His fingers twitched.  It wasn’t a major motion by any means but it was the first thing Ryeowook became aware of as a dull headache sat behind his eyes and weariness clung to his body.  Returning to consciousness was difficult and not something he was agreeable to, but with the first sensation of movement, other things became apparent all too quickly.  There was not enough noise and far too many scents… something pressed against him in a gentle restraint, keeping his arms pinned to his side.  And he felt strange: both too still and yet entirely too active at the same time.

                He murmured some noise or sound of confused complaint and swallowed when he felt arms tighten around him carefully.  “Wookie?”  It was such a fragile sound in his ear, though he could feel the speaker’s breath brush against the lobe sending a chill down his spine.

                He held very still for a few seconds more as he forced reluctant eyes to look ahead, gasping slightly when his focus slipped, shifting drastically between too sharp and then blurring as he tried to compensate.  “Kyu?” he asked softly, ducking his head with his eyes closed, content to try again in a few more moments.

                “I’m here,” the vampire murmured softly, shifting to press his lips against the back of Ryeowook’s clothed shoulder reassuringly, his arms still holding firm around the slender male.  “Are you here this time?” he asked carefully, his tone so very weary and drained.  Even his embrace felt strangely fragile.

                “Wha…?”  Ryeowook was more than confused and he turned his head slightly to try and get a glimpse of his companion out of the corner of barely cracked eyes, wincing against the ambient light of the interior.  Sluggishly, his mind filled in the location as the trailer but it was… empty.  Where were all the people?  And why did he smell everything?  The change… the bacteria!

                “Easy,” Kyuhyun soothed, loosening his hold enough to gently shift Ryeowook so that they were facing each other when he felt him start to tense.  Only then did he grasp Ryeowook’s face in both hands and peer at him intently, both incredibly gentle and yet concerned simultaneously; it was almost like he was facing a wild animal and it was unsettling.  “There you are,” he smiled softly, smoothing the hair from the side of Ryeowook’s face with a slow brush of his palm as they lay nearly chest to chest.

                Ryeowook trembled from feeling too many things all at once; Kyuhyun’s proximity paired with his very inconsistent memory pulled him every direction and he didn’t know what to think.  He winced as a fractured glom of scattered thoughts and memories rose up in his head, vying for his attention all at the same time.  Raised voices… frightened people… angry wolves… arguments… and more words than he cared to think about spoken in a calm voice, telling such strange stories of a resurrected, cursed man that turned his vengeance upon those who created him.  His skin still tingled and he felt both ravenous and queasy at the same time.  Swallowing hard, he clenched his eyes shut and stammered, “What happened?”

                “It worked,” Kyuhyun explained gently, placing his forehead against Ryeowook’s in a comforting gesture as he finally relaxed just a touch.  “You’ve been in and out of it for the past three days.”

                Blindly, Ryeowook reached to press his hand against Kyuhyun’s side, holding tight.  “Three days?  Why?  Is that normal?”

                “No,” his companion admitted in a whisper, hesitant to explain.  “Look at me,” Kyuhyun instructed with just the hint of a command in his tone.

                He didn’t have to comply.  There was no compulsion making him do so, but Ryeowook was curious and he needed to know.  Dark brown eyes flickered to meet Kyuhyun’s, inky orbs staring back at him unblinking in the relative darkness.

                “We almost lost you,” he frowned, petting Ryeowook’s hair with his hand.  “I… almost lost you.”

                The pain and fear he heard in Kyuhyun’s voice shot straight through him, making him understand in a way that words never would just how close he had come.  For a few seconds, he was unable to hold their gaze and he closed his eyes, struggling with resurfacing memories.  “My thoughts…” he trailed off, but Kyuhyun seemed to know exactly what the concern was.

                “That’s normal.  It’s part of being a Cho.”  The confirmation made Ryeowook turn cold in an instant and he realized it was really happening.  “I’ll teach you to control it, but not right now.  We both need to gain our strength.”

