Darkling Wade - Instincts
Here we go!
I hope this comes across like I intended, and I’m not just reading it KNOWING how it should sound. Because it seemed really good in my head.
~~~~~
It had been four months since Wade became a Dark.
Four months of adjusting to: taking care of scales, not stepping on his own tail, working with three fingers instead of five, and preventing himself from scratching anything and everything with his claws. Not to mention the whole ‘see better at night so the slightest light source could blind him’ thing.
There were advantages. His sense of smell was much better now, which brought with it a few surprising benefits.
He could detect bad food much faster. As someone who used to mostly live off whatever he felt like tossing in a saucepan, this would have come in handy on more than a few occasions. Best by dates just never occurred to him a lot of the time, meaning he spent his fair share of nights curled on the bathroom floor.
And he’d always scoffed at the whole ‘scent of danger’ thing, but now he found it somewhat accurate. Sometimes he’d get a whiff of . . . something, and his senses would go on alert until he could determine what had set him off. Sometimes it was something small, like a new cat stalking through the trees near the house, but sometimes it was much more urgent, like the frayed wires in the light fixture over the sink. That had been disaster waiting to happen.
He also noticed each member of his family had a distinctive scent, too—he couldn’t always put a specific descriptor to it, but each brought to mind a certain feeling reminiscent of his childhood.
Callie was his Pap’s workshop, where he spent summers learning carpentry at his grandfather’s knee. Silver was his treehouse, his secret oasis when his father was too drunk and too loud. And Eclipse was the creek he loved to splash in on summer afternoons.
He couldn’t pinpoint why they brought these particular images to mind. They just did. It was weird.
And this wasn’t even touching on his new instincts. He seemed to devolve into more . . . animalistic behaviors without noticing. Hissing when threatened. Growling when angry. Dropping into a crouched position when scared or curious. That one, in particular, was especially embarrassing.
But there’d been a new instinctive behavior that was particularly unnerving. At least he thought it was instincts. He’d zone out at strange times, and often awoke to find himself standing in the kitchen, staring out the side door in the middle of the night. He would have no recollection of how he got there, or what he’d been doing, but he felt . . . uneasy. Like his adrenaline—did Darks even have adrenaline??--had been pumping, preparing him for fight or flight.
Again. Unnerving.
Eclipse hadn’t been much help, when asked about it.
“I was created with all the best parts of Black Arms,” he’d said with a shrug, scrambled eggs tumbling out of his mouth. “I’m not like any of the other types. So, you’re not either. I dunno why you’re doing that. Maybe it’ll happen to me when I get older!”
Wade had sighed at that, while Callie had reminded her younger son that food works better when it’s in your mouth, not your lap.
At first these nighttime trips only happened every now and then, but lately they’ve been increasing in frequency. It bothered Wade, and he felt his chest tighten every night as the sun went down. Tonight it was especially bad, and he massaged his chest plate in a vain effort to loosen the knot. He paced the bedroom floor, claws digging into the carpeting.
“Go have a beer,” Callie suggested, brushing out her long red hair. “I know it doesn’t really hit you like it used to, but maybe it’ll help?”
Wade sighed, flopping onto his belly on the bed. “Doesn’t taste the same.”
“Warm milk?”
“Gives me gas.”
“Ugh, that’s definitely out, then.” She twisted her mouth to the side, chewing her cheek as she thought. “How about just a nice hot shower? Those always help me relax.”
He groaned in response. Hot showers were nice, but it just didn’t appeal to him tonight.
“Well then be anxious and miserable,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I don’t hear you coming up with anything.”
Wade rolled his head to the side and shot her an annoyed look, barely suppressing the urge to hiss at her. He’d done that exactly once after he’d changed. Callie didn’t take too kindly to it, and he’d been much more careful since then.
“Don’t give me that look,” she said, wrinkling her nose at him. She put her brush in the bathroom and walked back toward the bed. “I’d help you if I could, but you’re not giving me much to go on. I can’t fix ‘feeling off’. You gotta toss me a bone, Bear.”
A frustrated grunt this time, and Wade rolled over to his back. “I don’t know! I don’t know how to explain it! I just feel . . . off. Like . . . antsy. Like there’s something I’m supposed to be doing, but don’t know what. Like that.”
Callie nodded, sliding onto the bed. She tucked her legs beneath her and leaned over him, an arm extended to keep her upright. He lifted his head automatically to lay on her bent knee, gazing up at her with his gold-on-black eyes.
