell of it,” said dryly, moving around another banquet table and bracing himself. With some focus and concentration, the witch telekinetically grabbed up every white tablecloth in the room and floated them in the air just above his natural line of sight. He figured this trick was just enough to block Luna’s view.
“Clever witch. I know who catches your eye,” Luna snarled before jumping onto a table close to . “I know who has your heart. Do you really think I brought you here because this was about you? Talk about toxic main character energy.”
’s mind raced. ?She doesn’t want me. It’s a trap. Uriah, can you hear me??
No response.
Gathering a small arsenal of table cutlery in the air around him—sharp ends pointed toward his enemy—the witch closed his eyes as he fine-tuned his aim. When he opened them again, he could feel the hot breath of a wolf on the back of his neck.
“Gotcha!” shouted, lunging forward as the nearest tablecloth dropped on top of Luna, wrapping around her body as though she were a present. She howled as sent her flying into the nearest wall, his armament of cutlery slicing into her as she fumbled and fell.
“Fucking freshmen!” Luna cursed, ripping the white fabric to shreds as she jumped onto the bare table before her. White table linens floated all around her now, dancing and swaying like a carousel of laundry left to hang on a windy day.
“What’s this Wolf with Two Powers have to do with your ritual?” ’s voice bounced off the ballroom’s gigantic walls, echoing across its oversized vaulted ceilings. Recalling the sensitive ear of the werewolf, the witch hoped she would take his bait.
Luna focused in on a slow-moving tablecloth in the corner furthest from her. It swayed and danced in a way dissimilar to the others, appearing as though a cheap Halloween ghost costume. “He’s the key to all of this,” she muttered, her voice low and wolf-like. “The key to bringing back the King of Wolves.”
“H-Haven?” asked.
He could sense Luna closing in now, the auburn fur of her wolf form standing on end as she salivated. “Haven? Why, he’ll be so heartbroken to hear that your other werewolf lover tore you to shreds,” she said as she dove into her target, teeth sinking into the fabric and what was underneath it. A flurry of cotton exploded in the werewolf’s face as she realized the witch’s trick: she had mauled a floating decorative armchair while magically threw his voice across the room.
“Nice try.” ’s voice seemed to come from everywhere now. “Just what makes you think you can do a ritual without a witch, anyway, doctor? Wolves aren’t strong enough to do what you want. What you need.”
“Soon, werewolves will possess all the magic in the world. In fact, that’s the point. But fine, sure. That’s part of why I kidnapped you, but I also have a backup plan,” Luna snapped back. With that, she let out a howl and began attacking every floating sheet around her. “Now, reveal yourself!”
“You know, I thought the sound of a wolf’s voice was going to be way scarier than it actually is,” said as he carefully landed on one of the many arms on the room’s grand chandelier. The ornamental decorative light boasted three levels of fluorescent lamps, and he waved to her from the top-most stack some nineteen feet above the floor.
“Enough of your silly tricks!” Luna let out a howl, rushing to the closest table and leaping into the air. Her claws grabbed hold of the lowest of the chandelier’s S-shaped arms, a movement that sent the hanging light swinging wildly. braced himself for the worst, but the fixture remained structurally intact. Luna morphed back into human form and pulled herself up.
“Get away from him, you bitch!” Haven shouted from below, ripping free from his constraints as he shifted.
The grand doors shuddered under the pressure of someone—or something—smashing into them. A cracking sound reverberated throughout the room as another slam pushed them open.
“The Silver Wolf,” Luna said with a gasp as a familiar-looking lycan burst into the ballroom. “What an excellent surprise.”
“Hey, lady,” felt comforted by the sound of the familiar British accent he had grown to love. His vampire stood just below the chandelier now, a guitar case in hand. “No love for me?”
Luna raised an arm, cuffing her chin as she fell into thought. “Now, just who are you?”
Uriah smiled, popping open the guitar case and pulling out a crossbow. “Oh, just a guy—with no heartbeat—in love. One who has a surprising amount of wolfsbane-tipped arrows with your name on it.”
Luna’s eyes went white as she called her infected army. “Wolves, kill the vampire with the annoying accent.” A high-pitched whistle followed, the doctor’s concentration breaking as an arrow sank into her thigh.The act infuriated her, sending her straight into transformation. The auburn werewolf bit into the arrow, pulled it out, and tossed it down to the floor below.
