Here is chapter 6 of my 1st werewolf novel, please read and leave comments

Chapter 6

  Erik, in convulsions on the floor, lashed out wildly at nothing, twisting and screaming savagely. He breathed in quickly in short, sharp gulps, desperately trying to fill his lungs, unable to do so. Rolling onto his back, he arched upwards, clenching his fists and tensing his muscles. Every inch ached like a thousand cramps, muscles locking and twitching all over. He swung out erratically, making contact with the corner of his bedside table. The pain of this impact didn’t last long before being overtaken by a sudden crunching compression in his chest, expelling all the air from his lungs, as if his ribs were contracting. He clutched at the flesh above his lungs, as if trying to rip them free, and rolled face down on the floor, his fingers digging in, almost tearing the skin. Sweat dripped from his chin and steamed off his bare back. His throat closed up suddenly and the gagging reflex caused him to cough hoarsely, splattering the floor with blood and phlegm.
  His entire head was engulfed in an ear-splitting ringing, from the base of his skill to just behind his eyes¾which felt as if they could burst at any moment. He grabbed the edge of his mattress and squeezed it tightly. Would this ever end?
  A searing agony ran through the bones of both legs, almost synchronised. It felt as if they were being pulled on a rack. He banged the floor with his fist, then bit down hard on the back of it, suppressing a scream. His teeth were sharp and he tasted blood on his tongue. His hand was pumping. The smell of it stung his nostrils and his stomach churned, the sickly feeling rising up his throat. he whipped quickly to the right before vomiting, coughing up yet more blood in the process. The stench was all encompassing.
  He saw his hands properly for the first time now. They were extremely pale and glistened with sweat. His fingernails seemed sharper now, long and dark. Curved? The vomiting must have helped, the pain was less now. He tried to stand up, almost slipping in the mixture of sweat, blood and sick. Grabbing onto the bed for support he got to his feet. Hunched and still with barely enough strength to stand he staggered forward, only managing a few feet before another acute rush of pain caused him to drop to his knees, roaring uncontrollably. He smashed down hard on the floor in front of him, his nails cutting into the palms of his tightly clenched fists. The sweat stung his eyes and the colour began to fade from his vision, coming and going again in flashes. Another quick twist in his stomach led to another growl and another burst of agony. This time he swung his left fist at the wall, cracking paint and sending a cloud of plaster floating to the floor.
  Energy flowed through him now. He was fuelled by the fever, spurred on by it, not by logical thought. He rose to his feet again, too far gone to register the burning muscles in his legs. He was in a rage, trying to release this energy inside him, tearing him up. He arched his head back and roared at the top of his lungs. The sound that came out of hi mouth was gravely, it was animalistic, more of a growl than a shout; not human. He panted, then in one movement picked up his bedside table and threw it across the room, splintering it on the opposite wall. He crouched down and flipped his bed without a shred of effort, a king sized bed. He had never felt this sort of power before, nor, indeed, this much, but it wasn’t good. His insides still ripped at him, his bones felt like they were constantly cracking and his muscles tore with each and every movement.

