Post by Deleted on Jan 25, 2015 16:55:09 GMT
Trace and Knut were facing off in the backyard of their house on a particularly sunny afternoon. Knut's large form was covered only with a black tank-top and shorts, allowing his shifted forearms and legs to be free from the rough sensation of short brown fur under clothing. Trace was almost inversely garbed, wearing nothing but his favorite leather jacket, large cargo pants, and cloth wraps for his feet. The breeze kicked up, causing Trace's back length black hair to wave as the two glared at each other. The wind subsided and the two assumed combat positions.
"Ready to kiss the ground again?" Knut taunted, causing Trace to smirk. "Oh? I think you are asking me to cover your bruises with more bruising." He replied as his body rippled into his wolf form. Black fur covered his body his legs shifted into digitigrade paws and lupine ears and tail sprouted from their respective positions. The two of them often exchanged such taunts before sparring, regardless of who was the prior victor. Knut's love for combat easily bled into Trace and the two of them quickly formed a strong bond. After a few more calls of similar caliber to both psyche themselves up and demoralize the other the two charged at each other, fists raised to deliver the first blow.
Suddenly Doctor Dill burst through the back door and belted out “I’VE FINALLY DONE IT!” The disturbance cause both Trace and Knut to lose focus and crash to the ground spectacularly. Hurriedly getting back up the lupine looked at the man that had taken him in and given him this form he’s in now. “What did you do?” he asked while smacking off the dirt clinging to his body. He hadn’t seen Dill this excited since after he has first transformed. Something truly amazing must have happened.
Dill smiled, still extremely excited if his wriggling tail was any indication. “I unlocked your power.” Trace straightened, his brow furrowing in confusion. “Didn’t you already do that with the chemicals that gave me this form?” The doctor breathed in as he prepared to deliver a lengthy speech, but Trace was focused on other things. The offer of additional power seemed pointless in Trace’s eyes, and yet it was somehow alluring. To have the power to overcome his fragile mortality, the power to be someone, the power to rise above others, to dominate them. At that exact moment he felt something on the fringes of his awareness, but by the time he isolated the feeling it was gone. There was only the impression of something black. It probably wasn’t important anyways. “...do you remember all those explosions from the lab? That is what I was doing, refining the formula. Now I’ve perfected it! I can guarantee that it will give you more power.”
“Now wait just a minute, why should he even be given this power that you are talking about? He has no need for it, and it would only cause problems.” Knut cautioned. Trace recognized the sound reasoning, what was the point of being strong if he had no reason to use that strength. He would be stagnant, no more important than when he was just a human; a worthle-no! he must seize this power! Trace clenched his teeth before relaxing. Desperation is not a good emotion to show when trying to persuade others.
He could see it in Dill’s eyes, the doctor would accept Knut’s warning and Trace’s opportunity would be lost. He needed to stop this from coming to pass! The lupine smiled, trying to pass this off as a joke. “Oh come on, what’s the harm in it? Doctor Dill slaved over this, and it’d be wrong of me to refuse the product of such hard work.” Dill beamed at this, bringing his hands together with an audible clap, “that says it then! There is no way such work should be wasted. Come along then, let’s get you hooked up!” He chirruped as he beckoned to Trace for him to follow. Knut narrowed his eyes at Trace, staring at him suspiciously. “Fine. I may not like it, but I can’t argue against that logic.”
Dill lead Trace into the house and down to his lab. In the intervening years since he first entered this room it has changed little, however there seemed to be fewer glass beakers lying around the sterilized alabaster room. Izma was in the room, studying data that was floating over the table where the two scientists did most of their work. The lupine looked around the room, “I believe you mentioned that I needed to be hooked up to something for this?” She looked up as Dill made his way to a device located at one corner of the room. “You don’t actually need to be hooked up to anything for the serum to work, we just want to measure what happens to your body.” Izma states as she walks around the table, grabbing a fluid-filled syringe as she approaches Trace. At the same time Dill returns holding several plain electrodes. “Yep, thanks to how unusual your reaction was to my polymorph serum we'd like to get on the spot data on how your body reacts to this one." The doctor confirmed as he placed the electrodes on several places of his body, some even going under his clothing. Trace considered reverting to his human form but he actually felt more comfortable as a wolf right now so the tossed the idea.