                “I’m so confused,” he whispered at a total loss.  There were so many things bouncing around in his head that he didn’t know what was real or dreamed.  Some of them had to be nightmares, right?  Not all of it was true.  His grip on Kyuhyun’s shirt tightened painfully and he trembled, “Do vampires dream?”

                Kyuhyun was ominously silent for a much longer time than Ryeowook was comfortable with.  “No,” he finally sighed, tightening his arms around the slender male comfortingly.

                A strained whimper escaped Ryeowook as his mouth opened in silent horror and denial.  “No,” he murmured with a shake of his head, trembling all over.  “I bit Henry?”

                “He volunteered,” Kyuhyun explained firmly, though it hardly made Ryeowook feel better.

                “And JR tried to kill you…” he went on, flinching away from overwhelming memories.

                “He was angry,” the vampire added in a flat tone of voice.

                Ryeowook grimaced at the connection between the memories though and felt his stomach revolt with anguish.  “He blamed you for me trying to bite him.  Oh god,” he gasped, trying to hold back a sob.  “I tried to hurt my brother,” Ryeowook rasped, pushing away from Kyuhyun reactively.  “You made me into a monster,” he panted as panic tried to take root in his head.

                “Wookie!” Kyuhyun snapped sharply, holding tighter even as he tried to pull back.  “You were not yourself,” he whispered in a heated tone of voice.  “Remember Victoria before she… passed?”

                When prompted, Ryeowook nearly reeled at being able to recall the memory in perfect detail, right down to the crazed look in her eyes as she shouted, ‘I need him!’  He locked up entirely upon understanding that had been him…  The memory itself was jumbled and erratic, as if he hadn’t been able to focus, but he could vaguely recall the feeling at the time… the thought process in his head.  Hungry.  He had been so hungry and hurting…

                “Your change was harder than it should have been and I was not strong enough to care for you,” Kyuhyun sighed, his posture tense despite the relaxed nature of his words.

                Revelation struck like a bat to the head and Ryeowook actively flinched against.  “You almost died!”  Not from his brother’s hand but… from pushing himself too hard.

                “Almost,” Kyuhyun confirmed in that same, emotionless voice as earlier.

                With a sudden burst of strength, Ryeowook lurched away from Kyuhyun and in startled understanding, he began to realize how changed he was and how very reduced his companion had become.  “This is wrong.  All of it’s wrong!” he practically yelled, digging his fingers into his arms painfully, breaking the skin though he didn’t feel it.  He was supposed to be better… stronger…  Someone that could protect people, not hurt them.

                “Wookie,” Kyuhyun called, getting to his feet with painful slowness, favoring every part of him as if he perpetually ached.

                “No!” Ryeowook retorted, rounding on the other vampire with hurt blazing in his eyes.  It was all too much right now.  They were both alive, which was something he was distractedly grateful about, but the reality was that he had tried to hurt his family and that was not okay.  He was not okay…  And when Kyuhyun tried to close the distance between them, he stepped back and gestured for him not to.  “Stay there!” he hissed with his finger pointing at the vampire, feeling overwhelmed and horrified with himself.  “He’ll hate me.”  It was his greatest fear and his greatest concern rolled into one; that his brother should choose to hate him and what he had become.

                Kyuhyun scoffed weakly and shook his head.  “If anything, he just hates me more.”

                “Just stop talking!” Ryeowook demanded pitifully, expression pinched and his hands hanging in front of him uselessly.

                He could see his reaction hurt Kyuhyun, but at that moment, he didn’t care.  On top of it all, there were snippets of a story running through his head that didn’t make any sense and only served to frustrate him more.  His eyes darted to Kyuhyun as he pushed a button on the wall and Ryeowook flinched when he heard the buzz of a communication line open.  “N.”

                He was startled yet again in a matter of seconds when the top of the trailer was opened, letting in a plethora of sounds he hadn’t been expecting and the red haired vampire himself.  Briefly distracted by the familiar but jumbled sounds, Ryeowook stalled and blinked through the opening, entranced by the overhead sky above, the stars more numerous than usual…

                “You’re alright!” N gasped happily as he landed inside, light on his feet.  He took one look between Kyuhyun and Ryeowook before he realized that things were slightly off and he nodded in immediate understanding.  While Kyuhyun reluctantly jumped out to give them space, N walked over to Ryeowook and grabbed his arm gently but firmly.  “Why don’t you have a seat, Wookie?” he urged with a nod towards the pinned up bed.

