55. There Is No "I" In Team

Marcus

I wasn’t longing for a good fight and running to higher ground or not… Didn’t really matter to me. Beast was beast. And I had other plans. I climbed the first highest maple tree I could find. We had been getting the logs ourselves for Charlene’s house. Knowing my vegetation had just come in handy. I sat high up in the tree, waiting.

I heard the “Thud… Thud… Thud… Thud” coming closer, louder until it stopped. Looking down, I saw the thing eyeing its surroundings.

Slowly I took the vile out of my inside jacket pocket and made the same bird-like sound I heard it make while running.

Hearing the “whirring,” it tilted its head. I clicked my tongue in a bat-like sound. The long neck twisted, turning up towards me… I had dropped the vile… it was already falling onto its face.

The glass smashed on its beak, breaking.

“Poof!” The powder was released into the air.

“Thud!”

I smirked. “My work here is done….”

The smell the thing gave off in the cages at the house earlier was one thing I wanted Juliet to experience. Even if I needed to cheat. I was going to give her… Chicken… I chuckled.

Walking over, a spear came into view. I paused. The smell wasn’t the same as that afternoon. My eye caught the swordlike fingers on the one hand. A communication device in its ear.

“What the…”

Bending down on my haunches, I turned it around. The beady grey eyes tilted back in its head. Armor ran up almost to its chin. There was a device on its wrist. It didn’t seem like a watch. Pressing on the screen yielded no result. I waved my hand over it. A menu with an unknown language came up. Projected into the sky as a hologram.

“Not beasts to eat….” Other species of Aliens.

I rolled my eyes… Did the watchers think it was funny?

I took the device out of its ear and pushed it into my jacket pocket.

Dropping its head produced a “thunk.” Mmmm, no brains… I shot up onto my feet. Louis! They must be here for him. I cussed, running.

I stopped hearing a weird sound coming up to the cages moments later.

“Buzzing?”

Above me, in the air, a cluster was forming. A few small silver round balls were hovering. Jumping up onto the cages and then into the swarm, I grabbed one. It tried to evade, but I was too quick. A drone? I pressed it hard in the palm of my hand, thinking it would shatter. It didn’t even budge. A burning smell made me relax my hold. My skin was searing in some places.

Impenetrable armor and self-defense on even their tech. I pushed the thing into my jacket pocket, zipping it in. It was moving around a bit. Relented after a few moments.

“Thud… Thud”

“Not again!” I got into the cage quickly, watching it run past. I took out another vile from my jacket.

“WHIRRRR!!!”

It skidded to a stop. These things are really… Not smart. Can’t they even distinguish between the voices of their own people?

“Not that you can call this thing a “people.” A voice said from on top of the cage. My heart skipped a beat hearing Louis. Relief.

“Where is Chris?”

“Behind it flanking.”

“What do you mean?”

“Chris has been holding out on us. He is very much in control of himself.”

I smirked. “That’s my boy.”

The bird came running up towards us. Bypassing me inside the cage and jumping up towards Louis.

“Oh, did I say… They are here… to… I quote,” he tried to speak as he dodges the attacks. “Hired to kill me. And then… that thing wished me good luck…Your father seems to think me a danger.”

“If he saw you now, he would be laughing. Look at you trying to fight that guy. You really need to start training with me.”

“Hey! How do you know this isn’t a girl?”

I think for a second what would be the worst insult… “So, what you’re saying is a girl is getting the upper hand over you.” Louis laughed.

“Deep breath! And don’t inhale… You might die.” I take a baseball pitch stance and aim. I hit the bird in the face, and the same thing happened. Louis stood watching the thing drop dead at his feet.

***

Louis

“What is it with you and drugging things?”

“I don’t like fighting… I’m not a fighter.” Stunned, I stared at Marcus.

“What’s with the training? Being a general and the… Reading? The cages…” He gestured with his head to the top of the cage and jumped up. I grabbed his hand and pulled him the last bit.

We both stood staring at the alien. “My father is the reason.”

“Why did you let him touch her…?”

He sighed. “Because if I cross that line, I will kill him. I… won’t stop.” He didn’t finish his sentence because he didn’t have to. Since coming back from the embassy, Marcus and I spent most of our time together. He didn’t have to say anything. I knew what he was feeling and thinking. Most of the time, he was frustrated. I felt for him. We needed to get to know each other if we were going to be together forever.

“They do die easily, don’t they? Probably why they haven't invaded earth yet….” Marcus said and bent down, inspecting every detail.