#

Michael sat patiently in his favourite car, a silver Lamborghini Reventon, his most prized possession. He took a few notes as he listened in on the chaos taking place within the confines of Erik’s house. The screams. The sound of tearing and popping and cracking. He quite enjoyed it actually and was more than a little expectant. If his boss was correct, then the beast within would be rather special indeed, though, judging from the smell, the change was nothing unique.
  Michael took out his mobile and calmly rang his boss.
  “Michael,â€� came the voice from the receiver.
  “Sir, it has begun.â€�
  “When?â€�
  “About fifteen minutes ago, sir.â€�
  “What? Why didn’t you inform me earlier?â€�
  “Don’t worry, it would seem that he is dealing with the transition no better than any of the rest of us did.â€�
  “Really? That’s…interesting. But is he still healthy?â€�
  “I believe so, sir. He’s been sick and he is bleeding, but nothing substantial.â€�
  “Okay, I’ll leave you to it. Remember, don’t interfere. Matthias doesn’t know you exist and I intend on keeping it that way. No doubt he will have his goody-two-shoes subordinates working tonight as well. Can you smell them?â€�
  “No, sir, I don’t think they’re nearby.â€�
  “Well that can only mean he knows this guy better than we do. He’s probably already worked out where the subject will head for. I’d bet my wealth he’s still got that annoying little computer geek working out his percentages for him. Anyway, just see what you can work out tonight. We really have to judge this one by eye.â€�
   â€œYes sir,â€� he said, hanging up. They never bothered with goodbyes. Friends say goodbye and they certainly were not friends.
  Michael got back to concentrating on the events inside the house. He enjoyed the peace of being on a mission alone, without the chance of a lesser being ruining his fun. And it was fun. Despite the seriousness of the matter, Michael was looking forward to seeing the fruits of months of his labour. And though he would never let anyone else know, this cool, calm killer was quietly as excited as a schoolboy at Christmas.

#

Erik snarled, quickly wiped the sweat from his brow and bolted out of the room. He roared again, punching and clawing indiscriminately at furniture and walls. He felt utterly powerful. And rightly so. His muscles grew and pulsated under his skin. He was still in agony, as his tendons and ligaments stretched and from muscle and bone, his entire body rippling with change. His feet, now, were elongating, stretching out from his ankles, his nails sharpening. His face burned. His jaw stretched slowly outwards, ripping his cheek muscles and grinding bone. He growled. It was excruciating and his heart was taking the strain. It was pumping twice as fast as normal. His chest ached and again he clutched at it, tearing into it this time as his sharp nails dug deep into his flesh.
  He punched straight through the double glazed landing window, ripping up his hand in the process. He looked at it; half covered in blood, the visual matched the searing sensation. His knuckles cracked and scraped upwards into his hand. His fingers were shortening, his forearms thinning. His shoulder blades wrenched and stretched at his skin.
  Breathed quickly and deeply, he looked around, trying to think. He couldn’t. The fever had ridden him of logic some time ago. He sprinted down the stairs, stumbling and falling halfway down. His legs were awkward, bent in too many places, he could barely get up. A sudden burst of heat ran over him and every inch of him tingled and stung like a salted open wound. It hurt so much. It was driving him insane. He clawed at himself wildly, as if trying to release a thousand crawling bugs, scurrying around beneath his skin. He was on fire, burning up and soaked in sweat. His ribcage heaved and crunched as he ran through the hallway, where he caught a glimpse of himself in a mirror as he hurtled past, clawing at paint and knocking pictures from the wall. He paused and looked. Was that him staring back? His hair was matted and dripping wet. His skin was pale and glistening in the moonlight. His stubble had grown far too much and it reached further up his jowl than it ever had before. His nose seemed squashed, pointed downwards and dark, its pores dilated. Even as he watched the structure changed. Bone scraping against bone. Blood dripped from his mouth and stained his chin in crimson. He had bitten his tongue. His teeth were jagged and long¾too long¾and his eyes shone vibrantly in the moonlight; distant, still human, but… not his.
  He growled deep down in his throat and smashed the mirror with his fist, seeing his changing reflection for the last time in the tiny shards cascading towards the floor. Then, tilting his head back, he howled, wholly animalistic, transmitting his suffering to all within earshot.

