Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

The coming dusk saw the steady rise of a cooling, brisk breeze. The Emeralds of the Gate were alight with the fading honeyed sun rays. Wedding bells above the cathedral rang, though not more than 10 successive tolls. Nobles all walked the streets; ladies in their finery and high-strung heels treaded conservatively as they entered the cathedral. The men were little better, wearing colorful button-down shirts in their unctuous stride as they pulled others along and discussing the latest news of the day.

The interior of the Cathedral was of course well-decorated for the occasion, brimming with fanciful decor of lights and there was even several butlers serving delectable red wine just inside the foyer. Many servants in well-ironed and groomed black-and-white tuxedos, bristled about with trays full of various hors d'oeuvres. On both sides were cordoned off staircases leading up to the second level overlooking the main chamber. Without many open windows, the white-painted walls behind them were festooned with velvet drapes and bulbous lanterns overhead in preparation for the reception.

A few tall, sturdy marines also stood guard against the walls lighting fixtures, including a disgruntled young Ensign who kept on tapping his foot irritably when no one was looking. Emanuel had been on guard duty for the better part of the last few hours and so far he REALLY needed to take a leak. The nobles were relentless and insisted that he stand there at attention and look handsome so that the gossipers could look at him like he was some kind of prized object.

"If one more old lady pinches my face, I may just lose control of my fist... Dammit, this is getting on my nerves. Get away from my face you whore!" This was getting absurd. The ceremony had begun 30 minutes ago and yet all the same people kept coming back for more and more wine. He kept count and the servant at the front door had already gone through most of the stash of wine. He had to admit that some of them had an impressive liking for it.

Just as the others did, he held it in until he couldn't no more. When everyone had seemingly left the foyer and had retreated back to watch the most important part of the ceremony, Emanuel quickly hurried away from his post, leaving the Marine next to him to cover for just a few minutes while he hurried to find the restroom.

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

"Man... this assignment is getting to be a real drag..." Emanuel sighed inwardly as he washed his hands in the lavish lavatory. Just like everything else the nobles touched, even the bathroom was spacious, flattering, and decorated with some ornaments and flowery decorations hanging above the mirrors.

When he was given this assignment, he knew it was going to be drop-dead boring. Fancy parties weren't his thing; all too often they were dressy, formal, and had everyone playing suck-up to the most powerful in the room. His professional mind was telling him in every way that this was to help advance him up the ranks; not many moved up without earning a few favors here and there. His gut though wanted to make a few snarky comments and rage before locking some of these people in a dark room with some hungry wolves to help sort out their superiority complexes.

As he returned to his post, he contained himself and stood quietly in the corner with the others as almost everyone retreated from the foyer into the main hall and the wedding ceremony began. The priest saying the vows; Emanuel standing watch by some fancy drapes and doing his best to not look antsy. When he looked at the two of them though, standing by each other up before the officiant, he couldn't help thinking that they seemed perfect for one another.

Domingo Fleischer, the man of the hour, was more handsome than even Emanuel, dressed in a black and rose-garnished suit and more than that he was poised and well-groomed. To Emanuel, his veneer was near-perfect, but his impression to the young Ensign was that of a not-quite-ripe rose. The bride, Emilia Durante was also quite capable of turning eyes as well. She was a bit taller than Domingo and had a flowing head of onyx black that had been neatly braided. Her wedding dress was white with strips of fabric around her shoulders and waist that were emerald green.  

The pianist playing periodically during the ceremony was also very light on their fingers as the ambiance and atmosphere were worthy of praise all on their own. After the priest had taken at least 30 minutes to recite the proper verses, they finally reached the final vows and the ceremony concluded to a loud chorus of applause, even from the young Marine himself.

The reception afterwards was held in an adjacent chamber that had been cleared out and filled with a banquet table as the guests were ushered in and more servants brought out more than just the hors dourves. It was a very brightly-lit room with a chandelier hanging overhead. There were four window sills along the left side of the room and a door on the far right that seemed to lead upstairs and further into the west wing of the cathedral.

Most of the guests took to mingling and the bride and groom were surrounded by happy well-wishers. Emanuel would've preferred leaving right then and there, but he was bound to stay until released and of course also had to mingle a bit and greet the bride and groom. The bountiful scent of the sumptuous feast though had his mouth watering as he walked up to shake hands.

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance Mr. Fleischer." Emanuel saluted as he was introduced by one of the other Marines and professionally offered the handshake. Ordinarily, handshakes were supposed to be brief and a little firm. Domingo though seemed to have a different idea and he started grasping his hand so firmly it seemed like he was preparing to rip off Emanuel's hand and plunge it into his eyes. The man's features were very sharp and he was quite clean-shaven, but if you could turn his glare into liquid in a bottle, it would not be safe to drink.

His hazel brown eyes bore daggers so piercing he looked constipated to Emanuel. The young marine kept his cool and simply finished off the handshake before quickly hurrying over to greet Emilia with a courteous smile. "It is my pleasure to meet you as well Miss. My apologies, I-I didn't mean to offend." Emanuel put his hand behind his head sheepishly and Emilia seemed to chuckle at it. "It's no big deal... it's just one of his... quirks. Don't take it personally. He's just a little anxious around people he's not familiar with."

Emanuel seemed to take relief from that, but there was one question that he didn't have answered. "It's alright. I won't take it personally, but if you don't mind me asking: is he in pain or something?" The question for the second time seemed to provoke a slight chuckle. "He's been complaining of a stomachache all day. He was nervous I think so we had him take some medicine earlier for it. Being around you might just mean he's having some ..."

'Booop'

"Gas." With a wave of her hand, Emilia fanned her nose and Emanuel couldn't help but pull up his blue Marine outfit to cover his nose as the smell seemed to spread like a wildfire and made most of the other nobles even pinch their nostrils closed. Domingo seemed to do his best to ignore it and just went about shaking hands as normal. The fart smell even drowned out the smell of the roasted meats, meaning Emanuel wasn't sure if he'd be eating any time soon.

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

Thus, the ceremony continued on its course as willed. With the food being served, guests happily in mingled amongst themselves; not too many people bothered Emanuel as he stood guard in the corner of the room. A couple times some of them would come up to him and offer him greetings along with polite conversation. Some of them talked about their dogs. Some of them remarked on how he looked too young to be a Marine. Others merely took to ignoring him altogether. It made no difference to him as he shrugged warily to himself.

He barely said a word for the next hour or so and mostly daydreamed as he looked on. About an hour and a half after the reception had started, he started joking and laughing whenever someone approached him. Emanuel greeted them enthusiastically when the Durantes came up to meet him with their eyes twinkling brightly. With some reluctance, he began to share some stories of his own and talking about his days in training.

"So this was our final exam. The assignment was to complete the obstacle course and be the first team to bring the flag back. So I started out with my sortee and we got lost in the maze portion. One of them said, 'I'm so lost in here I can't tell up from down!' and then I said 'Just keep looking at Benny's ass if you start forgetting!' So he stared downwards for the rest of the way and when we got to the next portion, he walked right into a totem pole! Had a bump on his head so big, the trainer called him 'Meatball'."

It was probably a little crude for noble tastes, but he still got a slight chuckle from the bride and her family. They laughed and Emanuel did so as well. They continued making uninteresting small talk for a bit until the patron of the family, Emilia's father, decided to go and have another helping of the stuffed roast at the buffet table. Emanuel readily went back to standing duty, but Emilia stayed behind as he did and sashayed up to him with an unreadable expression.

