Grey's Wolf

Grey watched as raindrops trickled down his window, the thought of receiving a new batch of weapons filled his head with excitement. He watched as men in thick vests offload the cargo off the ship filling their cars with it. These were his men, men trained to hunt down and kill werewolves, the same werewolves that killed his family when he was just a baby. He hated the wolves and would stop at nothing to see every last one of them gone. Trained in four different styles of martial arts and a good shot, he was the perfect werewolf killing machine.

His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on his cracked door, he opened the door to one of the men.

“We’re done loading”, he said without looking Grey in the eye.

For some reason, most people feared Grey, he had a very intimidating look with a strong jawline, thick short dark hair, and eyes that could kill you if you stared at them too much. He was taller than most of the other hunters and had a good physique, enough to make any woman go crazy but that was never his thing, women. He was more focused on bringing the killers of his parents to justice alongside every one of their kind, all wolves looked the same to him.

“Okay”, he replied to the man, “Tell Rike I’ll be with him shortly” to which the man replied with a nod.

Christian Rike was Grey’s mentor and friend, one of the few people who didn’t find Grey intimidating. He trained Grey to be a killer since he was a child and Grey took him as some sort of father figure. Unlike Grey, people found Rike to be humorous and livelier but one thing they shared in common was both men were excellent fighters.

Grey’s packing was interrupted by another knock on the door.

“I said I’ll be there in a min…”, he said before the door got knocked off its hinges.

Rike threw a blade toward Grey which he avoided easily. He begins to attack Grey with a sword, but he dodges, blocking Rike’s advances with a piece of wood that fell off the door when Rike broke it. Rike advanced with the sword. Grey continued to defend, waiting for the perfect time to throw his left fist at Rike. He saw an opportunity when Rike lost his balance to a hole in the floor and took it, swinging his left fist at Rike’s jaw but Rike easily blocked it, it’d take more than that to take down the man that taught him almost everything he knows.

“Is that the best you can do”? Rike said, chasing Grey out the window of his already scattered room. The men outside watch as the two battle it out until finally, Rike had Grey’s back on the floor.

“If I was a wolf, you’d be dead by now”, Rike said, holding a knife to Grey’s neck.

“No wolf fights like you and I think you would reconsider your statement”, Grey replied, directing Rike with his eyes. Rike made a quick glance at Grey’s hand and saw that he was holding a knife very close to his heart.

“I guess I didn’t teach you everything”, Rike responded. He pulled Grey up from the ground with one arm as both men laughed. Grey dusted the sand off his jacket as he followed Rike to one of the cars loaded with new weapons.

“We should be at base by nightfall, how excited are you to see the team”, Rike asked.

Rike received a tip four months back of a pack of werewolves on the east coast, he learned the wolves took down a small village killing innocent men and women, leaving no children behind. His mission -to take the wolves down at all costs, and he chose Grey as his co-lead. It was no surprise to any, Grey was obviously Rike’s favorite of the team.

They reached what remained of the village, carcasses, and damaged houses. Grey found tracks leading to the wolves not too far from them. He was exceptionally good at tracking, a skill he was born with. Taking down the wolves was easier than any of them expected, just Rike and Grey could take them on their own. After four months away from the team, a group of highly trained hunters, it was finally time to return home. Grey sat at the front seat of the vehicle, his eyes watching the sky as they moved, daydreaming of the day he would catch his parent’s killers.

They get to the base, a bunch of people gather to welcome the men on a successful mission. Grey doesn’t wait for the applause to start, he heads to his old room hoping to get some rest before he sees the other hunters. He reached his room to prepare himself for a long well-deserved shower.

“How many?”, a soft voice spoke from the entrance of his room.

“How many what?”, he replied while unpacking his bag.

“How many wolves did you kill?”, the voice answered, revealing a pretty face. A woman walked into his room, she had short brown hair and wore a denim waist-high overall and a white top. She had a peculiar scar on her neck shaped like an animal claw, a gift she picked up from a battle with a wolf.

“What does it matter, they’re all dead”, he replied, this time hanging his bag on a coat hanger.

“I just want to know if I still have a higher kill score than you”, she replied.

“You would have to hunt and kill for five years before you reach me”, he said walking towards her, “It’s good to see you, Leah”.