“We all die easily. Rather susceptible to drugs. There is still one left… Where is Chris?” Marcus pointed to the right. High up into a tree. Chris was standing on a branch that could actually carry his weight, swaying in the wind. Marcus didn’t even have to lift his head. I’m astounded about his depth of awareness of what is going on around him.

Marcus took out a small silver ball from his jacket and fiddled with it.

Others came flying into the area. Created a swarm of drones hovering above us. They twirled into a funnel, becoming smaller and smaller until they dropped one by one into the ball he held in his hand.

“How clever are you anyway?”

“Let’s see how they get around now?”

Chris jumped out of the tree. “I’m going hunting. Are you guys going to stand around… Chatting the night away?” His voice had changed. It was deep and gruff. Marcus followed him, but I didn’t feel like it. I wanted to go back to the house to tell Juliet what had happened.

Splitting up into two directions. I saw Chris follow Marcus’s lead as they disappeared over the hill. I was just about to leave when I heard noises behind me. As quiet as I could, I went into one of the cages and waited.

The noise grew louder. I heard the familiar “whirring” that they made. It was the last ‘thing’ alive…. “Thud… Thud… Clang” overhead. The cage rattled.

The thing was impatiently waiting. Walking back and forth.

I froze when I saw the familiar white clothes of a watcher coming down from the sky, landing across from him. They shook hands.

“We would have had him if Marcus and the Riphath weren’t here… You have to separate them, or else we can’t do anything.”

“I understand.” The voice that answered blindsided me. Wide-eyed, I stared up at the figure. If we couldn’t trust the watchers, we were more than useless. In the end, Qadir was pulling their strings as well.

The two men disappeared. Teleporting out.

***

“He played with us! We went full circle.” Marcus bellowed as he and Chris came running up to the cages again. I walked out, still stunned at what I had heard.

As soon as Chris saw me, he asked, “What’s wrong?”

“A watcher and the last alien shook hands, and they disappeared….”

“Which one?” I wanted to speak, but I didn’t know if I should say.

“Michael… It was Michael.”

I couldn’t read Chris’s thoughts on a full moon. He rubbed his hands over his face and through his hair as he changed back to human form.

Marcus and I did as well.

“I’m going home… Who killed them?” Chris asked.

I pointed at Marcus. He had sat down on the cage’s edge, feet dangling down.

“What did you use?”

“Vials… Michael gave me….” Dumbfounded. It was quiet all around for a moment. “Same stuff he used that day at the embassy to kill that other slimy thing we ate.”

“What?” Chris asked and turned to me. “Are you a hundred percent sure you saw Michael?”

“It’s kinda hard missing the six foot three guy covered in tats and the voice… I don’t know what the hell is going on. But are we going to have to carry these things back? Where is our escort now,” I complained

“Oh yeah, one of these birds sliced open Warden’s neck. I don’t know if he made it.”

“Sheesh, Chris, what is going on with you? First, you don’t tell us you’re in control on full moons. Now it seems like you don’t even care about Warden?”

“They just tried to kill you, Louis!” He yelled. “Not me… Not Marcus… Don’t tell me I don’t care….” His answer made me feel loved. I walked over and hugged him… Picking him up… We were starting to become a family even without Juliet there. We were getting in deep. This was real.

“What else did they say?”

“That they will have to separate us….” Chris swore, sitting down on his haunches.

“We can’t trust anyone,” Marcus said, at last, jumping down. “But I do trust the two of you… The problem is that we are monitored… And the only way we can stop that is if we sign that stupid paper… Have no more watchers to interfere.”

I scoffed. “No! Marcus, you can’t be that naive. With you here, we will never be free. We should go back to the compound and be close to the enemy. We will always have this Riphath’s watcher around. And as long as Juliet is pregnant, Michael will be around.”

“What is a Riphath?”

“Oh, that’s you. That was what they called you.”

“So not hybrid? Not a mix between werewolf and vampire, but….”

“Riphath… Yeah.”

***

Charlene

That night with the guys on their hunt. The three of us watched a movie and spent some time with little Miné. The house building had halted for the time being. I was still living with Juliet. I believed that the guys would finish it. The fact that it had gone so quickly was already insane.

“So, tell us what’s going on? How are things with Benjamin?” Cindy asked me.

“Yeah… I don’t really know… We don’t spend enough time together to really get to know each other.”

“But how do you feel? Will you invite him to move in?” I shook my head. Juliet and I shared a look.