She pulled her mouth close to his ear and whispered something, "Meet me on the balcony later. At midnight. I have something to ask you." And then she pulled away and went back to the floor just as the music was starting for the couples to begin dancing, leaving Emanuel to stand there with his gaze vexed and frozen.

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

Being invited by the bride to a meeting on the balcony wasn't something he had expected on this assignment. For the rest of the reception, Emanuel's thoughts veered dizzily from one end to the other. He kept up the professional demeanor throughout the evening, laughing and mingling as others came up to greet him.

God. He had a hard time containing the rampant nature of his mind. "W-What could she want with me? I'm just an ensign. Just an ensign. What if... what she wants is a career-swap..." he had heard of occurrences where the nobles offered Marines incentives to leave and serve them personally as bodyguards or servants.

That couldn't be the case. The Durantes and the Fleischers had all the money in the world. What use would they have for a young ensign like him? He was so inconsequential and low rank that it wouldn't make sense. He tapped his cheek with one gloved hand, returning his thoughts back to reality. Whatever it was she wished to ask him, Emanuel was certain he could just politely refuse if it was something too forward. Certainly she would understand if he just explained himself. No matter how powerful the family was.

When everything had quieted down, the rest of the Marines had left the main hall to escort the guests home and Emanuel was able to discreetly slip through the double doors on the opposite side of the main chamber and up the long flights of rickety stairs. When he finally reached the top in a small little area with a balcony overlooking the common grounds below along with the long drop beneath them that brought up very uncomfortable feelings of falling for Emanuel. Emilia was nowhere to be seen and so he took a spot by the window and waited.

About 10 minutes later, the twin doors opened and Emilia emerged dressed still in her bridal gown. Her face was noticeably flustered, though he paid it no mind and stood to attention before saluting with a hand over his heart. "I am here at your leisure milady. Thank you deeply for having me at such a wonderful occasion. I wish you and your husband all the best. I also wish to ask you what was it that you had for me" In his nervousness, he had to make an effort out of not tripping over his own words. He might not be so eager to say it, but couldn't help but think that Fleischer was a lucky man.

Such thoughts were unbecoming of him and he was quick to discard them as Emilia smiled politely and walked forth. "Thank you for your kindness, but I beckon you to sit. We have a bit of time to chat and there is a reason I called you here privately."

She sat down right beside him. As much as he tried to mask it, keeping eye contact became a struggle. The two of them began by speaking on the little things first, like how he was feeling and what-not. Like she actually had an interest in him, something that had taken him off-guard.

For 20 minutes, Emanuel actually enjoyed the genuinely polite and interesting conversation. It went from feeling awkward and tense to a point where Emanuel was soon leaning back against the wall and smiling happily. When they talked about hobbies, he found it easier to speak openly about himself. "I.. haven't had time to do so while I've been here, but I'd like to go hiking in the forests here some time. The island here is beautiful and I was wondering what it would be like at the top of the mountain up there." Emanuel pointed up into the darkness at the shadowy mountain far off in the distance.

Emilia looked thoughtfully across the vast expanse, touching a single index finger to her chin. "That sounds like an interesting idea. Maybe not in the forest, but there is a place I'd like to visit as well. To me, I like to call it the Auroral Apex. It's an old fairytale here and most have probably forgotten it. One day though... I'd like to go see it." Emilia glanced downward from the window and Emanuel followed her glance. It was dark and there wasn't really too much left to discern. Her gaze than turned back to the space before them and just sat in comfortable silence. Before long, Emanuel felt Emilia's head fall upon his shoulder.

He felt his temperature rise by about a good 40^o celsius to the point where he was probably going to die from heatstroke. His fingers firmly strangled the seat fabric and his forehead was burning hot and starting to perspire. All of his thoughts promptly unlocked the door inside his head and walked out into the cold as he was sitting up stiff as a board and unable to make a single movement.

"The reason I brought you here was because I wanted to speak with you, but I also have something I'd like to ask. Something very important." She pulled her head up and gazed into Emanuel's eyes.

"Would you accompany me to the Auroral Apex?" With that, she leaned in with glowing irises and connected her lips with his.

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

His throat and voice cracked and went dry. Everything started to swirl and became funny. He tasted sweet sweet honey and a hint of vanilla before his vision started to fade to black. No sooner did she withdraw from the kiss, he hit the bunk and was out cold. Inside his mind, his thoughts drifted as if on a torrential current over a raging sea. In it, he was with a shadowy figure as they dove down into the eerie swell as the migrating sea turtles passed them by. On the surface it was dark, but the world beneath the waves was alive and he dreamed the limbic dreams, drowning in his own brain fluid.

On the surface, Emilia wore a crooked, jag-toothed smile as she picked up Emanuel's limp body and began to walk towards the white double doors leading to the downward spiraling staircase. The medicine had worked just as intended and she got what she wanted.

As they descended the long flight of stairs to the bottom floor, Domingo was leaned up against the clean stone walls with a half-frown on his face that Emilia took to mean he was mulling over something sour. He always wore that when his brilliant mind had been stoppered by something. "I thought you said you didn't have any feelings for him at all." Emilia's brow furrowed, "I said he might be interesting and he is. Here you go. Call it a nice wedding present."

The man's calculative gaze leveled out. "Is that so... you seemed to be enjoying that kiss way too much for someone who was 'just interesting'. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were actually in love with him. Don't think I didn't notice the way your eyes moved during the party. You're still a harlot to me if an attractive one at that." His bride's ambivalent expression turned into something more brusque as she twisted her lip. Domingo scrutinized that he had hit the target clean off the mark.

Domingo always tried to get inside her head. Ever since childhood, he had never had a problem getting a good read on people. In the past few years, it was almost like he could tap into their truest nature and understand their minds about as easily as he could read a children's bedtime story. Whatever they were feeling or thinking was often written all over their faces whether they liked it or not.

Most people here were boring and lifeless in his eyes. They were easily manipulated, short-sighted, and otherwise vain. Play the fool or make them laugh a little and their guards come crashing down. Not so with Emilia. While he had at once been alone at the board moving pieces in concert to his will, she seemed to be working out a similar grand scheme of her own. She was the one to propose to him. She had been the one laying the groundwork for this plan. And so they were now husband and wife, though it seemed better to call it a cold war.

