New Moon Surprise

[Ron Caliburn]

It's probably not the smartest thing I have ever done, but I went back out into the Blight last night.

My goal was to be low-key and just keep tabs on the nightlife, natural or not. Between the raid on my shop and the increased police presences this summer, I didn't want any of the complications from a pitched battle, especially since my Piece, my Blade and my best suit of armour are still sitting in a police evidence locker.

Fortunately I'm not without resources so an entry-gun, a .40, a tench-knife edged with silver and a few odds and ends made me confident I could take on anything I'd probably run into. An older prototype for my usual armour, not quite as protective but still inconspicuous and mobile made sure it wouldn't be my hide on the line.

I spent the first part of the night ducking patrols and check points . . . these guys at DHS are doing their best to make sure I can't move around without being stopped, but I've spent years prowling these alleys and know all sorts of ways to keep out of sight of Johnny Law.

Of course, keeping out of sight makes it hard to find what I'm looking for. It also doesn't help that the police have been forcing out the folks who are my usual eyes and ears, the street-people and the working girls. That leaves me with high risk street patrolling as my only way to find out what's going on.

I think the creatures know what's going on too. I've had to work hard for years trying to keep what goes on here under control. Without anyone actively out stalking them, they've gotten more blatant. It didn't take too much looking to find them in action.

At first I thought it was a street punk working an elderly couple, which is enough to make me step in anyway, but when the punk grabbed the old lady's purse there was a distinct snarl.

For the last few years I've believed that werewolves had been migrating into town. Mostly they have been ferals, the type that usually stay out in the bush and live the lives of wolves, but once in a while I run across a city wolf - one that's adapted to the city life enough to blend in with the population for the most part, though not well enough to seem like anything better than a thug. Judging by the apparent age of this one, he might very well have been born in civilization.

Heck, he might have passed himself off as a kid at Hannah's school.

But young or not, he was dangerous, and the more that lady refused to let go of her purse, the more likely this kid was going to show fangs.

I had to intervene.

[Ron Caliburn]

I sauntered over casually. "Pardon me, could you direct me to Lon Chaney Jr. Drive?"

They all stopped and turned to face me just as I cold cocked the punk, dropping him like a ton of bricks.

I looked at the elderly couple. "Not a nice night for a stroll, you might want to hurry home." They took the hint and I turned back to the punk.

He'd brought himself up to his knees and was snarling. "Who the hell do you think you are?" he barked at me.

"They call me Ron Caliburn, and you would be . . . no, don't tell me, let me guess Rex? Rover? Ahh, I know, Fifi."

He leapt up towards me, face stretching, teeth changing to fangs, fur sprouting from his skin. I sent him sprawling into a pile of trash cans with one of those neat flip moves Wie tries on me when she wants to spar.

"I'm going to rip your throat out" The wolf-boy growled.

I don't know what it was, but with all the frustrations from the cops and worrying so much about Wie . . . something in me made me enjoy this. I could feel the smile on my face as I taunted it. "I've heard the same from much meaner dogs than you, pup, and they weren't covered in garbage!"

That's when I made the next stupid decision of the night. On weres I like to keep my distance, after all just a scratch and you're one of them. I don't know if I was feeling cocky or just wanted a good fight or what, but I reached past my gun and drew my trench knife, letting the wolf-boy see the silver along the edges of the blade and the knuckle duster. "Bring it, Fido."

He bared his fangs and came at me again.

[Ron Caliburn]

It was short, fast and brutal. A few shots to the face with the knuckle duster to keep the jaws from clamping onto me, then the blade of the trench knife entering the abdomen and slashing it's way around inside up past the ribs. By the time he realized the blade was inside of him I'd skewered his heart.

I gazed at the surprised look on his face for a while before I pushed him backwards off my blade and let him drop to the ground. Concerned with the rate these things heal I bent down and brought the heavy blade of the trench knife down on the neck, slashing between the vertebrae and separating head from shoulders.