“Okay, let’s take this one step at a time,” she said, and his tail moved to lazily curl around her wrist. “I don’t think there’s anything on your honey-do list, right?” He shook his head. “And the boys would be talking non-stop about it if you promised them something. No one’s birthdays are coming up. I’m not aware of any get-togethers with the Wachowskis.” She furrowed her brow as she thought. “Hmmm.”
He watched as she thought, a small smile curling his lips. Her eyes were unfocused, staring at the bedspread beneath them, her mouth still twisted as she worked her cheek. He never told her, but he’d always thought it cute when she did that.
“Well,” she said, her face clearing as she looked down at him. “Barring anything I don’t know about, maybe this is some kinda sixth sense thing.”
He furrowed his brow ridge. “You mean like . . . like ghosts?”
She gave him a look. “What? No. Well. I mean, I guess that could be an explanation, but I’m thinking like how sometimes dogs and cats can sense bad weather or earthquakes or something.”
“You think we’re gonna have an earthquake. In Montana.”
“I’m spitballing here, Wade,” she said, casting him a cocked eyebrow. “Interpreting hidden Dark instincts isn’t exactly my expertise.”
She made to move, but his tail tightened around her wrist, keeping her in place. “I know, I know, I’m sorry!” he said, gripping the arm tented over him. “I just . . .” He sighed. “This feeling is getting worse and I don’t know what it is. It’s freaking me out.”
“I know, hon,” she said, leaning forward to place a soft kiss on his forehead. “I wish I could do more for you, I really do. But this may just be something you’re gonna have to figure out on your own.”
Wade blew out a long sigh. “Great.”
~X~X~X~
Later that night, the Dark that used to be human sat up in bed. Its eyes reflected green in the low light, and it looked to its left, where another form lay. It sniffed the hair, receiving a small sound in return as the being rolled over. A word formed in the Dark’s mind—MATE—and it gave a small huff through its nose before slipping out of bed.
The Dark stalked through the house, sniffing under doors, identifying two other beings with the word HATCHLINGS—although that didn’t seem quite right but it got the idea across—and uttering a small grunt in greeting at the two animals at the bottom of the stairs (the resident cats were used to these nightly journeys, and barely batted an eye), before moving toward the glass kitchen door. It stopped there, pushing itself up to stand on two feet.
And it watched.
Even through the barrier it could smell . . . something. Danger. Intruder. THREAT.
The smell had come and gone, grown in strength and then faded for weeks. Tonight it was strongest. The Dark smelled blood. Fear.
With a growl, it threw itself into the glass, shattering the door and sprinting off in pursuit of the thing that drew this instinct to the fore. To meet and destroy the THREAT.
~X~X~X~
A loud shattering sound shocked Callie out of a deep sleep, and she looked to her right to find Wade missing. She flung the covers back, slipping into her house shoes as she made for the hall.
Doors opened, and Silver and Eclipse poked their heads out of their rooms.
“Wha?” Silver said, rubbing his eyes with a fist. His current favorite plush, Applejack from My Little Pony, was tucked into his elbow.
Eclipse yawned. “Whawazzat?” The neck of his favorite plush, a googly-eyed ostrich dog toy he named Dorothy for whatever reason, hung from his fist.
“I don’t know,” Callie said, and pointed at the boys. “Stay here.”
She hurried downstairs and found her kitchen door shattered. Fear gripped her for a moment—did someone break in??--when she noticed something green shining on some of the jagged glass. A closer inspection confirmed her guess.
It was the blood of a Dark.
Wade’s nighttime ritual had just added a new complication.
“Great,” she muttered to herself.
Callie gathered up her cats and headed upstairs. Looks like they’d have to stay in the bedroom until she could cover this door.
And she had a wayward lizard boyfriend to find before he got himself into too much trouble.
~X~X~X~
“I’m so sorry to bother you this late, guys,” Callie said as she lead her sleepy boys into the Wachowski house. Silver was sleeping against her chest, while Eclipse hung off her arm. “I just didn’t know what else to do, and--”
“Cal, don’t worry about it,” Maddie said, taking Silver from the redhead and cuddling the boy to her. “I’ll keep your boys safe.”
“Thank you.” Callie tucked Eclipse onto the couch, just as Tom came downstairs, shrugging on his jacket.
“I checked with the station and they said Carl had just called in about weird noises in the woods around his house,” the sheriff said, as he headed toward the door.
