Sitting atop of a thick branch, there was a certain Werewolf, meditating on his condition to get a better understanding of it, listening to various urges and calls within: “HUNT”, “KILL”, they said. He knew it was just the cursed part wanting to take over. He knew that the best way to deal with them was to just let it all happen, not to resist, not to act upon, not to ignore, just watch and let them pass, and eventually, they’d become silent for a while. But this time they were particularly persistent, the full moon was coming in a few days, and he could feel that it was going to be one of those… tougher ones…
The next day the situation would repeat itself. The urges were louder, more powerful, but still nothing the wolf couldn’t manage. It was a common occurrence, but once the night of full moon came, there would be more than just calls and voices. There would be hunger, a physical and unnatural need that if left unchecked, would lead to severe pain, and that was the number one way to lose control and endanger potential villages around, which was also the number one thing he wanted to avoid.
Luckily, these woods were full of large and strong beasts, he’d have plenty of food for that night, perhaps doing a favor to those living near these woods. Nobody liked the threat of a monster randomly coming near one’s house and wreaking havoc, so he thought at least…
As the night came, and the full moon arose, the cursed hunger kicked in. It was time to hunt.
Focusing strongly on not giving into the greedy voices that called for blood, and constantly telling himself it’s his own mindful choice to hunt, he sharpened his senses and rushed through the trees, smelling the first victim nearby, a group of deer. Unleashing his long paralyzing claws and slashing three of them before the others even registered the danger, chasing down and catching the rest was child’s play.
“This is my choice, to sate the hunger, not the cursed calls.”
He thought to himself before slowly beginning to siphon the vital energies of the paralyzed animals, draining all their life and absorbing their bodies into his own, and in the process, trapping their souls within himself too. There wasn't much time for pleasantries, being unable to give the spirits much attention as even after consuming five whole deer the hunger was still peaking, so he just let go of them and pressed on.
Second came one of the larger monsters, easily bigger than himself which was already impressive. Neither knowing nor caring for its name, making the claws spectral again a well-placed slash on the unsuspecting beast’s head put it right to sleep, biting right into its neck and piercing the claws deep in, the paralysis soon spread to its whole body, after which he’d pause again thinking:
“This is my choice, the voices just happened to call at the same time, I’m doing this for myself and to keep people safe, not them”
This was followed by a deep inhale, taking in all what was good from the monster’s body and absorbing it into his own, and before he’d even open his eyes there was nothing but dust left, usually taking this much would come with a great surge of strength, but not tonight, this time it was a mere droplet on a scorching desert, then with exhale, he released the soul and ran off, somehow even more hungry than before starting the hunt.
“Must, stay sane, must… overcome, must… KILL”
After this his memory cut to another moment, likely only a few seconds, losing touch with reality. The beast mind took over briefly. The mental strain that came with forcing himself back into control could only be understood by someone with a similar condition.
Oh how easy would it be to just give in and let the monster do its thing, he’d just wake up next day well-fed with no memory of what happened, only to find a massacred village and an empty forest…
No, the thought of endangering people sickened him. It gave enough motivation to work on himself for so many years and he would not stop now, his need not to become a monster was greater than the hunger, it had to be, he knew he just had to outlast it, survive until dawn, but the body… it demanded flesh!
Moving faster than furious wind he made his way to many other targets, giant beasts or animals, he consumed them all, using the brief moment of clarity during the process of absorption to release the soul safely before the cursed mind tried to devour it too.
“This will end soon, just have to keep up, they will not get the upper hand again, just keep HUNTING”
Minutes became hours, the hunt resembled more of a massacre, as with each minute more and more creatures fell under his claws, only pausing to absorb their bodies and keep going. Then at one point where the struggle was really reaching his limits, a familiar voice of a demon spoke to him…
“You know what we want. You need not suffer. We don’t want you to suffer. Just give us human flesh or consume a soul or two. It will all be over. Animal flesh can only sate so much. We need something more. We need-”
-”TO SHUT UP!”
He interrupted the demon before forcing it out of his mind, they knew very well that he’d never go down this path, not willingly.
What did not help though is for as much The Werewolf wanted to deny it, he also knew that it was true. All it took was a single soul or some human flesh to stop this hunger, those demons never lied, and always kept their word. He learned that through many years of their unwilling relationship, but was it worth it? To completely end one’s life and deny any afterlife just to stop his suffering? Or to end the life of a fellow human being just to sate him this one time?
No, he would endure, he’d have to, for as painful as it all was, a certain thought came, that by experiencing it he was saving an innocent life, one that would otherwise end. This thought allowed him to maintain relative consciousness throughout the night, and after countless beings slain, finally, the hunger would start to fade…
It wasn’t until dawn that he actually recovered his sanity to its fullest, the soothing rays melting away the fury like an ice cube thrown into a campfire, the hunger vanished as well, wondering how much was it really physical, and how much mental.
