Combat Artificer

In the distance, fading into the night, Freyja could be seen running alongside Xander as he disappeared from sight.

Left behind were robes, shreds of silicone, and metallic bones, made from dragonscale.

There was a moment more of confused silence. Then the murmurs and questions burst forth.

"What did you do to him?" Atrax demanded of Jerik.

"Nothing! I assure you," Jerik tried to assuage Atrax.

"What just happened?" Valteria demanded to know.

"I, uh, I'm not sure," Gabrelle admitted.

"I think… this was the blessing that Xander mentioned was a reward for the quest," Frazay posited.

Graffus snorted. "Some reward. That did not look pleasant."

"We need to find him, right?" Gabrelle asked.

"Aye, that we should," Graffus agreed.

"I should be able to track him down," Frazay said. "It's not like he was making any attempt to cover his tracks."

Thus a search party was formed. Frazay, of course, being a tracker, was forefront of the group. Gabrelle was included in the case that Xander was injured, and Valteria insisted on coming along in her suit of armor. Graffus and Atrax would stay behind, just in case something happened in the village or Xander returned of his own volition. A few hunters familiar with the forest also tagged along, to add local expertise to the party.

They found Xander as the morning light was beginning to shine down through the forest, forming rays of light through the canopy. Under the light of the new sun, lay three lumps under a large tree. Xander, sprawled out on the ground, Freyja, who was licking herself clean, and the remains of a deer, which appeared to have been rather messily consumed. As they approached, it became clear that Xander swas naked, laying face down, slathered in blood, and unmoving, though breathing. Freyja rumbled out a chuff in greeting, but did not move to stop cleaning herself, appearing unconcerned.

Gabrelle and Valteria both broke from the group, trotting up to Xander.

"Is he okay?" Valteria asked, as Gabrelle knelt down to assess Xander.

"Well, he's breathing, so that's a good sign," Gabrelle responded. "Hopefully the blood is… not his. Let's get him rolled over." Gabrelle gently rolled Xander onto his back to inspect for any wounds. "Nothing. As far I can tell, he's fine physically, just unconscious." She gave him a slight shake.

Xander's eyes fluttered open, and a groan escaped his lips. Then his eyes widened fully in surprise, now that he was fully awake and remembered the previous night. His eyes darted about, noting Gabrelle over him, and then finding Valteria's. He tried to get up, reflexively. An arm twitched.

"I think he's awake!" Valteria exclaimed, noticing Xander's gaze and the slight twitch of his arm.

"Mmm, good. Xander, can you hear me? Can you move?" Gabrelle asked.

Another raspy sound escaped from Xander's throat, but that was all.

"Blink if you can hear me?" Gabrelle offered.

Xander managed to blink.

Xander's thoughts were racing. He wasn't a machine anymore, was he? He was… a werewolf? He had fuzzy memories of running through the woods with Freyja last night. From what little he could see of himself without moving his head, he didn't look like a werewolf at the moment. He could see his nose, bare of fur, and certainly nothing like a muzzle obscuring his vision. But why couldn't he move? He took a moment to calm himself and think about the situation logically. He had been using an intricate web of mana to move for quite a while now, but that was not how muscles worked. He concentrated on moving one arm. It moved, but it was more of a flop. Like when one had fallen asleep on their arm and it had gone completely numb. Only, it wasn't numb, just clumsy. He decided to try something different. He concentrated on moving his jaw, and managed to open his mouth. He opened and closed it a couple more times, working his jaw back and forth as he did so.

A raspy, slurred, "Hi…" escaped from Xanders lips.

"Are you okay?" Valteria asked, concerned.

Xander slowly managed to nod his head, though it took a massive effort of coordination and effort.

"Cant… move… well," he managed to slur out.

"I'll carry him," Valteria offered.

Valteria knelt down and, with a gentleness that belied the massive suit of armor she was controlling, scooped Xander up into a bridal carry. As his head lulled, he caught glimpses of his blood covered, naked body. His cheeks flushed hot from embarrassment. That was another sensation he'd almost forgotten. The heat of embarrassment.

"Come on," Gabrelle gestured to Valteria to follow her back to the rest of the group, who was standing a few feet away. "Let's get him back to the village and in a bed."

As they walked, Xander worked on actually using his vocal chords, lips, and tongue to speak again instead of powering a series of runes. It was clumsy at first, but a bit like riding a bike again after a long time – clumsy at first, but he began picking it back up quickly.

"Can I have a blanket or something?" He quietly asked Valteria. "I don't like being naked out here for everyone to see."

