Liek could feel the night calling him.

Ever since birth, he found himself exploring the night-world. Everything was so different. Daylight unveiled the landscape leaving everything available to the eyes, and leaving no mysteries to be discovered. Each night was a new adventure for him. The thrill of the hunt was everything he lived for.

That was another thing. Hunting during the day offered Liek little to no challenges, but the creatures of the night were much more challenging to find and pick off. Liek was always looking for new challenges.

During the day, he was a mere boy. During the night, however, he was godly.

Folklore portrayed werewolves as beastly hulking animals. Liek could do nothing but snicker when human townsfolk would tell tales of werewolves. Truth be told, the Werewolves were much more elegant than people perceived.

Liek was one such example. He was rather small, but very wiry. This made it much easier for him to move silently, mimicking the movements of shadows. This was also why he kept his hair neat and short. The werewolves were stronger and faster than any man, but their deadliness did not lie in their strength or speed.

It was because they too looked like men.

And the idea of the full-moon turning a man into a wolf was just preposterous. All a full-moon did for a werewolf was make it easier to see greater distances at night. Nothing more. It was nearly impossible to tell a werewolf apart from another person. In fact, Liek was a favorite amongst many of the human girls in town who had managed to catch a glimpse of him. Almost every one of them would agree that Liek had the prettiest eyes out of any of the other boys.

Eyes that seemed to glow.


A sudden movement caught Liek's attention. He crouched low and breathed deep. He could smell somebody's presence. He quickly scanned the area around him and caught a glimpse of another creature. He couldn't tell who or what it was, but he did know that it was coming for him.

One swift leap brought Liek onto the branch of a nearby tree, and another leap sent him to the top of the next tree. He stopped and listened. It was completely silent. Where was he?

Just as he turned to smell the air, a body hurled itself from another tree at him. Liek didn't even have a chance to react. The two bodies fell, wrestling in the air and crashing through branches before they both hit the ground. Liek saw stars. When his eyes came back into focus, he came to the realization that a hand was wrapped around his throat, with a long thumbnail pressed against his jugular. Liek let out a sigh.

"I didn't expect to see you here, Cale."

The hand left his throat, and instead gripped his hand and hoisted him to his feet.

"You were never very good at rolling after a fall, Liek. You know that could save your life one day."

Cale grinned. Liek was never quite able to beat his elder brother in wrestling matches.

"Don't worry. Soon enough it'll be my thumb against your neck, you half-breed." Liek snarled.
"Ha! I'll be grey by that time, little brother."

Liek laughed. As much as they squabbled, he loved and revered his brother more than anybody he had ever known. He could never show it, though. He didn't want his brother to think he was weak. Cale leaned against a tree.

"Tonight's the big night. Think you're ready for your first taste of man-blood?"
"More than ready. Of course, my nails would be red from the blood of three men by now if you weren't constantly knocking me out of trees."

Cale let out a chuckle and waved his brother farewell before disappearing into the night. Every male werewolf had to fight and kill a full-grown man as a part of becoming an adult. The bigger the man, the better. It was more than a ritual. It was a sign of devotion to the werewolf race. Men were a disgusting and greedy species. Killing one every now and then would let them know who the superior race was.


Liek turned and stared at the cabin no more than 100 meters away. A strategy formed in his mind and he sprinted towards the cabin.

"Just you watch, brother. I'll be as great as you someday."




to be continued...