The whole night blended into a single streak of events that barely stayed in the long-term memory, what was mostly left is the knowing how hard and taxing it was, and despite absorbing so many, he barely gained any strength, as if all that energy went elsewhere, and after a pause, he realized exactly where…
“This night proved to us your strength once again, repeat it two more times and you shall be granted the control you’ve been asking for, you know what to do to ease your struggles.”
Those demons… the thought of having to repeat this torture for two more nights was almost disheartening, but then remembering that with the control they promised he’d finally be able to choose the times of the transformation freely, even partial one, with no risk of going mad in the process, no risk of being spotted in the wrong form at a wrong time, the ability to always be able to shift back and forth would solve it all, just two more nights for a permanent profit, this had to be worth it.
And so, using the daylight to rest his mind, as the dusk came, he pressed on, the moon was no longer full, but the hunger was just as prevalent, and even though it seemed a bit easier this time, the exhaustion from the previous night did not help.
Beast after beast, bear after bear, moose after moose, boar after boar, the forest was becoming emptier than ever before, but there was still plenty around, or at least enough to sate him. Near the end of the night, the hunger was reduced to the point where continuing the hunt was no longer needed. Climbing on top of a the tallest tree awaiting the first sunlight, the cursed thoughts were still calling:
"In this time you could have sated yourself completely"
"You are still hungry, go get a few more before the sun comes"
"Denying your own hunger will not stop you from being a monster"
"You've slain so many, what's a few more"
He didn't even try to argue back, there was no point, nor did he have the mental energy to do so, knowing they were all lies, just letting them all happen without listening. And as the sky was illuminated once more, a moment of clarity and relief came with it.
Finding a thick branch hidden among the leaves, he almost immediately fell asleep from exhaustion, only to be violently woken up by a painful gurgle in his stomach as the moon was already high in the sky. The whole day was not enough to recharge from such effort. In fact, it barely felt like a nap, having no other choice, the hunt continued.
"Just one more night of this torture, just this one time before I can rest"
He thought to himself while smoothly and silently jumping from tree to tree, essentially soaring through the woods towards the next target, striking from above, it was consumed before realizing they were dead.
Kind of interesting to think about it, one moment you are going about your daily business, and suddenly you wake up in the afterlife, with no suffering, fear, or pain in between, just from one moment to another. That's basically what happened to most of his victims throughout those nights.
Such thought coming to his mind during the hunt was a good sign, as it meant there was space for more than just a blind need to consume. Taking in so much power made him stronger after all, not even a fraction of how much would be obtained normally, but the fact that this night was easier could definitely be noticed. The moon was already waning, the curse didn't have as much of a reach, he could do this…
Around halfway through the night, the hunger was already being stated, just a few more beasts, just a little bit longer, almost there…
Then finally, after devouring the last of the pack of wild boars, for the first time 'eating' felt good, and actually brought proper relief. Breathing heavily, taking a moment to enjoy himself and feel the little bit of leftover power from that boar filling his mighty body, remembering how good it felt. This madness could finally be brought to a close, and retire for the night. Even though the urge to hunt was screaming louder than ever, now that he could actually enjoy it, he knew that the best thing he could do is stop right now, acting exactly against the greedy hunger that made him do this in the first place. The thought of having a little revenge on it was motivating enough.
Climbing atop of a tall tree protected by dense leaves, The Lycan managed to get some good sleep. It lasted for over three days and nights straight, which only showed how exhausted his mind was after all this.
Waking up to the moon past the first quarter, being the most well-rested he was in years, there was little resisting just happily sprinting through the woods doing various acrobatics and stunts on his way, ones that would impress even the most agile gymnasts. Then after finally landing on top of a large hill, he let out a deep and melodious howl, not very loud though. There was no need to scream, just express the joy.
Days went by rather peacefully from then on. This forest was nice, lots of places to hide and rewarding prey to hunt, good boulders to lift and train with, feasting on more monsters at night and meditating and working out during the day. It generally was a good time. It wasn't until around two weeks later that the realization came that he did not shift back to his human form at any point this whole time, nor needed to resist the need to do so, only then he realized that the greater control over transformations was already granted.
No longer being constrained by other factors that affected the transformations, at least so he thought.
Having no intent to leave the beloved wolf form he decided to test it first by just staying in it for as long as possible, and enjoy it to the fullest while it lasts.
Then, a certain sound reached his sensible ears, more of those beasts were coming, angry, likely having it out for him for slaying so many of their kind, or maybe just randomly rampaging through chasing after a squirrel, also likely, those monsters hardly betrayed many signs of intelligence.
Ready to face what was coming, a pack of Manticores showed up indeed chasing after a smaller creature, a quiet bird that flew out of reach once it got the chance, spotting each other. A wide grin appeared on his face as the glowing claws and teeth were unleashed once more, The Manticores reacted just as one would expect.
Lunging at The Werewolf, the massive Manticore's roaring confidence faded faster than a flame vanishing within depths of the ocean, as it found its neck trapped within a crushing grasp and lifted into the air as if it was a mere toy, and no amount of struggle came even close to setting it free, or even loosening the grip.
