Chapter 5: My Teacher’s a Werewolf

In the days of old, the five heads of the five clans of Mystics came to be known as the Dark Dragon Lords with my ancestor, Lord Lucius Lurranna, as their leader. The title of Dark Dragon Lord originated from the fact that these five Mystics were partially responsible for creating the Black Dragons, a species as savage and infamous as the ancient race of demons known as Cthulhu. But this was only the beginning of their Empire. Soon, the Dark Dragon Lords would be known and feared across the stars as the all-powerful rulers of the Dark Races. It was a glorious time to be a Lurranna.

“Hi,” chirped the Werewolf in a girlie voice that reminded Ryan of a cheerleader. “My name’s Torsha. Torsha the Werewolf. I’d tell you my family name, but I honestly don’t know it. And nobody’s given me any other name, so I just go by Torsha.”

Ryan was in such a state of shock at seeing a real live Werewolf that he just couldn’t find the words. Torsha seemed content to wait for a response. And thus, the two just stood there staring at each other awkwardly until Ryan finally got up the nerve to say, “Uh ... that’s nice.”

“I know, isn’t it?” said Torsha in that girlie voice of hers as she continued staring at Ryan like he was the center of her existence. He even noticed a bushy tail wagging behind her.

Torsha was a little shorter than Ryan. He would have thought that was short for a Werewolf, but since he never actually met one, he had no way of knowing. Torsha had bright, golden fur, kind of like a golden retriever, only much glossier and more cared for than the average dog’s hair – maybe even the average human’s hair. Light fur covered Torsha’s entire body from head to foot, but not in a way that seemed typical for a Werewolf. Though, again, if Ryan had ever met a Werewolf, he would have known for certain. For one thing, Torsha’s fur was not long; in fact, it was only a thin coating, making her face totally visible. Given a certain lighting set-up, the light fur that covered Torsha’s body could have been mistaken for skin.

However, she did possess other canine qualities that were far more pronounced. For instance, Torsha did have a short snout kind of like a wolf, but it seemed much more elegant and graceful than the average canine. Plus, her snout was shorter than that of a normal wolf, giving it an almost human aspect. However, she did have a row of razor-sharp fangs that made Grafael’s choppers look like toothpicks. In addition, aside from the big bushy tail that kept wagging back and forth behind her, Torsha’s body dimensions were identical to that of a young teenage girl, albeit a curvy teenage girl.

The female Werewolf seemed to be going for the perky schoolgirl look. Moreover, the hair on top of her head was long and light blonde, unlike the rest of her fur, and had been combed tirelessly to resemble a normal girl’s haircut. If not for the fur on her face, the pointy little wolf ears that shot out through her combed hair, and the tail, Torsha might have looked like a regular human. Yes, she did have the black, leathery part at the end of a dog’s nose, but somehow it did not seem completely unattractive.

Torsha wore a yellow top, some brown boots, and a green miniskirt that showed off her hairy legs. Although, seen in a certain light, her legs could have seemed attractive, even with the light coating of fur. Although Ryan chose to reject that thought as quickly as it had come on the premise that such an idea was just too weird to consider. Torsha’s eyes weren’t just brown, but a deep brown that revealed a level of intellect that would not have been found in a mere dog. Overall, Torsha was the prettiest Werewolf Ryan had ever seen ... again, if he had actually seen a Werewolf before. But, be that as it may, she was still a Werewolf, a fact that made Ryan wary.

Even on a world where mythological creatures were now accepted as real living beings, Werewolves were still widely regarded with mistrust much like they were on Ancient Earth. The idea that Werewolves came from humans had been proven to be a myth. The real truth was that, like the Dragons, Werewolves visited Ancient Earth many eons ago to teach their young how to hunt. Unfortunately, on one of these hunts, a Werewolf cub bit a human wandering in the woods one night on a full moon and transferred a disease previously unknown to earth. This disease became known as rabies, and thus the myth of humans turning into wolf-men was born.

However, Ryan was less concerned about the history of Werewolves than he was about the huge, hawking fangs that glinted in the sunlight as Torsha smiled with a big, toothy grin.

“So,” said Ryan, grasping for anything to say to ease the tension since everyone else on Squad 99 seemed content to just sit back and watch. “You’re a Werewolf.”

“Thanks for noticing! Isn’t it awesome?” exclaimed the wolf girl, giggling slightly. “Don’t worry though. I won’t bite ... probably.” The girl then looked Ryan up and down in a way that made him feel uncomfortable. “But for you, I’d make an exception.”

This alarms me on multiple levels, thought Ryan to himself.