“All right, you’re all set! All that’s left is for the serum to be introduced into your system. Izma, if you would please?” Dill exclaimed once he has placed all of the sensors on Trace’s body. Izma nodded and approached Trace with the filled syringe as Dill rushed to a terminal to scrutinize the data it showed. She kneeled down in front of the lycan, letting him know that this wouldn’t hurt at all, and inserted the needle into his abdomen. Within a second she had emptied the container’s contents and removed the needle.
Trace stood up, looking at his hands in disbelief. “I don’t feel any dif-GAHHHH!” It hit him all at once, like someone broke the walls holding back an immeasurable power. The tide of power rushed through his body and mind, he was having difficulty controlling it. A red glow effused from his body as he balled his fists, trying by will alone to dominate this wild power. He stared at nothing as he wrestled with himself, and for a moment it seemed like he was succeeding.
“Are you ok?” Izma’s concerned voice filled the silent room, she had taken a hesitant step backward when Trace started glowing. Just like that his concentration was broken. “CHHHAAAAAA!” Trace roared as a massive telekinetic wave exploded outward from him, pushing everything around him away. Izma was thrown backward, her lower half hitting the central table and causing her to backflip wildly until she crashed into the far wall where she stayed pinned against Trace’s energy. The terminal Dill was scrutinizing sparked from the sudden feedback before the wave hit it and it crumpled instantly. Dill was likewise undefended from the wave of psychic energy and was thrown against the wall behind him. Trace could only stand there, shouting his lungs out, as he was overwhelmed by this power, however he could hear the anguished screams of the others. I, I'm killing them! I have to... Redirect the power somehow...
Wave after wave of uncontrolled energy was pouring out of Trace, the pressure slowly increasing. The ground cracked around him and small pieces of rubble lifted from the floor. The lupine lifted his arms above his head, willing the energy to go straight up. It succeeded, but a deluge of even more power thrusted itself out of Trace. His eyes turned white as his body surrendered to the power, simply becoming a conduit as the energy ran its course. A solid beam of red psychic energy blasted through the ceiling to lance into the sky before fading entirely. Trace limply dropped his hands as he panted. That was… new. He felt faint, his vision was beginning to darken at the edges. I guess Knut was right, and yet it was somewhat exhilarating no? His knee buckled and he collapsed to the ground unconscious…
The first thing Trace noticed was that he was in a comfortable bed, and he was human. Slowly he opened his eyes, and immediately shut them again. Why was it so bright!?! He groaned, “can someone please turn off the light?” Instead of the rustle of blinds closing or a click of a switch that would inform him that the room was suitably dimmer the lycan heard a voice speak out. “You’re awake, good. I was beginning to worry that you were in a coma.” Huh? Why would h- The lab! Trace bolted upright, eyes wide in a mixture of fear and concern. “Izma! What ha-oogh…” His hands sought his head as a massive headache drilled his brain. Izma strode forward to stand by his bed. “You should relax, you nearly died and are no where near fully recovered.” Agreeing, the lycan slunk back into his bed. “So, what happened?” He asked, his eyes wandering the room. They were in some kind of a hospital emergency room, a variety of equipment was hooked to him to monitor his health. Izma sat down on a stool, her shark tail curving down to rest on the floor. “In a phrase, you happened. From what information Dill gathered before the explosion the serum we injected into you unlocked your hidden psychic potential, and your body violently drained all of your built up energy at once. If you hadn’t thrown that energy into the sky we might be dead, thanks to your quick thinking no-one was seriously harmed.” That was good news at least, Trace allowed a relieved smile to display on his face. his eyes roamed the room noting that Knut and Dill weren’t present. “Where are the others? And what happened to the house and lab?” Izma shifted, slightly uncomfortable with the question. “The house was destroyed in the blast and almost everything from the lab was lost. Knut and the doctor are trying to salvage what they can from the wreckage.” Trace’s face fell. Dill’s life work was reduced to rubble right after his triumph. He couldn’t imagine what the doctor must be going through right now. Izma gently placed her hand on his arm. “We don’t blame you Trace, all that was lost was knowledge and knowledge can be learned again. We are not old enough to give up after this setback.”