The other monsters must have realized their mistake as they witnessed their fellow pack member's movement halt completely while being covered by a mysterious green glow, then wither into ash moments later. Backing away slightly, some roared out at The Werewolf, who felt the new strength flowing through his immense musculature as the creature's body was absorbed, and the soul released.
Grinning at the fearful Manticores and lunging at the nearest one it the same way the previous one lunged at him, at a speed far too great for it to dodge, The Manticore was left paralyzed before it could let out a squeal, which was followed by him feeling all of the monster's might surging into his own body.
Enjoying the empowerment so much he didn't even notice that the wind above was blowing at an unusual rate, then out of the sudden, a blast of lightning struck him with enough force to knock him to the ground.
The rest of the monsters fled, but the pain that came with the blast knocked his mind out of control for a brief moment, hearing something to the right he'd immediately attack if it wasn't for the temporary paralysis from the electricity.
Only to realize on the way back up that the being responsible for the attack was not a monster, but a Tigerkin. An intelligent person, and likely a monster hunter. This itself was enough to spring his mind back in place, especially after hearing their voice.
“Who’d thunk dat a mutt was the one makin’ all dah monstahs disappear?”
Taking no offense in what was said, the large Werewolf went on to do the same thing he did to any other monster hunter he encountered. Deliver a swift paralyzing but harmless blow that would give more than enough time to escape too far to ever be traced. This Tiger however, was no ordinary man, electricity sparkling once more, The Lupine could tell on his way towards them that another blast was about to come.
Using his unnatural speed and reading the body language of the Tigerkin he managed to dodge the lightning bolt, but to his surprise, The Tiger also dodged his paralyzing slash, using the wind itself in conjunction with their strong physique to move out of reach.
The astonishment from seeing this made him take longer than usual to deliver a follow-up strike, landing which would be guaranteed, if it wasn't for a sudden hurricane-like force of the wind that pushed him away a good several meters.
“Sorry, beastie. Can’t let ya kill too many more monstahs.”
As he recovered, he realized that even when mere inches away from The Tigerkin, he could smell no silver or wolfsbane, the two things every monster hunter always had, as they were useful against more than just werewolves. This combined with how young The Tiger was, and that they were using magic instead of weapons, made him think twice about who they really were.
Perhaps it was just one of the locals patrolling the area, he could swear that this Tiger could fly, so the two randomly bumping into each other was not impossible.
The Tigerkin also mentioned something about not killing monsters anymore?
This made him think, ears perking up, if this is just a concerned citizen, perhaps a non-violent approach would work. Remembering that this form doesn't allow for speech, he made his way to a nearest tree and tore off a piece of bark. Claws turning back to normal he carved out a message in the wood, and showed it to The Tiger.
“I had to hunt, or risk being a danger to the village.”
To which The Tigerkin responded:
“Hate tah break it to ya, beastie. But yer already a danger. Dah people’re goin’ broke ‘n’ hungry without monstahs tah hunt.”
Already a danger huh, as if he didn't hear that a million times, or two million, or actually maybe just a couple of times considering his self-isolation didn't leave many opportunities for interaction.
Would they rather him prey on the villagers? He didn't go through those torturous nights refusing to hunt people just to be told he was already a danger. He had no other choice, so he wrote another message on a new piece of wood.
“Better monsters than villagers. The moon forced me to hunt.”
Seeing The Tigerkin's reaction thankfully eased his blood pressure, as they lowered their palm otherwise ready to launch another blast of lightning. The idea of actually 'talking' it through instead of jumping to each other's throats worked for once, which further reassured him that this Tiger was not just another hunter. They never listened, blinded by their 'bAd MoNsTaH KiLl mOnStAh' attitude, failing to see that there was a competent and intelligent mind controlling the beastly form.
“What’s dat supposed tah mean? Who’er what are ya anyway?”
The Tigerkin asked, their magic stored away implying that they understood that there was no threat, or need to fight, despite the fact that his appearance was certainly worthy of being feared. 10'3 feet of chiseled muscle, claws larger than knives, teeth sharper than swords, and yet, The Tigerkin ceased their aggression, knowing better than to attack blindly.
He didn't take long to write a response, something he wished everyone knew from the start when meeting him.
“A werewolf, turning his curse into a blessing.”
This puzzled the young Tiger for a moment before responding, bringing the hand up to the chin, thinking.
“I dun think anyone has evah seen a werewolf on Crossroads before. Aren’t ya a bit outta place?”
Hearing this made him pretty relieved, glad to hear that there were no other known cases of a werewolf causing trouble, at least to The Tiger's knowledge. Still it was comforting. Curious, he quickly scribbled another message.
“No. And who are you?”
The young Tiger's imposing physique became even more apparent after they puffed out their chest and pointed at themselves with the thumb, as they confidently responded.
“Name’s Ed. Imma detective, tryin’ tah keep tah ecosystem from breakin’ down. People’re getting nervous that the game’s run dry.”
