Werewolf of London: Chapter 5
Romania, Late December 1850
Alin ran through the forest, not caring that the tree branches were whipping him all over his body and tearing his clothes in places. It was cold night and the moon was full and high. Every now and then clouds would pass over the moon, fading the light for a bit. Something was coming for him. He knew what it was. The forest seemed to know what it was as well, for nothing made a sound except for Alin. It was the same thing that had come for Dorin, Clara, and even Old Magda. He tried to control his breathing, but he couldn’t. He was in a panic and in pain from all the running he had done.
He stopped by a large tree for a rest. He had no clue how close to Alba he was, but he hoped it wasn’t too far away. Old Magda had said that the beast wouldn’t attack anyone who was in Alba. He hoped it was true. The beast was closing in on him. He knew it could hear him breathing. He knew it could smell his blood, sweat, and fear. He had no choice though, if he didn’t run then he would die.
“Damn you, Daciana,” Alin panted harshly. He hit the tree with his fist, then winced in pain. “Sacrifice the outsider, she said. He is not protected by anyone, she said. Ha!” Alin spat on the ground. “Bitch.”
A branch snapped in the distance. Alin quickly spun around glancing at the surrounding area. Nothing, but I should not stay here. It might catch me. He took a deep breath and then ran off once more. I cannot let it catch me. He ducked under some low hanging branches, leaped over a fallen branch, and nearly tripped over a hidden root. He quickly regained his balance and continued running. A wolf howled behind him and Alin pushed himself to run faster.
Farther off in front of him, Alin could see the lights of the Alba. He grinned and began to slow down to a trot. Just as he was about to cross into the town, he heard a growl from some trees next to him. The clouds had blocked out the moon so he had to squint into the forest. Out from the trees stepped a monstrous blond wolf with bright blue eyes snarling at him.
“No,” he whispered. “No!” He tried to turn and run, but this time he did trip over a root. He fell to the ground with a groan. He felt something latch onto his foot. He looked and couldn’t see anything, but the harder he struggled to free himself, the tighter the thing around his foot held on. Alin turned his attention back to the wolf and cowered.
The wolf had stood up on its hind legs and towered above him. The wolf licked his lips and lumbered closer to Alin.
“No! I am sorry! It was a mistake!” he cried. He scrabbled at the ground, but couldn’t get any leverage.
The wolf ignored his cries, grabbed Alin by his throat and lifted him off the ground. The force around his foot had let go as soon as the wolf grabbed his neck. The wolf gnashed its teeth at Alin.
“Please, no!” Alin cried. He tried to tug at the wolf’s hand at his throat, but to no avail. It just wouldn’t let go of him. “It was Daciana’s idea! I had nothing to do with it!”
The wolf huffed then threw Alin into a tree. Alin hit the tree with a thump and he cried out in pain. The wolf dropped to all fours and moved quickly over to Alin. It opened its mouth and put its jaws around Alin’s throat.
Alin began to mumble a prayer. “I am sorry,” he whispered.
The wolf bit down.
Budapest, Late December 1850
Merlin woke up with a scream. He panted, fumbled with the bed sheets and made his way to the bathroom. He looked in the mirror and put a hand to his throat, but only felt sweat.
“It was just a dream, Merlin. Nothing more,” he told himself. He splashed water on his face and glanced in the mirror once more. Above his right shoulder he saw a sparkle. He turned around, but saw nothing. Merlin shook his head and walked back into the bedroom. As he looked at his bed, he saw a woman with long brown hair, wearing a white dress sitting on it. She had white wings coming out from her back.
“What? What?” Merlin asked in shock. “How did you-?”
“Merlin, you must save Arthur,” the woman cut him off.
“Who are you?” he asked. “How did you get in here?”
“I am Freya. You must save Arthur,” she replied.
“Where did you come from?”
Freya sighed in frustration. “I come from Avalon. I am sure you have heard of it.”
“Yes, but-”
“Good,” she cut him off again. “You must save Arthur.”
“Yes, yes. What do you think I am doing here in Austria! I am not here for the food or culture!” Merlin shouted. “I am on my way to Romania to find Arthur.”
“Right now, Arthur is lost to us. The faeries of Romania have been keeping track of him, but we are losing him.”
“Losing him? Losing him how?”
Freya sighed sadly, this time. “There are old, dark magics in Romania. They have run unchecked throughout the area for centuries. The faeries are doing the best they can, but they will not be able to hold back the darkness forever. Arthur Pendragon is needed in this world. You must save him!”
Merlin sat down next to Freya and rubbed a hand over his face. “How can I do that? I do not know where he is in Romania.”
“We will show you. Look for the golden glow of sparkles. They will show you the way.” Freya stood and kissed the top of Merlin’s head. “Do not fret. You can save him.”
“How do you know?” Merlin asked tiredly.
“He needs you to.”
Merlin looked up at her with confusion. Freya smiled softly, then left out the window. Merlin rubbed his eyes and groaned. He climbed to the top of the bed and got under the covers. I need more sleep if I am going to help Arthur.