“Good to see you too, have any of the others seen you yet?”, she asked, hugging him tight. He responded in silence, letting go of her embrace. If Grey was being honest with himself, something didn’t feel right about killing those wolves, a part of him wished he didn’t but then again, they were wolves, human killing machines with no emotions and every single one of them needed to be wiped off the face of the earth.

“I take your silence as a no”, Leah said.

Grey doesn’t say another word to her, he walks to the edge of the room and takes his shirt off revealing a body that could have easily been sculpted by the gods.

“That’s a new one”, she said pointing to a scar by his elbow.

“I’ll see them before moonrise”, he told her, ignoring her observation. She smiled and disappeared into the darkness of the halls. Grey walks into the shower, his mind conflicted but he can’t seem to figure out why.

The base was made by a group of wealthy and powerful hunters, one of them being Robert Tim, the man who saved and raised Grey as his own son. It was a very large compound, about 100 acres in area. Robert alongside his colleagues created the base to train men and women in the art of killing werewolves. It had everything they needed, training fields, living quarters, a large dining hall, and a library housing various werewolf-related information.

Grey never needed special treatment just because his “father” was a leader of the hunters. He excelled naturally and was easily the favorite of all the teachers, Rike included.

Grey walked into the dining hall making a quick glance at the bar before meeting up with Leah and the rest of the gang.

“The son returns”, Michael spoke as Grey walked to their table. Everybody’s attention quickly turned towards him.

“It’s good to see you too Mike”, he responded sitting on the empty chair in their midst. There were three people at that table, Michael, a bald-headed dark-skinned man with a white mustache. Michael joined the hunters after his sister mysteriously disappeared from their home in Berlin, the only thing that was left of the scene were claw marks from a werewolf. Leah, Grey’s old flame and daughter to one of the wealthy and powerful hunters, and Leon, the brain of the bunch. Leon wasn’t much of a fighter but he made his way out of very risky situations with the help of his brain and his gadgets.

“Where’s Thomas?”, Grey asked, noticing someone was missing from the group.

“No one has seen him since you got back, he’s probably out watching the moon or something”, Leon replied.

“You know how broody he can be, I’m surprised you two aren’t brothers”, Leah added.

Grey knew exactly where he would be. “I’ll go find him, it was great seeing you guys”, he said as he walked out of the hall.

Thomas and Grey had been best friends for as long as they could remember, they grew up together, trained together and fought together. Thomas was the only one who could best Grey in one-on-one combat, he was trained in four martial art styles and was also a perfect shot, almost too perfect. He once killed a werewolf at the top of a building 2 miles away with an arrow. Just like Grey, he wasn’t much of a talker.

“You’re going to be quieter if you want to sneak up on me”, Thomas said to Grey.

“I figured I’d find you here”, he replied making his way to the roof Thomas seated.

“Shouldn’t people be worshiping you in the halls for your mission?”, Thomas responded.

“Careful now, someone might hear you and think you’re jealous”, Grey replies. He sat close to Thomas, both men watched the full moon as night clouds covered parts of it.

“How was it, the mission?”, Thomas asked.

“Nothing you don’t already know”, Grey replied.

Grey could tell something was wrong with his friend, he was more broody than usual, but he knew not to ask him, Thomas was never really one for many questions.

“I’m glad you’re back”, Thomas told him while his head faces the moon above them. That was his way of telling Grey he missed him. They continued to sit in silence until they were interrupted by Leon who yelled, telling them their presence was requested at the council.

Thomas gets off the roof first, jumping unto a pillar and then to the ground. Grey smiled as he watched him then proceeded to take the stairs down. They follow Leon to meet up with Michael and Leah. They all walked into the meeting room where they were briefed by Rike and another man in a dark robe.

There was a picture of a man on the wooden table in the middle of the room with a face not familiar to any of them. Michael was unsure but waited for Rike to speak before he said anything.

“Our next target”, Rike said pointing to the picture. “Our source told us he and his pack are heading to the south to join up with other wolves, your job is to stop him before he does”, Rike finally breaks the silence in the room. “Who is he?”, Michael asks.

“One of the people responsible for the death of many men, women, and children, including Grey’s parents”, Rike responded to Michael. Once again, everybody’s attention turns to Grey who remained quiet.

