Werewolf Mage

by Harry Nix

Alex ran out of bullets so he decided it was time to get up close and personal. He tossed the gun towards Boris, hoping someone would grab it on the way out and then jumped on top of his piece of cover. Without pause he lined up one of the mages and shot across the room at him. They slammed back into a large piece of machinery and Alex felt a flare of magic as the mage’s rings desperately sought to protect him from damage. Alex disarmed him, knocking his wand away before dropping into a lower stance and slashing away at his body like a prize boxer on a tear.

  The mage’s robe disintegrated but he was still well protected magically. Every time Alex hit him it was like slashing a brick wall.

  But the mage was trapped, boxed in with nowhere to go. Alex felt pain in his back as something hit him but he ignored it, continuing to slash away. A moment more and the mage’s protective spells failed. With a final swipe, Alex cut off his head. They were down to three mages remaining, two men and a woman.

  Alex turned around, looking for a new target, and saw one of the men crashing to the ground with Nia on top of him. Working as a team they flipped him over, mage cuffed him and then Nia dragged him off to throw into Boris’ trunk.

  As she did, Juno cast another spell – something so fast Alex barely saw it. There was a surge of cold and then sharpened hailstones shot out of nowhere, hitting the three remaining mages, driving them to the ground.

  Alex was tempted to dive at them, his wolf howling at him to do it but that wasn’t the plan.

  They had a mage now and so it was time to get the hell out of there. Alex spotted a wand on the ground so he grabbed as he sprinted towards Boris, Juno close behind him.

  Juno took the wheel, Alex getting into the passenger seat. Nia slammed the trunk and dived into the back seat.

  “Help me power this new shield spell I came up with,” Juno commanded, not waiting for Alex to say yes. She cast a spell at the same time as hitting the gas.

  Alex put his hand on her shoulder and poured his magic into her as a shimmering shield expanded to cover Boris. They shot out of the gloom, narrowly missing one of the mages who dived out the way. There was a surge of magic as something hit Boris, the shield deflecting it. Juno clipped the side of the mage’s car before shooting through the gates and down the street.

  “You figured out that car shield spell!” Alex yelled.

  “Not just a pretty face and a spectacular ass,” Juno yelled back.

  Alex looked out the back window, expecting to see the mages in close pursuit. There was the dull thud of an explosion and then a fireball rose from their car, destroying it.

  “What was that?” he asked.

  “Just a little surprise I was preparing while you two were fighting them,” Juno said. She was grimacing, still powering the shield spell. As soon as they turned the corner and broke line of sight she let it go.

  It was only then that Alex realized his shield ring was exhausted and he’d been shot multiple times. His left arm was on fire and the were freely bleeding wounds on his back.

  His mana was nearly depleted as his body sought to heal him.

  Trying to ignore the pain, he sat back and took a deep breath, pulling on the magic around them. Although he couldn’t draw nearly as much power as Juno he’d certainly grown stronger in the last few weeks.

  He managed to slow his mana drain to a crawl. It wasn't long before a bullet worked its way out of a hole in his arm and fell to the seat, shiny with blood. He leaned forward as the ones in his back did the same.

  “Stop when we can so we can strip that mage. I didn't have time to take his rings and whatever,” Nia said.

  Alex glanced at her and saw she was mostly healed now. Her fur was stained with blood in places. She grinned back at him though.

  There was still within the industrial district, heading out to the edge of Baxter before they’d hit the city limits. Juno drove Boris like they were in a race, roaring down streets and sliding around corners. Soon they stopped near another abandoned factory and opened the trunk to the smell of burning and frozen flesh. The mage kicked at them.

  “Let me go,” he shouted. Alex advanced, ready to hit him but then Nia put a paw on his arm, stopping him.

  “You don't quite know your strength. Let me do it so his head stays on his body” she said and then hauled off, punching the mage in the face and stunning him.