The two fell into a comfortable silence that lasted for several minutes, the only sounds coming from the monitors surrounding Trace. Izma shifted, looking out the large window on the far side of the room, her angular face coming into full definition from the light and her red hair seemed to be glowing. “You’ve entered a level few stand on. The power you used is beyond what most humans can comprehend, and yet there are many on Earth and beyond with power much like yours. If you are going to master this power we’ve awakened in you, you will need to seek out these individuals and learn from them. It is likely that you will make many enemies and several friends, but know this Trace: If you ever need a place to rest, we will always be there for you.” Trace too shifted his gaze to the sky outside. He knew what this meant, and he agreed with it. If he were to understand what he’s become he would have to seek out people like him, but that means he would have to leave his family behind.
After a few more minutes of silence Izma reached into a pocket in her lab coat that she always wore. She pulled out a single plastic card and a pair of keys, placing them on a nearby table. “Here, this is the best we can do for you. This card should cover all expenses you’d incur as you travel, also the motorcycle is yours.” Izma stated as she stood up and walked to the door. The door opened with a noticeable click, but before she left she looked back at Trace with a somber expression. “Good luck Trace.” The door closed with a gentle report and Trace closed his eyes. He wanted to cry, but didn’t. A whole new chapter of his life was starting now, would he be ready for it? With that question on his mind the lycan drifted off to sleep.
Three days later Trace was released from the hospital fully recovered. In the parking lot was his motorcycle with a biker’s helmet resting on the handlebars. He picked up the helmet and put it on, his long spiky hair being pressed uncomfortably against his skull. At least it was tolerable, and it was a lot safer than riding without one. The lycan straddled the bike and put the key in the ignition, twisting it and receiving the satisfying thrum from the well maintained machine. He twisted the handlebar and nudged the machine into the traffic, merging and becoming part of the crowd. His first priority: exit the city. After that he’ll just see what happens.
"Ready to kiss the ground again?" Knut taunted, causing Trace to smirk. "Oh? I think you are asking me to cover your bruises with more bruising." He replied as his body rippled into his wolf form. Black fur covered his body his legs shifted into digitigrade paws and lupine ears and tail sprouted from their respective positions. The two of them often exchanged such taunts before sparring, regardless of who was the prior victor. Knut's love for combat easily bled into Trace and the two of them quickly formed a strong bond. After a few more calls of similar caliber to both psyche themselves up and demoralize the other the two charged at each other, fists raised to deliver the first blow.
Suddenly Doctor Dill burst through the back door and belted out “I’VE FINALLY DONE IT!” The disturbance cause both Trace and Knut to lose focus and crash to the ground spectacularly. Hurriedly getting back up the lupine looked at the man that had taken him in and given him this form he’s in now. “What did you do?” he asked while smacking off the dirt clinging to his body. He hadn’t seen Dill this excited since after he has first transformed. Something truly amazing must have happened.
Dill smiled, still extremely excited if his wriggling tail was any indication. “I unlocked your power.” Trace straightened, his brow furrowing in confusion. “Didn’t you already do that with the chemicals that gave me this form?” The doctor breathed in as he prepared to deliver a lengthy speech, but Trace was focused on other things. The offer of additional power seemed pointless in Trace’s eyes, and yet it was somehow alluring. To have the power to overcome his fragile mortality, the power to be someone, the power to rise above others, to dominate them. At that exact moment he felt something on the fringes of his awareness, but by the time he isolated the feeling it was gone. There was only the impression of something black. It probably wasn’t important anyways. “...do you remember all those explosions from the lab? That is what I was doing, refining the formula. Now I’ve perfected it! I can guarantee that it will give you more power.”