                “No,” Ryeowook shook his head, yanking his arm free without meeting N’s gaze as he looked away, thoughts focusing inward once more.

                He missed N’s perturbed expression but he watched as the vampire walked across the space to let the bed down and then returned to grab Ryeowook again.  When the newly turned vampire tried to pull away once more, his grip remained firm, if somewhat painful.  “Sit!” N commanded as he forced Ryeowook to sit on the bed, despite all his efforts to the contrary.

                Chastised and subdued, Ryeowook rubbed his aching arm, the puncture marks already stinging in the aftermath, and marveled briefly at the hidden strength in his newest visitor.  “I’m-”  He wasn’t even sure what he was going to say but as soon as he started to speak, N gave him a stern look and held up one finger for silence; and he got it.  Mutely, Ryeowook watched the other vampire raid the small mini-fridge with emergency blood packs and pull one out.

                “Drink,” he instructed, handing it off to a reluctant Ryeowook.

                “I don’t want it,” he denied, shaking his head while his stomach revolted and rejoiced at the same time.

                “Don’t make me force feed you,” N warned in a completely serious tone of voice, expression more akin to a disappointed father.

                And not entirely unlike a petulant child, Ryeowook frowned but did as he was commanded, forcing himself to drink the dark, chilled liquid with a shudder.  Though he did nearly spit a mouthful out when Himchan practically appeared in the opening with all the frantic excitement of a kid on Christmas morning.  At least until he got a good look at them.

                “Oh,” he blinked, quirking his head to the side in confusion that begged an answer while N simply nodded toward the other side of the bed, allowing them to flank Ryeowook.

                “Better?” he asked after a moment in which Ryeowook finished the blood pack and set the remains gingerly behind him.  The answer was both yes and no: his stomach was finally more settled but he was still just as scattered as ever.  N continued as if he’d answered positively anyway and patted the top of his thigh.  “Okay.  Now talk,” he urged, gesturing fluidly for the words to come.

                Still floundering and overwhelmed by his less than easy awakening, Ryeowook looked between N, who just watched him, and Himchan, who grabbed his hand in a comforting, reassuring gesture.  The first word was the hardest, his mouth working silently as if something wanted to come out, but once he started speaking, the flow hardly abated.  A relative deluge of words fell from his lips as he blurted everything he didn’t understand… everything that scared him… everything that was only starting to make sense in his head.

                N and Himchan simply listened as he spoke; sometimes too fast to follow clearly, but they declined to interrupt for clarification and simply let him continue.  In that way, he settled the thoughts in his own mind and lay them out for those two to further help him piece together.  And when he was finally done, for now, they both held his hands and took turns filling in the blanks that made the whole situation even more frustrating.

                The day Ryeowook was turned, Kyuhyun nearly suffered a burnout in which his attempts to regulate the resultant charge in them both backfired.  Ryeowook’s body overreacted with the raging infection attacking his altering system and nearly fried Kyuhyun in the process, though the bacteria was annihilated from both of them rather effectively.  Their group had moved shortly after with nothing to be done in the meantime and so they’d covered a fair bit of ground since then.  South was the direction they’d been heading, which had seemed foolish initially, but it wasn’t what most would be expecting.  And Changmin’s group had done well in attracting attention to themselves in the meantime.

                They maintained contact where possible, but the current group traveled during the day especially when the vampires weren’t able to move around freely.  All of them were better in the evening and had the advantage over the humans anyway.  Though the rest stops became partially necessary for the sick humans as well as Ryeowook in particular.

                “You became… difficult for a little while,” Himchan explained gently, his hand tight around Ryeowook’s.

