Wolf Reign vs Eagle Fire

Chapter 4: Garett's History

When Raul turned around, he saw Lexi perched on a rock and Percival sitting opposite him on another rock, calmly smoking a cigarette.

“Do I really have to go to your place first?" Raul asked Percival.

“Garett asked me to talk to you before you go to his place because I have the answers which you are looking for," Percival answered in a frank tone.

“Alright, but then it will have to be a very brief information session, because it is not exactly early in the evening anymore," Raul stated with a smile. He did not want to offend Percival, although he would rather have spent the entire evening with Garett, who was not as temperamental.

“Follow me," Percival said, before he drove off. Raul followed him without any further objections and Lexi flew away.

At Percival's home, they went straight to the cinema room, where they could speak in total privacy because there was nobody there. Percival knew that his younger brothers were not interested in being in that side of the house at night, because they were superstitious and believed that there could be ghosts there at night.

His brothers did not tell anyone that it was Percival who told them scary tales about the cinema room. They were too intimidated by him, so they kept quiet about this.

“Okay. Let's cut to the chase," Percival announced as soon as they each had a cold drink and a bag of chips in front of them.

“But, first of all you have to give your folks a call before they notice that you're not in your bedroom," he suggested with a raised eyebrow.

Raul was feeling really anxious now. What could be so extremely important about what Percival wanted to say? He phoned his mother and tried to sound as natural as possible.

“Hi Mom, I'm at Percival's home for a project which I forgot about," he said the first thing which came to his mind. He wished he could be there to share this moment, because they really needed each other now. But he did not want her to be aware of the fact that he had unintentionally been a witness to a rather intimate and yet embarrassing situation between her and her husband.

“Oh, but you should have said something before you left," his mother responded. “I have a parcel which I want to give to his mom."

“Oh, sorry, Mom. I just suddenly remembered the project, so I rushed out immediately," Raul lied.

“Were you there all this time and you're still not done?" Raul's mother asked. She assumed that he had left in the early afternoon, because that was when she had last seen him.

“Yes, but we won't be too long now," Raul responded with a curious look in Percival's direction.

“Raul, you have to listen very carefully now," Percival said, as soon as Raul disconnected the call.

“Sure, carry on," Raul answered with a false sense of calm.

“I know that Graham, the eagle, gave you an introduction to what I have to tell you now so, just be patient and hear me out," Percival stated, as he leaned close to Raul. “Our parents are werewolves and that means that at some point we also become werewolves," he stated as naturally as if they were discussing a normal school subject.

“No, wait a minute," Raul responded quickly. “My mother is an ordinary human, so that means I'm the same."

“But your father is a werewolf. So, you most certainly will take after him," Percival stated firmly.

“Well, I have no reason to believe that I can be half-wolf," Raul stated obstinately. He was suddenly feeling really irritated by what Percival was insinuating.

“Where do you think you get your unusual powers from?" Percival asked with a close look at Raul's face.

At this, Raul stormed out of the cinema room and left Percival's home, without saying goodbye. How dare Percival draw conclusions about the two of them being the same? He was not as crazy as that boy who was always delusional and often so intense that it made everyone around him uncomfortable.

Raul drove to Garett's house feeling really angry and hurt about the entire situation. Percival was ahead of him in something which was of the utmost importance: his entire identity! It was just too much for Raul to take in.

At Garett's home, Raul sat outside, panting with indignation. He tried hard to regain his composure before going in.

Garett had already spotted Raul's car though, so he came out to meet him.

“Why did you send me off to Percival?" Raul asked, as soon as Garett sat next to him in the car.

“Because you had to hear everything from him first," Garett explained patiently.

“Well, I was not very impressed by what he had to say," Raul stated angrily.

“I know it's not always easy to accept the truth about one's identity," Garett explained. “But, it is better not to be ignorant about one's background, because any bit of knowledge in that area can only be advantageous.

