Liberation: Oscar's Story

Chapter 29: Pt. 2

Ananya's stomach was trembling, but she steeled herself and nodded. "I'm okay." She winced when a pained howl erupted from somewhere in the crowd. "Karsten and Officer Bayor helped me."

"Good." Oscar kissed her brow. "I have to go. I don't know where these rogues are coming from. They can't escape because we've blocked the area, but I want to minimize the damage as much as possible." He studied her face. "I'll be back as soon as I can. I promise."

She made herself smile. "I know you will. Just stay safe for me, okay?"

He returned her smile. "I'll do my best." He left her with one last kiss, then met Karsten's blank stare. Their eyes went hazy for a moment, and when Oscar stepped off the steps, Karsten nodded, like a conversation had passed through them even though they didn't speak to one another.

"You lucked out, Bayor," Karsten said. "Looks like I'm staying - where the fuck did she go?"

Ananya's stomach dropped. "What? She was just here?" She slid off the stage and gripped Karsten's arm to support herself. Urgently, she searched the square, which was beginning to become a bloody field of wolves clawing and howling at one another. Many of the humans, to Ananya's relief, had either disappeared into their homes or were safe inside City Hall. A few were behind the curtain on the stage, but the rogues didn't seem to care about them.

"Bayor!" Karsten gnashed his teeth. "Where the fuck did that woman go?"

"She was just here!" Ananya, still holding onto Karsten's arm, pattered nervously around the corner of the stage, trying to stand on her toes to look for January Bayor. Where did she go?

WHOOSH

"AH!" Ananya yelped and jumped into Karsten's side just as January Bayor's body flung past her. The officer collided with the concrete wall and slid to the ground, a trail of blood following her head. She groaned as she fell. Her hair collected around her face and dragged trails of tears from her eyes.

"Bayor!" Karsten rushed toward her, but a slobbering white wolf jumped in front of him and pounced on January Bayor. The wolf gnashed his teeth and swiped its paw over January Bayor's chest, shredding her clothes. She slid onto her side and the wolf growled, its jaws snapping.

"Bayor!" Karsten shifted without a second thought and tackled the rogue. They rolled on the ground, snapping their jaws ferociously and swiping at each other's faces. Karsten dug his fangs into the rogue's neck and ripped at its skin. The rogue howled agonizingly and thrashed.

"Officer Bayor!" Ananya walked as fast as she could toward January Bayor's limp frame. "Officer Bayor!" She touched the trail of blood on the wall, then brushed her hand on top of January Bayor's head. The older woman winced and bit her lip.

"Focus on my hands. How many fingers do you see?" Ananya furiously waved her hands. "Officer, breathe! Darn, Karsten, where are you?"

"No...I'm fine..." January Bayor tried to stand. Her hand flew to her shoulder. "Shit, I think I dislocated it."

"Did you?" Ananya touched her shoulder but retracted her hand when January Bayor winced. "Yeah, you might have." She surveyed the mess that was the town square and estimated that around ten unconscious wolves were littering the ground. Five others were still fighting, but they were clearly unmatched and struggling to hold onto their own.

"It doesn't make sense," Karsten murmured, saddling up to Ananya. He was back in his human form, bloodied and unkempt, but glowing with the aura of a man who'd won a fight. "Usually, rogues will leave when they're overwhelmed. These ones aren't. They must have something up their sleeve, so we have to stay diligent." He glanced at January Bayor and knelt in front of her. "We need to get you to the hospital first. Cai has backup coming, so I'll take you."