                As they explained, he recovered much faster than Kyuhyun who was still far weaker than he should be.  The first day, Ryeowook came around infrequently and ate just fine when instructed.  Some of the wolves allowed their blood to be used in repayment for Kyuhyun’s treatment of the packs, but JR insisted on looking over his brother.  That wasn’t possible on the second day when full-fledged hunting instincts took over bereft of thought, and isolation had become necessary.  That was when Henry volunteered since food from the source was more effective than siphoned blood.

                “Kyuhyun has stayed by your side to offer what counsel he can, but his strength is not what it should be,” N explained seriously, holding Ryeowook’s gaze with dark, intense eyes.  “As the lore keepers of our race, he told you our origin, which you may or may not recall, but you won’t forget it.  I promise you that.  And it’s likely the story you’re talking about that comes and goes is just that.  Our history.  It will make sense in time,” he promised with all sincerity, squeezing Ryeowook’s hand tightly.

                A heavy weight of guilt and weariness settled on his shoulders as Ryeowook tried to take it all in and make sense of what he’d been told.  Things were considerably easier when he was just infected as opposed to this crazy, messed up situation he found himself in.  Now, he was practically a pariah.  “How’s JR?” he asked dejectedly, keeping his eyes locked on his knees in front of him.

                N grumbled under his breath but answered before Himchan could.  “He’s still angry with Kyuhyun.  Expectedly.  And yes,” he added before Ryeowook had to ask.  “He is somewhat afraid of you for the moment.”  When Ryeowook turned to look at him with a shattered look in his eyes, N hurried to reassure him, “But he also hasn’t been able to see you since it happened.  All of this is going to take time.  Maybe more than usual,” he shrugged, not happy about it himself.  “Ask Himchan if you need confirmation.”

                “Ne.  It works itself out,” Himchan promised dutifully, though his tone rang true.  “But it will take time.  Especially now,” he admitted with a cringe.

                Confused, Ryeowook looked back to N for a better explanation.  “What does he mean by now?”

                N gave Himchan a cross look and then smoothed it out as he regarded Ryeowook.  “We’ve been monitoring the news as best we can in the meantime.  Things are getting tense.  On both sides.”

                Somewhat depressingly, Ryeowook was informed that while the nonhumans had lost dozens of confirmed members across the globe, the human population was still suffering from hundreds to thousands of deaths with each passing day: sickness, lingering effects of radiation poisoning, riots, random attacks, etc.  Worse still, they too were beginning to suffer from within.  Uprisings from humans against the inhumane tactics, leaked by someone to the media, that had been utilized most recently were cropping up and though smaller in number, there was a growing population of people who supported the nonhumans and were outraged by the government’s attempts to eradicate them.  "On the other side of things, there are just as many civilians against us as well.  Keep in mind this is happening all over the world as well.  Not just in the states.  Oh joy,” he murmured in a mocking, dry tone.  Needless to say, no place was safe anymore and whether they liked it or not, everyone was now a part of the rising battle.

                “War is here,” Himchan winced, brows furrowed and his expression frustrated.

                Ryeowook tensed slightly when N gripped his shoulder firmly but he refrained from speaking first.  “The best thing you can do right now is try to remain calm.  Your senses are easier to control when you’re not getting worked up,” he promised tensely.

                “It might be good to make yourself known among the others soon too.  At least before morning,” Himchan urged comfortingly, patting Ryeowook’s hand in his.

                “Wookie,” N called softly, keeping a tentative hold on the newest vampire when he moved to get up.  Himchan took one look between them and then nodded in understanding as he stepped out to let them speak.

                “Ne?” Ryeowook whispered, shifting to face his elder more appropriately.

                “I don’t want to put more on you than necessary, but we will need you to understand what being a Cho means as soon as possible.”  Ryeowook just looked at him in confusion so he took a small breath and added, “If we get attacked by more of those who are infected, Kyuhyun won’t be able to treat them.  Not right now.  Not without risking himself again.  And there’s something else,” he frowned, clasping his hands in his lap, clearly displeased.  “Sungmin got word of the military raising the stakes.  Their soldiers are good but without weapons, they’re nothing in comparison to us.  They’ve offered ‘upgrades’ to volunteers who want the power that can be gained from becoming a half-turned.  No microchip implants and no infection except for what they can carry on their person.”

