Once Bitten, Twice Shy
#10 of Lycans and Zombies
The next few days passed by in a haze. We were all at peace and relatively bored, so we would all try to figure out things to do. We mostly went hunting, and we had enough meat and wild herbs stockpiled that eventually we stopped for fear our stuff would rot before it could be used.
The stench of death grew worse every day, and we began to fear that a large horde of zombies was getting closer, but when Caleb went out every night, he didn't find anything within a hundred mile radius.
Caleb and I were near inseparable. We shared stories of our life before the undead, and to listen to all the places he's been to was amazing. He listened with intent on my life stories, and it made me feel good to get a lot of it off my chest.
We also spent a lot of time curled together, exploring and talking with our actions rather than words. Intimacy was something that I used to fear, but with him, it seemed so natural that I didn't even give it a second thought. The feel of him was something I was growing to love, just as much as him.
"You know, even though we are a lot different than our feral cousins, my kind still has something in common with the wolves," Caleb said to me one night after a passionate bout of lovemaking. He had his arms curled around me and I was tucked against his body. We fit together almost perfectly.
"And what would that be?" I asked him, nuzzling him and inhaling his musky scent.
"We mate for life," he murmured, kissing me softly.
"Hmm, is that your way of proposing to me?" I ask, half heartedly.
"Maybe in the future, but not here, not now. When I propose, it will be completely unexpected," he said, stroking my hair. A shiver went up my spine at thinking of future prospects. Where would we be in a year? In two years? Would the world that we used to know cease to exist? Would we die before we get the chance to live our life fully? He seemed to sense the direction my thoughts were taking, and kissed me on the crown of my head, pulling me close. We could hear someone approaching our tent, and Caleb pulled the thick blanket around us.
"Hey you two, we're going to send out a hunting party. Some of our guys are getting antsy and they need to shoot something," I heard Willa say.
"Do you need us to come?" I asked.
"You can if you want, but it would be for the best if Caleb stayed. Old Thomas is coming along, and we all know his views on wolfman," she replied. Old Thomas had been the one to shoot Caleb when he was first introduced to the group. We had never known his name before, and it was suspicious, but lately he'd been pretty okay.
"Alright," Caleb said. "I'll make sure to hunt in the opposite direction." Both me and Willa laughed, and she left. I stretched and Caleb nuzzled my bare chest.
"Have I told you that you're a beautiful woman?"
"Only all the time," I mumbled, rolling on top of him. I could see a mischievous glint in his eye, and he moved me so I was straddling him. It was unusual for us, since his wolf nature lead him to be more dominant, but the rakish grin on his face told me he didn't mind this either. I moved against him teasingly and felt him trembled.
"Mmm, I think I could get used to being submissive every once in a blue moon," he said, grinding against me in reply.
A scream echoed across the meadow, followed closely by two shots, and we both froze. More shots had us scrambling to dress ourselves, and I was sure I ended up wearing his shirt while he went bare chested. I grabbed my crossbow and a handful of bolts and raced from the tent. Caleb went wolf as soon as his feet touched the ground and we were racing off through the trees where the sounds of fighting came from. I loaded bolts into the chambers on my gatling bow, and took aim, hesitating when I saw a massive horde of the undead. Hardening my resolve, I fired several rounds, ducking behind a tree when I needed to reload. I could hear Caleb tearing through them all, but they just kept coming.
Eventually I ran out of bolts and I was forced to move into battle, pulling my combat knife from my shoe and nearly dropping it when a zombie lumbered towards me at unnatural speeds. I struck and my knife went cleanly into its skull, blood spattering all over me. I pulled my knife out and continued into the fray, picking up my arrows and loading them when I got the chance to. It seemed like there were hundred of them, and there probably was, but still we fought on. Chris and Willa were back to back, fighting off a small group, while Alan was overrun. He fell and was lost to them. Once they were done with him, they turned their attention to me, and I shot several of them in the face.
Then my crossbow jammed and my knife was ripped from me as I stabbed at one, who managed to dodge and I hit it in the chest instead.
Caleb came tearing through them at the last minute, and I grabbed my knife and quickly raised to my feet. I didn't stop to think that, although they were in pieces, they were still very much operational. I stepped back to dodge a flailing arm and felt teeth sink into my leg. I didn't cry out, but immediately swung my knife down and slashed it across its dumb face. I checked the wound, and saw that it managed to break the skin, and my heart sank. I felt that everything was completely unfair, and anger swept through me.
Blinded by rage, I turned into a killing monster, and once every single one was finished off, I paused to look at the carnage around us. Half of our camp had died and a few of them were starting to get back up as undead. Willa loosed arrows into their heads before they could get far, and I looked at my leg again. I could feel the virus burning slowly through my blood, and I turned and ran. I wasn't sure where I was going, but I soon found myself a long way down the creek. I had no idea where I was, but I splashed into the running water anyway. I took my knife and dug it into the bite, hoping the water would be able to flush it out. The hope was feeble, since I could still feel it making its way up my leg. After a few minutes, I gave up and just laid in the water, staring up at the sky.
Through the gurgling, I could hear several voices shout my name. Caleb's was among those and my heart felt heavy. I closed my eyes and tried my hardest to not feel. It was actually easy, since the water was freaking freezing, and soon half of my body was slow and sluggish with numbing coldness. A twig snapped near by and Caleb came bursting through the trees.
"I found her!" He shouted. I hear more people coming as he sloshed into the water. He picked me up and brought me to the bank. He started to remove my sopping wet clothes and tried warming me up, while I strained weakly against him.
"No!" I told him over and over again.
"Why? Why won't you let me help you?" He asked finally. I looked him in the eye and struggled to hold back tears.
"I've been bitten. I'll probably change any minute now. You need to kill me. Kill me now before it happens!" Willa and Chris came through the trees as I shouted at Caleb, and I could see everyone slump at my revelation.
"No...I can't lose you. I've only just found you," Caleb said softly, voice full of emotion.
"Only just found me? Were you looking for me?" I asked.
"It was why I was traveling so much. Most never find their soul mates, but I made it a personal quest. I mean, if I can't have the leadership, why can't I be happy?"
"But you traveled the world!" I protested.
"I traveled the world over the course of a hundred years or so looking for you, and each time I was close to finding you, your soul essence would disappear and reappear somewhere else. I can't explain it now, we're losing time. There is one thing I can do for you, but only because we are mates."
"Can you save her?" Willa asked, clinging to Chris and sobbing. I groaned and drooped more in Caleb's arms. I could feel it starting to attack my heart, and man did it hurt. It felt like I had thousands of needles stinging me.
"There's no time, I have to do this now," Caleb said, bringing his hand to his mouth and using his teeth to rip a hole in his palm. Immediately blood poured out, and he put his hand to my leg. I flinched at the sting, and felt a new heat spreading into my system. It was uncomfortable, but I was in too much pain to feel anything.
"Are you like, changing her into one of your kind?" Willa asked, hopeful.
"No, she will never be able to become a wolf. But by giving her my blood, I can kill off the virus and make her pretty much invulnerable to any disease out there. She will also share my lifespan," he murmured. We were all silent then, and the pain in my chest eased as his blood worked its magic. Every part of me ached, but it made sense because I had started the process of dying, and suddenly everything was being forced back to life.
"Is it working?" Chris asked.
"I think so. I'm surprised she hasn't passed out by now though, lycan blood is a really big shock to the system."
"Close to it," I mumbled, my words slurring as blackness began to creep around the edges of my vision.
"I think she's about to pass out actually," Willa said as the darkness finally closed in completely, and I was out cold.
Note: only once chapter and then the epilogue left!
no crits because i know it sucks