April 11, 2001 – 12:55
As soon as they walked into the clinic, Emma gestured for Coralis to follow her.
"I gave him enough sedatives to keep him out cold for hours, but it's already wearing off," said Emma, as Coralis removed her eyeglasses and slid them into her coat.
Coralis followed her to Owil's room and saw him fighting his restraints. Sensing his wolf wanting to come out and struggling, she rushed to him, brought her left hand to his chest and stared into his eyes. A light glow was seen coming out of her and everyone in the room gasped. Gradually, the patient calmed down and fell asleep.
"Someone tried to summon his wolf. It was weird," said Coralis.
She removed her hand from his chest but kept staring into his eyes.
"How is it even possible?" said Emma.
"I know that demons and some mythical beings can be summoned, but I've never heard of a werewolf, or even of a Lycan, who could be summoned," said Jessica.
"That's what we will find out when Eva comes back. I think I know what this is, but I need to confirm," said Coralis.
Stephanie was still in awe of what she had seen from Coralis, and she didn't know that demons existed.
"Demons really exist? Mythical beings? Like angels? Do they also exist?"
"Demons and angels exist, yes," said Coralis, looking at the group in the room, the glow in her eyes fading, "but we aren't dealing with demonic possession here, and this is definitively not the work of coven witches. I sensed a fay signature wrapped around the soul of his wolf. I've been able to disrupt the summoning attempt, but we still need to dissolve whatever is possessing his wolf and fix the connection to his human counterpart."
Coralis hologram went off. Eva was ready to come back. Coralis got up and headed out of the room.
"Give me a minute, I'll be right back."
"For how long do you think he will stay asleep?" said Emma, following her to the back door. "How soon before the same happens to Wilson?"
"I overrode the summon and put his wolf in a deep slumber, so it depends on how long the intruder takes to override what I've done and regain control. As for your other patient, I'll have to look into the soul of his wolf, but hopefully, we can dissolve the spell before the same happens to him. I'll meet you in his room in a minute."
She pushed the backdoor open and headed to the spot where she activated the initial portal. She grabbed her wand and drew in the air the shape of the portal, then connected to the one she sent Eva.
"What did I miss? Anything happened while I was gone?" said Eva as she walked through it.
Coralis terminated it behind her.
"You missed quite a bit. We're dealing with a fay."
"Seriously? What happened?"
Coralis updated Eva on the recent developments on their way back into the clinic. They met with Emma and Jessica in Jeff Wilson's room. Clarissa was taking his vitals and Stephanie stood next to the door, watching the scene. Her boss, Emma, didn't want her to come close to the patient.
"I'm still not smelling turmeric on you two," said Eva, pointing at Emma and Jessica. "I don't think you got infected, but we're still going to test you, just in case Owil dropped slobbers in your wounds."
Clarissa stepped away from the patient and Coralis walked to him. She brought her left hand to his chest and closed her eyes. She tapped into her inner energy and pushed a small amount through her left hand, reaching out to his wolf, feeling for his soul.
"There is definitively a fay signature imprinted in his wolf. When you run the tests, check for fay blood cells, essence, iron and binding agents. When Owil wakes up from his slumber and is lucid enough to talk, we'll need to question him about where he's been, but I think a fay injected him with a custom elixir, meant to take control of his wolf," said Coralis.
"But to what purpose? Think the fays want to weaponize the wolves?" said Eva.
"Would that surprise you?"
"No. Actually, no, can't say I'd be surprised, at this point."
Coralis removed her hand from his chest and opened her eyes.
"The fay essence in Wilson isn't as potent as it was in Owil, I don't think he is going to have a violent outburst within the next hour," said Coralis, looking at them with glowing eyes. "Let's figure out what Owil has been injected with, so we can reverse it. Their wolves will be confused and feral, but I should be able to fix their connection to their human counterparts."
"If Owil transmitted the spell with one bite, I think this mess is only getting started," said Eva.
