Liam in his Werewolf form was a giant monster almost 3 meters tall and weighing over 500 kilos. His black claws were as long and sharp as daggers, while a snap of his jaw could rip apart the spine of an elephant.
As the humanoid creature took a firm step forward, its claws scraping against the wooden floor, an audible squeak rang out as the wooden planks beneath its feet cracked. The envoy, still squirming in pain from his recent castration, widened his eyes in shock and let out a shriek of absolute terror.
"N-no, p-please, stay away from me! I, it's, it's not what you think! I-I didn't mean to touch your daughters, it was just a joke!"
The Alpha Werewolf in berserk mode was in no way placated by the runt's stammering apology, quite the opposite.
ROOARRR!
The monster fell to the ground on all fours as if to gain better footing, then pounced on his prey with his claws out.
"AARRRGGHH! Nooooo-"
When the envoy thought he was going to be mauled alive, Ikaris rammed the Werewolf hard from behind with his shoulder, shoving it to the side several feet. The monster didn't back down and clawed at his back, leaving deep grooves in his flesh.
The teenager winced, but didn't let go. Before giving Liam a chance to break free, he wrapped his arms around the giant's waist and planting his legs on the ground, he solidified his footing, tightened his muscles, and with a swing of his hip and torso managed to throw him over his head in a suplex.
The Werewolf's head collided heavily with the ground and a cracking note was heard. Regrettably, it did not come from its skull, but from the floor underneath. The creature flipped back on its four legs and after staggering for half a second regained a clear look and went back to attacking, this time targeting Ikaris who was closest to him.
"Ok, good doggie. I guess I'll have to discipline you myself." The boy whispered tauntingly, but deep inside he was quivering with fear.
This Werewolf was physically much heavier and stronger than he was. His only advantage was his intelligence, but the monster more than made up for it with his savagery and sheer ferocity. To achieve this shoulder throw had required all his strength and it was with the right technique. In pure strength, 500 kilos was a weight that he was unable to lift with the strength of his arms alone;
With adrenaline, he could no longer feel the gashes across his lacerated back, but from the warm blood that ran down his pants he was well aware that this wolf had injured him.
'On top of that... This could mean I'm infected...' He realized darkly.
"Tonight, start absorbing the Bloodspark belonging to the Werewolf Emperor." Magnus reluctantly advised him. As much as he hated Werewolves, it was the only way to guarantee that Ikaris wouldn't become Liam's subordinate.
Being a Crawling-Thrall and a Nephilim already, he should be able to resist the infection for a while, but neutralizing the venom would weaken him considerably over the next few days and weeks. An intense fever was the least of his worries.
If Liam's venom won out, his Crawling and Nephilim bloodlines would be rewritten or severely suppressed. If not, he would keep his current bloodlines but would come out exhausted.
In this case, he might as well absorb the Werewolf Bloodspark now. The bloodline being much purer, his potential would be much higher and it would even be possible for him to reverse the subordination relationship with Liam.
Of course, with his Soul Strength even if Ikaris became a Werewolf infected by Liam he would be able to resist his orders just like Kellam. It just wasn't in his best interest.
A genuine Werewolf and a Werewolf born of contamination were not the same thing. While the latter could largely evolve and grow in the hierarchy, and even become an Alpha, his starting point and potential would be much lower.
However, whatever concerns he had were for later. The Alpha Werewolf had just charged at him. Ikaris smartly raised his sword to block the monster's sideways swipe, but the fierce impact generated a flurry of sparks as his body spun around before smashing into the ground.
The left side of his head hit the ground hard, cracking the floor in the process. Unlike Liam, his body wasn't as strong but he had his Vitality to compensate. Although he was dazed, the world swirling around him, he forced himself to roll on the floor to dodge a snap of the Werewolf's jaw.
The Werewolf's mouth clamped down on the cracked wood floor, crushing two planks into a few dozen splinters. While his maw was stuck in the floor, Ikaris kicked him in the temple with all his might, then used the momentum to distance himself. He rolled backwards and stood up.