“What is going on?” Cindy’s eyes darted from me to her.

“I… asked her if there isn’t any way that I could change into something else?”

“What do you mean?” Cindy asked in a kind voice.

“It feels like… You are all going to disappear on me… What if everyone goes back to their home planets?”

“Oh, Charlene… The only way is to become an infected creature… And that isn’t something I would wish on anyone.”

“What about the process that suspends the watchers…?” Cindy sighed because she didn’t know.

“What does it entail becoming an infected vampire mom?”

“Well, we would need to be on the compound….” Thinking about the compound made me uncomfortable. I could see Juliet didn’t like the idea.

“And then you would live forever, and we will die. And who would be your alien compliant? It’s all too situational.”

“Can I ask another question, Mrs. Farrow…” She nodded, eating a cherry tomato off the plate on the coffee table.

“What happens when a werewolf infects a human?” Her eyes fell to the floor. She was thinking about something.

“That is something you don’t want to see… Ever… It’s completely banned.”

“Have you seen it, mom? Have you seen a person infected by a werewolf?” She nodded, biting nervously on her bottom lip.

“When you saved that baby werewolf… There was a reason those glass jars were filled with only werewolf parts… The rabid creature that emerges after that… can never return to a human face. Or walk on two legs. Their eyes turn bright red and never change… They eat and eat and don’t stop. Babies, animals, anything that crosses their path. Juliet picked up Miné and held her close to her breast.

“Charlene, I don’t think you should move out until we have found the baby killer….” I bobbed my head vigorously, suddenly scared to death of just having a baby that was alive for the taking.

“How do we know he won’t come for Miné?” Cindy sat back in her chair.

“I think he will… He needs the werewolf toxin to make whatever Juliet is turning into.” We both gasped softly. I went to sit next to Juliet, holding her and my baby tightly.

“Louis’s father was attacked by the last one.” Our heads jerked up.

“What?” Juliet exclaimed. “Eaten?”

“No, just fighting it. Protecting him.” Cindy’s expression was somber, staring up at the roof.

“We chose him for you… We called your uncle… Asked him if he knew of anyone that could possibly take Marcus’s place… That wasn’t there… We didn’t know that you would let him cover you. All we wanted was for you to have someone that would never leave your side.” A tear ran down Juliet’s cheek.

“Louis went through that. How old was he?”

“He was around twenty… In the seventeen hundred, the legends of werewolves started among humans. The werewolves let their people live anywhere they wanted on earth. His father was here in France when the first ones came out here in the alps.”

“His mother?”

“She took him to Uncle Samuel… died a few days later because she was branded.” Juliet wiped away her tears in that jerky movement of hers.

***

“Louis wasn’t there to track Chris… was he?” Cindy chuckled lightly, shaking her head.

“Oh, he was there to track… But not Chris… He told us he followed you for a month before he came to the house so that we could introduce you to him… Of course, we met with him in secret to get to know him ourselves.”

“He was already in love with me that night on our first hunt?” Cindy sat up laughing. “He was head over heels. Almost frantic when we couldn’t find you.”

“I’m jealous, Juliet… The love you share with these three men is different but true in every way… Ben and I are just not connecting like that.”

“The way Ben looks at you, though.” Cindy agreed, her head bobbing. She pursed her lips slightly with a smirk at the corner of her mouth.

I didn’t expect them to pick up on something. “You guys think he has genuine feelings for me? Not just werewolf harem feelings?”

“I think Ben is chomping at the bit.” Juliet continued.

Cindy put her hand on Juliet’s forearm. “That was what I thought… Right, he just wants this year to end. He will completely change… I think he is frustrated and jealous, and it’s getting to him. It’s not in a werewolf’s nature to not be all about family….”

Juliet agreed. “Maybe you should start talking to him about the possibility of you going with him to their planet… I don’t think he will leave you here if Qadir takes over. The werewolves won’t stay.”

“Isn’t getting infected and being able to protect myself a better idea than… Hoping for the politics of the planets to save me just because I had a baby?”

“Yeah… I suppose.”

“If you and I train really hard. Every day. Learn all there is about war and combat. We might even stand a chance.” That piqued Juliet’s interest. She got up, little Miné going along. Being soothed in jerky motions but loving it… Then she changed into a little furry beast, and my breath caught. I could still not get over the fact that my child was a… werewolf.