Only now he realized what was happening. He indeed ate so many beings for the forest's ecosystem to take a huge hit, and everyone who lived off of hunting them. He didn't really do much of a favor getting rid of the dangerous monsters did he…
With a heavy sigh, he exposed his claws and sheathed them while starting to slowly walk towards Ed. Careful to move smoothly and show that he was calm, keeping the pieces of bark for messages in the free hand. To his surprise, the brave Detective did the same, confidently walking towards a Werewolf twice as tall as him, the two meeting halfway.
“And I hate tah say it, big guy, but right now all yer huntin’ is causin’ big problems.”
Understanding now, he picked a wrong place to hunt in, kneeling down in an effort to lower himself and reduce the height difference, but still ending up over a head taller, using his index finger claw to carve out another message.
“The cursed hunger compelled my excessive hunt, but my mind is recovering.”
The Detective seemed to take a moment to rethink the situation and gather composure with a few deeper breaths.
“Look, I ain’t here tah hunt ya, er even tah hurt ya. I just need ya to lay off the huntin’ so that the monstah population can recovah. If ya can do dat, we ain’t gotta problem.”
This time, the oversized Werewolf took more time and effort to think through and write out the response. Hoping to explain how rarely such hunger kicked in. Besides, he's already done enough damage to this place.
“I only need to hunt like this once a decade or less, and I’m working on a longer-term fix. I promise to leave, and let this place recover. I’m sorry.”
He watched The Tigerkin look back and forth between him and the writing, hoping that they somehow understood.
“Sound like we gotta deal then. Glad tah have dat all settled, big guy. Remembuh to keep dah ecosystem in mind next time, got it?”
Letting out a deep chuckle of relief, he nodded while lowering himself further, eyes closed, the gesture looked like a promise, perhaps even more genuine than a spoken or written one.
“While yer still here, do ya find if I take that bark you’ve been writin’ on?”
Remembering the mention of being a detective, which meant being hired for a job by someone, he realized that knowledge of his actions spread far further than anticipated, and endangered the isolation. Letting out a low growl as a response, Ed didn't need more convincing.
“Yeah. Had ta ask.”
The growl turned into a snarl, realizing how much unwanted notoriety he had now, angered, striking the ground below their feet with enough strength to shake it a bit, for the briefest of moments his beastier side showed up, but was quickly calmed down, largely thanks to how well the 'conversation' was going so far.
“I don’t want people to know about me.”
“Sorry, man. Ya took out a whole forest’ah monstahs. I gotta tell people wha’ happened an’ how.”
An idea came to write something along the lines of "If I'd kill you, nobody would know about me, so let your life be a proof of me not being a monster", even thinking of an elaborate plan to kidnap The Tiger, but ultimately found it unnecessary and quite counterproductive. Especially that he'd never willingly harm Ed anyway, or any other innocent person, so instead, the message was as follows.
“I’ve never harmed innocent people. I just want to be left alone.”
The Detective let out a chuckle and shook his head. The Werewolf watched in confusion which was clearly visible on his face.
“Ya dun gotta worry ‘bout that. Keep yer nose clean and we dun got a reason tah hassle ya.”
Hearing this was music to his ears, feeling perhaps almost as relieved as when the torturous hunger was over. Smiling, and reaching out to the young Tiger he gently placed his oversized palm on their shoulder, his expression was again more telling than words. A true thank you and appreciation.
Shortly after taking some time to relax, the sun already started to show. The Tigerkin took flight again and soared away, and by the time he'd potentially look back, he'd be long gone. Joyfully jumping through the trees and sprinting around, happy to know that his isolation will remain uninterrupted.
That is, until he realized that even though The Tiger and his people would most likely not come after him, some others who learn about a beast that cleared the whole forest off of monsters could get some ideas…
Ignoring the facts like being peaceful and even friendly to The Tiger, and other proof of him not being a threat, like some people always tended to do…
The anger that built up with such thoughts was enough to make him punch a massive boulder with enough force for it to crumble completely, which was certainly impressive considering the rock was at least twice his own size.
But afterward, clarity came, even if somebody got an idea to disturb his isolation, he'd be long gone by then, far, far away from here, the relief that came from this realization made him think:
"I should punch boulders more often…"
Covering his tracks during the day, he took off into the horizon under the shade of the night. Taking one last look at the beautiful forest where he had to live through some of the worst, and some of the best moments in the last years of his long existence.
The story was made as a collab with Enigma and his Tiger character Edmund, if you are curious about reading his part of the story, you can check it out here
He also helped out a ton with writing this one, extra thanks to him as well x)
The art was done by the wonderful Wolfgangcake
Link to the original submission can be found here
Edmund belongs to Enigma
The Werewolf belongs to me.