The next morning at seven, Merlin pounded on Morgana and Gwen’s hotel room door. “Hurry up ladies. We need to get moving if we want to catch the train.” He slammed his fist against the door twice more, before it swung open. Morgana glared at him. He pushed past her and stepped inside.
“You are not even dressed!” he cried.
Morgana was still in her blue nightgown and robe, which was slightly askew off her left shoulder. He hair was mussed up and it look like she just woke up. She continued to glare at Merlin as she shut the hotel door. “I know,” she replied. Morgana walked around Merlin and sat down on the couch. “It is far too early for this, Merlin.”
“We have not had breakfast either,” Gwen stated as she exited the bedroom. She was also just in a nightgown and robe. She sat next to Morgana and gave her leg a pat.
“What?” Merlin threw his hands up and spun back around towards the door. He put his head in his hand and sighed. He turned back towards the women and said, “Look. You two wanted to come along. You two wanted to help save Arthur. You two have been delaying me ever since we to France! We do not have time to just sit around! Arthur’s in danger for Christ’s sake! If you two just wanted to see Europe, you should have gone another time! Damn it!” Merlin smacked a wall with his hand. It made a loud noise, which made the women jump. “Arthur does not have time for this. I am leaving right now. If you want to come along, I will be on the train, which leaves at nine. I will either see you there or I will see you back in London.” Merlin opened the hotel room door and then slammed it as he left.
“He is always slamming my doors,” Morgana scowled after him.
Gwen smiled at her, stood up and stretched. Then she made her way back to the bedroom.
“Where are you going?” asked Morgana.
“To get dressed. We need to make the nine am train, do not we?” Gwen replied with a raised brow.
“I suppose,” Morgana sighed. She stood up as well. “We will have to eat on the train though.” She made a face. “Train food is always horrible.”
Merlin fidgeted and looked out the window at the train platform as he sat in the train car by himself. Even though he had a ticket to be in here, it felt weird. It was a rich person’s train car and Merlin didn’t look like a rich person. He checked his watch and saw that it was five minutes to nine.
“I guess Gwen and Morgana are not coming,” he said to himself sadly. He thought they had really cared about Arthur.
Suddenly, the car door slid open. Merlin looked up and grinned widely as Morgana swept into the car, with Gwen right behind her. A train attendant helped them with the carry on luggage, then left as soon as he was paid.
Morgana sat across from Merlin and let out a sigh. “I did not think we were going to make it!” she exclaimed.
“Neither did I,” Gwen said wryly. “It took forever to pack your dresses.” She sat next to Merlin and smiled at him. He smiled back.
“Oh hush,” Morgana stuck her tongue out at Gwen.
Merlin laughed and the said, “I am just glad you both made it. I get the feeling Arthur will need all the help he can get.”
Alba, Romania, December 31st 1850
Merlin sighed as he walked down the streets of Alba at night. He, Gwen, and Morgana had come to the city two days ago and no one was any help in finding Arthur. Merlin was beginning to give up hope. He sighed again, turned left, and then stopped.
Why did I turn left? he wondered. He looked around and saw gold sparkles leading down the street. Merlin didn’t stop to think, he just followed them. They lead to a rundown looking bar. He went in and blinked as his eyes adjusted to the bright lights inside the building. Merlin glanced around the room and saw that it was mostly empty, with only a few loyal patrons and barmaids hanging around.
“Hello, good sir!” cried out the bartender. “What would you like to drink?”
“Do you have any ale?” Merlin asked as he sat down at the bar.
“I do! We do not serve it often, an acquired taste you see,” the bartender continued as he gave Merlin a large mug of ale.
“Thank you,” Merlin sipped his ale and looked around the room. Everyone was glancing at him and whispering. I bet they know something. He stood up and moved to a table, close to the door.
As he glass became empty, a barmaid came by and said to him, “You know,” she said with a large grin, “we had another foreigner who loved that ale here awhile back.”
Merlin nearly choked on his drink. “Really? What did he look like?”
“Oh, so handsome. He was around your age, with lovely blond hair and piercing blue eyes. He knew how to charm the ladies, if you know what I mean,” she smirked cheekily.
“Was his name Arthur, perhaps?”
“Yes! Do you know him?”
“I do! I have been looking for him for months! Is he here? Is he ok?”
Merlin then noticed that the room had gotten very quiet. He looked around and saw everyone was looking away from him. “I see,” Merlin muttered. He quickly finished his ale, said his thanks and paid the barmaid, and then left.
They are definitely hiding something, but what? He rubbed his hands together and squinted into the darkness, hoping to see some golden glitter. He didn’t, but he did feel the need to go to the left down the street. As he neared the end of the street, he saw the shimmers shoot into a dark alleyway. Merlin followed them and searched the alleyway.
“Nothing,” he muttered. However, the sparkles weren’t leaving the alley. They were just hovering in a circle. Merlin glanced around, making sure no one could see him. Then he muttered a quick spell that lit up the alleyway. On the ground, he saw a scrap of red cloth.