“So on the off chance that you were to bite me,” started Ryan uncomfortably. “Hypothetically speaking that is, I wouldn’t ... you know...”

“Sprout fur, grow a tail, and bay at the full moon?” Torsha finished.

Ryan was so petrified that he could actually feel himself going pale. I knew it! I knew all those B-movies dad showed me must be the real history! It’s all true! She’s going to turn me into a Werewolf! I’m gonna be the first Werewolf-slash-Dragon hybrid.

Torsha started laughing and lightly punched Ryan on the shoulder like they were best friends. “Don’t be so serious. That’s a myth, cutie.”

“It is?”

“Yeah,” said Torsha, running a finger through her hair - that is, the hair on top of her head. “I mean, if I bite you, it’s gonna hurt, but you won’t turn into a were-dragon or anything. Kind of a shame, actually. I bet you’d be even cuter.”

“Oh, that’s a relief,” said Ryan as he allowed himself to breathe again. He then turned back to his friends, hoping the weird wolf girl would leave him alone. “So, guys, who’s my mentor again?”

“Ryan,” growled Grafael with a look of disapproval. “You’re being rude.”

“Yeah, I know,” said Ryan, growing frustrated. “But seriously. Who’s my freakin’ mentor?!”

“Oh! Hello, wake up pup,” said the wolf girl as she bonked herself on the head. “I totally spaced out on the reason I walked over here. I’m your new roommate ... Oh, darn! I mean your mentor. But you know, I could totally be your roommate too if you want.”

Ryan was in shock. All his so-called friends started laughing their guts out, except for Leon who just smiled slightly, and Grafael who just glared at Ryan with his huge, blue-scaled arms crossed.

“Isn’t it exciting?” asked Torsha as she clapped her hands - or perhaps paws - together. The wolf girl then hopped up and down like a puppy. “Yay!!! Why are they laughing?”

Éclair was the one who composed herself and walked over to Torsha, shaking her hand cordially. “Sorry, Torsha. We’re not laughing at you. Really, we’re not. It’s just ... it’s just...” Éclair had to pause for a moment to compose herself once again as the giggles threatened to break free. “Oh, forget it! We’re all a bunch of idiots. Hi, my name’s Éclair. It’s very nice to meet you.”

Torsha’s smile vanished as she stared at Éclair very differently than the way she stared at Ryan. She started sniffing the air before saying, “Judging from the amount of pheromones I smell him giving off every time he looks at you, I suspect you are my female rival.”

Éclair cocked her head to the side in confusion before saying politely, “Beg your pardon?”

Suddenly, the intense look of anger vanished from Torsha’s face as quickly as it came as she smiled gleefully. She took both of Éclair’s hands, and said, “It’s nothing. I think we’re going to be the absolute best of friends.” Torsha pulled Éclair into a hug. Éclair seemed a little surprised at first, but quickly got over it and returned the kind gesture.

However, Ryan could have sworn he heard Torsha whispering something that sounded like, “I’m gonna rip your throat out while you sleep, bitch!” But Ryan reasoned that it was nothing but his imagination ... maybe.

Ryan leaned over to Tork, and whispered, “Am I the only one who’s totally freaked out about this?”

However, Tork seemed distracted as he spoke in a dazed voice. “Yes, I know. Isn’t she lovely?”

Ryan turned to Tork in alarm. “What?!”

The young, golden-scaled Dragon continued to stare at Torsha with his mouth hanging open slightly.

Suddenly, Ryan caught sight of Tyrant flying to him from a distance. As the bird got closer, Torsha looked up, and said in a girlie voice, “Oooo! Look! A birdy!” In the same instant, she jumped up with a growl and took a snap at the pet hawk. Tyrant barely escaped death as Torsha’s jaws snapped shut inches from the bird’s neck with a loud crack!

Ryan immediately grabbed for his endangered pet and held the bird under his arms. Tyrant gave a frightened cooing noise as he rested in Ryan’s protective grip. For the first time in his life, Tyrant the hawk shivered in pure terror.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Instincts, ya know. Is that your bird?” asked Torsha innocently, putting her hands behind her back.

Ryan took a step back as he leaned in closer to Tork, seeking protection. However, as he did so, he could have sworn he heard Tork say in a fervent whisper, “Absolutely stunning!”

“I just don’t get it. Why can’t you keep training me like always, Eramar?” asked Ryan in between bites of sushi and gulps from his tin mug.

Ryan sat with Eramar, Grafael, and Tork at the bar of their newest favorite restaurant, Sushi Kitty, run by a Werecat named Alpher Rin. Eramar would occasionally treat Ryan with sushi and soda drinks from Sushi Kitty when he did well in his training. Ryan wasn’t allowed to drink whatever Eramar had, but he still felt cool drinking from the same kind of tin mug as his master.