At the same time, it was why he was so in love and consented to this arrangement nevertheless. She wasn't boring. She lit a fire under him that no woman ever could. She was his equal in every way, shape, and form. She was perfection. He flicked one more cold gaze at the ensign hanging on her shoulder before removing him from her shoulder. And then she turned away, leaving him to just stare at her luscious swaying backside lustfully as he followed down and then walked away.

~~~ ooo ~~~

Emanuel was sleeping. Dreaming. He was numb all over. Every nerve of his body was dead and it felt like being a flower atop a long leafy stem underneath a vibrant sun on a warm and breezy day. Empty thoughts flowed like a river, but he could not give movement nor meaning to them. He just swayed back-and-forth in the breeze, wondering how long such a fine day would last.

Then the scene would recede and he would be himself again, riding dolphins with his mother as he used to. He would swim to the very bottom of the ocean, grab a hold of a turtle, and then race along on the tides until the sunlight faded. It went on like this in his dreamscape, unaware of where he was or what he was at all. Ever so slowly, he began to feel more and more, stretching out his senses first to his fingers and then down to his toes.

And it felt like he had put on weight or something because his body felt a little different than before. Perhaps he was just groggy though, he told himself. That feeling would go away. And then, against all of his wishes to just lay there for a bit longer, he began to open his eyes and shake away the cobwebs. He was in a dank place of some sort with a cracked concrete ceiling and laid on his back up against a wall. When his ears awoke, he could hear muffled loud music somewhere not too far away.

He pushed himself up and onto his feet. That was when he first realized that the groggy feeling wasn't going away and he stumbled. That was when things REALLY started to freak him out. He actually stared down at his body and even in the darkness, he could perfectly see that he had no clothes on at all. More than that, he was HAIRY. From his chest down to his well-muscled legs, he was about as furry as a...

A Wolf.

His hand had idly went up and touched his face, finding a hairy snout instead of soft, supple skin. "This is NOT good..."

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

As anyone would, his first thoughts were panicked and heated. He cursed and grappled with himself, unable to speak anymore. He tried to speak, but all that came out was a pained animal whimper. Mentally, his brain went into overdrive, driving up memories from standing over the balcony before and then being kissed by Emilia and blanking out.

Was this Emilia's doing? Did she knock him out so she could do this to him!? The fact that he still had his faculties was one cause for comfort, but still kept him from righting himself. He could stand upright as he wished, but he now had the urge to be on all fours. Questions upon questions piled up. After a little, he started to take deep breaths and calm himself. The loud music was still playing and he started to actually bop with the beat to steady his mind. "I can get through this. I can get through this. Just need to find out... where I am first."

Following the sound of the music, Emanuel walked until he felt too much like being on all fours. Despite the darkness, his eyesight adjusted fast and he was able to see as easily as he would in the daytime. After passing down a cobweb-infested corridor, he came twin double doors where the music was playing on just the opposite side and angrily shoved them aside with his shoulder and bodyweight.

He burst through the doors and into a wider area. In-ground strobe lights against the walls illuminated the area with a violet, purplish glow and wasn't too hard on his eyes in adjusting, but it was everything and everyone that drew disbelief. There were about 20-30 individuals inside and EVERYONE had a beastly, wolfish, nekkid form. It was an flat-surface enclosed circular area with a low-hanging concrete ceiling and a round bar placed square in the center. There were comfortable seats placed against the walls and on the opposite side, the wolves were all dancing.

No. Not just dancing, they were raving. From the short & skinny to the tall & brutish, they danced and grinded like this was some teenage girl's obscene bachelorette party. Emanuel's lupinus eyes scanned the room. They indeed were seemingly having a rave party. The bar in the center was manned by a wolfish man with scars. Wolves flirted among another on the sidelines. Two wolves were dancing circles around each other to the beat and sounds of a very pleasing soundtrack.

"What the hell... where is this? Are these all people too?" Was this some kind of ... werewolves-only rave club? If so, was he still dreaming or had he actually been turned into a werewolf? Emanuel had to mentally pull himself back for a minute and crawled into one of the comfy booths on the side. There was hair everywhere on the tables and such and the booth smelled almost repulsive, but he honestly didn't have any room left to care at the moment.

Curling up inside, Emanuel sat back and took another deep, relaxing breath to collect his thoughts.

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

Emanuel was dancing, dancing, dancing. He was moving and grooving, swaying to the music, and bopping in probably the weirdest possible way. If he had been in the proper state of mind, there was no way he would ever have considered doing this while being in the unknown equivalent of a dog kennel.

It had all began after he had curled up to re-absorb all his disbelief and a wolf had come up to him. It had started awkwardly; he wasn't exactly a native wolf-speaker and the other wolf tried to speak to him in deep-throated romanian growls. He had no idea at the time if he was being propositioned, courted for a dance, or asked if he wanted a drink, but there were two things he did know: One was he was in no mood to pour whatever they were serving down his throat and #2 was that it was very awkward to have to avert his eyes every time a werewolf passed by with no trousers on.

Faced with those two facts, he decided to break his number one and have just a little sip to try what they had. "What was the worst that could happen?" he thought. Soon he started feeling woozy and then just began swaying and before he knew it, was actually having a good time. As he did so, there was a part of him that was screaming at him from his left shoulder.

After he had danced quite a bit, Emanuel retreated back to the sideline when his head had started to feel a little better and he decided not to partake of it anymore. The lights were still blaring and the dance music was still going. He needed to figure out where he was and what the hell had happened to him while he was out cold and how he had gotten down here in the first place.

Aside from the double doors he had entered through, there were no other entrances or exits in the enclosed area. It was just one big area with raving werewolves who liked to show off their junk. One of the wolf-women there came over while he was thinking and just started making casual-like hand-motions at him while her lungs only ellucided some weird growls. A curious thought occurred to Emanuel; these wolf-men seemingly had lost complete awareness of themselves, but yet could still make human gestures and still seemed to have human mannerisms. If he stayed like this, would he eventually become the same as them? No more than a pet-pawn for whatever devices awaited him?

Emanuel's hands went to his forehead. He needed to stay calm. He had to stay calm and think this through. Deep in his mind, he silently examined each and every thing he and Emilia had talked about on the balcony. Was this the Auroral Apex.. or had she merely baited him out? There had been some nasty gossip about the two of them during the wedding, but he hadn't heard anything about something like this. Emanuel stared up at the ceiling and noticed that it looked quite rickety and old. Wherever they were, it was old and not newly constructed. "Keep calm Emanuel. Don't let it all get to you. Think logically. Logically."

His eyes passed over everything, scrutinizing everything for the barest hint of a way out. There were no air vents and the most disgusting thing he saw was one of the wolves peeing out in the open into a small little opening in the corner that he guessed was their toilet. It was with a heavy amount of trepidation that he decided he would need to use that eventually. Ugh... he was trapped here and there was literally no way out as he racked his brain for anything that could help. Getting up from his seat, he walked the edge of the dance floor in search of a crack or even an opening he had missed. Just needed to keep analyzing this situation and breaking it down until he eventually found a way out. He was crafty and soon was assuming complete certainty.

There was nothing in the walls however that would lead to him drawing any conclusions of being able to break through or anything. It truly seemed like they were underground completely. Then he started to look around and stopped when he eyed the bar in the middle and at a thought pondered: What exactly WERE they serving there and HOW was it getting here? "They have to be getting their food and drink supplies from somewhere..."

He went over to where the wolf-man tending it was not looking and decided to peer across and into the center. To his surprise, he spotted a pretty sizeable opening in the middle had bars running across it and was only accessible to be opened from below with a proper key. From the looks of it, there wasn't any sort of way to force the thing open either. He was no expert, but the window above the opening looked like it had been heavily plated over and thoroughly bolted into place.

Whoever had enacted that had put in quite a bit of money and foresaw a break-out. With that in mind, he simply had to sit back down and listen to the wolf-men and wolf-women try to make small talk with him. There wasn't any guarantee that someone would eventually come through tonight, but when he peered over, it looked like the bartenders stock would only last for so long.

So he waited and tortured himself listening to all the -growls- and the -whimpers- "This might end up being a long day..."

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

Emanuel waited in his wolf form as the wolves danced the night away. His eyes were becoming bloodshot with how irritated he was becoming from having to listen to wolves try to speak and even more frustration built up each time someone brought him a drink from the bar like he was some cheap whore. It grated on his nerves to say the least; he hated anyone who even remotely treated him like a girl.

He had half a mind to start tearing through all of them and making enough noise that someone will eventually hear him and come to investigate. They placed cups in front of him one after another and all filled with a yellowish liquid that he didn't enjoy looking at or drinking the first time. Whatever it was, the stuff was potent and made him act like an idiot quickly. With a look of disgust, he wanted to push all of it away and forget about it. He wasn't interested in whatever swill they were drinking... except.

Emanuel took a half-look at the color of the liquid and then picked it up to swish in his hand. Why were these creatures drinking this stuff and what exactly was it? He sniffed it and with his enhanced sense of smell he was able to detect a pleasing odor coming straight from it. It made his eyes and mouth water, forcing him to exercise every ounce of self-restraint to keep it away from him and place it back on the table. Whatever it was, the effect it had on him was atrocious. Like he could picture himself sitting on a deserted beach and having a glass of it with a pizza.

Was this stuff the reason these wolf-men had lost their awareness and were reduced to just being raving schmoozers on crack? For all he knew, he suspected it might even be the main cause. If so, he couldn't have another sip of it for as long as he could help it. Even if his stomach was empty, his life depended on him absolutely staying away from it.

And so Emanuel continued to sit and endure his torture. Several more wolf-humans continued to bring him more of the juice that he was subtle to push away. There was one wolf-woman though that walked over to him and just silently leaned on the table directly in front of him. Emanuel at first averted his gaze but then she just kept staring and he seemingly gave in to return eye contact.

They locked eyes awkwardly. Emanuel gave her his meanest big-bad wolf face and she seamlessly returned it. The result was an awkward competition of seeing who would be the first to blink. They stared and stared and stared and stared. The Wolf-Marine kept going until finally his eyes watered and he blinked. With a jerk of fantastic power, she rose from the table, stood proudly to her full height of around 6-and-a-half feet, picked him up like he weighed nothing and twirled him around overhead all the while howling victoriously.

Round and around around and around and around and around. He kept spinning spinning spinning spinning! He was soon spewing out vomit like a firehose while the wolves cackled viciously like hyenas with a high-pitched 'kekekeke' sound. The world seemed to squirm and swirl, letting him know that he was close to passing out before the hulking woman through him to the ground where he came skidding to a halt against the bar.

His eyes turned into the back of his head. He burped up what was left of his lungs and began to pass out. Before he faded out completely, the last thing he could perceive was the female wolf picking him up and then cuddling up beside him.

