<div class="floatleft">(http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f374/blessedinsanity/larrin3.jpg)</div>The moon was full and high over the city of Trecule. like any other large city, there were skyscrapers that stretched towards the heavens, high rise apartments for the wealthy and low income (depending on the side of town one lived in.), and a diverse population. Caucasians, African-Americans, Hispanics, and Asians. also thrown into the mix, unknown to the wide populace, vampires, werewolves, sorcerers, witches, mages, and other powerful, supernatural beings filled their ranks. in the city of three million, there were enough mortals that the supernaturals could live in relative quiet. granted, there were a few bad eggs, but the supernatural ranks tended to their own, cleaning up the messes left behind by a werewolf undergoing his first change, or a vampire learning to control her thirst. like any city though, the population thinned towards the outskirts, residential areas sprawling out along the lands, some ending in forests, some ending in farmlands. Trecule was lucky to have a good farming operation to support the city, and most people lived in the city in relative comfort.<br/><br/>Larrin Tarok was no native to the city, but he had been around long enough that he knew where he fit in the scheme of things. he had long since settled in the woods outside of town, having a cabin by a small river-fed lake. unknown to the millions within the city, he was often the one thing keeping the odd feral werewolf from wandering into the city. the lean male, standing 6'6" when not wearing his heavy riding boots, was built much like a surfer, and seemed much weaker than he was due to his slender frame. he wore a close-cropped goatee he kept trimmed, considering his hair grew swiftly with every change. his hair he long stopped fighting, instead maintaining the bangs that kept his nearly waist length platinum blonde hair from his pale green eyes. other than that, he simply brushed the thick mass out, and let it fall as it willed. for clothing, he kept it simple when he was out on patrol. leather pants that fit him comfortably, a natural brown color. an off-white Jacobite shirt, left unlaced to reveal his bare chest. he wore his heavy boots only to protect his feet while patrolling. the woods often held many surprises. satisfied with his appearance, he left his room and into the main part of his cabin.<br/><br/>His cabin was fairly bare, with minimal furnishings to maintain his personal comfort a leather chair, a sofa across from the hearth, and a table in the kitchen area with a couple of chairs. he didn't entertain many guests, considering his nature. his bedroom was just as sparse, with a queen sized bed, a tall dresser, and some of his clothes hanging in the small closet across from his small rack of scotches. he liked the drink, and had several brands and bottles handy. the cabin was powered by magic, thanks to one of the few friends he had in the city, so the water heater for the shower worked, as did the stove and oven. but the appliance he was most grateful for, was the large chest freezer he stored all his meat in. he rarely had to go into town, and he liked it that way. he had a few cooking dishes, a couple of plates, and a small bit of silverware, but he managed well enough with what he had.<br/><br/>Larrin stepped out of the cabin, feeling the wards rise up as he closed the door. he had simple abilities, and making sure the packs of feral werewolves could not get into his haven was one of them. it was a simple matter of writing up glyphs that kept the beasts at least ten feet from the building, and tuning them with his blood. he then took off at a jog into the forest, running his usual route that he maintained as his territory. most nights, it was calm, quiet, almost peaceful save for the constant inner turmoil that he usually felt due to his loneliness. there were other things haunting the tall male, but while he ran, he felt the most free. for the better part of an hour, it seemed like his night was going to end like all the others. no trouble, perhaps scaring off a poacher or two. but something caught his attention, making him pause in his run. he tilted his head, listening as he looked around, a slight frown drawing on his features. there was complete silence. no night birds, no insects, none of the sounds that marked the forest as alive. it meant one thing, and the sudden feeling of the blood in his veins starting to heat confirmed his fears. there were predators in the forest aside from him. a howl in the distance marked the arrival of a wolf pack, perhaps four in number, if the pitches were any indication.