“It really isn’t like in the movies, is it…? You can’t just bite me, and I’ll be happy. The legends must have some kind of origin…Can you tell us the story of you and Liam… What he did and how you guys got together… You’re older than him… How is it that you lived so long without being sold off?”

“You haven’t even told me, mom. If you tell us some of the history maybe it will help us for the future. With Sita threatening to expose everything. Qadir and his army… What should we be focusing on?”

***

Cindy

Juliet has asked me a thousand times to tell her my story. She wasn’t ready… But at that moment… Being pregnant and all that might happen made it seem like a good time. I didn’t want her to be influenced by my past. The mother planet or any cultural influences. It had been more difficult raising her here than it would have been back home. I sighed.

“Our world is called, En-gannim.” Sitting back, I closed my eyes, allowing myself to go back there.

“If China is where the King lives on our planet… I lived in Rio La Quiaca, Argentina… The further one got from the Capital, the easier it was to breathe.”

I missed my family. I missed my mother. One of the reasons I never told Juliet is that I didn’t want to think about going back.

“It was just not a continent. It was an Island off the coast. Our seas aren’t blue and deep and full of life. The liquid in our oceans is a pinkish hue and deadly to vampires. There was no point in crossing oceans. There is still no point in conquering the waters like here on earth… So, I grew up so sheltered. My father…” tears started pooling in my eyes, and my chin quivered.

“Was a wonderful man… And rich… Or his parents were. They bought him a wife, and he was so happy when she arrived. He let her be for the longest time. He never expected anything from her. But my mother is such a caring person that she could not have asked for a better husband… The women didn’t wear full veils on the island like on the compound… My father wanted to let my mother’s affection grow for him.”

“And that’s where feminism comes from… One man that treated a woman like a person.” Juliet said. “No wonder I am the way I am.”

I smiled. If she only knew what was coming.

“Oh no, Julie… You’re exactly like your daddy. Passionate. Full of drive and zeal for life, love and… lust… But yeah, they obviously fell in love, and they had me… The one thing he did force her to do was read and read and read. When I was born, he did the same with me… I grew up in a bubble…. You and I grew up the same, but we’re completely different. I didn’t want to grow up, and I wanted to stay with my parents forever. Being sold was never even discussed until… I was one hundred and something. I was hidden… I never had to go to a conditioning camp….”

I smiled at the memory of seeing Liam for the first time. So young and eager, and he could never stand still.

“Your father came to deliver something through the teleporter we had. I was working the station that day, and when he saw me well….”

Juliet and Charlene giggled at the idea of Liam and me falling in love.

“I didn’t like him at first.” Their smiles fell. “But your father was head over heels and pursued me for a long time.” Half smiles returned.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t know who he was until he was a part of the family. My father was never a radical that wanted to change society but Liam… He was passionate… The first time Samuel came to discuss with my dad about letting Liam pursue me was the turning point on the island. My grandfather quickly got swept up in the politics of the situation.”

“They wanted to break down the Monarchy.”

I nodded. “Samuel was part of the court. And being part of the court exempt you of execution but not….”

“Exile, to a prison planet,” Juliet added.

“The king loved his firstborn, and when he died, something snapped in him. The world quickly became worse. The radicles were hunted down until the last one.”

“Our king’s name is Ahasuerus… Will you believe me when I say that no one is branded on En-gannim? I didn’t even know about it until your father told me… Well, anyway, when Ahasuerus heard any rumors of what was going on, he quickly came to put an end to it. There was a fight, and we lost.”

“What happened to all the women of the island. How did you end up here, mom?”

That was the sad part of the story. My mother was still alive… Somewhere. My father and grandfather were in some prison. Our island was now deserted, barren, and everything destroyed. I didn’t think they should know more than that.

Luckily there was a distraction…

The door leading to the garage opened, and Liam and Carl came through laughing and talking. They came over and joined us. Liam took little Miné from his daughter. They fought a lot between the two of them about who would hold her. I smiled. None of us could wait to have another little baby there.

“How did Benjamin and Mateo do?”

“Both won... They ate and are sleeping it off.”

“Was Qadir there?” Juliet asked.

“He’s always there… He wouldn’t miss a fight.”

“I would think that he would know when to steer clear. What if he comes here to see Marcus?” Juliet randomly remarked. The two girls glanced at each other.

There was a knock at the front door. Juliet giggled nervously. “He’s here,” she whispered menacingly.

Charlene took Miné and let Liam get the door. We all stood waiting in the Lounge, wondering who it could be...

“Carl!” Liam called. “Come see this.”

***