The next day the situation would repeat itself. The urges were louder, more powerful, but still nothing the wolf couldn’t manage. It was a common occurrence, but once the night of full moon came, there would be more than just calls and voices. There would be hunger, a physical and unnatural need that if left unchecked, would lead to severe pain, and that was the number one way to lose control and endanger potential villages around, which was also the number one thing he wanted to avoid.
Luckily, these woods were full of large and strong beasts, he’d have plenty of food for that night, perhaps doing a favor to those living near these woods. Nobody liked the threat of a monster randomly coming near one’s house and wreaking havoc, so he thought at least…
As the night came, and the full moon arose, the cursed hunger kicked in. It was time to hunt.
Focusing strongly on not giving into the greedy voices that called for blood, and constantly telling himself it’s his own mindful choice to hunt, he sharpened his senses and rushed through the trees, smelling the first victim nearby, a group of deer. Unleashing his long paralyzing claws and slashing three of them before the others even registered the danger, chasing down and catching the rest was child’s play.
“This is my choice, to sate the hunger, not the cursed calls.”
He thought to himself before slowly beginning to siphon the vital energies of the paralyzed animals, draining all their life and absorbing their bodies into his own, and in the process, trapping their souls within himself too. There wasn't much time for pleasantries, being unable to give the spirits much attention as even after consuming five whole deer the hunger was still peaking, so he just let go of them and pressed on.
Second came one of the larger monsters, easily bigger than himself which was already impressive. Neither knowing nor caring for its name, making the claws spectral again a well-placed slash on the unsuspecting beast’s head put it right to sleep, biting right into its neck and piercing the claws deep in, the paralysis soon spread to its whole body, after which he’d pause again thinking:
“This is my choice, the voices just happened to call at the same time, I’m doing this for myself and to keep people safe, not them”
This was followed by a deep inhale, taking in all what was good from the monster’s body and absorbing it into his own, and before he’d even open his eyes there was nothing but dust left, usually taking this much would come with a great surge of strength, but not tonight, this time it was a mere droplet on a scorching desert, then with exhale, he released the soul and ran off, somehow even more hungry than before starting the hunt.
“Must, stay sane, must… overcome, must… KILL”
After this his memory cut to another moment, likely only a few seconds, losing touch with reality. The beast mind took over briefly. The mental strain that came with forcing himself back into control could only be understood by someone with a similar condition.
Oh how easy would it be to just give in and let the monster do its thing, he’d just wake up next day well-fed with no memory of what happened, only to find a massacred village and an empty forest…
No, the thought of endangering people sickened him. It gave enough motivation to work on himself for so many years and he would not stop now, his need not to become a monster was greater than the hunger, it had to be, he knew he just had to outlast it, survive until dawn, but the body… it demanded flesh!
Moving faster than furious wind he made his way to many other targets, giant beasts or animals, he consumed them all, using the brief moment of clarity during the process of absorption to release the soul safely before the cursed mind tried to devour it too.
“This will end soon, just have to keep up, they will not get the upper hand again, just keep HUNTING”
Minutes became hours, the hunt resembled more of a massacre, as with each minute more and more creatures fell under his claws, only pausing to absorb their bodies and keep going. Then at one point where the struggle was really reaching his limits, a familiar voice of a demon spoke to him…
“You know what we want. You need not suffer. We don’t want you to suffer. Just give us human flesh or consume a soul or two. It will all be over. Animal flesh can only sate so much. We need something more. We need-”
-”TO SHUT UP!”
He interrupted the demon before forcing it out of his mind, they knew very well that he’d never go down this path, not willingly.
What did not help though is for as much The Werewolf wanted to deny it, he also knew that it was true. All it took was a single soul or some human flesh to stop this hunger, those demons never lied, and always kept their word. He learned that through many years of their unwilling relationship, but was it worth it? To completely end one’s life and deny any afterlife just to stop his suffering? Or to end the life of a fellow human being just to sate him this one time?
No, he would endure, he’d have to, for as painful as it all was, a certain thought came, that by experiencing it he was saving an innocent life, one that would otherwise end. This thought allowed him to maintain relative consciousness throughout the night, and after countless beings slain, finally, the hunger would start to fade…
It wasn’t until dawn that he actually recovered his sanity to its fullest, the soothing rays melting away the fury like an ice cube thrown into a campfire, the hunger vanished as well, wondering how much was it really physical, and how much mental.
The whole night blended into a single streak of events that barely stayed in the long-term memory, what was mostly left is the knowing how hard and taxing it was, and despite absorbing so many, he barely gained any strength, as if all that energy went elsewhere, and after a pause, he realized exactly where…
“This night proved to us your strength once again, repeat it two more times and you shall be granted the control you’ve been asking for, you know what to do to ease your struggles.”
Those demons… the thought of having to repeat this torture for two more nights was almost disheartening, but then remembering that with the control they promised he’d finally be able to choose the times of the transformation freely, even partial one, with no risk of going mad in the process, no risk of being spotted in the wrong form at a wrong time, the ability to always be able to shift back and forth would solve it all, just two more nights for a permanent profit, this had to be worth it.