~~~ oo ~~~

Groggy. So very groggy. Like he had just set the world record for most miles hiked and then had a bull buck his head off a train track with its hind leg. Definitely not a good waking-up mood even as he now had to endure the task of opening his eyes. That was when he realized first and foremost that he had been knocked out cold and had no idea how long he had been asleep.

That was enough of an electric shock for him to burst wide awake and furiously re-assess himself. All of the wolves were sound asleep on the benches and in the booths. He was sleeping in the booth from before. Like before, the only indication of light was the purplish glow coming from the strobe lights set all around.

He had no idea how long he had slept, but it was most likely that the night before had passed and so had his chance. When he accepted it, Emanuel's lupine claws fell to his sides as his head started to erupt with with the bitter, all-encompassing feeling of total defeat. He could see from there that more crates had been piled up in the middle of the bar, enough maybe to last till tonight.

His chin dropped with disappointment, but then he saw something right beside him. He had thought that he had been placed there alone. Craning his stiff neck to the side, he saw none other than the exact same wolf that had man-handled him the night before all cuddled up right next to him and snoring comfortably.

And then, Emanuel's face slowly evolved from tired and half-awake to full-blown absolute shit-faced face-faulting horror as his eyes bulged until they were ready to pop out of his head and all dignity of his own universe was ready to fly out of his ears and vanish into the concrete. He had just cuddled and slept... with a wolf. He didn't even remember what his next thoughts were as he heard an angry low-throttled growl and then hairy arms reached up and grabbed him back down onto the bench. He was wide-eyed as he was cuddled and locked up tight with every thought and fiber in his being screaming 'OH SHIT'. Soon he just couldn't help it and despite all indignity, he soon passed out dead cold right next to her.  

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

"Wooo Aoo Oooh Arrugh. (How do you do? I like you! Would you like a drink?)" Emanuel glared stone-faced at the opposite wolf. It was into the afternoon and so far things hadn't gotten any better than they were. For whatever reason, the wolf-men didn't get fed breakfast nor did they seemingly get any thoughts of cannibalism whatsoever. All they subsisted on was that weird sweet-smelling drink that he was forcing himself to avoid at all cost to his stomach. The boredom was probably what was killing him the most as the wolves wandered and slept all day if they weren't dancing.

So he remained on standby, experimenting with his capabilities and so forth. He remembered he had that strange feeling before when he fought against that pirate captain before the Emerald Gates. With a bit of effort, he managed to cast his mind outward and managed to actually 'sense' the presence of all the wolves around him. Seeing as how they were in an enclosed area, it wasn't hard for him to obtain the position of each wolf in the area with nary a thought. He had no idea what this was called, but so far it was helpful for him to have something to do. When he got back, he made a note to himself to have someone train him to use this power, whatever it was.

The second thing he tried was accessing his swamp ability, which unfortunately he was unable to. No matter how much he tried, whatever transformation he had undergone had locked away his ability to control the sludge-like substance. Which was a shame since that would've been an incredible help in breaking out of this place.

In addition, over the past few hours, he'd had some several quite amusing (and terrifying) developments. Number One: He had somehow managed to find himself a girlfriend in the form of a large bulging large lady-wolf who was twice his size and just seemingly sat beside him without letting him be alone for even a split second. "Woo Awwoooh Arrruuug Awooo GGGRRRRR! (I don't like you.)"

And of course for bad news level 2: He was starting to (sorta) pick up on and speak wolf, much to his continuing horror. "Arooo Warrgh Wooo!. (Don't be like that sugar bumpkin!)" Emanuel's lips dropped down in the most dead-pan expression he had ever made in his life. That didn't seem to deter her that he was not amused, only driving her to move around the table and snuggle up beside him.

Emanuel's stomach protested loudly, but he held himself back and forced himself to remain sitting. Truth be told, lethargy was starting to set in and he was rapidly losing strength and yet endured without complaint. With a sigh, Emanuel decided he could not just let this go lying down. He was without strength yes, but this was also the perfect opportunity to do some training. No use just sitting back and letting himself waste away. This was the chance to discipline himself! Time to get motivated.

"Eye of the tiger man. Eye of the Tiger!" Emanuel recited the old limerick as he started doing push-ups on the floor while the others watched him. After a few sets of push-ups, he moved on and started doing jumping-jacks and then started jogging in place. He repeated the routine each time, just continuing to keep the pace for as long as he was able. The exercise helped him focus himself and soon he was able to pass an hour by just repeating his basic routine.

Soon, the other wolves started to copy him and following his routine exactly as he was doing it. Without even intending it, he had established a wolf-man workout choir! He even managed to get his (would-be) girlfriend into an arm-wrestling contest! He struggled and struggled, but no matter how much he wished for it, could never have beaten the well-muscled female.

Tired and sweated from exertion, Emanuel sat up against the wall and couldn't help but stare and find new respect for his companions. Though they were just mere shadows of whom they once were, it seemed that they still harbored similar wills and personalities. A part of him was wondering if it could even be reversed... or if there was a time limit to how long he could stay in this body before permanently becoming a wolf.

