"Why have you brought me here!?" Aaron demands of his captor, looking around the cabin that is bare of any furniture. There is only a single door in the wall, no windows
"You were bitten," the stocky man replies calmly." And tonight is a full moon."
"A rabid dog! A rabid dog bit me and I was treated!" Aaron shouts back.
The man laughs heartily. "That was no rabid dog, boy," he says after his laughter subsides. "That... that was a werewolf. And tonight will be your first transformation."
"You're crazy, man! Aaron shouts as he charges at the man, only to be caught by the arm and flung across the room.
Aaron crashes hard into the wall, the breath knocked out of his lungs, and crumples to the floor, gasping for air.
"It would be wise for you to not try that again, boy," states the man flatly. "Ah, where are my manners," he says lightheartedly, "my name is Chase. And it is my duty to see you through your transformation."
Still trying to catch his breath, Aaron unsteadily tries to get to his feet, his blood running hot.
"You feel it? Don't you?"
"You're crazy," Aaron mutters.
"We'll see about that," the man retorts laughing as he takes his shirt off. "Unless you have a spare set of clothes, you might want start stripping. It won't be long now."
"No! Let me out of here!" Aaron shouts. But the man pays no attention to him.
"All will be clear soon enough if you complete the transformation."
"You're crazy! There's no such thing as werewolves!" Aaron yells, his blood now on fire. "You're sick, man! Just let me go!"
The man laughs. His laugh becoming deeper, booming even.
Grabbing his chest, his heart starts racing out of control, his blood thumping in his ears, sweat starts beading on his skin.
His voice deep and booming, "there's no heart attack, boy" Chase chuckles.
Aaron can barely hear what the man is saying, the thumping in his ears overpowering the sounds of his voice. His abdomen spasms, his guts contorting painfully, his skin begins to darken. Aaron screams as a fire builds inside his body, burning his skin, fear and dread swelling up inside. Falling to the ground, his chest cracks and pops, expanding becoming more pronounced, his shirt ripping under the pressure of his growing chest. His vertebrae breaking apart becoming larger. The muscles in his torso becoming denser, larger. The hair on his arms and legs starts to thicken, starts to spread slowly over his body.
There is nothing else. No one else. Just pain. Just torment just the never ending fire burning through his bones, his muscles his skin. No other thought exists in his head. Only the pain.
The bones in his legs break apart stretching, thickening, his muscles becoming more powerful, his pants tearing apart at the seams. Every bone in his feet and hands fracturing, breaking unevenly, reforming into bigger ectremities, his shoes tear in half. A sudden violent blow sends his head snapping back as his jaw breaks apart, his teeth start to contort, twist, reshape into fangs.
"You're almost there, boy." Aaron hears Chase state, the blood no longer thumping as hard in his ears.
The bones in his arms start to crack, a ripple going through his arms as it becomes more muscular, longer, larger. First one arm, than the other deforming, then transforming into larger, muscular appendages. His senses start to return as the fire inside him settles down, the pain subsiding.
Jumping to his feet, Aaron's gaze locks onto a bipedal beast standing just feet away.
"Wait, boy!" The beast snarls.
A familiarity with its voice.... Chase.... That thing.. that's Chase
A growl escapes Aaron's mouth, deep and guttural as he stares at Chase.
"Slowly" he snarls. "Focus on your words." Chase states.
Aaron growls again, impatiently raising his arm to point at Chase, stopping to stare at it. He looks at what is now a dark skinned, clawed hand, and an arm covered in dark brown fur. But he is not frightened in the slightest. This all feels somehow.... right.
Examining his body, he pulls of his tattered shirt and torn pants which seem much to small for him, and tosses them aside. His entire body is covered in a thick, brown fur. His skin is darker as well. Feeling his fur covered face, his head feels larger than normal, his jaw more squared, his teeth fang like. His nose shorter and pointier, his ears elongated into soft points.
"How do you feel, boy?" Chase asks.
He felt good. Powerful free. Aaron clenches his fists, flexes his muscular arms, and then relaxes them. "Feels.... good," Aaron manages to huskily say.
"Come," Chase says as he walks over the door and shoves it open.
Stepping outside, Aaron takes in a long, deep breath, filling his lungs with fresh air, and detecting numerous scents that he's never smelled before. Looking around he can see everything vividly despite it being night time. It is as if he is experiencing life for the first time. An urge to run, to feel the wind caress his skin.
And before he knew what he was doing he was off. His powerful legs deftly carrying him through the woods. Inhaling, exhaling, step after step, Aaron ran. A sense of freedom overcoming him. Pivoting on his powerful paws he smoothly cuts tight turns without missing a step, the trees just a blur to him.
He can sense Chase nearby although he can not see him. Sniffing, he detects Chase's scent, but it was an old scent. Not fresh. Jumping Aaron grabs onto a tree and with his powerful arms and legs, then jumps higher onto the tree. Looking around the woods stretch further than he can see in every direction, but Chase is no where to be seen.
"You will learn, boy" Chase states firmly, in a low guttural voice, perched a couple yards above Aaron.
Aaron, caught off guard by, bounces to another tree, then rebounds to the ground, Chase landing close to him.
Chase's body contorts, his bones cracking and snapping, his fur receding and falling off. Within seconds he is no longer a beast, but a man standing naked in front of him.
"You will learn, boy" Chase begins.
"Not boy," Aaron snarls. "Aaron."
Chuckling, "Aaron it is," Chase begins "it is much easier to speak in this form given our vocal chords, our wolf's vocal chords, aren't meant for communication in this fashion. In time you will learn to master your new senses, and transform at will. The full moon will trigger your transformations until then, and yes, it will become easier and less painful over time. This land." Chase indicates the surrounding area, "is our home. We will provide training for you while you adjust to your new life. Tonight is your's. Our borders are marked, you would be wise to stay within them."
With that, Chase transforms back into a dark fur colored, bipedal beast, and runs off, leaving Aaron alone. But not truly alone for there are new scents in the air. Similar scents to Chase but different. Perhaps other werewolf's? Have they come out of hiding now? Had Chase given them a signal that he missed? A chorus of howling ripples through the air from all around him, filling him with a sense of pride, power, belonging. He takes in a long deep breath, and howls.
Author's Note :
Life is about to change for Aaron. And not for the better. Bitten by what he thought was a rabid dog several weeks ago, he has come to learn that werewolves really do exist. And his first change......
