A Tale of the Other Kind

  Kai roared loudly and, for a split second, he looked at Sienna, seeing the fear in her eyes. Without loosing track, he bit into the side of the lion, which again released a thunderous roar. The lion fought back and slashed at Kai, leaving deep wounds across his chest. The lion broke free and turned its attention back to Sienna. Her whole body was shaking as she struggled to get up, and in her attempt to escape, her foot got stuck and she tumbled over a rock. Tears of fear smeared her now dirty face. The overwhelming pain from her deep wounds was now all too evident with fresh warm blood flowing from her back. She let out a final terrifying scream, and slipped into blackness.

  CHAPTER 8

  Kai woke up between pine needles and scatters of leaves. His clothes were torn and ripped at the seams. Looking at himself, he could barely comprehend how he ended up looking like this. He tried to rub off some of the dried mud that covered his body.

  A deep breath ignited a splitting headache, causing him to grab his head. His fingers moved over his chest where scratch marks were already beginning to heal. His mind was fuzzy, and all he could remember was pieces of a puzzle that now seemed to evade him – like a dream that escaped him once he woke up. He knew something was amiss; realising that the last thing he could remember was being with Sienna at the waterfall. He stood up, but struggled to find balance, and fumbled against a tree for support.

  Nightfall had already set in and the stars were barely visible through the thick trees. Quickly, he tried to compose himself and started walking towards the direction of the waterfall, hoping to find Sienna, praying that she was alright. After a few moments his brisk walk turned into a run, as flashes of memories flooded back into his mind. Something was terribly wrong. Anxiety started to envelop his chest, and he started calling her name, hoping she would hear him and respond. Fear made him run faster and faster, gliding over rocks and water puddles. In desperation he pushed his body towards the waterfall, fighting his way through the thick trees and plants.

  He sighed with relief when finally, he could hear the sound of falling water not too far away. As Kai reached the edge of the pond, he scanned the area, looking for her, but Sienna wasn’t there.

  ‘Sienna!’ he called, but all he could hear was his own voice echoing against the cliff.

  Kai started down the path they’d used earlier through the forest and kept calling her name, but silent echoes screamed louder than any other sound. His heart was beating fast, making it almost impossible to hear anything but his own panic drumming in his ears. Faint rays of moonlight broke through the treetops, and fell onto an open area, where he saw a small figure lying on the ground.

  Hastily he motioned towards the seemingly lifeless figure. ‘Sienna! Oh no,’ he exclaimed as he knelt down next to her. He gently pulled her into his lap, and slowly pushed a dark lock of hair, clogged with dry blood away from her pale face. He wasn’t sure whether she was breathing – all he could see was a deep wound on her back and that she had lost a lot of blood.

  ‘Please wake up, please wake up,’ he begged.

  He had no idea what had happened – the last couple of hours seemed like a dream; unreal. He knew that something desperately went wrong, just before he blacked out and dreamed the most vivid dream. Suddenly, the dream made sense, as he looked down at Sienna, helpless and unconscious in his lap. And then the shock of reality started setting in, when he realised that his body had transformed, and hair grew from his face, and his hands changed into paws with sharp claws. He could still remember how it felt like when all his bones were being crushed and replaced.

  He closed his eyes and thought back to the moment when Sienna had tried to protect herself from him, screaming, tears running down her cheeks as she tried to flee. Kai knew he had to find a way to explain the sudden transformation of his body, but he didn’t know where to start. It all still felt like an imagined story - too unreal to be true. Like something you see in movies or nightmares. All kinds of thoughts were running through his mind, feeling ashamed that he’d caused Sienna so much pain.

  ‘Sienna please wake up,’ he begged.

  She made small movements when he gently picked her up, afraid of hurting her already bruised and battered body. He wanted to get her to safety – away from the dangers in the forest – and away from him.

  CHAPTER 9

  Days had passed since the incident in the forest. Kai hadn’t heard from Sienna, nor did he expect to. After dropping her off at hospital, he checked up on her recovery once a day, and was relieved that she was now at home, resting.