                Dumbfounded, Ryeowook blinked at N and shook his head.  Surely he’d heard incorrectly.  “But there’s no cure…” he trailed off.  Surely they knew that if they won, there would be no place for them in the end.

                N shook his head in disgust.  “He wasn’t able to catch what they were promised but it’s likely they’re being fed a lie about a cure waiting for them.  It’s even possible they’re telling them a cure is being worked on now.  It’s not that simple,” he exhaled with a shake of his head.  “You’ll see,” he frowned, giving Ryeowook a nudge to start them both moving.

                On top of everything else, the latest bit only added to his already mountainous concerns, but Ryeowook was alive and recovering, if that meant anything.  He was still very conflicted between what he should feel about anything but he hated the fact his brother was afraid of him; that Henry had become little more than food for a short time; and even that he had lashed out so foolishly at Kyuhyun.  He moved under the opening for the trailer and stared upwards again, peering at the sea of stars once more.  The sensation of focusing on everything and just a single point at the same time made him sway and N steadied him reflexively.

                “One step at a time,” he urged, following the younger male’s gaze.  “It gets easier.  Don’t worry.”

                With an effort, Ryeowook shook his head and finally hopped up to get his first view of their collected party in the meantime.  With N at his side, he paused and looked around, knowing his vantage would be better from the top of the trailer than on the ground.  A very quick scan showed the majority of the humans clustered around the contained fire in their location.  As expected, they hadn’t settled anywhere with a building nearby and were relatively in the open, but they did have the coverage of sparse vegetation and rock formations nearby.  He could see lights twinkling far off in the distance, but there was nothing save wildlife – holy crap, was that a fox way over there?  The accuracy of his night vision startled him and he turned his attention back to camp, blinking at the sharp detail of everything here as well.

                The number of the humans looked smaller than the last time and he didn’t see the guy that was losing his hair, but all of them looked a fair bit on the tired side.  Ryeowook figured that an evening schedule wasn’t ideal for the surviving humans, but it was for the nonhumans and therefore a moot point at present.  “Did we lose some?” he asked, squatting down to make himself smaller on the top, sort of hunched over awkwardly as he got a feel for the remaining group first.

                N joined him in a much more relaxed pose, wrists resting lightly on his knees.  “Ne.  The ones that are left are a bit cranky but they’re a good sort, if closer to wolves than us,” he chuckled wryly, though he kept his voice low so that it wouldn’t carry very far.  “Not surprising since they’re from wolf families though they inherited neither the traits of a werewolf or the wolf-kin.”

                “So are they cousins like Henry is to Yoochun?” Ryeowook asked, glad for something else to focus on.

                “Not necessarily.  Some are, or might be, siblings, though I couldn’t tell you the family lines or relations.  All wolves are born but not all their babies are born as wolves,” he explained while he pointed out the case in point.  “This is also a good chance to learn names.  You’ll have no trouble remembering them now,” he winked, diverting his attention for only a brief moment.  “Those three,” and he gestured to a tall blonde, an equally tall brunette with mid-length hair, and a shorter young man with spiky, dark hair, “are all members of the Kim family, one way or another.  That’s Eli, AJ, and Yookwon.  Just like Minho and Ren,” he then pointed out another tall pair, the former featuring large eyes and the latter claiming a strange androgynous attractive quality, “are of the Choi pack.”

                “Do they all have the same last names as the pack leaders?” Ryeowook murmured, frowning as he tried to match the names and faces.  Surprisingly, he had no difficulty whatsoever in remembering who was who after N told him.

                “No.  Actually, if I’m not mistaken, the rest of them have different names.  Though that one’s a Song,” he pointed towards a young woman with waves of deep brown hair pulled into a hasty ponytail.  “I remember because it was strange to me she wasn’t a vampire,” he snorted, the sound somewhat sad.  “That’s Jieun though.”