“So then, what do you still have to tell me?" Raul asked cynically.

“If you are descended from the wolf clan then certainly you are also going to transform into a wolf at some point," Garett stated clearly.

“So, even though I don't believe this, will it still happen to me?" Raul asked.

“That's probably how it works, but I don't think we will stop being friends if you do become a werewolf," Garett said earnestly. “I mean, we have always been friends."

“Why do you say that?" Raul asked with concern. “Are werewolves and Light-bearers not supposed to be friends?"

“You see, the wolf clan had taken the kingdom of Uzzah from the Light-bearers, fifty years ago and have ruled the ordinary humans ever since," Garett began to explain.

“How did this come about?" Raul asked, intrigued.

“Well, they won a battle out in the woods, the Light-bearers did not transform into eagle form in time, before the werewolves transformed into wolf form. So they took advantage of the opportunity and won the battle."

“So, they won and are still in authority?" Raul asked amazed.

“Yes, they are," Garett replied. “They have knights and soldiers, who hide in the trees and amongst the rocks, in case an army attempts to infiltrate and overthrow them at night. They also make sure that the human citizens do not escape and that only individuals and small groups enter the city, like we sometimes do."

“How do they exercise so much power without opposition?" Raul asked, perturbed. “Can't the humans start an uprising?"

“In the city of Uzzah itself, the wolf clan reign as beings of greater intelligence and power," Garett said. “They bribe government officials, so that they could rule the territory exclusively."

“And the humans have always been timid," Raul remarked.

“Well, all they want is to be left in peace to attend their church again and to have celebrate festivities without any presence of The Oppressors, as the werewolves are called by them."

“I had no idea that there was so much intrigue around me," Raul stated feeling really intimidated. “So, who is the main ruler of this place?" he asked in confusion.

“Well, it is the king of Uzzah, King Misha, who is seldom seen," Garett responded. “He issues orders to the princes and the knights and is only seen at short intervals, during festival times. He has his own private garden, where he relaxes outdoors sometimes. His wife is Queen Rhina."

“So, the werewolves are called the Wolf Clan?" Raul asked curiously.

“Yes and we are called the Eagle Clan," Garett added. “We try to help the ordinary people of Uzzah where we can, but we only do this by forming confidential relationships with some of them."

Garett was born into a family of strong and influential people. They uphold a strong moral code of living. They believe that good conquers evil. Their power was attained through hard work, patience, hope and love. Garett's and Raul's mothers were good friends and often visited one another.

“Let's go and grab a snack," Garett suggested. He then stepped out of the car and led the way through their large entrance hall, the art gallery and all the way down a long passage, to the kitchen.

As they were walking down the gallery, Raul recalled a time when he was in the gallery alone and some of the paintings on the wall had come to life and had spoken to him.

“You are in the midst of greatness," an elderly gentleman in a painting had said suddenly. Raul had glanced away briefly to see who else was there and when he looked at the painting again, it was just as it had always been; quiet and solemn.

He had walked on down the passage and then a little girl had jumped out from one of the paintings and ran all the way down the passage, until she reached a turn in the passage and disappeared around it. Raul had chased after her.

“Wait, wait!" he had shouted.

When he reached that same turn, there was nobody there. He did not tell anyone about this afterwards, because at the age of nine he had thought that it was just a figment of his imagination. He had no idea back then, that he was awakening as an individual with unusual talents and perception.

“I will find whatever I can and make a quick snack, because you must be very hungry now," Garett said when they reached the kitchen.

Raul experienced a sudden surge of excitement inside of him, rising out of the deep despair. He stared fixedly at the toaster and wondered what would happen if he could cause slices of bread from the bread bin to start floating over and load up the toaster, simply by staring. The toaster could then be switched on by the power of his prism, or his mind, from his bedroom. Raul wondered if he should make this his next project. He could make sandwiches from a distance! He felt so excited that his heart was beating fast in his chest.