The soft patter on raindrops on the green, grassy plains that stretched out to the horizons in front of him had no calming effect on Ray's own tumultuous train of thought. It hadn't been long since that fateful night, yet, he was doing all he could in his mind to forget the events that transpired back then, however, the bandages on his forearm, and the other things that had happened throughout the night made sure that he couldn't forget that night, not for a long time. The skies overhead were overcast and dark, and the low light falling on the expanse below only replicated how Ray remembered that night, dark and blurry.

He'd accidentally sparred with the behemoth known as Hikaru Nakamura earlier that day, and had been absolutely overwhelmed by the stronger mage's abilities and fighting skills, and even though Ray prided himself on his own, they didn't hold half a candle to those of his senior. Ray had managed to hold his own, for a while, but he was fairly certain that that was due to Hikaru holding back his punches. Hikaru had commended Ray, and had left, which left Ray with a sense of elation yet a sense of defeat, as he'd barely been able to keep up with the other members of the Rune Knights. However, before he could've begun wallowing in self-pity, it had started raining, and he'd begun running towards shelter, his bare feet barely gripping on to the now wet mud and grass.

He'd managed to cover a bit of distance, but, due to heavier rain and the fact that his feet were slipping everywhere in the mud, he'd chosen to take refuge from the elements and had entered, sopping wet, into the first cave-like structure with a overhang that he had seen. It was pitch dark inside, with only a little amount of light coming in through the open entrance, which prohibited Ray from managing to see anything past the first few meters of the cave. He'd cursed aloud, and had decided to sit down just near the entrance of the cave, waiting for the weather to become a bit lenient so that he could report back to his seniors at headquarters.

He hadn't felt the presence of the beast, nor had he heard it until it's growl reverberated through the entire cave. Ray had turned to find himself staring at red eyes, not very unlike his own, menacing and filled with malice, directed right towards him. Ray had been frozen in fear while the beast walked forth, staring at the bipedal silhouette of a vaguely humanoid creature walking towards him. Once the light had reached the beast, it had been evident that this was a wolfish creature, and it was out for blood. Ray had launched off, away from the beast just as it had lunged, but it was much faster, and had managed to grab and bite Ray's right forearm. The pain had been unbearable, and had caused Ray to release a torrent of lightning, further accentuated by him being dripping wet, which in turned had shocked the beast enough for it to let him go and roar deafeningly, it had made Ray shudder to his very bones. Ray had then begun running out in the wet plains, hoping to find some civilization, and not too sure if the beast was following him or not. He hadn't gotten far before a black mass had bounded past him, the force of that alone had sent him tumbling to the ground and had made him scream involuntarily in pain. Ray was sure he would be a meal replacement for the beast, and as he felt the beast's breath on his nape and nails in his back, he had begun mentally preparing himself for the fatal bite which would decapitate him. The fear had taken over his body and had immobilized him, so Ray had resorted to saying a small prayer in his mind before the inevitable death.

However, the beast had chosen to whisper a few words in Ray's ear, words which had shocked him and frozen his mind, as he felt the nails being drawn out slowly from his back, and then the quiet thump of feet hitting the ground as the beast had disappeared into the dark night. It had been a long time before Ray was able to move, and he had managed to just make it to the edge of town before losing consciousness.

Ray had then woken up in Headquarters, bandaged up and given some medicines, however, the dull pain had still not vanished, and the beast's words were still haunting his thoughts. Ignoring the doctors, he had gotten up and walked out of headquarters, and had come back to the Baskan hills, just to get some peace of mind and quell his thoughts.

Ray sighed. The dull pain was still there in his forearm, and the cuts on his back weren't healed yet. To make matters worse, he was to report to camp and do some job, even though he had just been through a near death experience. Noticing that he was thoroughly drenched again, he cursed softly, and got up to his feet, beginning to walk towards the camp. The rain had begun to slow down, and the overcast sky was giving way to a starry night, and the moonlight shone through patches in the clouds, giving quite an interesting effect to the still wet grass expanse in front of Ray. He picked up the pace, knowing full well that he was going to be late for the briefing, and that he'd have to endure snide remarks from one of the insufferable seniors that were there at the camp. His mind still continued thinking about the beast's words, however, he pushed it to the back of his head and focused on the task at hand, or at least tried to, failing miserably in his attempt to do so.

Ray finally reached the camp after what seemed like an eternity, and entered, surprised to find only a handful of men, and one senior. The senior waved him over, and began speaking, briefing Ray as to why there was such a short team in front of him. "You're late, son. This camp is technically not here. You and the other handpicked men have to report for duty at 0500 tomorrow, and this duty is not something which should be taken lightly. Now rest, and don't let me see you slacking off in the morning, or you'll be peddled back to hell.", said the authority, causing Ray to clench his teeth and focus himself on not attacking this man. Without saying another word, he walked towards the makeshift mess that had been created, only to double over as he felt an unnatural pain emanating from his wounded forearm, pulsating through his body, releasing a myriad of emotions to his brain. Ray felt anger, he felt hunger, he felt happiness and he felt...an animal instinct. He was visibly changing, growing muscular as he took on a more animalistic appearance, his red eyes glowing brightly with malice. By now, the other apprentices had begun to notice this, and had crowded around him with their weapons raised, knowing full well what Ray was becoming. Through his heightened senses, he could hear their words even through the pain, as they quarrelled on about how he must be put down before he caused harm, while one man tried defending him, stating that as his comrades they had to give Ray a chance to control himself, and that if anyone could do so, it was him. This was met with more rebuttals, until someone decided to smack the man defending Ray and launch his spear at Ray.

Ray's eyes snapped open as he snarled, catching the spear with his right hand before breaking it. He took a look around, noticing the fear on the faces of his former teammates, the same teammates who were willing to kill him instead of helping him out. "I trusted you...", growled Ray, before launching himself towards the nearest man, letting his savagery take over as he continued to slash and bite through the throng of men before him, the sweet taste of blood on his tongue, and a fine red mist in the air. His hands, and nails were covered in blood, and so was the rest of his body, glistening in what seemed to be red sweat. Ray let out a guttural laugh, thoroughly enjoying the massacre that he was the sole perpetrator of. He looked around him, he was standing in the middle of bodies scattered on the floor, and he let out a howl to celebrate the kill.

A sharp pain to his back brought Ray's attention to his surroundings, and he turned around to find the senior behind him, his blade covered with blood. Ray smiled, an unnerving, beastly smile, knowing full well that this would be the kill he would enjoy the most. Without hesitating, he drove his hand into the chest of the man before him, and squeezed the man's heart, bursting it before drawing his hand back out and licking the sweet, sweet nectar that it was covered in. He then looked at another standing body, the odour of fear coming off him. This was the man that had defended Ray. Ray looked at him, and spoke, in a deep voice, "Tell the others of what I have become, and let them know that if they try to harm me they will be next. Go.", before turning out and bounding out of the camp into the darkness, knowing full well he would never be able to be a part of the Rune Knights again, not after this camp. He was something else now, a true beast, and as he continued across the plains, the beast's words came to his mind.

Embrace the gift.


[1699 words]
[Transformation to Lycan complete]