  The two of them quickly used their claws to shred the robe his body, leaving him in nothing more than a pair of boxer shorts and the magecuffs. He had four rings on, which they quickly stripped off and another wand inside his robes.

  He’d clearly been attempting to cast powerful spells – one wrist was severely burned, the other frozen.

  The mage started mumbling, coming back to consciousness so Nia slammed the trunk closed and they set off again.

  Alex quickly analyzed the rings, finding three of them were used up with no spell left in them. The final was just a shield ring with only five charges left. The wand he had picked up from the floor was a lightning wand with a single charge left.

  The one they'd just taken from the mage however resisted identifying itself. Alex had to cast Analyze 4x before even the title appeared.

  “Juno, what's a Wand of Expansion, two charges?” Alex asked.

  “Seriously? That's about fifteen grand right there. That's what you call a killing wand, used by hardcore assassins. It essentially makes an air bubble in a mass then expands. They're incredibly tricky to use because it's so easy to land it the wrong place. You have to flick it, like you’re fishing. Land it in someone’s chest and kaboom, instadeath. In the arm and only it comes off. After this is over we can sell it, make a stupid amount of money.”

  Alex held this wand his hand, feeling the connection to the spells within. It felt like there was an invisible leaden weight and all he had to do was flick it and then activate the spell at the right moment.

  With only two charges there would be no time to practice firing it. Alex put the wand down on the seat between them and sat back, letting his body heal as they drove their way out of Baxter and to April.

  27

  Although April’s was only hundred miles away, it took them almost four hours to get there. The wide road became a dirt track and then little more than a faint trail on the grass between looming trees.

  Alex was thankful they’d loaded up the back seat with all the food they’d had in the house and the supplies Juno had picked up. Alex had spent most of the trip eating peanut butter sandwiches and chips. After expending much energy in the fight he felt like he could eat everything in existence. He’d finally healed up and shifted back to human form to give himself more space in the front seat.

  The mage in the trunk had remained quiet and there was no smell of burning flesh so it appeared he’d given up attempting to cast spells. The trip was a quiet one mostly. They all seemed shocked their plan had worked. Alex thought they weren’t talking much because of how close their plan came to not working too.

  Eventually they reached April's, coming out on to a slightly wider dirt road and spotting the house. Parts of the front fence were still flattened although was clear that someone had been slowly rebuilding it. Alex was surprised to find the front garden was pristine. The last time he'd seen it had been covered in blood and gore. Now it was back in its half wild state with neat and well tended garden beds carefully arranged. Even the bed where Alex had beaten the weredog to death and crushed the mage was back in place. As they approached Nia leaned out the window.

  “Hey, April,” she yelled.

  Alex spotted a flash of pink hair and a girl stood up from beside a garden bed, waving a spade. Even from a distance, Alex could tell she was curvy. She was wearing green overalls was still did little to hide her shapely form underneath.

  April waved at Juno to drive over to an open gate which led to the barn that was adjoined to the back of the house. They passed by her and Alex caught the scent of wildflowers and earth after the rain.

  Juno drove into the barn and shut off Boris,
his engine ticking as it cooled. Alex was glad to get out and stretch.

  April appeared in the barn entrance, her arms crossed. It was only then that Alex realized she was completely naked under her overalls. She was halfway in height between Juno and Nia and quite curvy, with bright pink hair and a small nose ring.

  Her eyes were brown but as she stepped closer, they glimmered golden, seeming to shift in the sunlight.

  “So the wolves who destroyed my bedroom are back,” April said.

  “You know what an alpha is like when he’s chasing,” Nia said, waving an arm at Alex.

  “Alpha? Shift and show me,” April said. She was wearing a smirk but there was a kind of cool command her voice. This was at home and she felt in charge here. Alex shrugged and then shifted suddenly, towering above the girls. Thanks to the charm his clothes disappeared. He was covered in thick fur but it couldn’t be missed that he was completely naked in this state. April looked him up and down from head to foot and back again before nodding appreciatively.

  “Alpha indeed,” she said and then turned to Nia. “Did you have to shred my clothes though?”