And so, using the daylight to rest his mind, as the dusk came, he pressed on, the moon was no longer full, but the hunger was just as prevalent, and even though it seemed a bit easier this time, the exhaustion from the previous night did not help.
Beast after beast, bear after bear, moose after moose, boar after boar, the forest was becoming emptier than ever before, but there was still plenty around, or at least enough to sate him. Near the end of the night, the hunger was reduced to the point where continuing the hunt was no longer needed. Climbing on top of a the tallest tree awaiting the first sunlight, the cursed thoughts were still calling:
"In this time you could have sated yourself completely"
"You are still hungry, go get a few more before the sun comes"
"Denying your own hunger will not stop you from being a monster"
"You've slain so many, what's a few more"
He didn't even try to argue back, there was no point, nor did he have the mental energy to do so, knowing they were all lies, just letting them all happen without listening. And as the sky was illuminated once more, a moment of clarity and relief came with it.
Finding a thick branch hidden among the leaves, he almost immediately fell asleep from exhaustion, only to be violently woken up by a painful gurgle in his stomach as the moon was already high in the sky. The whole day was not enough to recharge from such effort. In fact, it barely felt like a nap, having no other choice, the hunt continued.
"Just one more night of this torture, just this one time before I can rest"
He thought to himself while smoothly and silently jumping from tree to tree, essentially soaring through the woods towards the next target, striking from above, it was consumed before realizing they were dead.
Kind of interesting to think about it, one moment you are going about your daily business, and suddenly you wake up in the afterlife, with no suffering, fear, or pain in between, just from one moment to another. That's basically what happened to most of his victims throughout those nights.
Such thought coming to his mind during the hunt was a good sign, as it meant there was space for more than just a blind need to consume. Taking in so much power made him stronger after all, not even a fraction of how much would be obtained normally, but the fact that this night was easier could definitely be noticed. The moon was already waning, the curse didn't have as much of a reach, he could do this…
Around halfway through the night, the hunger was already being stated, just a few more beasts, just a little bit longer, almost there…
Then finally, after devouring the last of the pack of wild boars, for the first time 'eating' felt good, and actually brought proper relief. Breathing heavily, taking a moment to enjoy himself and feel the little bit of leftover power from that boar filling his mighty body, remembering how good it felt. This madness could finally be brought to a close, and retire for the night. Even though the urge to hunt was screaming louder than ever, now that he could actually enjoy it, he knew that the best thing he could do is stop right now, acting exactly against the greedy hunger that made him do this in the first place. The thought of having a little revenge on it was motivating enough.
Climbing atop of a tall tree protected by dense leaves, The Lycan managed to get some good sleep. It lasted for over three days and nights straight, which only showed how exhausted his mind was after all this.
Waking up to the moon past the first quarter, being the most well-rested he was in years, there was little resisting just happily sprinting through the woods doing various acrobatics and stunts on his way, ones that would impress even the most agile gymnasts. Then after finally landing on top of a large hill, he let out a deep and melodious howl, not very loud though. There was no need to scream, just express the joy.
Days went by rather peacefully from then on. This forest was nice, lots of places to hide and rewarding prey to hunt, good boulders to lift and train with, feasting on more monsters at night and meditating and working out during the day. It generally was a good time. It wasn't until around two weeks later that the realization came that he did not shift back to his human form at any point this whole time, nor needed to resist the need to do so, only then he realized that the greater control over transformations was already granted.
No longer being constrained by other factors that affected the transformations, at least so he thought.
Having no intent to leave the beloved wolf form he decided to test it first by just staying in it for as long as possible, and enjoy it to the fullest while it lasts.
Then, a certain sound reached his sensible ears, more of those beasts were coming, angry, likely having it out for him for slaying so many of their kind, or maybe just randomly rampaging through chasing after a squirrel, also likely, those monsters hardly betrayed many signs of intelligence.
Ready to face what was coming, a pack of Manticores showed up indeed chasing after a smaller creature, a quiet bird that flew out of reach once it got the chance, spotting each other. A wide grin appeared on his face as the glowing claws and teeth were unleashed once more, The Manticores reacted just as one would expect.
Lunging at The Werewolf, the massive Manticore's roaring confidence faded faster than a flame vanishing within depths of the ocean, as it found its neck trapped within a crushing grasp and lifted into the air as if it was a mere toy, and no amount of struggle came even close to setting it free, or even loosening the grip.
The other monsters must have realized their mistake as they witnessed their fellow pack member's movement halt completely while being covered by a mysterious green glow, then wither into ash moments later. Backing away slightly, some roared out at The Werewolf, who felt the new strength flowing through his immense musculature as the creature's body was absorbed, and the soul released.
Grinning at the fearful Manticores and lunging at the nearest one it the same way the previous one lunged at him, at a speed far too great for it to dodge, The Manticore was left paralyzed before it could let out a squeal, which was followed by him feeling all of the monster's might surging into his own body.