“We are not sure if he did it himself but we know he was there on the night of the attack”, Rike continued.

“I’m not sure he is up for this particular task”, the man in the robe said, “It is very easy to let emotions cloud his judgment”.

“We have nothing to worry about, he’s one of the best”, Rike calmly defended Grey, “besides Robert insisted he goes with us”. “Of course he would, he’s been playing favorites since day one”, the man responded angrily as he stormed out of the room, “he had better not screw this up”.

They all watched as the figure left the room allowing them to speak to Rike freely. Grey didn’t say a word, he waited until Rike briefs everybody and left, his head filled with the image of the man in the picture.

“Are you going to be okay?”, Leah asked him as they walked back to the sleeping quarters, her right hand on his back. If it were a moment in the past, he would have her on his bed that night but igniting old flames never helped anybody and he was sure if he did, he’d surely get burned.

“I am, I just need rest”, he replied, trying to shake her hand off his back. She noticed and pulled away covering up the awkward moment with a gentle punch to his left shoulder. She left him in the company of Thomas.

“The weather is cold you know, you might need some heat”, Thomas told Grey.

“I’m sure I can manage the night”, he responded. Both men retired to their rooms ready for a fight to come the next day.

The night was long, Grey couldn’t stop thinking about what the man in the robe said, what if this wolf, the one they were meant to hunt down and kill the next day was actually responsible for the death of his biological parents, would he be able to put everything aside and kill him before getting answers?

On the other side of the base, Robert Tim met with the man in the robe for a heated conversation.

“Rike told me of the words you uttered to my son, you should know your place”, Robert told the man. “I am sorry, sorry that you cannot see the truth”, the man replies. “Your ‘son’ is not as strong as you think, what if he starts asking questions”, he continues.

“And why would he do that?” Robert asked the man with a harsh demeanor.

“Rike told him one of the wolves involved in tomorrow’s mission might be responsible for the death of his parents, he would go looking for answers”, the man told Robert trying to avoid making eye contact.

“The sooner we are done with tomorrow, the better, I have given Rike very specific instructions, the mission would be very shift”, Robert responded but this time in a more composed tone.

“But…”

“But nothing, this is the last I hear any of this and this is the last time you speak of the matter, do you understand”, Robert interrupted him before he could say anything else. “Come tomorrow, our problems will be over”, he added.

The man gave a gentle nod and disappeared into the darkness of the night leaving Robert alone, he had not seen his son since he arrived and what better time to do it than nighttime? He took a left through the weaponry and exited at the rear of the dining hall, reaching his son’s room faster and unseen. “I wondered when you’d show up”, Grey told Robert while he laid on his bed facing up to the white ceiling, he noticed his presence since he stepped into the dark hall that led to his room.

“I wanted to give you time to settle”, Robert responded entering the room.

“I take it you’re here because of the mission tomorrow?”, Grey sat up from his bed.

“Can’t I just want to see my son?”, Robert replied in a sarcastic way.

Robert could tell from the way Grey looked at him, he wasn’t satisfied with the answer he gave. He knew his son could read him so well.

“Okay, that too, but I just wanted to see you”, he said.

Grey gets up from the bed and hugs his father, he is a bit taller than Robert being five foot nine but that doesn’t stop him from wrapping his arms under Robert’s.

“I’m okay, I’ll be okay”, Grey whispered as Robert’s grip tightened.

“I know you will”, Robert replied.

“You know better than to wander too far off from the pack, it’s not safe, especially for an inexperienced wolf like yourself”, Vincent told Rhaila. “You know how dangerous it can be”, he continued.

She didn't say a word but her silence spoke. The two stood in the middle of the forest, the sound of the wind blowing through the grasses allowing the birds to dance freely under the moonlight. Rhaila looked at Vincent, her brown eyes staring intensely at him almost as if she was trying to see through his soul.

“How much further?”, she asked him, ignoring what he had just told her.

“Not too far now, just a couple more hours”, he responded. “Go, join the other wolves, we leave by dawn”

“Shouldn’t we move now? We have more advantage at night than when the sun rises”, she objected, this time pulling a loose strand of her black hair off her face. Vincent moved closer to her, he placed his left arm on her cheek.

“Even if we can travel, some of the others are