<br/><br/>Larrin wasted no time doffing his shirt and boots, casting them aside. he'd find them later, and if not, he had replacements. he cast a quick prayer to Luna, then let the change wash over him. first, it was his bones and internal organs shifting as he grew, his flesh turning pale. his bones and joints popped audibly, his body pitching forward as the shift hit his feet. the muscles in his legs and arms grew in bulk. his pants, enhanced by a wolf-shaman, shifted with him, growing to accommodate his growing form. his chest rippled as his the muscles expanded, and his tail shot out from the base of his spine, over the edge of his low cut pants. as he grew, his face elongated, and his hair turned white as it grew in length. his flesh rippled, then tore, as the beast within him finally tore out, white fur as pure as snow revealed from the discarded flesh. the white werewolf tossed his head back and howled. he now stood at twelve feet on his hind legs. the moon shone off his now silvered fangs and claws, glittering slightly in the light. dropping to all fours, he took off towards the answering howls, growling softly. they were heading towards the city, and he had to stop them.<br/><br/>moving as comfortably on four limbs as he could on two, he ran towards the pack, soon catching scent of them and following it to them directly. he loosed a loud, challenging howl as he neared, hoping to stop them, and draw them back towards him. it worked, the howl returned by four throats and heading back for him. he skidded to a stop in a clearing, rising to his hind legs and readying his claws. the pack burst through the foliage, all coming to a stop as they regarded the white beast staring them down. his lips curled into a snarl, his fangs catching the moonlight. he flexed his claws, feeling the tips dig lightly into the pads of his palms. Silver, the one thing that could kill a werewolf faster than fire. and it was the one thing he was immune to, due to a rare evolutionary leap in his bloodline. his father had been the only other werewolf with the immunity, and Larrin had been the only of seven children to develop it. and the silver claws and fangs, those were part and parcel with the curse that had him standing where he was. he was forever bound to hunt and kill his kind, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.<br/><br/>The feral werewolves started to circle around Larrin, with the alpha standing and stepping towards him slowly. they were going to flank him if possible, and try to tear him from his feet. Larrin shifted his footing slightly, his ears back as he crouched slightly. it was then the three on the sides started their attack, distracting him from the alpha coming up on him. in seconds, it was a flurry of fur, claws, and canines, the scent of blood filling the air along with burnt flesh from his silver weaponry. he was easily four feet taller than the largest of the werewolves, and just as quick, but their advantage was in numbers. he took out one easily, his terrible claws ripping into the abdomen of the feral, spilling his entrails and incapacitating him. the remaining three fought with a blind fury, angered by the death of their pack mate. Larrin was running out of energy for the fight, and to heal himself. but still he fought, dishing back out on the three as good as they were giving him. he had one thing to his advantage. he could still think, not lost to the madness of the beast like the ferals were. he employed his learned fighting techniques along with the savage raking of his claws or ripping of his canines. it was in this way, breaking the neck of another feral, he gained the upper hand. there was a moment of confusion, which he used to latch his jaws into the throat of one of the two remaining, shredding open the feral's back as he crushed it's throat. once the twitching stopped, he rolled the beast off of him, glaring at the remaining alpha. he snarled low, both of them severely wounded. the two slammed into each other, ripping and clawing at each other, trying to finish off the other swiftly. a low blow from Larrin gave him long enough to catch the male by his jaws, ripping out the lower mandible and slamming the piece into temple of the creature. it was over, and his thick, white fur had become matted in blood and gore from the fight.<br/><br/>Larrin howled his victory to Luna, panting heavily as he slowly started the shift back to human form. he was a mess, covered in his blood and the gore of the others. he started staggering through the wounds, holding his chest and abdomen. his vision was impaired from the blood flowing into his eyes, his pants were shredded fairly well, and his legs likewise torn open. there were many bites across his shoulder and neck, and his back looked as if it had been flayed open by a whip. his long hair was tangled with debris, and it was small wonder the lean lupine could move at all given his wounds. he fought for every step, his blood flowing sluggishly from the wounds he didn't have the energy to heal. he never knew when he entered the suburban sprawl, back yards leading into the forest. all he knew, what there was a door, and the door meant help, or at least the last bit of comfort he would ever feel. collapsing on the stoop, the lean male slammed his bloody palm against the door, before falling over into a heap altogether. it was several long moments, seemingly an eternity in his blackening thoughts, before finally, the door opened. a bloody hand reached out towards the figure he could not see. please... help... he managed, before he passed into blackness, and he was aware of nothing more.