This time, not giving his opponent a chance, he took the initiative and sprinted towards the monster activating his Stealth Spell. In a few strides, he arrived in front of the creature who had just freed his jaw from the floor and slid on the ground between his legs.
As he passed, he sliced one of the Werewolf's hamstrings with his blade, but his face darkened as he sensed that the cut was not as deep as he had hoped.
'The muscles and sinews of an Alpha Werewolf are harder than leather.' Ikaris noted with a frustrated scowl as he got to his feet behind Liam.
Figuring his sword was useless, he swapped it with Anaphiel's cutlass. The shimmering silver blade ominously reflected the glow of the torches as he held it up to his face.
Suddenly, his hair and scalp stood on end as he felt mortal danger closing in, and he promptly lowered his head to avoid another clawed hook from the monster. He kicked back blindly, but instead of feeling an impact he felt a hairy grip grab his ankle.
"Shit..."
Ikaris was smashed to the ground before he could figure out what was happening to him and he literally went through the floor. As he saw stars spinning around his head his vision flashed again and he was slammed a second time on the other side of the floor.
This time he protected his head in time with his arms, but the impact took his breath away, emptying his lungs of air. He also thought he heard several of his ribs crack.
'I've got to pull free or the next landing will be fatal.' His heightened senses finally registered the urgency when an excruciating pain shot up his right arm on the third crash.
He had just broken his arm.
'Damn it, I refuse to believe I can't use my magic against this Werewolf.'
With nothing left to lose, he stared with bloodshot eyes,
'Heart Puncturing.'
No effect, he was smashed a fourth time and lost a considerable amount of endurance. Well, not quite. Liam must have felt something like a sting in his heart, because he froze momentarily and decided to let go.
Disregarding the teenager, the Werewolf sniffed the air and his head turned back to the terror-stricken envoy. When their eyes met, an overwhelming hatred and bloodlust distorted his already monstrous face.
ROOARR!
With the same momentum as the Tartarus Enforcer, Liam darted towards his initial prey, cracking the floor with every step he took, determined this time to finish him off. Ikaris, who was still groggy from the pain, was unable to react in time.
At that moment, the intuitive knowledge contained in his Black Magic Spark gave him a sudden idea and focusing his mind he extended his hand out and mumbled,
"Black Veil."
The dark elemental particles stored within him were suddenly drained from his body, forming an undetectable beam that dissolved inside the Alpha Werewolf's brain.
The result was immediate.
Not only did Liam become petrified as he lost his sight, but the blackness in his field of vision did not stop there, reaching his heart and inducing an irrational sense of dread in his mind. It was as if he was suffering from a heightened phobia of the dark.
Perhaps Liam, as a rational human, could have ignored this pervasive emotion, but his beastly self, devoid of reason, was not capable of doing so. When a beast was afraid, it would do the only thing its instincts dictated: run away or freeze.
Still, Ikaris could feel his life force being consumed at a dizzying rate and he could tell that his spell would not last very long. Taking advantage of the monster's stupor, he forced himself to stand up and using his momentum he leapt towards the Werewolf and clobbered it with his full weight.
As tough as the creature was, the brain concussion made it stagger, but Ikaris didn't stop there. Punching several dozen times in the same spot, he continued until the beast's muscles relaxed and Liam stopped fidgeting. The teenager could no longer feel his fingers and the pommel of his knife was glistening with blood.
A few seconds later, the unresponsive Werewolf regained its human form but remained in a coma. Having just been saved, the envoy looked at Ikaris as his savior and groveled at his feet in ass-kissing mode, kissing and drooling on his pants in a fawning manner.
An expression of disgust flashed across the boy's face and without hesitation he kicked him in the balls again and a wet cracking sound reminiscent of rotten fruit bursting echoed through the wrecked room.
'This way, Liam's fury will be a little less intense when he wakes up.' Ikaris thought with a satisfied nod.