Emanuel made a clenched fist and curiously placed it up against the wall. "I'm still me. My name is Emanuel D. Angelov. I'm a Marine Ensign... and I want to..." He stuttered in his mind for a moment as he suddenly couldn't remember something. What was it that he had wanted from remaining in the Marines?

"I want to.... I want to...." His inner voice floundered as he searched for the right words. What was it that he had wanted from the Marines? Rapidly, Emanuel recounted as much as he could from memory. He had been at Sandy Island, defeated a bandit king, enlisted a hypnotist to turn the Marines against one another, stole his Devil Fruit, and then departed after serving a punishment. After that, he had joined in to defend the Emerald Gates.

All of that was still fresh and raw in his memory, the only thing that was not was his purpose in doing all of that. When he had been fighting the bandits, he couldn't remember ever fighting just so he could bring them to justice. A part of him suddenly felt lost. What was he to think and feel if he became a wolf permanently? Emanuel placed one of his hands over his heart and one to his head. Both felt hot and wet to the touch.

His brain lurched for a moment, warring over his fevered sub-conscience with his eyes glazed over. He looked to the ceiling for a moment, figuring out that for now he needed to keep focusing on waiting out the clock until the next shipment arrived. He would need his strength and he couldn't afford to be passed out when the deliveries arrive. No doubt the masterminds behind this kennel are waiting for him to become no more than a feral animal. There was also no question that the drink was the cause of it all as he could still retain his mind for the most part.

Time seemed to shutter around him as he sat there in solitude and silence while the wolves around him continued to follow the routine he had been performing. It was almost amusing watching a whole line-up of them go from push-ups to burpees to jumping jacks. Heck, he felt like a proud drill sergeant with a big smile on his wolfish snout. He half-closed his eyes, resting as another hour passed him by.

And via his faraway senses, Emanuel suddenly heard a lock click.

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

His one eye ripped open just as soon as he heard the lock click, but he contained it into a squint to make it seem like he was less interested. Slowly, the bars were pushed up and an enlarged silhouette figure dragged himself into the room. With his more attuned vision, he was able to make out blackened charcoal-colored hair all over their body, a thin-wiry build, a gnarled snout, and claws that glimmered like moonlight.

It was definitely another werewolf, but everything about them smacked with danger. Their body wasn't exactly burlesque, but everything on them was lean and honed. As he pulled himself up through the hole, there was a moment when Emanuel heard them take a sharp breath of air and then struggle fittedly. Upon squinting further, Emanuel realized that he was carrying a large sack on his back that had somehow gotten snagged somewhere on the bars or in the hole.

He didn't wait for a moment; the perfect opportunity had arrived. Emanuel shot up from his sitting position, tired as he was, and bounded on all fours with all the strength he had left. He was tired, hungry, and all the other werewolves were otherwise inactive, yet he howled loudly to wake them up with vicious bloodthirst. His shoulder crashed into their back, slamming them face-first into the ground and whatever package they were carrying. They were still half-stuck and he heard half-grunted whimpers. He didn't stop there, Emanuel grabbed a submission hold around the wolf-man's neck and then stretched out his pelvis to wretch it as far back as he could.

Lungs howled, jaws gnashed, but Emanuel kept bending himself backwards to keep the pressure. The weight of the package though kept him from putting enough to snap the man's neck though and its constant movement made it harder and harder to keep a steady grip. With no choice, Emanuel went to instinct and craned his neck forward before sinking his large canines deep into the wolf's neck. By then, the others had woken up and seemingly came pouncing up now at the call of his howling. They ganged up quickly, each of them also sinking their jaws into black wolf who howled and howled as more of them piled on.

Emanuel clenched his jaws tighter, lapping up the taste of blood-spill on his tongue. It felt primal and hot, like he could reach out and lick the sun itself. Even with all of them holding firm, the black wolf-man continued to struggle even though they were still firmly hitched to whatever snag had caught onto the bag. After a bit, the struggling seemed to weaken and he could hear the wolf make a gurgling sound and then went limp. Its fingers and limbs dropped to the ground and the light in their eyes extinguished.

Emanuel took a moment to let go, not sure if he honestly wanted to let go. He was hungry and famished and weak from having to starve himself for so long, but he nevertheless did so and once the wolves had also let go, he immediately got to pulling the dead wolf-man out of the hole. The way was now open, but first Emanuel needed something to eat. He pried open the sack and was quickly met with the sight of a large chunk of raw meat. It glistened from looking so supple he could just take a piece off and it would melt in his mouth.

He gulped and his stomach roared loudly. Yet when he reached out, his thoughts suddenly stopped him. He had no idea what was also inside the meat nor what they had done to tamper with it. The other wolf-men and women quickly tore into the feast, but Emanuel decided that he would need to bear it a little longer before examining the rest of the black wolf-man's belongings. Sadly, he found nothing else before heading into the hole left as he beckoned the others to follow once they had finished.

Down a narrow flight of stairs, it led to a long, dark stretch of a tunnel that went on. He walked to the end with his lupine entourage in a single line bringing up the rear until they closed in on large double doors that stood ajar and easily opened. They let him into a larger room, this one far larger and looking more like a a proper, noble basement than a poorly-redone man-cave. The whole area was shaped into a hexagon; large, spacious, and the with steel plates on the ceiling that wasn't too far over their heads. The most surprising factor of the room however was that at the four cardinal directions were sloping runways that went right into wide hexagon-sized cage in the middle that looked like was made of steel mesh and electrified barb wire.

His gaze peered closer and found sharp, long, jagged spikes protruding from the walls beside the slopes. With a gasp, Emanuel tried to look for an exit or a way out only to be blinded by the sudden flashing of lights.

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

Blinded for a bit, the wolves behind Emanuel were also forced to shield their eyes as the voice of Domingo Fleischer began to talk over them, "I had a feeling that you'd find your way out of there tonight. I knew that woman planned something with having only one feeder at a time. Such a bad plan from the start, but no biggy. I can easily handle this one."

Emanuel managed to spot the noble man as his eyes adjusted it. Once the light wasn't as much of a pain, he was able to look closer at the areas that had been dark before. In the center of the cage, the spotted several piles of wolf corpses that looked to have been skinned before being left to rot. Some also seemed to have been ripped apart and chewed up and he was quick to draw conclusions. At the sight, his nostrils flared up and his thoughts became as beastly as his new visage. "This is... a wolf-fighting ring... with people you turned into raving werewolves.... THAT'S ANIMAL ABUSE!"

Emanuel tried to say, though his changed vocal cords made the words come out as a garbled form of wolf-speak while Domingo seemed to glance at where he was staring and made an educated guess before his expression turned quizzical. "You're assuming I did this? That I'm the one who made these animals the way they are now? Domingo gave a veiled, barely audible chuckle while slightly giving the Ensign-wolf a bit of a eyebrow-raise."Who said I turned them and they weren't always like that? Why would I be letting them rave as they wish down in my basement? Without any shock collars on and giving them all the meat and drink they could ever want? Those wolves behind you weren't turned by me at all. They were born it this wretched and pitiful state unlike you. Not like it's something you'll ever understand and it is not my place to justify this to you. You're merely a pawn she unceremoniously placed in my hand."

He wasn't boisterous or apparent, but his tone was impersonal and business-like. "You are inconsequential. This bloodied cage has another purpose than what you are thinking and I aside am not inclined to enlighten you about it further. I will just ask that you go back into your cage."