#

Marcus momentarily stopped eating his gummy bears, his hand hovering centimetres from his lips, a decapitated gummy head wedged between his teeth. He turned to Ellie, “Did you hear that?�
  She rolled her eyes, “Of course I heard that. There are ordinary people down there watching TV. who probably heard that,â€� she motioned to the streets below,â€� it was damn loud Marcus! You seriously need to get your ears checked.â€�
  He grinned at her, both sarcastically and unappreciatively. The two stood atop a building, five storeys up. The wind whipped through Ellie’s long brown hair and it annoyed her, as she had to keep brushing it out of her face. Marcus had no such problem. He was wearing a beanie anyway. It was a cold night.
  “Guess we better call Matthias so…â€�
  “I’ll do it!â€� Ellie chirped enthusiastically.
  “Nah, it’s okay,â€� Marcus replied, unaware of Matthias’s and Ellie’s relationship.
  Ellie sighed as he took his phone out of his jacket pocket. It sucked not being able to tell anyone, she thought. She looked towards Erik’s house, past the woods at the city’s edge. She could barely see it, even with her extraordinary eyesight, but it didn’t matter. She knew Erik would come this way. Anyone in his position would. Built up areas were the most likely source of aid. Instinct would lead him this way. Anyway, the place reeked of Skye. Ellie hated the smell of mint and it seemed, now she was searching for it, her nostrils were attacked by it in every corner of the cit¾. Her train of thought was broken as Marcus began speaking with Matthias.
  “Uh, hey, sir, he just howled. No visual yet, but just letting you know it’s started.â€�
  “Good, where are you?â€�
  “We’re, uh, well I’m not too sure, but were on a building that smells strongly of that girl.â€�
  “The one you told me he’s obsessed with?â€�
  “Yes, sir. The one we traced a few days ago.â€�
  “What’s her name again? I want to read her file.â€�
  “Skye, uh, umm. Skye…â€�
  “Morgan,â€� Ellie prompted.
  “Skye Morgan, sir.â€�
  “Thank you Marcus, you may resume duties and remember what I said; strictly no interferences. Got that?â€�
  “Yes, sir.â€�
  Marcus hung up. He worried about that last part. No interference. Was that a little too harsh? It was certainly dangerous and it went against all of his training. He knew Erik was different, that he was special and that he would have to be treated differently and with more respect than the others, but for the first time in a long time¾a very long time¾Marcus found himself questioning his boss’s orders

#

Erik wasn’t even aware of the shards deeply embedded in his hand, not above the sensation of his entire body wrenching and crunching, stretching and contorting. Every fibre of his being shifted uncontrollably. He shouldered his way through the locked kitchen door and collapsed on the cold hard tiles, knocking the table and chairs out of the way and into the counter. He no longer had any personal sense of what was happening, much less what he was becoming. Lying on the floor, he kicked out and rolled, screaming and growling, straining his neck. His hands were becoming even more malformed now¾his fingers having shrunk almost completely into his hand¾and every inch of skin burned and all his hairs began to thicken and grow in unison, covering hid whole body in long, thick black and grey hair.
  His ears became longer and pointed, moving gradually upwards on his now snout-like head. His hips snapped and re-healed in a new position, while also themselves changing shape, becoming more slender. His clawed toes stretched more and more, stretching at his skin, which ripped in places, but healed again almost immediately. His palms and soles grew leathery and dark. His entire figure was now more beast than man and unmistakably quadrupedal.
  A long dark tail ripped through his pyjama bottoms, which no longer the right shape for him, slipped off his lean hind legs. By now his face and body were completely covered in thick fur, mostly black, but with highlights of silvery grey around the eyes, haunches and stomach. He growled from deep down in his throat and bore his fangs. At last, it seemed, the ordeal had stopped. The mass of matted fur attempted to stand. It was no longer Erik. It was mindless, a new being. It stumbled for a few moments and then, finding its footing, sniffed its surroundings and padded awkwardly through the hallway, the fur of its shoulders rubbing along the walls. It looked around briefly for a way out and clawed at the front door as if trying to work out what it was. Finding no means of exit, the creature ran upstairs. A cool breeze met it on the landing and drew its attention to the broken window. It jumped through it, cutting its hind legs on both sides and landing on the hip roof, almost slipping on the smooth angles slates. It walked to the front of the house and jumped down to the small patch of grass which Erik liked to refer to as a garden.
  This beast was powerful, but it was new. It was clumsy and confused. It made no thoughts, only acted on instinct. Looking towards the bright life-giver in the sky, it saw it for the first time with new eyes, in painfully sharp detail. A severe and sudden pain gripped its chest and it curled its lips. For the first time, with some sort of purpose and not just due to pain, the creature howled.