“Not so bad of an aim, eh, love?” Uriah looked to Pruitt’s wolf form with a satisfied smirk, but the wolf didn’t look so pleased. “You all right ? Look, I know I said all those dirty things about dom-sub werewolf-vampire stuff, but now’s not the time.”
Pruitt snapped at Uriah, a different look in his eyes than before.
Uriah backed up, surprised to find another pair of jaws snapping at him from behind. “Two of you now, huh?” The vampire looked up at . “If this is the new guy trying out for the polycule, he’s gonna have to do better than that.”
“Y-yes, that’s Haven. Ri, she’s got some kind of control over them. Think parasitic!” shouted as he maneuvered across the chandelier. “That’s what’s happening to Pruitt—ever since Haven bit him.”
Uriah braced himself against the nearest wall, facing both aggressive wolves as he let the information sink in. “Ah, so you’re the one who…” his voice trailed off as he made eye contact with the blonde werewolf known as Haven Hemming. He stepped forward and reached out a hand. “Hm, okay. I actually quite like this one.”
Haven snapped at him, growling as he lunged forward.
“Oh, okay. Let’s not get too carried away then, fella,” Uriah retreated, lifting the crossbow in a defensive stance. “Besides, I’m the one who likes to really stick it in.”
reached the highest point of the chandelier now, shifting onto his belly and sliding to the edge. One hand securely wrapped around the fixture, he placed the other against his forehead and concentrated on communicating with his possessed lover. ? Pruitt, she’s controlling you. It’s Dr. Dark Moon. She’s passed her parasitic bite power onto Haven, and now you’re under her control. But you’re stronger than this. Remember. You’re my familiar.?
“Haven, you gonna let some wench like old Dr. Dark Moon up there use you like this?” Uriah asked, swinging his crossbow in the smaller werewolf’s face as though to scare him off. “Sure, she’s hot and all, but clearly she’s got some major control issues.”
Pruitt moved close to Uriah, the hot drool from his teeth dripping onto the vampire’s leather jacket. The two made eye contact.
“No!” shouted, sending the ballroom’s twenty-four tables onto their sides and rushing forward at the pair of wolves circling Uriah.
Haven whimpered as four tables slammed him into the nearest wall. Pruitt turned just in time for two tables to hit him on either side, creating a gruesome clapping sound.
watched with bated breath, concern evident on his face as he looked down. Uriah was nowhere to be seen. Pruitt splintered the tables into pieces, launching into the air with a piercing howl that sent shivers down ’s spine.
The witch held on for dear life as Pruitt jumped onto a lower-level arm of the chandelier. He looked up as powder and debris from the ceiling covered him, the first visual confirmation that one of three of the structure’s support chains was buckling under the added weight.
“Let’s finish this,” Luna howled, making eye contact with Pruitt as the two circled the bottom level of the swaying fixture.
“Pruitt, don’t listen to her!” shouted. “I-I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You can’t!” Luna laughed. “More like won’t!”
Pruitt jumped to the next tier, his enormous jaws now only feet from . Luna joined him, but slipped—her wolf agility corrupted by the poison of the wolfsbane running through her body, assumed. She hastily grabbed onto the nearest S-curve, crystals breaking and falling to the floor as she struggled to maintain her grip.
?Ri, whatever you do, please don’t shoot him. I don’t know if there’s a cure.?
The telepathic pleas of a frightened were enough to jolt Uriah from unconsciousness. He pushed the remnants of a table off of him, letting out a low groan as his hands searched for the crossbow. The sound of a dozen hungry wolves fast approaching was enough to get the vampire to his feet. “Uh, little witch?” he called out, his eyes glued to the hallway. “I know you’ve got your hands full, but the doctor’s little army of wolves and frat kids is headed this way.”
concentrated on the doors, slamming them shut with his mind.
“Comin’!” Uriah shouted, his eyes scanning the walls for some way to scale them. That’s when he again came face-to-face with Haven’s wolf form. “Shit.”
“Don’t stop, Silver Wolf,” demanded Luna in a pained, low voice, transforming once again into her naked human form. The veins in her face were prominent now, pulsating and purple. She looked down below her, searching for something. “Haven, h-help me.”
Uriah swallowed hard as Haven pushed him to the ground, pouncing on top of him with his teeth bared. “I knew I shouldn’t have taken such a low-paying gig,” the vampire said with remorse in his eyes. ?in, I-I think this is it. Pru? Little witch? If it’s lights out for me, I just wanna say right now that I love you both so…?