I looked down at the beast as its corpse slowly melted back into it's human form. I don't think I've ever had an easier werewolf kill, though it was possibly my messiest, blood and viscera dribbled down from my elbow to my hand, down the knife to drip from the tip.

I looked at the boy the wolf had become, head resting there in his ball cap, t-shirt ripped torn and bloody.

He really easily could have fit in as one of the kids at Hannah's school.

Except of course he was a bloodthirsty monster.

I looked up and saw four red eyes watching me from an alleyway.

I'd forgotten that werewolves travel in packs.

[Ron Caliburn]

I barely had time to clear the .40 from the holster before the two giant wolves were on me.

A pair of great jaws clamped down on the arm holding the knife. The metal plates in my arm guards kept the lycanthropy-inducing fangs from finding flesh, but I still thought my bones were going to crack from the bite pressure. The powerful beast shook it's body from side to side, trying to yank my arm from it's socket or yank me down to the ground.

I put half dozen rounds from my .40 into it's throat and chest before kicking it away from me, just in time for the second to pounce on me and drive me to the ground, snapping at my throat.

His jaws clamped down on the silvered edge of my trench knife instead, causing it to yelp and stagger backwards in surprise. The rest of my clip into it's head ensured that it was the last surprise it'd ever had.

I rolled up to my feet and turned to the first one that had jumped me. It was now in man-wolf form, down on three legs. It's front was covered with blood, but it seemed to be still very much in this fight.

I let the lanyard take the empty .40 and reached back to pull out the entry-gun and racked the slide.

For some reason, I was laughing as I fired and cycled four more rounds of shot through the weapon. The man-wolf slowly toppling backwards, several gaping wounds in its chest and half its face pulverized by the heavy silver buckshot.

I watched the corpse of the man-wolf slowly change back into it's human form, female, approximately middle age. The wolf form corpse stayed as it was, though slowly shrank down to proper wolf proportions.

The sound of approaching sirens told me I'd had my fun for the night.

[Clarity]

_____Well gosh, Mr. Ron. I hope you and Hannah are okay. That sounded more scary than fun, to me. Are you hurt? Did you have to spend the night in the river again, or were you holding onto the bridge again? I hope not. It isn’t very fun; I’ve tried it. But it helped me hide from the men in the sunglasses. I hope that you’re not hurt, but I guess you’re at least a little bit all right, since you typed up your story. And I hope you become a lot all right, Mr. Ron. Would you tell Hannah and Eilonwy I said “hi,” please?
_____PS: Has that lady trying to get to you come yet? She looks pretty.

[Ron Caliburn]

I got away cleanly as near as I can tell Clarity.

What woman?

[Clarity]

_____Woman? What woman—oh, you mean the lady I saw, don’t you? Well, she looked pretty. And she was eager to find Hannah and you.
_____P.S. I hope that helps.

[mrloucifer]

RIGHT BLOODY ON BLOKE!!! Kick that arse, take those names and give them all numbers to wait their turn for a peice of Ron!!

[Ron Caliburn]

That wasn't as much help as I hoped Clarity. Did you get a name? Where was she? Why did she want to find Hannah and myself? What did you tell her?

Louis, thanks for the support, I've been getting used to getting jumped on when I talk about killing monsters.

[Clarity]

_____Hi, Mr. Ron. I met the lady a little bit ago. I didn’t ask for her name, that seemed a little presumptuous to me. I told her I knew Hannah, and that she was nice and a good cook and my friend, too. She said that she really wanted to find Hannah.
_____PS: Her eyes lit up kind of funny when I told her Hannah lived in Dee Cee with you.

[Ron Caliburn]

Clarity,

There are people out there who are looking for Hannah to take her away . . . telling people you don't know the directions on where to find Hannah might lead those people to her.

[Eilonwy Solstice]

Sarah censured Ron in her own way about this night, and now I actually understand what Hannah was talking about. I really hate it when Ron is reckless.

[skeptic]

A positive development.
Hopefully the mother of his child can talk sense into him.