“Now wait just a minute, why should he even be given this power that you are talking about? He has no need for it, and it would only cause problems.” Knut cautioned. Trace recognized the sound reasoning, what was the point of being strong if he had no reason to use that strength. He would be stagnant, no more important than when he was just a human; a worthle-no! he must seize this power! Trace clenched his teeth before relaxing. Desperation is not a good emotion to show when trying to persuade others.
He could see it in Dill’s eyes, the doctor would accept Knut’s warning and Trace’s opportunity would be lost. He needed to stop this from coming to pass! The lupine smiled, trying to pass this off as a joke. “Oh come on, what’s the harm in it? Doctor Dill slaved over this, and it’d be wrong of me to refuse the product of such hard work.” Dill beamed at this, bringing his hands together with an audible clap, “that says it then! There is no way such work should be wasted. Come along then, let’s get you hooked up!” He chirruped as he beckoned to Trace for him to follow. Knut narrowed his eyes at Trace, staring at him suspiciously. “Fine. I may not like it, but I can’t argue against that logic.”
Dill lead Trace into the house and down to his lab. In the intervening years since he first entered this room it has changed little, however there seemed to be fewer glass beakers lying around the sterilized alabaster room. Izma was in the room, studying data that was floating over the table where the two scientists did most of their work. The lupine looked around the room, “I believe you mentioned that I needed to be hooked up to something for this?” She looked up as Dill made his way to a device located at one corner of the room. “You don’t actually need to be hooked up to anything for the serum to work, we just want to measure what happens to your body.” Izma states as she walks around the table, grabbing a fluid-filled syringe as she approaches Trace. At the same time Dill returns holding several plain electrodes. “Yep, thanks to how unusual your reaction was to my polymorph serum we'd like to get on the spot data on how your body reacts to this one." The doctor confirmed as he placed the electrodes on several places of his body, some even going under his clothing. Trace considered reverting to his human form but he actually felt more comfortable as a wolf right now so the tossed the idea.
“All right, you’re all set! All that’s left is for the serum to be introduced into your system. Izma, if you would please?” Dill exclaimed once he has placed all of the sensors on Trace’s body. Izma nodded and approached Trace with the filled syringe as Dill rushed to a terminal to scrutinize the data it showed. She kneeled down in front of the lycan, letting him know that this wouldn’t hurt at all, and inserted the needle into his abdomen. Within a second she had emptied the container’s contents and removed the needle.
Trace stood up, looking at his hands in disbelief. “I don’t feel any dif-GAHHHH!” It hit him all at once, like someone broke the walls holding back an immeasurable power. The tide of power rushed through his body and mind, he was having difficulty controlling it. A red glow effused from his body as he balled his fists, trying by will alone to dominate this wild power. He stared at nothing as he wrestled with himself, and for a moment it seemed like he was succeeding.
“Are you ok?” Izma’s concerned voice filled the silent room, she had taken a hesitant step backward when Trace started glowing. Just like that his concentration was broken. “CHHHAAAAAA!” Trace roared as a massive telekinetic wave exploded outward from him, pushing everything around him away. Izma was thrown backward, her lower half hitting the central table and causing her to backflip wildly until she crashed into the far wall where she stayed pinned against Trace’s energy. The terminal Dill was scrutinizing sparked from the sudden feedback before the wave hit it and it crumpled instantly. Dill was likewise undefended from the wave of psychic energy and was thrown against the wall behind him. Trace could only stand there, shouting his lungs out, as he was overwhelmed by this power, however he could hear the anguished screams of the others. I, I'm killing them! I have to... Redirect the power somehow...