Callie rolled her head back. “Ugh! Of course he’d go over to Carl’s!” She uttered an annoyed grunt. “He’s gonna get his fool head blown off.”
“I called Carl myself and told him that it may be Wade and to not shoot until we got there,” Tom said, pulling his shoes on. “Although you know Carl.”
“Yeah, I know Carl,” Callie said, heading toward the door.
A few pairs of footsteps came down the stairs, one pair heavy, the other fast. Sonic and Knuckles hurried into the room, woken by the unusual action down there.
“What’s going on?” Sonic asked with a yawn. He looked like he was still half asleep.
“Nothing, go back to bed,” Maddie said, shooing her boys back upstairs.
“Why are the MacPherson’s here?” Knuckles asked, looking much more awake than his brother. “Has something happened?”
“Boyfriend troubles,” Tom said, giving Maddie a kiss as he and Callie headed for the front door.
“Has Wade done something?” the echidna asked, his fists clenched. “Did he harm you?”
“No,” Callie said, one foot out the door. “He’s run off and I’m worried he’ll get hurt if we don’t find him.”
“Ah. Then I will come with you.”
“No, stay here,” she said, pulling the door shut. Knuckles zipped over and grabbed it before it could close completely, and Callie uttered a frustrated grunt. “Knux, we really gotta go!”
“Wade is a Black Arms now. You may need protection,” the boy said, bringing a fist to his chest. “I will come.”
“Hey, I wanna come too!” Sonic said, zipping over.
“No!” Callie snapped, just as Tom poked his head back in.
“We going or what?”
The redhead uttered another frustrated grunt before turning back to the boys. “Fine. Knuckles, you come, Sonic, you stay here and protect Silver and Eclipse. I don’t know what’s going through Wade’s mind right now, and if he comes here looking for them, I need someone to keep him busy until we get back. Got it?”
The hedgehog snapped to attention and threw her a two fingered salute. “Yes ma’am!”
“Great, let’s go!”
~X~X~X~
Callie, Tom, and Knuckles pulled onto the gravel road leading to Carl’s trailer at a little after 2am. The librarian and echidna watched out the windows, trying to catch sight of anything that may indicate Wade’s location. Only dark trees stared back at them.
As Tom pulled the pickup in near the battered trailer Carl called home, the trio found the homeowner standing right outside his door with a shotgun in his hand. Two large spotlights were hung off the front and back of the mobile home, trained into the dark woods to their right.
“Sheriff,” Carl nodded in greeting as the three approached him. “Miz Callie. Knuckles.”
“Carl, I thought I told you no shooting,” Tom said, stopping with his arms crossed.
The older man shook his head. “Ain’t let loose a single shell, Sheriff. But that don’t mean I should stand around defenseless. Somethin’s out there.” He nodded toward the trees.
“Did you see anything?” Callie asked, and she tried to keep the fear out of her voice. It kind of worked.
Carl shook his head. “No ma’am. Didn’t see any sign o’ yer man. But I been hearin’ a bunch of sounds.”
“What kind of sounds?”
Carl pursed his lips in thought. “Shufflin’, like somethin’ big lumberin’ through the trees. Growlin’. An’ heard something like a deer get taken down.”
Tom and Callie exchanged a glance, before they turned toward the trees. There were no sounds coming now, but that just added to the eerie feeling. There should have at least been normal nighttime animal sounds—owls, and crickets and the like. But there was nothing.
That was never a good sign.
“Well,” Carl said, looking between the sheriff and librarian. “You gotta plan?”
The two exchanged another glance.
“I guess I should go in and look for him,” Callie said, and Tom and Knuckles both turned to her in alarm.
“Are you nuts?” the sheriff asked.
“I will not allow it!” Knuckles added.
Callie blinked, and one eyebrow shot up. “Excuse me?” She turned to Knuckles. “Allow it? Who are you, my father?” Turned to Tom. “Wade won’t hurt me. I’m sure of it. I’ll go in, calm him down, and then we can all go back home and be a little less sleep deprived when the alarms go off in about four hours.”
“Look,” Tom said, moving closer to her. “I get the whole power of love angle, and admit I don’t really understand this Dark thing with Wade, but come on. It’s pitch black in there, and it might not be Wade anyway. Could be a bear or rabid coyote or something. You shouldn’t go in there.”
“Well, what’s your plan?” she asked, hands on hips. “Sit here and wait until morning? See if he comes to his senses and wanders out on his own? What are we doing here if we aren’t going to actually look for him?”