#

“Hmmm.�
Michael stared at the fiend which had just jumped into view. He tried to take in every detail, every nuance, every scent and ripple of muscle. He was not very impressed.
  What stood before him, howling inanely at the moon, was an ordinary grey and black wolf, not much bigger than an average one. Its fur was tangled, and matted with sweat and congealed blood. It had a few cuts on its haunches, but nothing substantial. It didn’t move gracefully and it showed little intelligence.
  All in all, thought Michael, utterly mundane and damn disappointing.
He studied it more closely, the exact smell of its blood, of its breath as it condensed against the cold air. He gazed into its eyes. They didn’t show any signs of retained humanity, not even distress. Did it look strong? Not especially. Teeth? Normal, nothing special. Could it smell him? It didn’t seem so. Michael jotted all of these little facts down in his notepad. His boss could have at least given him a blackberry, he thought, cheap bastard.
  The wolf took off without warning, its streaks of silver glistening in the moonlight, heading towards the woods. How painfully predictable, thought Michael, putting his car into gear. He couldn’t follow directly through the woods, that was only a trail, so he sped off on the shortest route around. He never lost the scent of the beast, even when the road led him furthest from it. It stank too much from the transformation for him to loose it. Michael’s car raced down side streets and through housing estates, rounding the woods on its way to the city proper. He skidded around corners and dangerously overtook the few other cars he came across. He did this more for enjoyment than out of necessity; the wolf didn’t seem anything special and there was no way in hell he was going to loose him, he might as well have some fun on the way.

#

It sprinted without purpose. Not due to pain, there was no pain, not anymore. Through instinct alone it bounded onwards, through the ferns and bushed, following no specific path. It came to a clearing; it should have been familiar, but it wasn’t. it had no memories of this place, but it could smell the blood. It could see the paw prints and clumps of fur, still stuck on branches from a month before. It couldn’t remember, but somehow…it knew. It wasn’t just some stupid animal and it knew that this place had significance, but still, it wasn’t intelligent either and, as it padded through and continued gaining speed, its primitive thought processes confused itself, infuriated itself. Glancing around, its senses overwhelmed, it barked and growled then looked at the moon. Its heart rate quickened. It backtracked and walked in circles for a few moments, confused and, in a way, disturbed.
  Then it darted off towards the city, without a glance back, desperately searching for meaning, angry.
  The beast sprinted, its new muscles rippling under its skin, powerful, propelling it onwards at speed. The wind whipped through its course dark fur. It couldn’t be stopped. Every breath strengthened it and, every time its paws met the cold earth beneath, it was spurred onwards with an ever increasing appetite for the familiar.