Wave after wave of uncontrolled energy was pouring out of Trace, the pressure slowly increasing. The ground cracked around him and small pieces of rubble lifted from the floor. The lupine lifted his arms above his head, willing the energy to go straight up. It succeeded, but a deluge of even more power thrusted itself out of Trace. His eyes turned white as his body surrendered to the power, simply becoming a conduit as the energy ran its course. A solid beam of red psychic energy blasted through the ceiling to lance into the sky before fading entirely. Trace limply dropped his hands as he panted. That was… new. He felt faint, his vision was beginning to darken at the edges. I guess Knut was right, and yet it was somewhat exhilarating no? His knee buckled and he collapsed to the ground unconscious…
The first thing Trace noticed was that he was in a comfortable bed, and he was human. Slowly he opened his eyes, and immediately shut them again. Why was it so bright!?! He groaned, “can someone please turn off the light?” Instead of the rustle of blinds closing or a click of a switch that would inform him that the room was suitably dimmer the lycan heard a voice speak out. “You’re awake, good. I was beginning to worry that you were in a coma.” Huh? Why would h- The lab! Trace bolted upright, eyes wide in a mixture of fear and concern. “Izma! What ha-oogh…” His hands sought his head as a massive headache drilled his brain. Izma strode forward to stand by his bed. “You should relax, you nearly died and are no where near fully recovered.” Agreeing, the lycan slunk back into his bed. “So, what happened?” He asked, his eyes wandering the room. They were in some kind of a hospital emergency room, a variety of equipment was hooked to him to monitor his health. Izma sat down on a stool, her shark tail curving down to rest on the floor. “In a phrase, you happened. From what information Dill gathered before the explosion the serum we injected into you unlocked your hidden psychic potential, and your body violently drained all of your built up energy at once. If you hadn’t thrown that energy into the sky we might be dead, thanks to your quick thinking no-one was seriously harmed.” That was good news at least, Trace allowed a relieved smile to display on his face. his eyes roamed the room noting that Knut and Dill weren’t present. “Where are the others? And what happened to the house and lab?” Izma shifted, slightly uncomfortable with the question. “The house was destroyed in the blast and almost everything from the lab was lost. Knut and the doctor are trying to salvage what they can from the wreckage.” Trace’s face fell. Dill’s life work was reduced to rubble right after his triumph. He couldn’t imagine what the doctor must be going through right now. Izma gently placed her hand on his arm. “We don’t blame you Trace, all that was lost was knowledge and knowledge can be learned again. We are not old enough to give up after this setback.”
The two fell into a comfortable silence that lasted for several minutes, the only sounds coming from the monitors surrounding Trace. Izma shifted, looking out the large window on the far side of the room, her angular face coming into full definition from the light and her red hair seemed to be glowing. “You’ve entered a level few stand on. The power you used is beyond what most humans can comprehend, and yet there are many on Earth and beyond with power much like yours. If you are going to master this power we’ve awakened in you, you will need to seek out these individuals and learn from them. It is likely that you will make many enemies and several friends, but know this Trace: If you ever need a place to rest, we will always be there for you.” Trace too shifted his gaze to the sky outside. He knew what this meant, and he agreed with it. If he were to understand what he’s become he would have to seek out people like him, but that means he would have to leave his family behind.
After a few more minutes of silence Izma reached into a pocket in her lab coat that she always wore. She pulled out a single plastic card and a pair of keys, placing them on a nearby table. “Here, this is the best we can do for you. This card should cover all expenses you’d incur as you travel, also the motorcycle is yours.” Izma stated as she stood up and walked to the door. The door opened with a noticeable click, but before she left she looked back at Trace with a somber expression. “Good luck Trace.” The door closed with a gentle report and Trace closed his eyes. He wanted to cry, but didn’t. A whole new chapter of his life was starting now, would he be ready for it? With that question on his mind the lycan drifted off to sleep.
Three days later Trace was released from the hospital fully recovered. In the parking lot was his motorcycle with a biker’s helmet resting on the handlebars. He picked up the helmet and put it on, his long spiky hair being pressed uncomfortably against his skull. At least it was tolerable, and it was a lot safer than riding without one. The lycan straddled the bike and put the key in the ignition, twisting it and receiving the satisfying thrum from the well maintained machine. He twisted the handlebar and nudged the machine into the traffic, merging and becoming part of the crowd. His first priority: exit the city. After that he’ll just see what happens.