                “Ah,” Ryeowook nodded, studying her for a moment.  She didn’t resemble Victoria but he couldn’t help but remember the valiant vampire.  Even as he filed away details and made comparisons, his head felt a little strange and he could almost envision a filing system in which the images and explanations were stored away for later access.  He knew it wasn’t that simple exactly but it felt like it might be.  “How do you remember their names?” he asked, knowing the vampire didn’t have the storage capability of a Cho in general.

                “I wouldn’t be much of a messenger if I couldn’t remember short term things,” N smiled with a nod.  “Not to mention I’ve been living with them for the past three days.  It’s rude not to know who you’re around,” he finished, nodding towards the group.  One after the other, N pointed out the rest of the remaining humans.  The female populous was decidedly lacking, with Hana being the only other one among the last three that he named: Dongho, Jihoon, and Minhyuk.  “And if you’ll notice, the rest of the groups have a defensive pattern around them.”  Effectively, he pointed out the Hunters, the wolf-kin and possessed, the wolves themselves, and he made a half-hearted gesture at the vampires.

                True to form, Ryeowook could see they did indeed have these little pockets outside the human ring.  The Hunters Yongguk, Mir, and Minsoo were clustered next to the wolves on one side and the wolf-kin on the other, fitting in better with the latter since the possessed seemed to be welcoming of pretty much everyone.  At least as long as you weren’t being a anyway.  Minsoo appeared to be recovering well enough and was able to walk, if slowly, while his siblings looked over him with predatory intensity.  He very much doubted they would let anything happen to him if they could help it.

                In the secondary outer ring, Ryeowook noted the remaining wolves on the alert.  The healthy ones, including Junsu, Sanghyuk, Hyoyeon, Luna, and one young woman he didn’t know, which N explained was Sunhwa, acknowledged and dismissed him with a glance.  Well, at least Luna gave him a hesitant wave but it was clear she was trying not to draw attention to herself or him by her actions and kept glancing over towards the Hunters, keeping an eye on the Bangs for her own sake.  Their injured companions consisting of Taekwoon, Hongbin, Sulli, and the one eyed wolf, named Joon, continued to rest or work on functioning with their injuries, disregarding him entirely.

                “Minor squabbles keep us from being entirely cohesive but they’re healing well,” N informed him while he pointed towards the possessed and the wolf-kin as they clustered together.  “Your brother has been doing a very good job with Ken,” he reminded him, drawing Ryeowook’s attention to the younger male who had yet to notice him.

                He swallowed convulsively as he saw his brother from afar and was ridiculously grateful he was otherwise unharmed.  JR was talking to Ken, with Baekho and Daesung contributing here and there.  Jongup watched them all raptly as they played some sort of game and it looked as if Jiyong had moved to join the not entirely human group as well.  Surprisingly, they fit rather well, though Ryeowook couldn’t help but smile when it was his sibling that was the odd man out.  And as much as he wanted to watch him, his gaze inevitably went to Henry at last, scouring the younger male for any sign of remaining injury.  He still felt queasy over the fact his friend had volunteered to feed him, but the reminder came back from one of their earlier conversations as well.  When Kyuhyun attacked him, it wasn’t the first time he’d been fed upon, but that didn’t negate the fact Ryeowook would never have wanted to do that to him in the first place…

                The hair on the back of Ryeowook’s neck stood on end when he realized the most recent vampires were hovering on the outskirts of the camp, keeping a steady eye on him while they patrolled in pairs.  He could barely see them, but he knew very well they took note of him all the same.  Minzy and Sungmin walked side by side, almost skulking in the moonlight, while Zhou and who he figured was Jinki, looking better though still stiff, traveled at a more sedate pace, scouring the surrounding area with sharp eyes.  Ryeowook shivered and allowed his eyes to be pulled towards the other outliers who had set themselves apart: Kyuhyun with Hyosung and Himchan.  The obvious divisive lines even in their ranks were stark and discomfiting for the moment.

                He knew very little about tactics… yet even as he thought it over, he blinked as his mind offered several examples to the contrary from his college and high school years where such topics had been covered at least in passing.  Looking over at N, he whispered, “Chos remember everything, right?”