  Kai’s mood was less than pleasant, and he spent most of his days and evenings hiding away in his room. Nothing made sense anymore, and he felt awkward, strange and a little afraid of himself. He couldn’t make sense of the changes that were happening to him. Some mornings he woke up with long, razor-sharp claws and often, his blankets were torn because of it.

  He didn’t know how to deal with his newfound body, and was still unsure about how to control his ever-growing physical power. Holding things between his fingers became a difficult task, and usually ended in disaster when full cups broke like fragile porcelain by his mere touch. His human physique had changed overnight, making dressing difficult, as nothing fitted him anymore.

  Staring out the window, he couldn’t stop thinking about Sienna and wondering how she was doing. He twisted around in frustration and buried his head in his pillow, trying to drown the nagging thoughts plaguing his mind, when a knock came at the half-open door.

  ‘Go away,’ he growled through the pillow, but this didn’t deter Kai’s mother from entering the room. ‘Please mom, I need to sleep,’ he grumbled.

  ‘You can sleep all you want later. It’s your birthday and we have reason to celebrate,’ Bethany said cheerfully.

  ‘I don’t feel like celebrating,’ he mumbled into the pillow.

  'Well, good morning to you too, birthday boy,' she replied.

  'You mean, you actually want to forget that you are eighteen and that you now officially have all the freedom in the world to do as you please?' She asked suspiciously.

  He turned on his side and looked at his mother who stared down at him with a smile.

  ‘Open it,’ she said, laying a small gift-wrapped box beside him.

  He opened the box and inside lay a silver dog-tag on a thick chain with the name Leo engraved on the back. He struggled to swallow, because he knew that the chain was the only reminder his mother still had of his father.

  'Mom, I can't...' he murmured.

  'Sure you can,' she said, smiling. 'It is yours now. I want you to have it.’

  'Are you sure?'

  'More than ever. Your father would have wanted you to have it. It means more to me that you wear it than it lying in the drawer unused.'

  Kai leaned forward and gave his mother a lingering hug. 'This means a lot to me mom.'

  'I know,' she said, as she got up and headed for the door. For a brief moment, she lingered in the doorway, closing her eyes and whispered softly, 'I wish he could have seen the wonderful man you’ve become.'

  As she left the room, Kai stared at the chain for a while and then slowly placed it around his neck.

  ****

  As soon as his mother left the room, Kai lifted the chain around his neck to look at it shimmer, and felt a strange calmness come over him. He quickly dressed in a pair of jeans and a white long sleeved shirt. He threw on a knee-length black coat and set off into the forest.

  The outfit wasn't his usual hiking gear, but he felt like he needed to clear his mind. He slowly started into the forest behind the cabin. The sunrays that broke through the thick trees melted the last bits of snow left from the weeks before. He sat down next to a large tree overhanging the area, not far away from the house. The incident with the lion was still vivid in his mind, pulling at all his senses, making him question who he was, what he was and whether he had the capabilities to handle something of this magnitude.

  He wished he could touch Sienna and hold her, but that dream se
emed so far away now. The anger he’d felt was so intense that he couldn't control it, but it was controlling him. He knew that he shouldn't go close to her for fear of hurting her again. She was too precious to him and he didn’t want to hurt her. He picked up a piece of broken wood and scratched at the clammy ground, distracted. Thoughts kept racing through his mind about how he could make himself fully transform again. This time, he would be far away from anyone he could harm.

  He looked at his hands and tried to think of the anger he had felt when he attacked James. He jumped up from the floor and started pacing the narrow grassy area, trying to get his heart rate up, but he didn't have enough room to manoeuvre, so he took off his coat, placing it neatly next to the large tree, and started running, running as fast as he could. In his mind he kept picturing James insulting him, pictured James touching Sienna, and his heart beat faster with every step, and his breath became faster, and shallower.

