The Palace Beast

*** LAND OF YIZI ***

The elves guards forced Festus and Eux out to the arena filled with crowds. Ambrogio has announced the fight and they have to fight the werewolf or be killed. The rules of the fight are simple, 'Kill or be killed.' There is no escaping. The crowds of creatures are cheering and echoing the name of the werewolf.

"Do werewolves exist or it's just the nickname of the beast that will fight us?" Festus asked Eux with curiosity.

"Werewolves are real and Ambrogio for the past years has been capturing them and making them his slaves."

Festus swallowed a lump. He realized that being saved from the mouth of death doesn't mean he is not going to die someday. Today might be the day he has been assigned to die and will never see his new wife ever again. He has heard stories about werewolves but he thought it was just a folktale. But today, he is going to face that creature that he believed to be a folktale.

Festus turned to Eux with a scared look on his face. "How do we fight this creature?" he asked.

"If you have any silver with you, make use of it. It will help us because werewolves are allergic to silver. Steel sword won't help us in this fight."

Just then, the other wooden door of the arena opened. A young male started making his way to the arena. He was a bit younger than Festus and looks pale. "Is this the werewolf?" Festus asked with a glance at Eux.

"Don't let the look deceive you," Eux said and then quickly positioned the steel sword he got from the weapons rack.

The stories Festus heard about werewolves are scary but the young man is nothing close to scary. 'Werewolves are meant to have claws and fangs and probably huge.' He was lost when he stared down at the young male that just walked out from the other door of the arena. His pale nature made him have pity on him. As a guard, he had been trained to protect the weak and not to harm them.

Festus turned and face Ambrogio where he was seated on a high chair and was surrounded by his vampires. With his eyes fixed towards the direction of Ambrogio, he echoed from where he was standing, "I will not fight him; he is just a young man like me and means no harm!"

"What are you doing?" Eux whispered to Festus. "The rule is to kill or be killed."

"I don't care about the rules but there is no way I am going to fight him."

Ambrogio gently stands to his feet. "You don't make the rules, I do. And the rule is simple, kill or be killed." Ambrogio echoed from where he was standing. "Now let the fight, begin!"

Festus had no choice but to accept his new fate. Before he could turn towards the young man, the young man slap slammed him to the ground. Festus felt the strength in the young man. It was as if he was carried away by an invisible force. 'Who slap slams another man to the ground?' At this time, he knew the look of the young man had deceived him.

Eux quickly ran towards Festus. Helping him to his feet he said, "I told you, don't let the look deceive you." "I have learned my lessons."

As they both stand, they turned towards the young man. Before their very eyes, what were once the normal human hands of the young man get mangled and his skin peels away like a banana. They are replaced with the large, hairy, dangerously clawed hands of a beast.

"Oh-oh!" Festus exclaimed.

"There is no oh oh in trying to survive. Just fight to survive." Eux said positioning his steel sword. "I am not good in fighting and that's why my kind threw me out from the fold of trolls but we have to try or we get killed."

The young man's eyes are now stripped of all humanity and replaced with the eyes of a hunter - usually including excellent night vision. His entire body starts molding itself into its new werewolf shape, which is usually a lot taller and broader than a human and somewhat slouched. His bones begin to snap, lengthen, and pop through the skin and back into place. This creates an entirely new foundation.

Once his bones began repositioning themselves, his skin has to move, too. His ears stretch up out with new pointed wolf ears with enhanced hearing abilities.

The crowds cheered in excitement as they all watched the young man's transformation. The moon was and it was as if Ambrogio timed everything. A werewolf can fully transform during the full moon. Perhaps that's why he picked a werewolf to fight with his new slaves.

Fear crippled Festus. He had never seen a werewolf before not to talk of the transformation. He froze in fear as he stare and the transformation of the young man he was speaking on his behalf a while ago.

As the transformation process nears its completion, his face pushed forward and split away as a snout forms. His jaw dislodges to make room for a massive, deadly maw.

Every lycanthrope is sure to grow a brand new set of fangs, which usually begin forming at the same time as the snout. His new fangs fit for a flesh-tearing burst through his gums.

"Oh no! Who will save me from this predator?" Festus cried out.