                “Ne,” N nodded without hesitation, giving him a sad smile.  “Alright then.  You ready?” he asked, noting the slight change in his companion.

                Oh boy…  Taking a steadying breath, Ryeowook nodded quickly and jumped down off the trailer, well aware that N followed him with ease.  His legs felt shaky and he was sure his heart should have been racing, except he remembered it didn’t beat at all anymore.  For some reason he couldn’t explain, Ryeowook found himself fending off fear akin to that he’d experienced in the battle previously and he immediately sought N’s hand, holding tight.  Rather ersely, he wanted Kyuhyun’s grounding presence at his side, but since he intended to try and speak to his brother first… he doubted that was hardly the best move.  Instead, he swallowed and asked, “Will you come with me?”  He couldn’t face him – or any of them – alone right now.

                N gave a comforting squeeze in response and nodded, “Of course.  Just remember.  One step at a time.”

                “Right,” Ryeowook exhaled quickly, biting his bottom lip as he looked at his brother.  He couldn’t help but glance over at Kyuhyun who was watching him with an unreadable expression.  Immediately, he felt a heavy dose of guilt rip through him and he lowered his eyes.  One way or another, this was going to be interesting.

~~~~~~

                This far back, the only way the humans would be able to see their group was with long range sensors or cameras.  They had nothing on Changmin’s eyes though, which he narrowed to reduce the light pollution even more, giving him a better view of their target.  The scene before him presented a well staffed military base, one of the few left that was fully manned and intact, but it was also one of the major production centers for that accursed bacteria that had been Victoria’s demise.

                His fingers crooked into claws at his side while his upper lip peeled back to reveal dangerous fangs.  A slight noise at his back made him flinch and he glared over his shoulder defensively, silently cursing himself when the damn wolf was still several meters away.  It was just that with his heightened senses, he picked up on them so much better, even when they thought they were being quiet.  With another quick scan, he noted the location of the spotlights, the communication towers, as well as turret guns and defensive artillery stations they would need to worry about.

                Committing it to memory as much as he could, he turned around and walked back towards the gathered group, every wolf more than ready for blood.  Those who lacked the thirst still carried the determination and that was all he needed.  The newest vampires they’d collected, courtesy of Kyuhyun’s final message, at least looked angry and more than ready to dispense their share of what he would consider justice.  It had taken them three days to get here on foot and he’d suffered the indignity of being carried in a bag to hide from the sun just so they could keep moving during daylight hours.

                They’d chosen to loot stores along the way for food enough to feed the wolves, frightening the humans off and leaving a trail a blind man could follow.  Pursuit had been sporadic and useless, with the ineffective police falling away quickly and even military ventures against them were spotty at best, ill prepared for their numbers or ferocity.  Despite the arduous nature of their journey, Changmin and the others were more than ready to act, even if they were somewhat tired.  The closer they’d gotten, more tentative attacks had been levied against them and they’d suffered a few wounds for their efforts, but Chaerin was a skilled healer, or rather the spirit in her was, and none of them were weak.  Pride alone would keep all of them going now if they needed.

                Quickly, he counted out the participants and formed tentative teams in his head while he tried to dampen his senses so he could interact at a moderately normal level again.  “Listen up,” he urged, gesturing them all closer.  Mutely, the group clustered around him and he laid out his plan.  “We are outnumbered and most of you can’t even see what we’re up against yet.”  He nodded concession at the one additional Shim who had joined their ragtag bunch, a tall, lanky looking kid by the name of Niel – one of his progeny or someone else must have turned him because he hadn’t – and smirked at the disgruntled wolves.  Before they could get truly offended, he stated, “We’ll have four attack teams.  Two mop ups.”

                “And who exactly do you propose is going with whom?” Seunghyun snorted, bristling preemptively and overflowing with energy that desperately needed to be dispensed somewhere while his gaze raked the ring of persons.  Tensions were high and it was obvious that some didn’t wish to be paired with others, which Changmin made sure to keep in mind.  They did not need stupid rivalries getting in the way of their fighting ability now.