There was a mix of things going through Emanuel's mind at the moment, but his first instinct was escape and that was the instinct he acted on. He started to move, but then there was a 'CLICK' sound and something shot out of the ceiling. He just reacted on instinct alone, jumping to the side as the sudden nets just came flying out at him and then wrapped squarely around some of the wolves that had been following behind. His eyes and ears followed the sounds of approach until three more blackened werewolves emerged from the door at the far end of the room. They didn't waste time standing around on ceremony or trying to intimidate him, instead they charged headlong towards Emanuel with reckless abandon, giving him only a few seconds at most to respond.

His stomach roiled from hunger. He had barely eaten before being kidnapped, let alone the ordeal he had just gone through to get out of that hole. Without food or water, he was forced to begin dodging the charging wolves who ran at him raving mad like bulls. With his claws, Emanuel slashed at one of the wolves while they closed in before needing to quickly roll away. Most of the wolves had been tied up with large bulging nets, but a few had managed to also dodge and gave a roaring howl in defiance before acting on their own instincts. They attacked and pounced on the other wolf as he closed in on Emanuel, pinning them to the ground.

Emanuel turned away to focus on the second of the three as the first had also been restrained momentarily. He was forced to sidestep and jump away when they got too close. Everything became chaotic with Emanuel's workout choir being thrown about by the blackened wolf-men. The gate before the stairs clapped shut, sealing them in.

Even outnumbering the odd wolves, Emanuel couldn't keep up with all that was going on. In anger, he burst forth and pounced on Domingo Fleischer as he stood there alone while the wolves did all the work, wearing a cool, collected smirk. If he could just take down the noble, than perhaps everything would be easier to deal with afterwards.

In midair, he aimed to sever the man's head from his shoulders, but then he heard a heavy click right underneath him. 'BOOM!" A smoke bomb went off right between them, shrouding the area around them entirely in white fog. Suddenly, he couldn't hear or see anything. His ears were filled with static noise and his eyes were leaking tears like he had just been pepper-sprayed.

Out of breath, Emanuel hurried out of the fog with his eyes now hazing over and barely lucid before he was shoulder-bashed by someone and sent reeling backwards into the wall. More whitewash bombs went off in their vicinity, blanketing the place and forcing Emanuel to cover his eyes, nose, and snout, but the burning sensation didn't cease. "Dangit... can't see a thing.. this whole place is trapped and I'm dead if I stay here."

Without any other options, Emanuel managed to see just enough to discern the gate over by the side that had clapped shut and hurried over to try and unlatch it or at least manage to twist the bars open. He didn't have high hopes for getting past the large black wolves; their combined strength was quite literally enough to tear through them. He pulled and pushed through the gate, but the latches and the bars refused to budge. Then something came bounding out of the corner of his eye. The female wolf came running at full speed between the carnage around them and didn't stop.

She crashed shoulder-first into the gate, smashing the whole thing wide open like a cannonball. The bursting of metal was enough to cause a scene as all of the wolves by then had been subdued and Domingo stood between the three of them before the cage. Emanuel was tired and barely lucide, but managed to grab a hold of the female as they charged up the stairs past several more figures he couldn't see. Emanuel couldn't tell how she was doing this or even how she knew where she was going. There were several more corridors, but she passed them all without problem.

Soon, they were passing out the two double doors and the marine ensign could enjoy the feeling of cool, crisp breeze on his hairy face.

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

Domingo stood there, swaying like a pendulum within the explosion of pepper-spray fog. On his face was a black mask made of wolf-skin that the man had quickly donned just before the explosion. The large wolves beside him were growling and snarling for a chase, yet he held them back with a wave of his hand. He looked at the iron gate that had been busted through and though he felt saddened that it hadn't been enough altogether, he still managed to keep all the wolves contained here save two.

On that test, he at least scored himself at 95%. Most of the wolves had been blinded and subdued by the multitude of smoke alarm bombs he had set up, which had been his most pressing issue. Even outside the mansion, there were plenty of other avenues he could use to go about re-capturing them. Still though, there was one element he couldn't help but express surprise for with a mildly harpy-like grin as he pulled up a small Den Den Mushi. "I see you're still as lively as ever... my dear little sister."

~~~ oooo ~~~

"Aroo Wuff woo Awooo. (Stop here please)" Emanuel and his escaped comrade ended up jumping over the many rooftops in the Emerald District as everyone was fast asleep. Luckily, they had managed to evade detection being so close to the Emerald District's main square. With no other plan, Emanuel got off and led as far as he could towards the common grounds where it was less likely that they'd be caught and from there it would be easy to jump into the forest outside the city. Much to his dismay, his wolf-companion was very obedient and it felt like they had spoken the same language his entire life.

For the time being, they both needed to rest and recuperate while he collected his thoughts. One thought though couldn't escape him and was as all-consuming on his mind as ever: hunger. He had no idea he had been in that underground dungeon, but he was nearly certain that he hadn't eaten anything substantive for at least the last 48 hours. Even traveling over the rooftops on wolfback made Emanuel's stomach boom and growl.

They made their way to the outskirts of the Common Grounds than quickly got into the large shrouds of trees where they would both be free from scrutiny to eat and feast. As they moved across the expanse, Emanuel looked down at the poor people living in the streets beneath. "I could... take one or two of those and maybe just get a good arm or two..." Realizing what he was just about to think about, he was utterly quick to push the thought away and dismiss it and chide himself for it. An animal or two from the forest would be enough to sate his hunger.

"Wooo Awwu Wooh Bark. (Can you find food to eat?)" As soon as he said that, the wolf dropped him from her back and ran off like a bullet from hell. Emanuel dropped to the ground like a sack of rocks and just laid there for several minutes, too tired to get up to care much. "Dear Meat... Please. Meat."

Within a few moments, she returned carrying the carcass of a large buck that she threw down on the ground right beneath his lips. Emanuel first smiled happily and opened his mouth to take a bite, but then all of a sudden he was lifted up and carried like a young baby. The large feminine wolf hauled him up as easily as she had in the underground and then pushed him up against a nearby tree with all her strength. She ripped off a chunk of meat, turned it in hand, then shoved it straight into his mouth without him being able to voice any protest or even process a thought. As soon as the meat was in his mouth, he began chewing without complaint. Even ignoring the awkwardness and pure humiliation of the situation he was in for just this one time as the wolf tore off another piece when he finished one and fed it to him.

"Awooo urfh (Eat!)" Even as he was being fed like a little wolf-cub, Emanuel couldn't help still feeling just a tiny bit uncomfortable with completely understandable speech that up until a day ago had been all gibberish to him. She continued to feed him while also munching on thighs and breast meet. "If anyone had told me this was going to happen when I signed up for guard duty, I would've called them a complete lunatic and set their pants on fire..."

~~~ oooo ~~~

After they finished eating, Emanuel was (mostly) full and his hunger pangs had gone away. He got up to stretch while his companion slid into a small crevice underneath a large elder oak tree. He paced by himself under the moonlight, sorting out his brain and it was also a good calming exercise for him. When he found himself hiking, he did like to organize his thoughts while using his legs.

The way he saw it, his next target was not the Fleischers, but the Durantes. "I remember being kissed and falling unconscious. Emilia drugged me there and then did something to make me into this. With any luck, they'll have the cure."

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

Once they had both rested for a while, it seemed like it was a little passed midnight. There was no hint of this in the moonlit environs, but Emanuel had seemingly gotten a pretty good sense of time without needing to look at the hour hand. Emanuel took a quick glance at his wolfish companion, wondering if he should also bring her along for the ride. She was strong, obedient, and seemingly devoted to him beyond measure, but he had actually grown a bit to care about her, though resisted the impulse to name her so far (as he wasn't yet sure how long he would be remaining a wolf).