“We will look,” Tom said, holding his hands up slightly as a calming gesture. “But running off into the woods willy-nilly isn’t exactly a plan. Best case scenario you’ll get lost, worst case scenario you’ll get hurt. We need to be careful about this so everyone goes home in one piece.”
Callie uttered a sharp sigh and crossed her arms. She hated to admit it, but Tom had a point. “All right. So what do we--”
“Quiet,” Knuckles said, his voice low. He looked toward the trees, quills bristling in alarm. “We are being watched.”
The echidna’s stance widened, and he positioned himself between the trees and Callie. Tom also moved closer to the librarian, pulling his service pistol from his holster. Carl cocked his shotgun, pointing the business end toward the dark forest.
The silence dragged on.
“Okay, big guy,” Tom said, his voice quiet. “Can you tell what’s out there?”
Knuckles lowered his head slightly, his fists tightening. “Something big.”
Movement to the right, and a pair of eyes flashed in the darkness. Green reflective light. Like a cat.
Or a Dark.
“Wade?” Callie called, and the eyes disappeared, moving quickly, deeper into the trees. “Wade!”
She was moving before she even realized it, running after him in the dark. Voices called after her, but she ignored them. If she could get to Wade, she could talk him down, and they could go home. Bing, bang, boom.
Which would have worked, had it not been pitch black, and had she not run into a tree. With her face.
“Ow,” she whined, touching her battered nose. Her fingers came away wet and sticky and she blew a sigh through her lips. “Perfect.” At least she hadn’t shattered her glasses. Small miracles.
“Callie!” a voice called out to her immediate left and she yelped, jerking away. Recognition clicked into place and she stopped, brow furrowed.
“Knuckles?”
A light clicked on and the echidna stood with a small flashlight, his face full of worry. “Are you--” He gasped. “You are injured!”
She waved a hand. “It probably looks worse than it is,” she said, pushing herself to her feet. “What are you doing here?”
“Father sent me in to bring you back,” he said, reaching out to take her hand. “Come. I will get you to safety.”
“Knux, I’m fine,” she said, pulling her hand back. Or tried to, at least. The kid was strong, and came up to nearly her shoulders. He had her hand in an iron grip. “Seriously, kiddo, it’s just a little bloody nose.”
He pulled his lips tight. “You’re coming where it is safe and I can protect you.” He narrowed his eyes. “Do not make me carry you.”
Her eyebrow shot up. “Is that a threat?”
“A promise. Now come.”
“Knuckles Echidna Wachowski, let go of my hand right now,” she said, digging her feet in to give a good tug. His grip didn’t budge. “Leggo echidna!”
“You are in danger!” he snarled back. “I just want to keep you safe!”
“The only danger here is you losing your status as ‘Favorite Wachowski Boy’! Lemme go!”
He gasped. “That is hurtful.”
“Oh, like it would ever happen, Knux,” Callie sighed. “Look, you don’t have to--”
“Quiet!”
He suddenly released her and moved closer, his eyes scanning the trees around them. His quills bristled again, and Callie could feel the hair on the nape of her neck doing the same.
Something was here. Growling at them.
Callie stood straighter, straining her eyes to see through the black trees. The only light they had to see by was the little flashlight Knuckles had dropped to the ground behind them. The echidna circled her, keeping her at his back while he tried to determine the source of the danger.
The growling grew louder, and suddenly something leapt out of the trees to their right. It hit Knuckles, knocking him aside like a ragdoll. The boy uttered a surprised grunt when he hit a tree, and growled as he regained his footing.
“Not bad,” he said, lips curled in a sneer. “But that will be the only blow you land.”
His opponent moved through the darkness, trying to circle around for another attack on the boy, but Knuckles was prepared this time and caught it with a solid punch first. The creature flew back, splintering trees as it collided with them from the force of the echidna’s blow.
Growling and hissing, the figure returned upright, and circled for another attack.
Knuckles moved back toward Callie, red sparks flashing across his quills and fists.
“Stay clear,” he told her, his now glowing eyes never leaving the moving target. “I do not wish to hurt you by accident.”
Now that there was a little more light to see by, Callie squinted at the oncoming enemy. It moved strangely, in a kind of ape-like movement, kind of on all fours, but not quite. It was coming straight for them, and there was a flash of green eye reflection. Callie gasped.
“STOP!” she yelled, moving in front of Knuckles. “It’s Wade!” The echidna looked at her in confusion, and she turned toward the still-approaching form. “Wade, stop! It’s me! It’s Callie!”