Enjoying the empowerment so much he didn't even notice that the wind above was blowing at an unusual rate, then out of the sudden, a blast of lightning struck him with enough force to knock him to the ground.
The rest of the monsters fled, but the pain that came with the blast knocked his mind out of control for a brief moment, hearing something to the right he'd immediately attack if it wasn't for the temporary paralysis from the electricity.
Only to realize on the way back up that the being responsible for the attack was not a monster, but a Tigerkin. An intelligent person, and likely a monster hunter. This itself was enough to spring his mind back in place, especially after hearing their voice.
“Who’d thunk dat a mutt was the one makin’ all dah monstahs disappear?”
Taking no offense in what was said, the large Werewolf went on to do the same thing he did to any other monster hunter he encountered. Deliver a swift paralyzing but harmless blow that would give more than enough time to escape too far to ever be traced. This Tiger however, was no ordinary man, electricity sparkling once more, The Lupine could tell on his way towards them that another blast was about to come.
Using his unnatural speed and reading the body language of the Tigerkin he managed to dodge the lightning bolt, but to his surprise, The Tiger also dodged his paralyzing slash, using the wind itself in conjunction with their strong physique to move out of reach.
The astonishment from seeing this made him take longer than usual to deliver a follow-up strike, landing which would be guaranteed, if it wasn't for a sudden hurricane-like force of the wind that pushed him away a good several meters.
“Sorry, beastie. Can’t let ya kill too many more monstahs.”
As he recovered, he realized that even when mere inches away from The Tigerkin, he could smell no silver or wolfsbane, the two things every monster hunter always had, as they were useful against more than just werewolves. This combined with how young The Tiger was, and that they were using magic instead of weapons, made him think twice about who they really were.
Perhaps it was just one of the locals patrolling the area, he could swear that this Tiger could fly, so the two randomly bumping into each other was not impossible.
The Tigerkin also mentioned something about not killing monsters anymore?
This made him think, ears perking up, if this is just a concerned citizen, perhaps a non-violent approach would work. Remembering that this form doesn't allow for speech, he made his way to a nearest tree and tore off a piece of bark. Claws turning back to normal he carved out a message in the wood, and showed it to The Tiger.
“I had to hunt, or risk being a danger to the village.”
To which The Tigerkin responded:
“Hate tah break it to ya, beastie. But yer already a danger. Dah people’re goin’ broke ‘n’ hungry without monstahs tah hunt.”
Already a danger huh, as if he didn't hear that a million times, or two million, or actually maybe just a couple of times considering his self-isolation didn't leave many opportunities for interaction.
Would they rather him prey on the villagers? He didn't go through those torturous nights refusing to hunt people just to be told he was already a danger. He had no other choice, so he wrote another message on a new piece of wood.
“Better monsters than villagers. The moon forced me to hunt.”
Seeing The Tigerkin's reaction thankfully eased his blood pressure, as they lowered their palm otherwise ready to launch another blast of lightning. The idea of actually 'talking' it through instead of jumping to each other's throats worked for once, which further reassured him that this Tiger was not just another hunter. They never listened, blinded by their 'bAd MoNsTaH KiLl mOnStAh' attitude, failing to see that there was a competent and intelligent mind controlling the beastly form.
“What’s dat supposed tah mean? Who’er what are ya anyway?”
The Tigerkin asked, their magic stored away implying that they understood that there was no threat, or need to fight, despite the fact that his appearance was certainly worthy of being feared. 10'3 feet of chiseled muscle, claws larger than knives, teeth sharper than swords, and yet, The Tigerkin ceased their aggression, knowing better than to attack blindly.
He didn't take long to write a response, something he wished everyone knew from the start when meeting him.
“A werewolf, turning his curse into a blessing.”
This puzzled the young Tiger for a moment before responding, bringing the hand up to the chin, thinking.
“I dun think anyone has evah seen a werewolf on Crossroads before. Aren’t ya a bit outta place?”
Hearing this made him pretty relieved, glad to hear that there were no other known cases of a werewolf causing trouble, at least to The Tiger's knowledge. Still it was comforting. Curious, he quickly scribbled another message.
“No. And who are you?”
The young Tiger's imposing physique became even more apparent after they puffed out their chest and pointed at themselves with the thumb, as they confidently responded.
“Name’s Ed. Imma detective, tryin’ tah keep tah ecosystem from breakin’ down. People’re getting nervous that the game’s run dry.”
Only now he realized what was happening. He indeed ate so many beings for the forest's ecosystem to take a huge hit, and everyone who lived off of hunting them. He didn't really do much of a favor getting rid of the dangerous monsters did he…
With a heavy sigh, he exposed his claws and sheathed them while starting to slowly walk towards Ed. Careful to move smoothly and show that he was calm, keeping the pieces of bark for messages in the free hand. To his surprise, the brave Detective did the same, confidently walking towards a Werewolf twice as tall as him, the two meeting halfway.
“And I hate tah say it, big guy, but right now all yer huntin’ is causin’ big problems.”