In conversation, she was just the large female-wolf companion with the super strength. Emanuel gave a few short-breath commands in wolf-speak and she came to his side promptly. For once, it felt nice to be in charge of command like this. He was far better than the Marines who had continually passed him up for promotion time and time again. "Once this is over, I should ask for a promotion... I think I've nearly earned it by now." With a hop, Emanuel was off on a charge towards the end of the forest, taking the shortest route he knew that would allow them to get back into the Emerald District without causing any kind of stir.

It was very vague in his memory, but after some digging he was able to recall exactly where the Durante mansion was stationed. When he took the job, they had given introductions and a short brief at what they called 'The Diamondback' a little cottage the family used as their summer home on vacations and what-not. It wasn't their main home, but that place was certain to be more well-guarded then their summer home was. "With any luck, I'll get some solid answers soon and hopefully manage to leave this form..." Emanuel promptly felt a strong itch on his back and the need to scratch it. He reached back and nearly ripped a piece of his skin off the bone. All of the senses of wolves were higher than regular humans, but the claws were a bit of a pain. "I've started feeling good like this, but... I hope this whole thing can be undone. I'd rather not spend the rest of my time as a wolf."

Not to mention having hair all over his body was certainly a far-cry from his neat and prim marine uniform. Being without clothes out in the open made him feel barren and uncomfortable, but for the time being he steeled himself. Whatever had happened to him and getting it undone was his first and only concern right now.

As the two of them bounded quickly through the forest, from up top, a slitted pair of eyes eyes were watching them.

---

Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

They hurried through the forest, both of them on four legs with Emanuel's gaze scanning and alertness stretching as far as it could go. He cast his mind astray, looking for anything that may end up. It was still alien to him and his mind wouldn't go very far, but he realized he could keep this up much easier than before and it made moving through the forest much easier. It made him excited for the first time in a while, willing himself forward like a wild beast on the hunt.

With abandon, he stopped in mid-charge and leashed his first howl, piercing through the night air. No matter what Domingo had in store and no matter whether or not he could reverse this transformation, in his mind he felt more powerful and mighty than ever before. Perhaps it was the constant rush of adrenaline from being free or the flow of the nightly air making his fur twitch and stand on end that awakened his more bloodthirsty side. Whatever it was, he could've even possibly accented to remaining like this.

His companion had far more leg-strength and power than he had, but he was capable of keeping up luckily. As they moved, Emanuel wasn't able to completely keep track of where they were going as his brain was worried about ambushes and the two of them getting caught while charging around and heading to the opposite side. This area was foreign and he was half-relying on the lupine female to guide him. They continued to communicate via snarls and half-growling that she somehow understood easily. It made Emanuel wonder just how much he had truly changed while being trapped in the underground.

He looked at her and despite his misgivings, decided that continuing to refer to her as such wasn't in his best interest. She had done a lot for him so far... so it should be fitting that he name her. To avoid going too deeply into thought, he picked a name off the top of his head. "Stella." Emanuel tried to say it vocally, but could not manage more than a grunt. "I guess from now on I'll call her Stella... least until maybe I can learn her real name... if there is a way to undo this whole thing."

Without going through the Emerald gates, their travel was drawn out, but eventually they managed to leap across and clambering over the wall to avoid the guards under the pitch black shroud of night. From there, Emanuel kept them under a very close watch-and-travel procedure. Without retracing their steps, he was wary of the noble Domingo. Something didn't feel right and his stomach was standing on ends.

At last, after about an hour of painstaking sneaking, the two of them finally managed to approach 'The Diamondback', Durante Family's private estate on the edge of the Emerald district where they found purchase in an abandoned cobblery. The inside was dark, giving them enough leeway to look outside at the town watch and the passing townsfolk. After that, they were stuck and Emanuel had to curl his lips in thought. "Guards patrolling above the houses and out back as well. And they have guns too. Not much way of sneaking in easily...."

Emanuel's thought process was broken when the Stella snuck up behind him and licked his ears. At first, he pushed her off, but that didn't seem to make anything better. After a moment, he turned about to face her and on her face was a very VERY wolfish grin. A tingle went up Emanuel's spine as her hands grasped him by the waist like a teeny tiny toddler. Stella took him outside into the cold, carrying him as easily as a doll. She howled loudly, causing all the guards and men around them to turn and face them. She stood on her hind-legs defiantly, pushing out her chest and beating it like a gorilla while Emanuel was flailing comically. He was fine fighting or doing whatever, but being grabbed by Stella had given him an inkling of just about what was about to happen and he didn't exactly like it. "SAVE ME! SHE'S CRAZY! SHE HAS RABIES! SHE'S A MAD WOLF!" Emanuel's thoughts dissolved from his face until Stella held him high overhead with both her arms.

Then he was flying. Flying through the air while making the anguished moaning of an injured dog and waving his arms and legs. In mid-air, he ended up peeing himself, pouring down golden rain on the poor, poor people beneath. Tears streamed from his face as he went crashing straight through the second story window of the estate building. Crashing through glass made him go groggy for a moment, but he quickly recovered enough to hear the town watch outside yelling commands outside. He heard the sounds of battle, so he quickly guessed Stella was stalling them while he had some free moments inside the compound.

It only took him a moment to recover from the impact and be thankful that his companion-wolf had picture-perfect aiming for some reason. Once he was back on his feet, Emanuel sorted himself out. "Now there should be something around here... a lab or something... that should have a bottle or something that can help me cure this."

He didn't know the layout of this place. During his first visit, it had been a mere 1-2-3 step process to have lunch after they had finished prepping the rehearsals and getting all the bride and groom's stuff ready. However, he did manage to draw a couple ideas. He was on the second floor, so that meant he could quickly examine the bedrooms and studies without any delay in-between and then work his way downward from there. And so he ran from bedroom to bedroom like a wrecking ball on steroids. He was in a hurry and didn't have any time to worry about whom he might be waking up.

Luckily, the bedrooms were all empty as he lousily threw open doors and closets one by one, huffed when all he found were lived-in paraphernalia, and then left the room. There were about 8 rooms in total on the upper level, each of them yielding little more than what he'd expected nobles to have in their closets. On more then one occasion, he thought he'd found something hidden, only for it to be a pair of undergarments. And as he did this, he made a mental note never to go panty-raiding in this house. "This place is so gaudy I can find antique shops with more class than this. I-Me-I have more class than this!" With a bit of vindictive aggression, he took a pair of pink undies and virtually shredded them with his claws before moving on.

The downstairs didn't take long either and he ripped through it like a naked druggie looking for his afternoon fix. His whirlwind of carnage left many pots and pans clattering onto the floor and many expensive rugs torn up. He didn't care about being subtle, but so far he had spent about 10 minutes and still he had found nothing. Not a single soul seemed to be..

Emanuel suddenly realized something in mid-thought.

In all his haste, he hadn't been paying attention or thinking at all. He had been worrying about finding a bottle or some kind of miracle cure that would change him back to his former self. For some reason, in his feeling of imminent power, he'd abandoned caution and hadn't considered that this could also be a trap. Emanuel leaned over in the kitchen and cast his mind out again. He tried to push it as far as he could and after a bit of struggle, he detected someone. They were barely on the edge of his consciousness, but there was someone else in the estate with him, that much he knew even if he couldn't exactly pinpoint where the person was exactly.