#

The moment the two had been sure that the wolf was outside, Marcus had called Matthias, informing him of the present situation.
  “Yes, sir.â€�
  “Anything unusual?â€�
  “Um, no sir, we’ve, uh, we’ve no visual yet, but he, um, he sells and sounds totally normal,â€� Marcus stammered through the sentence apprehensive of reporting this mildly disappointing news.
  “Okay, well make sure you keep up. We don’t know exactly how fast he’ll be.â€�
  “Yes sir, and uh, sir?â€� now he stammered through fear of getting himself in trouble, “A-about the no contact rule, what, what, if he atta¾â€�
  “No contact,â€� Matthias replied forcefully.
  Marcus hung his head and sighed, “Yes, sir,â€� he said and hung up, “Still no contact, Ellie.â€�
“Hmm?� she muttered, turning towards him, biting her nails, “Oh. Well, of course no contact. We’ve got to study this thing and how it act on its own. You think anything it does after we interfere would be an accurate display of its natural instincts?�
  “I guess not,â€� Marcus replied, genuinely thinking about it, “I just think it’s a bit dangerous, ya know?â€�
  “Yeah, but Matthias knows best. He’s been at this since before we were born.â€�
  “True.â€�
  “’Kay, so lets get back to keeping an eye out shall we?â€�
  “Yeah, it shouldn’t be long anyway, the smell’s definitely getting stronger.â€�
  They gazed on in silence for only a few minutes before the beast burst through the edge of the woods and continued sprinting, now running down the middle of a small road. Their training kicked in. Without a word spoken, and neither looking at the other, the two took off, darting along the edge of the roof, their eyes fixed on their target. It was late and, besides a small gang that had cleared off about twenty minutes ago, there hadn’t been a person out in hours. Just the occasional car; a businessman coming home from an out-of-town meeting; an excited family setting off to the airport to catch a late flight out. Ellie enjoyed trying to work out people’s back-stories. She was good at it. But none of that mattered now, now it was the chase and the two ran, Ellie in front, following the path of the new wolf, but storeys above.
  They didn’t slow as they came to the edge of the rooftop they had been occupying. Without a thought, and with scarcely any effort, the two leapt to the next roof, one storey lower than the one the jumped from. Ellie rolled to cushion the fall and didn’t loose much speed. Marcus, never one for the fancy stuff, simply landed running, his strong legs taking the full force of the impact. the two followed for about a minute without event, the wolf running randomly through the city, searching for help. It was distressed. It had no place in the world. It followed its nose¾what led it here in the first place, the city was full of familiar smells¾and did so at speed.
  But soon, to his own distress, Marcus could smell someone else, a woman, probably early thirties. The beast was headed straight for her. He shouted towards Ellie as the two ran flat out, “There’s a civilian!â€�
  “I know,â€� Ellie replied, “I smell her too. Let’s hope for the best.â€�
  Marcus was shocked by her cold reply, “Hope for the best? She’s four minutes away at most, we have to stop it!â€�
  “You heard what Matthias said, no interference!â€�
  “I know that, but Ellie, he didn’t foresee this,â€� he was struggling to keep up with her. He was stronger than she was, but not as fit.
  “He plans for everything! Are you questioning his judgement? This one is different, we have to let it run its course.â€�
  They leapt twenty feet, to the next roof.
  “D-do you even hear what you’re saying? Ellie, I know Matthias is a smart man. I respect him more than anyone, but he’s not infallible and this, this is wrong!â€�
  Ellie skidded to an abrupt halt, almost causing Marcus to run into her. She stepped towards him and grabbed him by the lapel of his jacket, putting him towards her. Her eyes flashed yellow as her brow wrinkled and she bore her long, sharp teeth and growled. She could be very intimidating when she wanted to.
  “Orders are to be obeyed!â€� she pushed him back violently, “Now, come on before we loose it!â€�

#

The wolf sprinted onwards, taking in all its surroundings had to offer, the sights, the sounds, and, most prominently, the smells, which overlaid its black and white vision with wisps of beautiful colour. For now, the beast followed the sweet, soft, refreshing smell of mint and roses. It didn’t know why, but it was drawn to that particular smell over all the others. At this point, it was its light in the chaos/ the beast curled its lips and glanced from side to side as a harsh new aroma invaded its nostrils. This chemical smell¾manufactured beyond recognition¾negated the soothing effects of the mint and angered this powerful creature. Once again there was nothing familiar, there was no path to follow and this enraged it even more. It raced towards this new smell, infuriated by it. Drowning in it. Hating it.
  Following its nose, it skidded around a corner, its legs still clumsy and unorganised. It finally came to a halt and saw the source of the chemical perfume walking towards it. A young woman walking, head down, with a plastic shopping bag. The wolf growled at her, then barked loudly and viciously. The woman stopped, aware for the first time of the danger ahead of her. It advanced slowly on her, low to the ground, snarling and presenting its fangs. The woman started to breath heavily and her heart rate quickened. The wolf could tell. She backed slowly away as it approached her, stumbling as her high heeled shoes got caught in a crack in the pavement.
  The menacing wolf barked again and that was it. The woman, dropping her bag, turned and ran as fast as she could.
  Bad move.
  There was no better prompt of the wolf, which took off directly after her, covering the fifty or so meters between them in a matter of seconds. It lunged at her, leaping onto he, claws splayed, bringing her, screaming, to the ground. It clawed at her wildly, without thought and blinded by rage. Over her screams, her deafening screams, nothing could be heard but the barking and growling. There were only shops in this area, no houses and her screams were in vain. She flailed wildly at the wolf, but it bit into her deeply, slashing at her, ripping out chunks of flesh and covering them both in film of warm blood.