  His anger started to burn deep in his chest, until a raging flame was engulfing his entire body, causing such excruciating pain that he could feel it running through his veins. He ran faster, and faster. Suddenly, his body started to change. First, his hands became paws and sharp claws shot out from the tips of his fingers, his feet transformed into huge catlike paws, and his crushing bones caused him to scream out in pain. His already large frame bulked up with muscles of another kind, strength enveloped his legs, making him run faster.

  His eyes transformed into catlike emerald green splendour, and sharp incisors replaced his harmless blunt human teeth. Suddenly, he could hear much clearer and he took in all the sounds surrounding him. Even the fish in the far-away lake could be heard swimming and jumping out of the water. He could hear all the animals and, somehow, he could understand them. Kai couldn't believe that he could run so fast. It now seemed so natural to him, to be in the forest and to run free where he always felt so comfortable. He reached the lake much sooner than he would have in human form. He stopped a few feet away from the glimmering waterside and slowly started moving towards the edge.

  Reflecting his image, the water painted a picture of a large, muscular, black-spotted panther-like being. His catlike eyes were a magnificent green staring back at him and shimmered in the water like emeralds. Kai could feel the adrenaline pumping in his muscles as he felt different - somehow still human, but animal-like too. He had become something else, something that he knew instinctively he couldn't share with others. What would they do with him if they knew? He wondered. Who was there to tell?

  Nobody would believe him, and if they did, they would shun him or lock him up to hide the beast he had become. He knew that this was the biggest secret of his life and that nothing would ever be the same again. He snarled at himself in the water, showing wonderfully sharp teeth. Staring back at him was the most beautiful animal he had ever seen. His eyes focused on the fish in the water and, within an instant, he snatched a fish from its haven. Delighting in its resistance, he knew he was quicker than it could ever swim.

  Strangely, with his sense of smell magnified, the fish became the most irresistible meal he had ever encountered. Without thinking, he wolfed the fish down without chewing. He scratched his head as he licked his teeth clean. Pacing up and down beside the water, he wondered how this could have happened. This changed everything and he had to find out more. He lay down next to the pond under a large, shady tree, and after a while, he began to feel calmer and more at ease.

  Slowly, his eyes closed, and fell into a deep sleep.

  ****

  Kai awoke next to the river, naked and shivering. Hours had passed since he entered the forest and his lips had turned blue from the cold, engulfed every bone of his already aching body. He slowly started to stand up as the realisation of what had happened returned to him.

  'It wasn't a dream,' he thought.

  The sun was already setting over the mountains, and Kai realised that he had to get back home before nightfall. He began his journey through the thick forest and finally reached the area where he’d left his coat. It was cold and his body ached with every step he took. Once he reached the open meadow, he found his clothes lying under a large Eucalyptus tree. He picked up his coat and wrapped it around his freezing body. Finally, he reached the house. Looking around to see whether his mother was home, he slowly walked towards the back door of the house. His frozen fingers covered the icy steel door handle, pushing hard to open it from its swollen doorframe.

  Upstairs, he climbed into a hot bath, soaking away the cold and pain, healing the bruises that resulted from the change. He could feel the warmth returning to his body as the water rose slowly in the bathtub. Closing his eyes, he remembered the reflection that had looked back at him in the lake.

  ‘Kai, are you almost finished in there? I need to finish up if we’re to make your party on time,' his mother called.

  Kai opened his eyes sharply. He thought his mother had already left.

  ‘Just a second!’ Splashing water all over the floor as he climbed out of the bath, he felt awkward and unsteady. He reached for the towel railing to balance himself. Taking a moment to catch his breath. He quickly ran a towel over his damp hair and body before throwing on a pair of jeans, cowboy boots and his coat over a long-sleeved shirt.

  'All yours mom,' he called as he left the bathroom. Upon entering his room, he walked over to his laptop. He hoped that he could find some kind of answer to what was happening to him. Something that would give him some information on humans changing into animals. He frantically searched the net, and stumbled upon a website that spoke of therianthropes, ailuranthropes and shapeshifting - specifically werecats.