Jessica instructed Clarissa to draw two vials of blood from each patient. While Clarissa was busy drawing blood from them, Coralis and Eva tested the saliva sample they had taken earlier. Emma and Jessica shifted into their wolves. Stephanie took a sample of their saliva from the doorway and handed it to Eva.
"Exactly what you said," said Eva a minute later, "fays are behind this mess. Think you can break the spell with the supplies I got?"
"Yes. Good news, ladies, you haven't been infected," said Coralis as she gathered what she needed. "I need to borrow your kitchen for a few minutes."
Clarissa returned to the room just as Emma and Coralis left for the kitchen, and Stephanie joined them. Eva got started on the blood tests.
"I swear, that agent is an angel," said Jessica.
"If she is an angel mix, Blue will never admit to it. She isn't the only spirit mage I know, but she uses her spirit magic like no one else does," said Eva.
"Wait, spirit mage? Agent Blue Thunder isn't a werepanther?" said Clarissa.
"Blue isn't a shifter. She can shift into a panther, yes, but a lot of mages can shift into animals," said Eva, studying the blood samples in front of her. "This is very strange. It's all in the wolf saliva, nothing in their blood."
She got up and went to the kitchen. Clarissa and Jessica followed her. Coralis was stirring a blue liquid in a small pot coated with brass.
"I found nothing in the blood, absolutely nothing. Wolf and human each have distinct bodily fluids, souls and bodies, but we have the same blood running through our veins."
"They knew what they were doing. I think the goal here was to entirely disconnect the wolf from the human, to make it go feral and unhinged, with the fay summoner being able to control it like a puppet master."
"We're really looking at a fay wanting to weaponize werewolves."
"Yes, I believe so. I also think this isn't their first attempt, the imprint was too clear in the wolf's soul. I need to go to London tomorrow morning, but I'll be back on Friday. I think we should pay a visit to local packs to warn them."
Coralis put the whisk in the sink and poured the blue liquid into 2 syringes.
"If you want me to, I can warn my alpha," said Emma.
"I'm from a different pack, I can warn mine too," said Clarissa.
"That would be useful, yes," said Coralis, walking back toward Owil's room.
"We will need two shots of devious moon to force a shift," said Eva as they entered his room. "Hmm if their connection to their wolves had been cut off, it might not work."
Jessica walked out of the room to get the shots Eva requested.
"If it doesn't, I'll dive into their wolf's soul and force the shift," said Coralis, then looked at Stephanie. "You'll have to watch from behind closed and locked doors. Your brother will have my head if something happens to you."
Emma unstrapped Luke Owil. Jessica walked back into the room and handed her a shot. Coralis positioned herself in a fighting stance, Eva was beside her, holding one of the syringes containing the blue liquid. Emma grabbed the syringe from Jessica's hand and emptied it into Luke's neck. Nothing happened.
Coralis walked up to him, put her left hand on his chest and closed her eyes. She reached out to his wolf and forced him to wake up. The wolf was panicked.
"Be ready. His wolf is freaking out, I can feel rage from him. I will bring him forward. Make sure none of you gets bitten."
Jessica shifted into her wolf and positioned herself on top of him, to keep him pinned under her body as he'd shift into his wolf. Emma grabbed his jaw and Eva shoved the syringe she was holding into his saliva glands under his tongue, and the wolf fell asleep.
They went to the other room and repeated the same process on Jeff Wilson, but Clarissa stayed in that room to take a saliva sample. She also took one from Wilson's wolf when they were done. Eva analyzed both samples while Coralis checked on the wolf connections to their human counterparts.
"Yup, all cleared, it worked."
Coralis' pager went off. She looked at it and cursed. 30 seconds later, Eva's pager went off.
"Oh joy, another date with the CIA," said Eva.
Coralis pulled her hologram out, switched it to satellite function, and dialled the number.
"Right now?... All right, we'll be on our way," said Coralis as she hung up.
"When was the last time we saw them? Was it Monday? Damn, they can't get enough of us!"
"We need to leave now. When your patients wake up, they'll still be in their wolf form and they'll be feral, especially Owil. I think I can fix their connection to their human side when I come back here on Friday. Try to keep them sedated until then."