Emanuel's expression changed as he finished the mid-level. When he took a moment and cleared his thoughts, he had to remark that it was a very expensive-looking mansion he had just trashed. It was roomy and spacious, with several expensive paintings. One of them looked like a family portrait with a large, strong woman standing in-between two people he assumed were the heads of household at the time it was produced. Yet, the picture gave him pause and stuck with him.

With the family and dining rooms thoroughly checked, Emanuel had only one place left to go: down a flight of stairs to a small basement. The area he emerged in was small and warm, occupied by a large figure of a woman who was sitting on an expensive-looking chair in the center. Her onyx black hair was tied up into two buns and she had a sharp, youthful complexion about her and piercing chocolate-brown eyes. Emanuel entered calmly and stood before her, somehow not willing to move too far from the staircase.

"You sure did cause quite a racket up there. I was beginning to think you actually were a completely mad beast, judging by all the mess I'm guessing you caused. Unfortunately, I'm afraid you aren't going to find the thing you're looking for. If you're willing to take a seat, I think I can answer a few questions that you have." Her voice was low and seducing as much as it was chiding, sending a wave of doubt through Emanuel as he considered his next step.

His regard for his own personal safety was driving all the red alarms throughout his brain. Upon closer inspection, this woman looked more dangerous than she sounded. Though her face was pretty and beguiling, her body looked well-muscled and strong. Instead of what she had been wearing before, she was dressed in a tank-top and was showing off a six-pack and massive biceps and shoulders. He was in a hurry and needed to get what he needed and then get out. There was no time to sit quietly, but her presence made him think twice.

"Where did I see her before..." Racking his thoughts, Emanuel had to pull a half-complete memory from the wedding.

[ Flashback ]

He was standing on guard duty during the reception. It was the boring portion where the Marines were merely expected to look imposing and keep order when someone drank too much wine or got a bit too boisterous. It was bodyguard work and made Emanuel sweat from how boring it was.

He talked to the bride, tried to be at least a little charming, and leave at least a good impression of himself for the sake of getting a good review. She had sauntered up to him while half-drunk and had slurred herself the entire time she spoke to him. If he remembered correctly, she was Emilia's mother and the Matriarch of the Durante family.

Later, well before the guests had all gone home, he had ended up needing to carry her outside of the cathedral so she could air herself off.

[ End of Flashback ]

Emanuel stood there, glaring his eyes at the confidently smiling woman like he wanted to set her on fire as she gestured for him to walk over. With a deep breath and no other way to protest, he walked over and sat on the floor opposite the Matriarch, wearing a very grim expression on his face. "Good enough for you?"

"Good boy. I'm glad you're so compliant and understanding... even in that beastly form you've been put in. Emilia has certainly caused you much trouble. I've been feeling guilty ever since we started this whole ordeal, but without any explanation, you'll continue stumbling around in the dark like a mad beast and perish without ever knowing a thing."

Her finger went up and touched her chin. "You poor, pitiful little thing." Emanuel sneered vehemently, nearly getting off his hindquarters and pouncing at her with all his strength. "If you're going to stall for time, I'm going to rip your heart out of that chest of yours and squeeze it for juice! I sat just as you asked, now tell me what I need to know!" The woman seemed to have a perfectly easy time reading his thoughts. "Yes yes. You want a thorough explanation about how to transform back. My daughter has already told me exactly what you wanted."

She leaned back and placed one leg over the other while still wearing a rather angelic smile, "Now than... where shall I begin?"

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Equipment:

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"

Emanuel D. Angelov
"All Losses in this world are due to a lack of ability"

"To understand, you must first understand what happened to the Fleischer family first. They are the reason this whole thing began." The Matriarch sat and spoke in a sallow tone while Emanuel listened keenly, counting the ticks on the clock. "A few generations ago, there was a small group of female pirates who came to this island in search of treasure. You might know them... we at the time had no clue what they were called, but they shared it with us later. They were of the Kuja clan, but they called themselves the Bakuha Pirates. With their strength, they raided the kingdom and defeated many of our most competent fighters. The Fleischer family though, had other plans and refused to yield. They had a resource we didn't, which happened that one of their own was a strong duelist."

The shadows over her eyes ticked over, increasing her menace in the young Ensign's eyes. "That man was Ardeus Fleischer. In the end, he defeated the Pirates and took one of their own away to captivity, and bedded her as his prize. As the old saying goes, there is always a risk when fools get too full of themselves and abandon all else. As the tale goes, the pirates became quite angry once they recovered and retaliated, causing a chain of events that inflicted deep dismay on the Fleischers as punishment for that one act. We called it the 'Night of Silence'. What exactly happened to them is not something I know. After all had been said and done, we took pity on her and rescued the woman from the carnage as the Pirates were all but gone and the family had been deeply diminished in some way that they tried to solve. To do that, they turned to drugs. Many drugs. After that night, the Fleischers began experimenting in order to cure whatever damage had been inflicted upon them and it led them to some very dark places. Awful, terrible experimentations and such."

His wolfish eyes slowly shifted in a show of horror as the woman continued speaking. "I can answer definitively that their sin is where this whole plight you're experiencing began. It's been with them now for a while. I've taken pity on them for a long time. My grandmother held a lot of bitterness against that family that she never truly let go of. Not even on her deathbed did she forgive them and even uttered a curse in her last breath. My Emilia though, saw the situation differently and has been trying to help them. I believe she earnestly fell in love with the Fleischer man and went abroad to discover a way of helping them. It took a long time, but she discovered a way to alleviate their suffering. It however, came with a steep drawback."

It forced him to put the pieces together in his mind, slowly but surely, he did so. With eyes open wide and then narrowed to a slit, "Cryptical topsy-turvy bullshit. So I was turned into a wolf... just so she could have her lover? Are you trying to manipulate me or something? How is this helping anyone? I'm just the one getting the short end of the stick without anything other than your hearsay and roundabout speech!" The sturdy gaze he gave her turned to a growl even though she didn't flinch and simply studied him curiously.

"Suit yourself. I'm afraid that if you want your old form back, it's something you'd need to take up with her. Whether she would be willing to give it to you however is another matter entirely. If you're thinking of forcing her to do it, well... I can't see you in any better light than I see those hated men of so long ago. You see... Emilia is the pride of my family for a reason. She has an unmatchable power that you could never hope to defeat. She is stronger than you. Way stronger. If you'd heed my advice, you'd be better off slinking back to your cage and putting the past behind you. Enjoy your time as a wolf."

Her tone of voice this time was snarky and condescending, making Emanuel grit his canines and growl lowly. "In fact, looks like I've bought more than enough time." In the blink of an eye, she stood from her chair, grabbing Emanuel by the skull, and then straight-punching him right in the stomach. Before he could register it, Emanuel went flying backwards and slamming into an end table that had been placed beside the wall. 'SMASH, CLANK!' An unconscious body split the polished redwood right down the middle and sent the whole display clattering down into pieces.

Emanuel's eyes rolled up into the back of his head, but not before he saw the door at the top of the staircase open up and the flashing trail of strangers carrying lights enter the domain. They entered in single-file, all women dressed in tight-fitting black robes with their facial contours left unmasked. At the forefront was Domingo and in his hands he was carrying a black collar attached to a long leash that he walked up and quickly strapped around Emanuel's throat.  

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Haki: 1 Post Inactive

"Speech Here" /// "Thoughts Here" /// "Other Speech Here"