  His eyes grew wide at what he read. Was he a shapeshifter? The legend spoke of humans turning into animal forms. Sitting back in his chair, the realisation hit him that what he was reading wasn't merely a legend - he was the legend; he was a shapeshifter.

  Frustrated, he closed his computer, not wanting to know more. It all seemed so unreal, and he was just not up to reading more about what he was going through. Perplexed, he got up from the chair and headed out towards the car where his mother was waiting for him.

  CHAPTER 10

  'Happy birthday!' came voices from all corners of the bookstore as Kai and his mother entered the door. The entire area was decorated in colourful balloons and streamers. A large cake with blue icing was standing on the counter along with an assortment of party snacks.

  'Thank you,' Kai replied, smiling. 'You really didn't have to go to so much trouble, mom,' he said, looking fondly at Bethany.

  'Thank your friends hon; I hardly did anything with so many of your friends willing to help. They had everything ready and set up before I could do anything,' she replied, smiling.

  He shifted uncomfortably, uneasy with the attention that was on him. He slowly moved forward, greeting everyone, and thanking them for coming.

  'Happy birthday, bro,' Daniel said, shaking Kai’s hand fiercely.

  'Thanks man. This is so unexpected.'

  'Well, you sure as hell have been missing in action lately, so we thought this the only way to get you in the same room as everyone for once,' Daniel laughed.

  ‘I have some good news from my side,’ Daniel gleamed.

  Kai looked at him curiously, eager to find out what the big news was.

  ‘A recording company was at the gig the other night and they said they would like to start off with our band on a short-term contract to test the market,’ he said, his eyes growing with excitement.

  ‘That is fantastic news!’ Kai said, grabbing Daniel’s hand with a congratulatory shake. ‘I wanted to apologise for not being around these last couple of weeks. Things haven’t been going so well,’ Kai admitted, giving Daniel a hopeful look. ‘But all of that’s about to change, I promise,’ he said, smilingly.

  'I hope so!' Daniel returned. 'I have written a couple of new songs and was hoping you would take the time to listen to them,' he pleaded.

  ‘Sure!’ Suddenly, he could smell Sienna’s citrus-fl
avoured perfume float through the air. He turned around and there she was, more beautiful than he remembered. She was dressed in a pale blue silk dress, which slightly revealed the scars on her back. She stood by herself in the corner of the bookstore, looking unsure. Her hair was taken back into a ponytail, but a few short locks fell loosely around her heart-shaped face.

  'Kai,' she said nodding, clearing her throat as he moved over towards her. She seemed nervous and a little uneasy standing next to him. Kai looked down at her - too scared to get too close to her. He felt like a coward for taking her to the hospital and then disappearing without a word.

  'Sienna,' he replied. Words escaped him and he didn't know what to say to her. He was taken aback by her beauty ... and scared at the same time. His breath became shallower standing so close to her. His heart beat faster, making thinking clearly much more difficult.

  'I ... I can’t do this,' he said, turning around and walking towards the doorway. 'Don't you dare walk away from me again Kai,' she said angrily as she walked after him. He opened the door and stepped outside, hoping that she wouldn't follow him.

  'Kai!' she yelled, grabbing his arm. Her touch immediately made him stop and he turned around to face her.

  ‘Sienna, I’m sorry for what happened to you. I will never be able to forgive myself, but you have to stay away from me.'

  ‘Why?' she asked, clearly upset.

  ‘Because it’s not safe and you don’t know what it means to be close to me,' he replied, getting angry.

  ‘I don’t know what this means? Kai, you left me! You left me and I was attacked by a freakin lion,’ she said as anger welled inside her, showing her frustration.

  ‘And then there was this black leopard, which I always thought was just a legend, but it wasn’t. It’s more real than you would ever know. I thought that I was never going to see the light again.’