Dominic swung and swung again as the man lay bloodied underneath him. He had gone unconscious several punches ago, but Dominic didn’t care. He would die for this. He would die for killing her…

He was just a boy when his mother explained to him that when he became a man, he would turn into a wolf and become a lycanthrope. He never believed a word of it. He was a level-headed kid. There was no time for games and fairy tales when you were expected to be up every day before the sun rose chopping wood and hunting in the forests of Washington. His mother was always the one trying to keep her children as children while their father kept them working.

As long as he could remember, Dominic would watch as his parents would leave their log house every full moon, pretending to be asleep as his older brother watched over him and their little sister. He’d never understood what was happening, but the howls in the distance each time made him think back on the moments his mother would tell him the tale of wolves in attempts to keep him a child for a little while longer. When it was his turn to watch his little sister as their parents and oldest brother would leave, Dominic started asking real questions.

Years later, Dominic was running the farm. His parents had reached an age where hard labor was just that; Hard. His brother had moved across country to be with some girl and his little sister was going to college. Times weren’t easy with less hands around the farm, but Dominic was determined to make it work. He started to pick up night shifts as a bouncer at the one bar in town where everyone would go after a hard day’s work. It was also one of the only establishments on the main road leading out of the upper part of the state, so there were always out-of-towners driving their delivery trucks through and a bar was just the spot they all needed.

On a dark night, in the middle of a cold winter, his mother had called the bar to let him know she was bringing him a late dinner. Of course he didn’t hear the end of it from everyone in the bar. As he stood at the door to be back at his post, he saw his mother’s car approaching. It was then the oncoming truck started passing into her lane. There was no time to stop. Dominic immediately pushed through the crowd of smokers outside and went charging down the highway. It seemed like everything went into slow motion then. The truck smashed into the front of his mother’s car and sent it careening down a ditch.

Dominic slid down the side of the road and yanked the door to his mother’s car off. He pulled his mother out of the car and carried her up the embankment just as the crowd was beginning to grow. Her head lolled to the side and he knew she was dead… and this man killed her. After gently placing his mother down on the grass, Dominic pushed his way through the onlookers. The regulars knew this wouldn’t end well and began to try and hold him back, but it was pointless. He was seeing red and nothing was going to stop him. After punching the last friend which attempted to stop him, Dominic climbed the passenger side of the tractor trailer and broke the window open with his elbow. He unlocked the door and saw the man slumped over his wheel. Looking around, there were open containers of beer throughout the cabin.

He reached across and grabbed the driver by the collar, yanking him out of the truck. The man was becoming conscious again and Dominic didn’t wait another second. Cocking back, he punched the man and knocked him down to the ground, straddling over the top of him. Dominic swung and swung again as the man lay bloodied underneath him. He had gone unconscious several punches ago, but Dominic didn’t care. He would die for this. He would die for killing her…

All the noises around him went to a high-pitched ringing. He knew people were yelling at him and attempting to pull him off, but he didn’t care. The only thing that stopped him momentarily was when a taser sent a jolt of electricity down his body. There were police officers at the scene now and being a small town, he knew every one of them. They were calling out to him to calm down, but he didn’t listen. He yanked the cords off his body and went tearing into the woods. His vision was blurring slightly from the taser and he felt his body jolt randomly from the shock. Dominic took his shirt off and let the transformation take hold as he began shifting from his human form to that of a huge, dark brown wolf.

He’d always been the biggest wolf around and his pack was his family. Now it was torn apart. His mother was gone… She was gone. He howled into the night and raced home again where his father tore the door open just as Dominic came bounding into the living room. He skidded across the floor and smashed into the coffee table before letting himself transform into a man once again where he stood naked with bloodied hands. “SHE’S DEAD! He killed her.. he killed mom…”

As dawn broke through the windows of the cabin, Dominic and his father sat quietly on the couches as they had been doing for hours. The sounds of cars pulling up on the drive made Dominic finally lift his head. He looked once at his father and then at the ground before opening the door. Several guns were pointed at him and he heard them calling to get on his knees. He looked back at his father one last time before obliging. “What were you thinking?!” one of the cops who he’d known for several years asked him.

“I was thinking he needed to die…”

Months had passed as Dominic sat in jail. He’d always made a huge commotion such as starting a fight on the night of the full moon just to get thrown into solitary confinement where no one would see him turn. He hated being caged like an animal. He needed to be home with his father, keeping the farm safe and thriving. All he was left with was memories of his mother and nightmares of her death.

Dominic’s hearing finally came and he was left with probation after being charged with aggravated assault. His victim decided to not let the charges go to attempted murder seeing as he was the reason for his mother’s death.

It was now over a year and Dominic had become an alcoholic. He was constantly getting into fights and would typically be seen wandering the highway at night where his mother died. Reality was blurring so much for him that he didn’t even know when he was transformed into a wolf or man. His world was spiraling out of control.

The family lost the farm and soon after his father died. He had become a vagabond, traveling the country on his motorcycle, looking for odd jobs just to survive into the next day. When he had truly seemed lost, a man named Aureus Ailward came along while Dominic had been drinking himself into oblivion at a dive bar. The man had told him he was looking for protectors of the Ailwards who wanted to keep the world in a peaceful balance. To ensure all beings could and would coexist for a better future. Dominic scoffed at the man and continued drinking his beer, but the Ailward continued on, seeing right through his facade. It made the lycanthrope uneasy. The man gave Dominic the coordinates of where said opportunity was and left him with the final words of 'Finally belonging somewhere.You never wanted to be part of a pack anyway.' It annoyed him that this man knew so much about him, though he'd never met the Ailward a day in his life.

A week later, and many beers consumed, Dominic proceeded to the place the Ailward had given him. He parked his bike and leaned against it in thought. 'What life is left for me here?' He had no family. He had no friends. The only thing that kept him going was time and at that, Dominic smirked remembering Aureus and his specific guard to watch. It was seemingly beginning to make sense.  

Taking a drink from his flask, he sighed at the barrier and shook himself out, preparing to enter. That is... if he was able to get through. Dominic had every doubt in himself, but the Ailward seemed just as oppositely confident. Cursing, the lycanthrope stepped forward and closed his eyes, prepping for the rejection. It never came. He had passed through. Either the barrier was broken or maybe just him...