As for the owner, Rin, he was a nice enough guy, which stood in stark contrast to the rumors Ryan had heard about Werecats. But Rin did have an eccentric streak in him that made things pretty weird sometimes. In fact, most of the merchants and businessmen that Ryan had met around the Ministry of Fire all seemed like they would be more at home in a psychiatric ward.

“Because that would make it seem that a Wielder is taking favorites during the exam, a mistake that I cannot afford to make right now,” replied Eramar without emotion as he sampled the crabmeat on his plate.

“What difference does it make anyway? Don’t a lot of the other candidates train with the Wielders?”

“Not normally, no,” explained Eramar with a strange glint in his biological eye which usually happened when he wanted Ryan to catch a certain meaning in his words but didn’t want to tell him directly. “You and the others on Squad 99 are a special case, something that is a source of contention among the other candidates.”

“Huh?” said Ryan, wondering what ‘contention’ meant.

“Think about it, old boy,” said Tork, accepting something that wiggled and writhed on his plate before being scorched to death by the Dragon’s fiery breath. “There are only thirteen Wielder Level Elementals in all of the Ministry of Fire including Saria herself. To receive special tutelage from one such as Eramar can make for quite the ostentatious scandal.”

“You know I can’t understand you when you talk like a snob,” said Ryan before slurping down his drink rather loudly.

“He means that the other candidates may become envious of you and ally together to vanquish you and Éclair during the games,” explained Grafael, who was not eating and instead contented himself to glaring across the bar.

“Oh, is that all!” exclaimed Ryan, realization dawning at last.

“You understood him, but not me,” said Tork indignantly as he pointed at himself. “My words are as plain as Grafael’s!”

“Well, yeah, I guess ... but he just says it in a cooler way than you do. It sounds more macho and less wimpy.”

For some reason, Tork looked at his plate, his scaly ears drooping in melancholy. “I can be macho if I want to,” the Dragon said in a whimpering voice.

“In any case,” interjected Eramar suddenly. “It was decided that during the exams, it would be best if you got along without my aid. Any other time, it wouldn’t be such a big deal, but right now, everyone in your class is on pins and needles as it is. Besides, I have more vital undertakings to deal with at the moment.”

“More vital than dealing with your prized pupil. That’s colder than Éclair’s ice thingy,” grumbled Ryan. Man! This blows! Why am I always given the shaft by everyone?

“You think I’m macho, don’t you, Grafy?” Ryan heard Tork ask desperately, but Grafael seemed to have other things on his mind as he ignored his cousin.

“First of all,” said Eramar, ignoring Tork’s pleas for acknowledgement of his manhood. “I never said you were my prized pupil. You have a long way to go before you earn that title.”

“Oh, come on. I mean I did help stop a war, you know,” grumbled Ryan angrily.

“Emphasis on ‘help’. And I use the term lightly,” said Eramar coldly, catching Ryan off guard with the hard quality that his voice had taken. Eramar’s cybernetic eye glowed bright orange as his anger arose. The Wielder’s hard-as-iron gaze was enough to force Ryan to look away in shame.

“Like I said,” explained Eramar as his voice softened slightly. “You have a long way to go, kid.”

All the sudden, I’m yesterday’s news. I break my back last winter to help bring peace to this place, and now I’m at the bottom of the totem pole again. Sometimes I wonder if any of this is really worth it. But as soon as those thoughts left his mind, Ryan remembered his promise to Hannah and Silvia, and quickly reigned his emotions under control. He knew he couldn’t afford to think like that. Not only out of reverence to both Hannah and Silvia, but for his parents too. They were all too good of people for him to let them down like that.

“You think Torsha thinks I’m macho?” asked Tork, more to himself than anybody else.

As Ryan stared down at the silver-plated table, he tried not to let Eramar’s words sting too badly. In his heart, Ryan knew that Eramar always did what was best for him. He just wanted him to be tough for the challenges that lay ahead.

Eramar seemed to sense Ryan’s distress as he said, “Don’t take it so seriously, kid. I’m sure you’ll do fine. Judging from the way you handled yourself earlier, you’ll be a shoo-in for Second.”

“You really think so?”

“I don’t say anything I don’t mean. I saw you yesterday. You were the first one to figure out the riddle. Guess you’re not as dumb as you think you are.”

Flattery was enough to instantly bolster Ryan’s spirits as he rested his hands behind his head. “Yeah, I might just be a potential genius in the making.”