Understanding now, he picked a wrong place to hunt in, kneeling down in an effort to lower himself and reduce the height difference, but still ending up over a head taller, using his index finger claw to carve out another message.
“The cursed hunger compelled my excessive hunt, but my mind is recovering.”
The Detective seemed to take a moment to rethink the situation and gather composure with a few deeper breaths.
“Look, I ain’t here tah hunt ya, er even tah hurt ya. I just need ya to lay off the huntin’ so that the monstah population can recovah. If ya can do dat, we ain’t gotta problem.”
This time, the oversized Werewolf took more time and effort to think through and write out the response. Hoping to explain how rarely such hunger kicked in. Besides, he's already done enough damage to this place.
“I only need to hunt like this once a decade or less, and I’m working on a longer-term fix. I promise to leave, and let this place recover. I’m sorry.”
He watched The Tigerkin look back and forth between him and the writing, hoping that they somehow understood.
“Sound like we gotta deal then. Glad tah have dat all settled, big guy. Remembuh to keep dah ecosystem in mind next time, got it?”
Letting out a deep chuckle of relief, he nodded while lowering himself further, eyes closed, the gesture looked like a promise, perhaps even more genuine than a spoken or written one.
“While yer still here, do ya find if I take that bark you’ve been writin’ on?”
Remembering the mention of being a detective, which meant being hired for a job by someone, he realized that knowledge of his actions spread far further than anticipated, and endangered the isolation. Letting out a low growl as a response, Ed didn't need more convincing.
“Yeah. Had ta ask.”
The growl turned into a snarl, realizing how much unwanted notoriety he had now, angered, striking the ground below their feet with enough strength to shake it a bit, for the briefest of moments his beastier side showed up, but was quickly calmed down, largely thanks to how well the 'conversation' was going so far.
“I don’t want people to know about me.”
“Sorry, man. Ya took out a whole forest’ah monstahs. I gotta tell people wha’ happened an’ how.”
An idea came to write something along the lines of "If I'd kill you, nobody would know about me, so let your life be a proof of me not being a monster", even thinking of an elaborate plan to kidnap The Tiger, but ultimately found it unnecessary and quite counterproductive. Especially that he'd never willingly harm Ed anyway, or any other innocent person, so instead, the message was as follows.
“I’ve never harmed innocent people. I just want to be left alone.”
The Detective let out a chuckle and shook his head. The Werewolf watched in confusion which was clearly visible on his face.
“Ya dun gotta worry ‘bout that. Keep yer nose clean and we dun got a reason tah hassle ya.”
Hearing this was music to his ears, feeling perhaps almost as relieved as when the torturous hunger was over. Smiling, and reaching out to the young Tiger he gently placed his oversized palm on their shoulder, his expression was again more telling than words. A true thank you and appreciation.
Shortly after taking some time to relax, the sun already started to show. The Tigerkin took flight again and soared away, and by the time he'd potentially look back, he'd be long gone. Joyfully jumping through the trees and sprinting around, happy to know that his isolation will remain uninterrupted.
That is, until he realized that even though The Tiger and his people would most likely not come after him, some others who learn about a beast that cleared the whole forest off of monsters could get some ideas…
Ignoring the facts like being peaceful and even friendly to The Tiger, and other proof of him not being a threat, like some people always tended to do…
The anger that built up with such thoughts was enough to make him punch a massive boulder with enough force for it to crumble completely, which was certainly impressive considering the rock was at least twice his own size.
But afterward, clarity came, even if somebody got an idea to disturb his isolation, he'd be long gone by then, far, far away from here, the relief that came from this realization made him think:
"I should punch boulders more often…"
Covering his tracks during the day, he took off into the horizon under the shade of the night. Taking one last look at the beautiful forest where he had to live through some of the worst, and some of the best moments in the last years of his long existence.
The story was made as a collab with Enigma and his Tiger character Edmund, if you are curious about reading his part of the story, you can check it out here
He also helped out a ton with writing this one, extra thanks to him as well x)
The art was done by the wonderful Wolfgangcake
Link to the original submission can be found here
Edmund belongs to Enigma
The Werewolf belongs to me.
Category Artwork (Digital) / Muscle
Species Unspecified / Any
Gender Male
Size 1280 x 960px
Glad to hear you now have control of your transformations
It's certainly handy not to be forced out of the favored form because of an outside factor, the full moon is still a nuisance though...
I admit this story was touching and satisfying, I'm glad to know that the werewolf is already in control and that his sanity is active
How is this story of this werewolf, seriously it's interesting, I already like him very much nwn
How is this story of this werewolf, seriously it's interesting, I already like him very much nwn
Super happy to hear this! x)
Certainly after so many years, he's earned more control than he realizes, but perhaps it's for the better, as in the case of something like Lycanthropy one can never be too cautious.
Certainly after so many years, he's earned more control than he realizes, but perhaps it's for the better, as in the case of something like Lycanthropy one can never be too cautious.
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