                “For starters, you, Yunho, and I are going to aim right for the heart of the base,” he grinned wickedly, earning a feral smirk from the wolves who practically shivered at the idea.  “Chos,” he called, searching out Kangin and the other newbie quickly.  “You’ll both be in the mop up crew.  We don’t need you getting killed outright now do we?” he questioned, meeting their gazes.  He noticed the way that Kangin hovered close to Chaerin, paused to make a switch in his head, and then nodded to himself.  “Kangin, Chaerin, and Geng will sweep the left side of the base for stragglers.  Youngjae, Daehyun, and Junhong will sweep the right.”

                “Why am I in the clean up crew?” Daehyun scowled, still healing nose slightly discolored in the moonlight.

                “Because you tried to bite a Cho and you still can’t smell ,” Changmin shot back without hesitation, already turning his attention elsewhere.  Junhong wasn’t a killer enough to go into the heart of the base but he figured he could count on the wolf to help keep Youngjae safe while they continued to protect the outskirts.  Very quickly, he paired off Sunny, Wonsik, and Yoochun as well as Siwon, Byunghee, and Kyung – all relatively new to him – to help take out the defenses and any retaliatory forces.  “Niel and Changjo.  You two will take out the searchlights, communications, and power if you can find it,” he pointed at the pair who clasped hands determinedly.

                “Just the two of them?” Yunho quirked a brow as he pointed at the pair.

                “Ne,” Changmin nodded.  “If I add anyone else, they’ll just get in the way,” he smirked without looking at the Song and Shim pair.  “Besides.  We’re running out of people anyway,” he added with a glance around the rather small circle already.  “Any other questions?”

                “What about if someone gets injured?”  The dual tone signaled that it was Krystal speaking through Chaerin and Changmin turned to regard her.

                “You’re the healer.  You tell me,” he blinked, watching her frown turn into something a fair bit more bloodthirsty as the other persona took over.

                “Let’s hope they don’t get injured,” she spoke again, a masculine quality to her voice as she reached for the dual knives at her hip.

                “Alright then,” Changmin nodded as he searched for and found Yunho and Seunghyun easily.  With every muscle wound tight, like a spring ready to be launched, he turned around to face their target and grinned almost manically.  “Let’s tear this place apart.”

                A chorus of accompanying, shifting growls followed the statement as a mixed pack of wolves changed form until all that remained was a mass of towering monsters with their smaller in stature peers ready to wreak havoc.

(a/n: I didn't mean for this one to run off with me but here we go!  We begin to understand what Ryeowook's change means for him and some of what he experienced during it.  As you might have guessed/surmised, it wasn't normal or easy by any means.  You also might have caught the barest snippet of an origin story in there too, which will come more into play a bit later.  hehe  ;)  So I've also introduced a fair few new people at this point and given just a teensy bit more insight into the family of wolves (working on the vampires, I promise!).  I tried to make them obvious though the descriptions are pretty basic and work best only if you're particularly familiar with the members on the whole.

This update, we've officially introduced: Jieun (Secret), Hana (Secret), Eli (U-Kiss), Minhyuk (Block B), Jihoon (Block B), Minho (Shinee), Dongho (U-Kiss), AJ (U-Kiss), Yookwon (Block B), Ren (Nu'est) for our humans; Joon (MBLAQ) and Sunhwa (Secret) for our wolves with Ryeowook's group; Youngjae (BAP) - Cho, Niel (Teen Top) - Shim, Changjo (Teen Top) - Song for our newest vampires with Changmin; and Kyung (Block B) - Park, Siwon (Super Junior) - Choi, Byunghee (MBLAQ) - Jung for the rest of our wolves in Changmin's party.  I think that covers everyone.  >.>

I was going to leave it at Ryeowook's part but then opted to give at least a little teaser of what Changmin was doing and who managed to join their ranks.  Based on this update, I will be splitting POVs occasionally, though I'll try to keep it within reason (i.e. no more than two times per update).  I've got some additional surprises to come in the meantime and I hope this chapter was helpful in filling in some blanks.  If you have questions, please ask.  Otherwise, thank you so much for reading and I hope you look forward to the next update!  Woot!  ^_^)