“Haven, now! ” Luna’s commanding voice thundered through the ballroom. The words triggered Haven to bend his back legs, arch his back, and jump up into the air. Uriah’s quick reflexes benefitted him—taking hold of his weapon, he grabbed a tuft of the werewolf’s fur in his other hand and swung around onto Haven’s back as they launched into the air.
’s eyes widened as the light fixture swayed violently from the force of Haven landing on the lowest tier. “Oh, fuck!”
“Heal me,” Luna managed, coughing blood up as she dangled in the air.
Haven reached back to snap at Uriah, who used his speed to propel himself to the highest tier of the chandelier before the werewolf could take a bite.
“Pru!” Uriah shouted down at the menacing Silver Wolf. “She can’t control you anymore. It’s me, your oldest friend.”
“Don’t be so sure about that, Ri,” cautioned.
“The wolfsbane is killin’ her,” Uriah replied. “Her powers will go with her. Just wait.”
Pruitt seemed to acknowledge the vampire’s words as he paced back and forth just below. Uriah stood now, balancing himself on one of the remaining chains secured by a cement block in the ceiling. “You’re going to have to come to me, little witch,” he gestured, reaching his hand out for .
Still on his stomach, looked from his vampire lover to his werewolf lover, an uneasy expression on his face. “I’m sc-scared,” he whispered. His body felt spent, his magic nearly exhausted.
“Don’t be,” Uriah reassured him. “I’m right here. I’m not going to let anybody hurt you, or hurt Pruitt.”
“Haven’s power,” said as he used his arms to hoist himself up and closer to Uriah. “Uriah, Haven’s power is healing.”
Uriah looked down, surprised to see Haven in human form now with Luna cradled in his arms.
“Everything’s going to be okay,” Haven said, pressing his hand against the flesh wound in the doctor’s thigh.
?Pru, you back with us? Stop him from healing her,? Uriah telepathically communicated. ? She’s gotta die, or she’ll keep controlling you. Just bloody kill them both now.?
“ No!” shouted as he inched his body closer and closer to the support chain where Uriah now stood.
“Too late,” Luna cackled from below, making eye contact with the witch above. “Boys, sic ‘em.”
Luna and Haven’s naked bodies once again transformed into ferocious wolves, moving in unison with the Silver Wolf as the pack considered its next move. The worst part of it was that could now hear Pruitt’s controlled thoughts: ? Kill them all. Kill them all. Kill them all.?
looked down as Pruitt lunged up, his jaws wide. The witch floated into the air, using telekinesis to lift his body far enough to grab hold of Uriah’s hand. Pruitt’s jaws crushed the branch that was on moments ago, the wolf using this leverage to swing his entire body onto the uppermost level of the fixture. Haven followed behind him, howling with Pruitt as they circled their prey.
“You know, pipsqueak, I’ve been thinking about our conversation,” Uriah spoke quickly, pulling close to his chest and holding him tight. “The one about vampires, you know, flying.”
“Yeah?” a visibly drained asked, squeezing Uriah as hard as he could.
“I’ve determined that, um—well, you can fly, right?”
“When I haven’t used up all my powers,” panted. “Right now, I might be able to get us to the floor without breaking our legs.”
“All right,” Uriah said, swallowing hard as he aimed the crossbow at Haven and then Pruitt. “Then hold on tight and don’t let go.”
“Huh?”
Uriah lifted the crossbow once more, this time aiming at the fixture’s remaining support chains above. He shot one just above Haven, a move that rocked the chandelier and sent Haven tumbling to the floor below. The Silver Wolf, however, slid closer to them.
“You trust me?” Uriah asked, pressing his lips against ’s forehead.
didn’t miss a beat. “Always.”
“Then let’s fly.” The vampire tossed the crossbow at Pruitt before giving the chain he balanced on a good yank. covered his face as the last ceiling support crumbled. He heard Pruitt and Luna howling as the chandelier dropped.
Bracing for an impact that didn’t come, finally opened his eyes.
“Holy shit!” Uriah cheered, sailing through the air with his arms wrapped securely around his lover.
“You’re—you’re flying ,” gasped.
“Now, hold tight, ‘cause I haven’t tried this one before,” Uriah cautioned, spinning his body around and using it to protectively shield his lover as he went backwards through the nearest window. “? You okay?”
The cold air of the night engulfed them—and at first, it felt like shooting daggers against his skin, but realized he was mostly unscathed. “I’m good, but what about our friends? Darcy, Quinn—Pruitt?”
“I have to keep a promise first and get you to safety,” Uriah said determinedly. could tell that nothing was going to make him budge.