  “I lost my shifter charm when he was chasing me. Shouldn’t be far from here if you send out some of your birds and mice to find it,” Nia said.

  “I guess a sex-crazed Alpha is a good enough excuse. Thank you very much for all the fertilizer my garden received. It’s going to produce some very good tomatoes this year,” April said. She came forward and gave both Juno and Nia a hug.

  “We got one of the mages in the trunk,” Juno said.

  As Juno opened the trunk, Alex walked over to the table set against the back wall of the barn. It was covered in elaborate chemistry equipment – all sorts of glass bottles and tubes. Something black and syrupy sat in the bottom of a flask with a small flame flickering under it.

  The girls pulled the mage from the trunk and dragged him over near the tables, sitting him down in a chair. April grabbed a rope and quickly tied him down. The mage was silent but glaring at them.

  Alex shifted back to his human form and approached the mage who was looking up at the four of them with undisguised rage. He was about the same age as Alex with pale blue eyes and brown hair. He had a growing bruise where Nia had punched him. Alex hadn't noticed before when they were shredding the robes off him but the mage’s body was covered in small dots and cuts like he'd been scarred and then healed again.

  “Look at my face. You’ve been trying to kill me. Who sent you?” Alex asked.

  “The hell with you werewolf,” the man said and then spat at Alex. He missed, but that was still enough for Nia to shift and leap forward, holding a sharpened claw to the mage’s jugular.

  “We can make you bleed and we can make you hurt so just tell us. Oh, and please don’t spit or I’m going to make you a eunuch.”

  The mage seemed cowered by this but refused to answer.

  “I can’t say I wasn’t hoping you’d put on the silent treatment,” April said. She went over to the complicated chemistry set and took the flask that was bubbling black off the heat. She removed a syringe from a drawer, sucking some of the black mixture up into it. Without warning, she plunged into the mage’s arm and injected it into him.

  “There's a little LSD, bit of MDMA, some psilocybin and a few drugs of my own invention so you’re about to have a really great time. You’re also going to tell us who sent you and why you’re attacking my friends,” April said in a soft voice.

  The mage gritted his teeth but then the concoction hit. He went limp, relaxing in the chair. Within a moment he was swinging his head around and smiling at them.

  “Let’s give him some time to warm up. I’m guessing the werewolves are hungry?”

  Alex's stomach grumbled as though it was directly answering and the three girls chuckled.

  “We only had junk food!” Alex protested.

  April looked the three of them over. “You have some blood on you but I’m getting the feeling we can’t wait for showers, so come on in as you are,” she said.

  Alex collected the two wands from Boris and the last active ring and then they followed April inside to find she'd prepared an enormous spread of food for them. She seemed to have an endless stream of trays she pulled from the fridges covered in grapes, cheeses, salami, crackers and dips. They wasted no time digging in, Alex feeling like he hadn't eaten in a month.

  “So Alex Lowe, werewolf mage, and only one of his kind, do you have any idea why these people are after you?” April asked, popping a grape into her mouth. Alex swallowed a cracker loaded up with sun-dried tomato before shaking his head.

  “Apart from being a werewolf mage, which no one has really explained to me why that’s such a bad thing, I have no idea. But they're definitely dangerous. We just fought five of them. They brought that Wand of Expansion,” Alex said.

  April's eyes widened. She picked up the wand and Alex saw a screen appear above her head. But her magic was different to his or Juno’s. Instead of code he saw musical notes and heard harmonious jingling, like tiny bells shaking in the wind. The music faded away when April put the wand back on the table.

  “That is a ridiculous amount of money to spend on one werewolf,” she commented.

  “That's what I said. They blew up an entire apartment block for one guy. I mean it's insane right?” Juno said before stuffing her mouth with berries.

  “You don't know who your parents were?” April asked.

  “Not yet. Nia has been looking into it,” Alex said.

