2 Consequences

“Put me down. My legs aren’t broken!” I cradled my arm against me as each jarring motion of her steps sent small stabs of pain shooting through me.

“Humans are so...fragile.” The woman carrying me did not bother to look at me but kept her eyes straight ahead.

Howling filled the air, and there was something eerie and deadly in its call. “Please, put me down,” I practically whispered, the howling causing a chill to course through me.

“We need to get you to safety quickly. You are not fit to move at the speed we need.” The woman seemed to be ignoring the howls that filled the air.

“Fine, then at least tell me what that’s all about.”

The woman sighed, before casting me a furtive glance. “One of our pack mates is about to die.” Her tone was somber, and something like pity stirred in my chest. Increasing her speed, the woman’s strides elongated as she was nearing a sprint. There was not much difference in the tone and shape of our bodies, for the most part. Hers was just slightly more toned, and she stood a little taller. I think that is what made it more awkward by having her carry me.

The glyphs and symbols painted on my skin illuminated as the light of the moon danced over it. With one finger, I traced the patterns of them as I tried to understand their ways. “Why?”

The woman gave me a brief sneer before she huffed. “Because you are an idiot, and ignorant of our ways, and Kallan will defend you. And the idiot who challenged him will die.”

If I had a free hand, I would have popped it over my mouth, but I didn’t dare let my bad arm loose. “That’s barbaric,” I started.

“No, that is our way. We fight for truth and honor, and we challenge weakness. You are a weakness.”

“But whose truth?” Maybe I should hold my tongue, but why start now? What is the worst she could do? Maybe I really should hold my tongue.

The woman scoffed as we approached a large building before us. It was too dark to really see many of the details on the outside, but lights flowed from several of the windows on the side of the house we were facing.

There were not too many buildings this large left standing in most of the cities humans dared to travel to. Most cities were left in rubble, what was left of the human population in those areas dwelled in what remained of the smaller ones. At one time, they tried to rebuild, but the act itself brought unwanted attention, and the city was besieged once more. So, our lives became little more than scavengers, and those that went underground seemed to be the only ones that lived any kind of normal life.

A man at the front of the building was standing with the door pulled open. He bowed his head towards us and remained in such a position until we entered and then promptly closed the door behind us. Only then did the woman think to continue.

“If it was not for us lycans there would be none of you humans left,” she practically hissed the word at me. “Do you think the other supernaturals care if you live or die?” She grumbled and fought against a growl. “They would have annihilated the lot of you, even those damned vamps. They no longer have need of you for food, and they, like most of us, see you as a scourge on our planet. And here you disparage us about our culture...your ignorance prevents you from seeing the truth as it really is.”

My lips thinned, trying to prevent the harsh words that I wanted to fling back at her. The only thing that prevented them was knowing that there was some truth to her words. So, I sat stiffly, cradling my arm, as she shoved one of the doors upstairs open with her foot.

Practically throwing me on the bed, she huffed. Howls filled the air, and her head lolled back as she uttered something in a language foreign to me. When she brought her head forward, she gave me a brief glance, unable to hide the blame and sadness that flashed in them. “It is over. You should prepare.”

With those words spoken, she left me alone. Just what was it I should prepare for?

The day had worn on me, and I curled up on my good side and shut my eyes tight. Part of me felt guilt at being the reason one of their own was killed, but there was still a part that figured that was one less lycan we would have to be afraid of in the world. One less lycan did not help my current circumstance.

When the door burst open, I could not muster the energy to sit upright. If one of them wanted to kill me, they could...and easily.

The heavy strides of boots against wooden floors echoed in the room, though they were not heading towards me. I breathed a sigh of relief before I let my eyes open and slide through the darkness to the shadow of the powerful man that lurked there.

A rounded bench seat was crafted into a circular bay window that dominated the side of the room across from the entrance. He allowed himself to practically drop on the bench there, and I held my breath to see if it would even be able to hold the weight of this man. His eyes held mine as he leaned forward, his forearms leaning against his knees as his hands dangled between them.

Even in the dark, it was clear that he was covered in blood. It permeated the air and nearly made me expel the contents of my stomach as the coppery iron undertones flooded my nostrils. Even his beautiful crown of hair was marred with the offensive, congealed substance.

I wish I was as immune to the vivid blue orbs that watched me carefully. A small quiver started in my gut, but I chalked it up to the nauseating fragrance that filled the room.

“Mina para, you must learn our ways, and your place among us.” There was a sadness that lingered in his eyes, and a grim determination. “I no more want to take the life of a lycan that I called friend than I want to exact a customary consequence for your behavior.” With those words spoken, he stood. He moved across the bedroom to a door on the far side of the room.

“And just what consequences would that be,” I asked without lifting my head from the bed, holding my breath as I waited for his answer.

“Death,” he said simply. He switched a light on in the room just beyond where I sat to illuminate a large bathroom. “His blood will not sully yours. When I return, we will determine how much you understand our ways.”

“You mean like a pop quiz?” It came out weary when I meant for it to be snarky. There just was not enough energy to argue or even move.

As he spoke, he entered the bathroom. “No, mina para. I will take that which is mine.” The door closed as he spoke the last word, not allowing for any comment or argument.