“Arthur’s,” he whispered.
The sparkles glowed brighter as if in agreement. Then they shot out of the alley. Merlin rushed after them and saw they led into a dark forest. Merlin took a deep breath and followed them into the darkness before him.
The blond wolf growled in his sleep. He knew someone was coming for him. He hoped it wasn’t them again. They always came with pointy things that hurt him. No matter how many times he attacked and killed them, they always came back for him.
The wolf awoke with a jolt. He sniffed around, but couldn’t smell anyone coming. He snuffled into his paws, rubbed his eyes, then stretched and shook himself. He took a quick look around at his pack and was satisfied that they were all sleeping soundly. He cocked his head as he heard something far off in the distance calling his name. He stepped over his pack and made his way towards the voice.
“Where the bloody hell are you taking me?” Merlin growled at the glowing light. They and his magic were the only light in the forest. The clouds were thick and blocked out any light the stars might have provided. “It looks like it will rain! Fuck,” Merlin swore as he stumbled over another root. All of a sudden, his magic light was put out. “What?” He squinted after the faerie dust and ran headlong into a thick clump of branches. After he passed through them, he found himself in a clearing. He looked up and saw the gold sparkles swirling about with other colored sparkles. He then heard a crash through the opposite set of branches and out came a large animal.
The animal seemed to be half wolf and half human. It could walk around on all fours, but then it looked like it had hands of some kind. Merlin backed up as the creature lumbered through the rest of the branches and into the middle of the clearing. It turned its head and it’s eyes locked with Merlin’s.
“Arthur?” Merlin asked.
The animal growled.
“Right. You have turned into a...” Merlin trailed off unsure of what his friend had become.
“He is a werewolf,” Freya said from behind him.
Merlin jumped and spun around. “Do not do that! You scared me! Is he dangerous?”
Freya bowed her head slightly. “I apologize. No, he is not dangerous. Not here anyway.”
Merlin narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean?”
“It is not important right now,” Freya waved her hand, as if brushing aside Merlin’s concerns. “Right now, you must save him before the dawn, or else he will stay a werewolf forever.”
“Wait! What do you mean?”
Freya sighed. “This werewolf curse is unique to Romania. Once a man or woman is cursed, they are in wolf form until someone saves them.”
“What if they are not saved?”
“They stay like this forever, as I mentioned. However, once they are saved, they change into the wolf during the full moon. They have no control over transformation and they must be watched, for they can hurt and even kill people and animals.”
“So, you said I must save him before dawn. There is a time limit?”
Freya nodded, “Indeed. Arthur was cursed two months ago and that is the limit. If you do not save him today, then we can never save him.”
“Great, no pressure then,” Merlin said acerbically.
Freya inclined her head. “Since you now know the severity of the situation, I shall now leave you.”
With that, Freya and the other flickering lights left Merlin alone in the dark. With Arthur as a werewolf. Merlin closed his eyes, muttered the light spell and hoped for the best. When he opened his eyes, the clearing was filled with light again. Arthur padded around the clearing, looking for a way out. When he couldn’t find any, he huffed and flopped down onto the ground.
“Good to know you can still pout,” Merlin chuckled. He sat down opposite Arthur. “Well. Here we are. You are a werewolf and I am a wizard.” Merlin paused. “This sounds like the start of a bad joke you would tell.”
Arthur growled softly.
“Yes, yes. I know your jokes are never bad.”
Arthur stared silently at Merlin. Merlin stared back.
“I do not know how to help you,” Merlin blurted out. “I am a wizard, as I said before. I was born this way. I could solve almost anything with magic, except Mother’s illness of course. That is why I became a doctor, I figured then I really could solve anything. But now,” Merlin laughed hollowly. “I cannot even figure out how to save my best friend from becoming a werewolf forever.” He put his head in his hands and sobbed.
Arthur got up from his spot and walked over to Merlin. He nudged Merlin’s head with his nose. Merlin laughed quietly. Arthur wedged his head under Merlin’s arms and wiggled his way onto Merlin’s lap.
“What are you doing, you prat?” Merlin asked incredulously.
Arthur didn’t reply and just curled up around Merlin.
Merlin wrapped his arms around Arthur’s neck and buried his face in Arthur’s fur. He asked in a muffled voice, “How did you even turn into a werewolf? It was a girl?”
Arthur whined and licked at Merlin’s hand.
“I knew it!” Merlin pulled his head away and crowed. “It is always a girl with you, you fool. I wonder why they turned you into a werewolf anyway. Oh well,” Merlin shrugged, “it does not matter now. I have to find a way to turn you back.”
Arthur sneezed and pushed Merlin onto his back. Then he laid on top of Merlin, to keep him from getting up.
“Woah! Arthur! I cannot lie down, I need to think!”
Arthur huffed, nosed Merlin’s hands and closed his eyes.
“Damn it, Arthur,” Merlin frowned. “I cannot save you like this.” He put his head on the ground and closed his eyes. “Maybe a small nap.”
Chapter 6