  “I only just started yesterday. So far I know a record of adoptions from that time aren’t digital so you have to go physical at the central office in Baxter and hope the paperwork is still there. Apparently there was a flood years ago and they lost a lot of records. But I’ll keep looking.”

  April checked the clock. “Let's go see our guest,” she said.

  Alex stuffed as much food into his mouth as he could before following along, still feeling hungry. Out in the barn the mage was singing and laughing and sometimes talking to himself

  “Do I like turtles? Of course I like turtles my good madam. Why don’t you come over to my house and we’ll have a drink?” the mage said and then burst into laughter. A moment later, he was crying, his entire body shaking.

  “I don't know why you'd say that to me, it's not fair,” he moaned before laughing again.

  “Tell us who you’re working for,” April said in a calm tone. It was unclear if the mage heard her. His eyes were rolling in his head and he started singing a song about a sailor who married a snail.

  “He'll eventually give us the answer, right?” Alex said.

  “Definitely, and while were waiting maybe there's something we can do,” April said with a strange look on her face. She cast an appreciative glance in his direction.

  Alex saw Juno wink at him and Nia cast a sideways glance.

  Sex had been the last thing on his mind and certainly not with another girl, no matter how hot she was with her overalls and pink hair. Plus, what was Juno and Nia’s deal here? They wanted him to add another girl to the pack right away?

  Alex’s wolf had no problem with that but he wasn’t so sure.

  He couldn’t help himself looking her up and down again. Her overalls were only held in place by two straps that would easily break...

  April smiled at him but then her face went pale. A screen flickered above her head and there was a burst of music.

  “You were tracked. Are you carrying a tracker?” she said.

  “Oh crap,” Alex said and ran to Boris. In the heat of everything he’d forgotten about the wooden ball with the circuit inside. He found it wedged under the front seat, the signal inside still active. Alex snapped the circuit in half even though it was too little, too late.

  “Someone is here now, east side of the house,” April yelled and shot off like a rabbit. Alex and Nia shifted instantly and chased after her, with Juno following behind, leaving the mage tied in the barn. They bolted around the front of th
e house and skidded to a stop behind April.

  Coming over the fields was a monster.

  It stood a good thirty feet tall, a shimmering lumbering thing made of blood. It had gigantic arms and legs and a rudimentary head with two glowing eyes. Running alongside it were eight weredogs. They ranged in size similar to the small ones they'd encountered earlier today to three others that were as easily as large as Alex himself in his wolf form.

  “It’s a blood golem. Alex, it has a core. The only way to destroy is to wear it down and then break the core,” Juno said.

  Alex wasn't going to wait until it got closer. The thing was taller than the house and he wanted to fight it in the open field.

  He launched himself towards it, this time intending to leap as far as he could. He heard Nia shout something that was lost in the wind as he shot through the air towards the blood golem, heading directly for its head. The thing didn't even bother to raise an arm or perhaps it was too slow.

  Alex slashed with his claws and then unexpectedly went straight through its head in a wet splash.

  He landed twenty feet behind it, soaked in blood, his claws digging into the grass. He turned around and saw the small hole he’d made in the golems head reforming. It hadn't stopped and nor had the weredogs, heading straight for the three girls.

  Alex spat some of the blood out of his mouth. It was werewolf, but not his. The entire thing was made of werewolf blood. Gallons of it.

  Although Alex was soaked in the golem’s blood this was clearly no strategy. He couldn't keep leaping through it, hoping to reduce it drop by drop. The golem clearly had the ability to turn solid when it wanted to – it crushed April’s fence under its foot as it lumbered towards the girls.

  As Alex set off sprinting back towards them he heard a discordant chime, April's magic again, and watched in amazement as tendrils covered in sharp thorns burst out of the ground, grabbing two of the smaller weredogs and ripping them to pieces before pulling the chunks back into the earth.

  Juno cast a fireball that hit another head on, leaving behind a charred mess with no legs or other features. It wasn’t dead though – Alex could hear its heart beating – but it was out for now.