The Dark pivoted, digging its claws into the soft ground to stop its forward momentum. It stopped a few feet from Callie, breathing hard and dripping green blood from one of its slit nostrils. Its eyes flicked back and forth between her and Knuckles, and every time the Dark regarded the echidna, it bared its teeth.
“What is he doing? Why did he attack?” the boy asked, still hunched and ready for a fight.
Callie shook her head, watching Wade. “I dunno.”
When she’d shaken her head, the Dark’s eyes stared beneath her nose. She reached up and touched there, forgetting about the blood. On a hunch, she reached her bloody fingers out, and the Dark sniffed them before turning and growling at Knuckles. Understanding bloomed and Callie turned to the echidna.
“He thinks you hurt me.”
Knuckles’ eyes went wide. “I would never!”
“I know that, but Wade’s . . . not himself right now. I think he’s protecting me. He thinks you’re a threat.”
“Why would he come all the way out here if he wanted to protect you?”
Callie sighed. “I don’t know, Knux. I’m just guessing. But he only attacked when you grabbed me. It seems like a logical conclusion.”
The echidna seemed to consider this, before relaxing his stance. “Very well. What do we do?”
“I think you should head back to Carl’s. I’ll talk Wade down and we’ll be out as soon as we can.”
Knuckles raised an eyebrow. “You expect me to leave you here. Alone.”
“Knuckles. Please. I’ll be fine.”
The look on Knuckles’ face was clear as crystal. He really didn’t want to leave. But he finally gave her a little nod, before turning and walking back toward Carl’s trailer. After a few seconds, Callie turned to the Dark, who stood staring at her.
“Okay, the big, bad echidna’s gone,” she said, keeping her voice calm and soft. “It’s just you and me. Okay?” The Dark gave no sign it heard or understood. “Wade?”
Nothing. It stood still, its eyes flicking between hers and the blood drying beneath her nose. After a few seconds, it moved closer, sniffing.
“I’m okay, Wade, really. Just a side effect of my habit of running blindly into various situations, that’s all.”
The Dark didn’t respond, but continued to sniff her, rounding her to stand where Knuckles had stood a minute before. She turned to keep him facing him.
“Ookay,” she said, her eyes going to the blood on its muzzle. “That looks bad. Does it hurt?”
She reached forward, and the Dark blinked, unsure. Callie froze. After a second she crept her hand forward, delicately touching its hurt muzzle, and wiping away the blood. The Dark huffed through its nose, uttering a small grunt in the back of its throat at her touch.
“Where are you, Wade?” she said, her voice soft. “You better still be in there, or I’m gonna be pissed. Come back to me, Bear.”
The Dark suddenly curled its lip up in a snarl, a growl rumbling deep in its throat. Callie pulled her hand back.
“Bear?”
The Dark’s eyes flicked over her shoulder, and the growl grew in volume.
No. Wait.
A second growl had joined in.
Slowly, like a dream, like a nightmare, Callie turned. A massive dark shape lumbered behind her, and it hauled itself to its hind legs, uttering a deep-throated roar.
“Bear,” she whispered, all conscious thought consumed by sheer terror.
~X~X~X~
The Dark watched as the small THREAT retreated, leaving MATE behind. She turned, and sounds came from her mouth the Dark didn’t understand. The tone was familiar, though. Soothing. Safe. It moved forward to check her for additional injury. Nothing serious. That was good.
MATE shouldn’t be here. MATE should be at the dwelling, with the HATCHLINGS. It didn’t smell the HATCHLINGS here, so at least they were likely safe. But there was another THREAT nearby. A larger one. More dangerous. MATE needed to go. To be safe.
She made some more noises before reaching toward its face, and it blinked. An attack? No. She didn’t smell aggressive. It allowed her to continue, and when her hand touched its muzzle, a warmth spread where her fingers brushed. Its heart beat faster, and a contented grunt escaped its throat. MATE was gentle. Soft. The Dark was very fond of her.
A stench suddenly hit its nostrils, and it snarled. The THREAT it had been smelling for weeks was here. The THREAT that was dangerous. MATE held great fear for the THREAT. The Dark would kill the THREAT, so MATE could be safe.
The Dark moved between MATE and the THREAT, lip curled and growling the whole while. The THREAT reared up, making itself taller and more massive, but the Dark wasn’t impressed. It was about to launch itself at the THREAT, when another scent reached its sensitive nose.
