IT was bright, it was loud and it stank. Like sewer-sweat-spit awful. It was chilly too. All in all, not a great start to my experience. I hunkered down in my coat and sniffed the air surreptitiously. Nothing. I wasn't expecting anything, so I wasn't disappointed. One of the Bitten that had mentioned the plan in the hope that I would spare his life, had said that he wanted Tony Stark. Whoever that was. I could only guess he was something of an important figure.
I got on the crowded subway, some people already dressed in the costumes that would soon be all over the city and suburbs. I lifted a hand to my temples. The woman and man on either side of me were wearing a lot of silver. My head was pounding. I got off at the next stop, bought a green tea and thought about my options.
1) Find the bastard and kill him.
2) Find the bastard, interrogate him, then kill him.
3) Find the bastard, follow him, find out about his plan, kill him.
The last option sounded the most reasonable so I stood, payed and asked who Tony Stark was.
"You're joking?!" The plump waitress giggled. I shook my head impatiently. She pointed to a framed picture behind the counter of 6 people. They all looked airbrushed and powerful. "They're the Avengers. Tony is the one in the red suit. Iron Man. He is so hot, isn't he? You know he invented the suit right? And-"
I cut her off, "Where can I find him?"
She pointed to a large building with the glowing word 'Avengers'. As I watched, a flash of red and gold streaked across the fading blue sky. Iron Man. I turned back to the waitress who still looked offended that I had interrupted her tirade.
"Thank you for your help. I won't forget it." I left the café and strode straight to the relative safety of an alleyway. I waited until it was completely dark before removing my clothes and letting the transformation happen. I slunk through the back streets and the deep shadows towards the tower.
One thing about having a large powerful form was that it became harder to hide, but also, harder to retain your humanity, harder to stay focused on the human urges of hate, pity and compassion, among others.
I remembered once, in the warmth of my youth, I had asked my parents if they loved each other, having been told of other Weres that loose feelings. They told me that the love between them first came from survival and necessity, then blossomed when they realized that they were Mates. Which was a big deal as only some Weres find Mates and even then it is rare. Sometimes it is one sided but sometimes it is recuperated and that's when you form a Bond. A Bond is so powerful to us that we have been known to read our Mate's mind. My parents never lost love, and I pray that somewhere, there is someone who will truly love me, and I them.
The sun had been long gone by the time I reached the tower and I watched the doors patiently, filtering those who came out.
Eventually a hairy blonde man exited and a gust of wind hit my snout. I felt my nose and tail twitch. That was him. The unmistakable tang of salt, the smell of the Half-Casts, mingled with rainwater, and on top of that, the normal scent of a man. He was a wolf Half - Cast, the most common, and most dangerous. I was only aware of one other cooperating wolf Half-Cast in Britain, Remus Lupin, and there was a colony of seal Half-Casts in Ireland. I was also monitoring a jaguar Half-Cast and his adopted cat daughter. Half-Casts were dangerous because, unlike Bitten but like Weres, they retained characteristics of the animal. I had to be careful. He looked to be quite strong.
The moon came out from behind some clouds then, and I cursed internally. I was cutting it close. 6 days until the full moon. I had no doubt that he would enact his plan then. I headed back to my clothes, changed, then headed to find a place to sleep.
I found a place and payed for 6 nights, including the rest of this one. The hotel was dingy and reeked of mould, but it would more than suffice, as I only needed a bed to sleep in. I would continue to scope the tower out.
