Chapter 102 : Hideous Shifts

Karenina

Before both of them could move, suddenly bones cracked, ribs split flesh with a horrendous slashing sound, and blood splattered everywhere as Maya's chest cavity split open, and something black crawled out.

Hot liquid splashed over her dress, on her face, and in her hair, drenching her in sticky blood. And all she could do was blink and stare wide-eyed at the flesh that used to be Maya's chest. A strangled sound, a shock of pain that shook his living body. She lifted her horrified gaze to meet with Maya's. She also almost choked, not because of the pungent scent of blood and flesh, but because of the bewildered green eyes staring at her as if Maya could not believe what was happening to her. Almost like a lost child looking for answers.

A scream filled her throat as she saw the shattered lungs trying to breathe and the shredded heart still trying to beat, only managing to kill Maya faster with more blood coming out of her body. Karen had seen many gruesome things before as she fought and found lifeless bodies, but nothing like this.

In a way, she heard Nathan say, "Your body is worthless to me, Maya. I won't take it for myself. Die in peace."

She ignored it for now even though it made her even more easily attacked, because Maya's lips moved, and she looked at her, trying to make her understand something. Blood gushed from her mouth, a horrible hissing sound, and not a word came from her red lips, but she was sure that Maya was saying, "I'm sorry".

As Maya lay dying, she never once took her eyes off the last thing she wanted to see before leaving this world - Karen. This time, she knew no one would come to save her. And even if Karen would, her injuries were too severe. Why was death always so painful? And why did she have to die when she still had to protect Karen before she suffered the same fate - or even worse? All she could do was apologize for her failure.

Karen watched as the light of life left her eyes, and her last breath exhaled in a stream of blood. Before she could think to move, the air swirled around her before the footsteps made their way towards her, coming right up next to Maya's corpse, and throwing her body against the cave wall with a sickening thud, bones cracking and blood splattering everywhere.

"Jeez, what a beautiful red color you're wearing, Karenina. It makes you look so bloodthirsty, if not for the helpless look in your eyes. Let's fix that, shall we?"

Turning her face away, Karen got to her feet even though her chest felt tight with grief at all the senseless deaths that kept happening around her. New names were added to the list, both Helga and Maya.

"She didn't deserve it, you piece of shit," she hissed at Nathan.

"Feel sorry for Maya, don't you? Even after everything she did, you still forgive her? Makes me wonder what it would take to earn such high honors for herself, maybe I wish I could be like her to get your attention."

With an irritated and annoyed voice, she looked at him with a hateful gaze. "This is all just a game to you. The suffering and death of others is just a sick joke to you."

Nathan stepped closer to her. "Does that upset you?" One more step. "Do you hate me?" When he stepped closer again, Karen took a step back. "Do you want to punish me?" he muttered seductively, slowly walking towards her even though she kept taking a step back with each step. "To make me pay?"

She hit the wall again, only a few feet away from Maya's lifeless body. She barely realized what was happening with him getting closer. Then he leaned over her, his breath in her ear, then he lowered himself to the nape of her neck to breathe in her scent and somehow she froze, unable to move.

"You don't have what it takes to kill me, my dear. I doubt you even have it in you."

Without thinking about the consequences, Karen placed her hand on his chest even though she hated the thought of touching him, she filled her palm with her spiritual energy and sent a powerful blast through the palm. Nathan was thrown upwards, crashing into the far wall, until it cracked into the rock, then spread out around him where he made an impact.

"Let's put that theory to the test," she exclaimed, summoning all her strength, intent on wiping that vile grin off his face.

Too late, she realized her mistake. Her heart was pounding, almost deafening, the energy of her wolf aura rising within her. Her eyes wide with distress, she whispered, "You wanted this to happen..." she hissed at Nathan before her auras fought each other, leaving her writhing on the ground.

She noticed that Nathan was chuckling. Then hands were on her shoulders, turning her over and lifting her off the ground. Even as she writhed in pain, sparks flying around them, Nathan didn't seem to notice, even as his hands began to burn from touching her.

"So helpless..." He muttered as he watched her. "But not powerless. You have a lot of potential, Karen, and I'm going to help you realize it."

A dark wolf aura mixed with a dark magic aura flared around them as he built up his aura. When he lowered his head closer to hers, he murmured something.

"You look a lot like her, but you're so much more beautiful and alive. You never knew how much I was attracted to you. If you hadn't pursued him, I would never have done this."

She barely noticed as his lips touched her own, at least not until he sent a wolfish aura into her as their mouths interlocked between kisses. It was only then that Karen realized that she had never really known what pain was. An agony she had never felt before centered around her heart, threatening to explode the organ beating furiously in her chest. With every beat of her heart, blood rushed through her body, sending waves of torment from her heart to every organ in her body. It felt like a raging inferno, hotter than fire, trying to melt her from the inside out.

Her organs shifted, feeling claustrophobic inside her body. Every nerve in her body, from her head to her fingers, to her toes, screamed in pain. Twitching, convulsing on the ground, her back bent to such a painful degree, it was a surprise her spine didn't break. Karen almost wished it had, because every bone in her body felt close to breaking. It was just too much. She couldn't bear the pain and live, didn't even want to continue living. There was nothing but pain. No memories of her friends, her family, or Xavier, nothing that made her Karenina Mason remained in her memory. All that remained was the pain that she could not escape.

Suffocating, she felt suffocated. Nathan's wolf aura felt corrupted and evil, possessing her body and soul, consuming her wolf aura, trying to make her like his own, and her spiritual energy radiated like light, leaving her in a darkness filled with nightmares.

******

Nathaniel

He fell into a stunned silence over the comatose Karen. When he felt Xavier's wolf aura flare up around her, blocking his connection to her, he was filled with rage and attempted to regain control, but failed. Now, instead of a dark she-wolf who was much like him before him, it was a full-blooded she-wolf with golden brown fur taking Karen's place.

He chuckled in disappointment as she remained motionless. For Nathan, he had expected her to be the same shape as him so that way the bond had been worked on and, just as importantly, she could survive the shift.

"But you are not, instead you are like him but with different fur. How pathetic," he muttered before throwing his head back and bursting into a sinister laugh, his voice high and rising, echoing around the small cave until his ears were ringing with amusement.

His shoulders still shaking with amusement, he looked down at her wolf form. Then he began to try to channel his aura back to her through his deep, fortifying kiss. It was fine that her wolf form was not what he expected, but the next time she regained consciousness in her human form she would be a dark one like him.

"Rest for now, my dear. In the meantime, when you awaken, you will change into your human form and you will become a dark wolf like me." He said as he stroked her fur.