Fear. MATE was afraid.
The Dark acted quickly. It turned and grabbed MATE and teleported with her back to the bright area, where the other HUMANS were. She had been there before. She wasn’t afraid then. She would be safe.
They appeared in a flash of light, and the Dark gently laid MATE on the ground. It ignored the noises from the other HUMANS, but the small THREAT was here too. No matter. There was a larger THREAT that needed tending.
The Dark sprinted back into the trees, using its nose to lead it back to the THREAT.
Without pause, the Dark launched itself, latching onto the THREAT’S back, slashing, biting, and clawing. The THREAT roared in response, twisting and slashing with its own claws to try and shake the Dark loose. It got a single slash onto the Dark’s leg, and the Dark roared in pain and anger.
The THREAT tossed the Dark aside, roaring in apparent victory.
Rage boiled inside the Dark, and it felt a surge of power flow through its body. Muscles tightened, and it felt a great swelling, stretching, growing. In a split second, it no longer had to look up at the THREAT. The Dark was an equal size.
A sneer crossed the Dark’s face that could have been mistaken for a grin. The THREAT stood no chance now.
The Monster Dark launched itself at the THREAT, roaring in its great fury.
~X~X~X~
Callie stood frozen, staring at this massive, huge, unbelievably gigantic bear. Her mouth went dry, and her heart hammered in her chest.
Everyone was afraid of something, and the librarian was no exception. She was positively, completely, and unwaveringly terrified of bears. They were big, they were strong, they were deadly. And she would have been very happy to go her entire life without seeing one face-to-face.
Looked like her “never seen a bear in real life before” streak had come to an end.
The massive thing roared, pulling itself to its hind legs and taking a step closer. Wade moved in front of her, growling in response.
She thought of her boys, and wished she’d hugged them before leaving the Wachowski’s, and told them she loved them. She was sure Tom and Maddie would take good care of them for her.
She’d just had time to wonder if the bear would start eating her with her face when Wade suddenly turned. He curled his arms tightly around her, and she felt the stomach churning sensation of teleporting. Suddenly she was out of the dark trees, and back in the brightly lit side yard of Carl’s trailer. She blinked rapidly, and found Wade beside her, giving her a concerned look before turning toward the others.
Tom, Knuckles, and Carl rushed toward her, and Wade spared another look back before sprinting back into the trees.
“No!” she cried, trying to regain her feet. “Wade, don’t!”
“What happened?” Tom asked, kneeling next to her. “Are you okay?”
“Did he harm you?” Knuckles asked, looking for all the world like he was about to rush back into the trees after Wade.
“I’m fine, there’s a bear in there!” she said, letting Tom help her back to her feet. “A big one. Huge one.”
As if to confirm, loud roaring and thrashing sounds floated out to them, and Callie plunged both hands into her hair.
“Oh my God,” she hissed. “He’s gonna get ripped to shreds.”
“Why did he come all the way out here to fight a freaking bear??” Tom cried.
“I don’t know I don’t know I don’t know! If he survives I’ll ask him.” It seemed to occur to her what she said and she grimaced. “Oh God.”
“I will assist him,” Knuckles said, and started toward the trees when both Tom and Callie grabbed an arm.
“No you won’t!” they cried in unison.
“But I--”
That’s as far as the boy got when a loud roar erupted from the dark trees, and then all went silent.
The three humans and young echidna stood in the yard, staring into the darkness. All they could do was wait.
~X~X~X~
The THREAT put up more of a fight than the Dark expected. Stronger, too. But no matter. This enhanced form would be more than enough to end things quickly.
The Monster Dark drove into the THREAT with a massive shoulder, pushing it into the nearby trees. The creature roared, swiping at the Dark with a large paw, and catching the Black Arms on its side. Green blood dripped to the forest floor.
The Dark retreated, circling around for another go. The THREAT roared, running straight for the Dark before falling on it, biting and clawing. The Dark held the massive paws away, and rolled back, lifting its legs and shoving its sharp foot claws into the creature’s belly, kicking and slashing. The THREAT gave a pained roar, pushing off to retreat and regroup.
The smell of blood was thick in the air, and the Dark huffed through its nose to clear the stench.
The THREAT growled again, but kept its distance. Its energy quickly waning, the Dark launched its final attack, and leapt at the THREAT, bringing its claws across its throat in one swift motion.
The THREAT opened its mouth, but no sound came out. Its head dropped, and the body slumped to the ground seconds later.