"Sorry," Valteria apologized. "I don't have a cloak or anything like that with my armor… and I left my bag in the village when we went to go find you."

Xander grunted discontentedly. "I guess I'll survive."

"So what happened?" Valteria asked, curiously.

"Ugh," Xander groaned. "I'm not exactly sure. Everything hurt so badly. And then I was running through the woods with Freyja. It's all very fuzzy and disjointed though. I don't remember killing that deer… or… oh god, did I eat it? I think I'm nauseous now."

"You're gonna be fine," Valteria consoled him.

It took significantly less time to get back to the village than it had to for the group to track down Xander. His path through the forest had been hectic and winding, compared to the straight path that they were taking back. There, Xander was tucked into a free bed in the longhouse he'd created.

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Xander took the time after being carried to bed to call up his status sheet. There, amongst his titles, he found the changes that had overtaken him. His [Revenant] title had become greyed out, faded. It was barely legible now. But he had two new entries on his sheet.

---You have gained titles! ---

[Werewolf] – You are a werewolf.

[Blessing of Ghurral] – You may transform into a werewolf as if it were the full moon for the duration of the day. Mana Cost: Medium. Cooldown: 24hr

[Reembodied Soul] – Your time as a spirit has left its mark on your soul. Mana capacity increased.

He reread the additions to his status sheet a few more times, partially in disbelief, and partially to familiarize himself with the changes. He hadn't even noticed that Valteria had taken a seat nearby, now out of her armor.

"How are you feeling?" Valteria asked.

Xander was startled by the sudden voice, not realizing anyone was near, and flinched slightly. Another reflex to get used to again. "I'm… not sure," he managed. "Talking is getting easier. But moving is clumsy. I think it have to learn how to move again."

"What do you mean?" Valteria asked, cocking her head slightly in thought.

"Well, I've been using mana to move for so long that it's become habit. I haven't had a real body I've had to move for… I don't even know how long it's been now. I haven't really been keeping track of the time. Uhm, but that means I'm rusty at doing anything and everything, essentially. I need to practice. Practice moving my fingers, moving my arms, walking. My balance is probably shit right now too," Xander explained.

"I see," Valteria responded. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"I don't think so. I mean, the company is nice. I love having you around," Xander said. "But right now I need to just focus on making a fist or something."

And so he did. Xander simply focused on making a fist for a solid twenty minutes, alternating between hands. At first it was slow, like trying to make a fist when your hands had gone numb. But he got progressively faster at making a fist. Like speaking, the more he did it, the more fluid the action became as he re-remembered the process. He still wasn't quite at full speed opening and closing his hand when Frazay and Jerik entered the room.

"Xander!" Frazay said excitedly, noticing that Xander had managed to, albeit slowly, turn his head to see who was entering the building. "How are you? You gave us quite the shock last night!"

"I'll be okay, I think," he replied. "Moving is slow. I'm having to relearn it all after so long using mana to move about. But I'm already getting there. I was just practicing making a fist."

"Huh. I've heard of similar, bedridden people who were finally cured having to relearn how to walk," Frazay offered. "Jerik and I wanted to check on you, though." She hesitated momentarily before continuing on. "And to answer any questions you might have… about being, well, a werewolf."

Valteria looked back and forth between the two and Xander a few times, the realization striking her fully that Xander had not just been reincarnated, but had been reincarnated as a werewolf.

Xander grimaced slightly. "Yeah… that's probably for the best. I don't know anything about werewolves. All I have are preconceived notions from a world where they were legends and fantasy at most."

Frazay nodded, and Jerik spoke up. "I am here to answer any questions you may have. I feel a certain responsibility, not only due to your help in defending the village, but also because you were my charge during the ceremony. I have never seen a transformation so… painful. It's not normal to transform upon your induction. It's the following full moon where that happens. But, I suppose normality goes out the window when gods are involved."

"I don't… look any different. I think. Do I?" Xander asked nervously.

"Not that I can tell," Valteria offered.

"Then how come everyone in the village has things like ears or tails or fur, and I don't, if I'm a werewolf now?" Asked Xander.

"A newly blessed werewolf would not look any different than a 'normal' human," Jerik began explaining. "At the full moon, a werewolf transforms fully. And each time the transformation passes, a piece of it is left behind. It could be something simple at first, like more pointed finger and toenails, or the eyes changing color. But they build upon themselves, each transformation leaving one more wolflike than the last. Eventually, there is no difference between one's self on the full moon and any other night."