#

Michael rounded to the corner, his tyres screeching as he skidded to a halt, turning off his lights.
  “Bingo.â€�
  About four hundred meters, straight down the road from him was his target and by the looks of it, it was much too busy to notice him. Michael smiled to himself as he realised what the wolf was doing, “Nice one,â€� he laughed. The smell of blood filled his lungs and he sighed, wishing he was in that wolf’s place right now. He watched only for another thirty seconds or so before driving away, slowly, so as not to draw attention to himself.
  Well, at least it’s a quick learner, he thought, as he drove away. Seeing that attack had really put him in the mood. Perhaps a quick pit-stop would be possible before he had to meet with the boss.

#

Marcus and Ellie, still on rooftop, had caught up with the wolf again.
  “Oh sh*t!â€� said Marcus, bringing his hand to his head, absentmindedly taking off his beanie, “I gently caressing told you!â€�
  Ellie stared on as the wolf ravaged the girl. She was pale, “No interference,â€� she muttered, doubting her own conviction.
  “Ellie, come on. We’ve got to stop this!â€�
  “No,â€� she shook her head solemnly, “Orders.â€�
  “B-bullshit! He didn’t plan for this. I’m g-going down there.â€�
  Ellie didn’t respond. She continued looking at the attack, taking in every detail.

#

It swiped at her face as she rolled, and took one final bite at her throat, ripping out her vocal chords and large section of her trachea.
  The screaming ceased and the only sound that could be heard was the gurgling of blood pouring from her neck.
  A large thump in the distance caught the wolf’s attention. It looked up and saw a massive creature running towards it, snarling at it, roaring, fangs glistening in the moonlight. It looked like a cross between a man and a wolf, covered in fur, but wearing clothes and still bipedal. Its ears were pointed and its nostrils were large vertical slits. Its leathery face was grey-brown, with brown fur surrounding it like a mane.
  The wolf felt rear for the first time. It spun and sprinted into the distance, seeking cover, terrified of this massive monster.
  Marcus crouched down by the woman, gradually turning back into his civilian form. He lifted her head onto his lap. He knew straight away. By no means was this his speciality, but even he could identify the exact moment of death from a hundred metres. The snuffing out of a life. She was gone and he could have prevented it. He was furious. With Ellie. With himself. With Matthias. He screamed and cried as the body he held got cold in the night breeze. It was just too far. He could have stopped it. He could have saved her.

#

From the rooftop, Ellie watched on, her phone pressed to her ear.
  “Hi Matt.â€�
  “Ellie.â€�
  “Matt, he’s killed someone. A girl. Marcus chased him off but… she’s dead.â€�
  “What? I explicitly said no interference!â€�
  “I know, Matt, I tried to tell him but¾â€�
  “I will not have him f*** this up for me again! I’m doing it myself. I’ll be there in a few hours.â€�
  “Yes Matt.â€�
  “Ellie, I’m sorry, but you know how important this one is to me.â€�
  “Yeah, I know. See you soon then.â€�
  “See you.â€�

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