The Dark opened its mouth, voicing a loud roar of victory. The THREAT was gone.
Mission complete, the Dark turned and hobbled back toward the light area. It held a hand against its side, the slashes it received from the THREAT already clotting.
It moved slowly, its body shrinking, returning to normal. Its mind was beginning to cloud. All it could think was to get to MATE. MATE was safe. MATE would care for . . . him. His feet dragged through the forest floor, leg pounding with each step. Everything was sore.
Wade stepped through the trees, blinking in the bright spotlights of Carl’s yard. He just had time to register the shocked faces before him, before Callie hit him at a full run, locking her arms around him and crying his name. Then he knew nothing, as he passed out.
~X~X~X~
Wade Whipple, former human, opened his eyes. He lay on the couch, staring up at the ceiling in the house he shared with Callie.
Sounds came to him, and he recognized Silver and Eclipse shouting at each other in the backyard. He heard the squeak of the swings on their playset, and made a quick mental note to oil those before too long.
Water ran in the sink, and there was soft humming. He turned his head and immediately regretted it. Pain shot up his neck and he groaned. The water turned off, and footsteps came his way.
“Well, look who’s finally awake,” Callie said with a smile. She settled herself on the edge of the couch by his hip, facing him. “Welcome back, Sleeping Beauty.”
Wade furrowed his brow ridge and opened his mouth to speak. A harsh croak came out, and he cleared his throat. His mouth felt like he’d been sucking on old socks.
“Oop, hang on a sec,” the redhead said, before rushing into the kitchen. The tap ran again, and she returned with a glass of water. “Bottom’s up.”
Wade drank it quickly, surprised at how thirsty he was. Once the glass was empty, he handed it back and wiped his muzzle with the back of a hand. “Thanks.”
“Ah, and he speaks, too. How do you feel?”
“Tired.” A pause. “Beat up. What happened?”
“You don’t remember?”
He shook his head.
“None of it?”
Another shake.
“Well, my darling, you took down the largest grizzly Montana has ever seen.”
Wade’s stomach clenched. “I did?”
“You did,” Callie said, nodding. “You had one of your . . . episodes, and crashed through the kitchen door in the middle of the night to hunt the thing down. You were in rough shape after. Tom and Knuckles helped get you back here, and you’ve been unconscious for two days.” She crossed her arms, casting him a cocked eyebrow. “Now, care to tell me why you had a sudden urge to go bear hunting at one in the morning?”
He went quiet. If he really focused, he could remember bits and pieces of what happened. Dark trees. He thinks he and Knuckles may have . . . fought? But he didn’t have any memories of the bear itself. Just Callie. And an urge to . . .
“Protect,” he muttered.
“What?”
He blinked, looking back at her. “I . . . I was protecting you. I think.”
She nodded. “Yeah, I had that theory, too. But why would you go all the way to Carl’s to fight some monster of a bear to protect me? I was only out there because I was chasing after you.”
Wade sat up a little, wincing at his sore muscles. He remembered talking about that feeling, that new instinct. He remembered, vaguely, standing at the kitchen door. He remembered smelling something, and then a flash of realization hit him.
“You’re afraid of bears. I guess . . . that one was too close for comfort, and I wanted to get rid of it, so you wouldn’t be afraid.”
She sat staring at him for a long moment, her brows furrowed. “You could have been killed.”
He didn’t respond. It wasn’t like he had full control over himself. The instincts took over. He gave a helpless shrug.
“No, don’t shrug at me,” she said, and she sounded angry. No. Scared? “Don’t you dare shrug that off, Wade Whipple. You crashed through the door in the middle of the night to run off and fight a freaking grizzly the size of a bus, all for some convoluted idea of protecting me. That’s not a shruggable thing. Don’t do that.”
Wade pulled his shoulders up, this time in shame. “Sorry.”
She closed her eyes, and dropped her forehead into a hand with a tired sigh. After a long moment, she looked back up at him, her hand flipping her braid around to tug on it.
“I know it wasn’t your choice to run off like that,” she said, her voice soft. “I know instincts can override rational thought. I’m reminded of that every time you and Eclipse get into a hissing contest with that stray cat we see every now and then. But Wade . . . this was really scary. I thought . . .” She pulled her lips tight. “I thought I was gonna lose you.”
Wade sat up straighter, ignoring his protesting muscles, and reached for her hand. “I . . . I’m sorry. I’ll try to . . . ignore it or something next time.”