"So, you're saying that eventually, I'm going to be a full werewolf, no matter what I do?" Xander sounded agitated.

"Ah, yes, I suppose so," Jerik answered carefully. "It can take years, however."

"Fuck," Xander cursed. "Sorry," he apologized. "I don't mean to be disrespectful or anything, but this is a lot to take in. I wasn't expecting to become a werewolf. Hell, I wasn't even expecting to have flesh or blood again. I don't know whether to jump for joy – metaphorically, anyway – at the fact that I'm human again, or cry because I'm going to watch it slip away. Again. At least I'll have time to adjust?" He tried to spin the situation positively at the end, more for himself than anyone else.

"Indeed," Jerik responded. "You will certainly have time to adjust to the changes, full werewolfhood will not come swiftly.

"I'm not sure what else to even ask, right now." Xander said, tiredly. He felt like the energy had been sucked out of him after being told that he was going to slowly change into something inhuman.

"I understand," Jerik said softly. "It is rare that anyone is turned nonconsensually, but it does occasionally happen. The few I have ever met felt similarly, at least at first, upon learning that they had become a werewolf." He paused for a moment, seeming to think. "There are some things you should know, even if you have not asked. Firstly, you will find that your natural healing speed has been accelerated. A werewolf can survive most any wound, save those that are immediately fatal. This does not, however, hold true should the injury come from a silver weapon, or from fire. These two things, for reasons I do not know, do not heal as normal injuries do. They will heal, either from a skill such as your friend Gabrelle possesses or through simple time. But not at the speed that a wound created by any other mechanism will for you, now. Lastly, you need to know under what circumstances you may turn another into a werewolf. A bite from a werewolf, under normal circumstances, will not transfer the blessing. It is only under the full moon that such a thing may be done, even when one has reached the end of their transformation."

Xander nodded, still thinking. "Thank you," he said, finally.

Jerik could see that Xander was sinking into his own thoughts, saying, "I'll leave you to your friends. But, should you have any more questions, I, or any of the other elders, will be happy to answer them for you."

Jerik left the building, which was currently empty save for Valteria, Frazay, and Xander. The villagers were out and about following their daily routine, or still rebuilding their homes.

Frazay looked at Xander thoughtfully. "Would you like some time to yourself?" She asked politely.

"I… yeah. I think so," Xander responded.

Frazay nodded, leaving the room to Xander and Valteria, who was still sitting nearby.

"Would you like me to leave, too?" Valteria asked gently.

Xander shook his head. He stared at the ceiling, feeling despondent, unable to meet Valteria's eyes. He managed to bring one arm out from under the covers, reaching out for her. Valteria got up from her chair and sat on the bed, taking his hand in hers.

"What am I going to do?" He asked the ceiling with a sigh.

"What do you mean?" Valteria asked.

"I'm.. going to change. And there's nothing I can do about it, Valteria."

"I know, Xander. What you're going through, I know it has to be hard. But you'll get through this. We'll get through this. Together."

Tears welled in the corners of Xander's eyes as he finally brought himself to glance at Valteria's face momentarily. "I'm going to be different, though. You've only ever known me as a [Revenant]. A construct, almost. Does… this change things? Between us? Now that I'm not… that?"

Valteria smiled, chuckled slightly, and gave Xander a kiss. "No, no I don't think it does. Maybe if you had turned out to look completely different," she teased. "But I think I like kissing you this way more. Your lips are softer."

Xander smiled wanly. "What about… later? When I'm less… me."

Valteria cupped Xander's face in her hand, forcing him to look at her. "You'll still be you. It's not like I've never seen a werewolf before. We have werewolves in Vardenne as well, you know. We would not be the first werewolf and pix couple I have seen."

"No?" Xander asked, curiosity getting the better of him despite his low mood.

"Remember when I said that the people of Vardenne tend to live more in tune with nature than with industry?" Valteria asked.

"Mmhm," Xander said with a nod.

"Well Ghurral is quite well respected in Vardenne, and so his chosen are often well regarded in society. Werewolves don't live cloistered away from society like they do here. They're seen as upstanding where I'm from, well respected members of the community. They do still tend to gravitate towards other werewolves and form packs, but… not like this," Valteria said gesturing around her.

"Are you sure it won't be a problem?" Xander asked.

"I'm with you for who you are, Xander, not what you are." Valteria declared.

Xander looked at her, his face still cupped in her hands. He worked up his courage, taking a deep breath. "I love you," he said, managing to look her in the eye.

Valteria smiled and leaned down over him, pulling him into a hug. "I love you too, Xander."