“No,” she said, but squeezed his hand. “You can’t ignore instincts. I . . .” She uttered a soft laugh. “I don’t even know why I’m talking about this. I just . . .” She paused, and a look passed over her face he didn’t often see. “You really scared me.”
Fear. She was really afraid. Had he scared her? Was she worried he would hurt her while in these . . . blackouts?
“Cal,” he said, sandwiching her hand between his. “I . . . you know I’d never hurt you.”
“No, Wade,” she said, placing her other hand on top of his. “I wasn’t scared of you, I was scared for you. You were a mess when you stumbled out of those trees. I honestly don’t know how you survived.”
A memory flashed then. Rage. Power. Growing.
Then it was gone.
He gave her a crooked smile. “Maybe I’m tougher than we thought?”
A look passed over her face then, like a cloud passing in front of the sun. Then it was gone, and her usual confident, somewhat snarky look was back.
“Well, I hope so,” she said, and he thought her voice sounded a little too nonchalant. A little too light. “Because you took down a monster of a bear. Oh, and if you’re gonna be doing this kinda stuff all the time, I don’t want to chase you down in the middle of the night again. Try to schedule these little excursions between regular business hours, okay?”
She dropped a little wink and made to leave, but Wade wouldn’t let go of her hands. She dropped back down to the couch, a look of mild surprise on her face.
“I’m sorry,” he said, his voice soft. He gave her hands a squeeze, his tail snaking out to wrap around her ankle. “I’m really sorry I scared you. I . . . I don’t know what happened, but I don’t want to see that look on your face anymore. I’m sorry. I’ll . . . I’ll try harder to control it.”
Callie looked at him for a few seconds more, before a smile appeared. A real one this time. “No one said being in a relationship with a Dark would be easy,” she said with a shrug. “Gotta take the bad times with the good, right? The occasional instinct fueled middle-of-the-night chase just keeps things interesting, yeah?”
He searched her face for a long moment, trying to determine if she was being genuine. Sometimes it was hard to tell with her. She had gotten really good at faking ‘being fine’ over her lifetime.
“Really?” he finally asked, eyes slightly narrowed. It was always better to ask, as he hoped she wouldn’t lie to him. “This is ‘Honest Cal’, and not ‘I’m Fine Cal’?”
Another smile, and she nodded. “Honest Cal. I don’t know how many more of these instincts will crop up, but . . .” She sighed. “I’ll be here to help you through them. If I can. We’ll see if we can’t try to . . . I dunno, hone your ability to identify them before they go all sleepwalker mode on you. Or something.”
Wade’s mouth pulled into another crooked smile. “You really wanna stay with me? Really?”
She rolled her eyes. “Honestly, Wade. If I can put up with those nasty sausages you love so stinkin’ much, I can deal with some random instinct that may make you go a little feral now and then.”
He smiled, and reached forward to pull her into a hug. “You’re the best, you know that?”
“Yeah, I know that,” she said, wrapping her arms around him. She heaved another sigh. “You keep things interesting Wade Whipple. I’ll give you that.”
“You love it. Because you love me. Right?”
“Some days, against my better judgment.” She pulled back, a smile on her lips. “But yes.” She cupped his muzzle and pulled him to her, planting a kiss on his forehead. “But if you ever scare me like you did the other night, I’ll skin you myself and make a couch out of you. Get it?”
“Got it.”
“Good.” Callie stood, heading toward the kitchen. “Hungry?”
“God, yes.” Wade pushed himself off the couch, hobbling after her. He was still pretty sore. “I’m so hungry, I could eat a bear.”
She had been pulling a pot of chili from the oven, and now slammed it onto the kitchen island. She looked unamused.
“I guess you could say, I have a bear of an appetite.”
A single eyebrow raised. “I’d think long and hard about the next words out of your mouth, Whipple.”
Wade pulled his lips tight. “I love you?”
She narrowed her eyes.
“A lot?”
Without breaking eye contact, she opened a nearby drawer and pulled out a serving spoon.
“You’ve narrowly avoided disaster, Dark. Grab a bowl and come fill your belly.”
Wade flashed her a fangy grin, and moved around the kitchen island to plant a kiss on her neck, before she batted him away with a little smile. He chuckled as he pulled down a bowl, and set to work on demolishing as much of that chili as she’d let him.
Being a Dark was sometimes scary. But with Callie by his side, Wade was sure he could deal with whatever this new body had in store.
~~~
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