The Wolf In Me: Survive

By Alex Smith

The 23rd century is nearing its end. Having been treated as subhuman (and worse) for over 300 years, the Wolves - a race of wolf-human hybrids - have reached their breaking point. With a clear threat of war rising daily, the US Military devises a plan to destroy the beasts they helped create. However, utilizing their intelligence and raw bestial

• Language: English
• Publisher: Midnight Wolf Photography
• Release date: Oct 15, 2022
• ISBN: 9798986384818

Alex Smith

Alex Smith lives on Cape Cod with his wife, children, and family pets. Alex grew up on Cape Cod, so his love for the ocean landscape started at a young age. For work, he visits Nantucket, as well as Martha’s Vineyard, several times throughout the year. He believes that you garner an intrinsic perspective of the towns that comprise the coast, when viewed from the water.

Book preview

1

Prologue

Classified

November 10th, 2285

Time: 14:00

Today is a day for celebration! The human standing behind the podium raised his lab-coat clad arm in triumph. With the success of this project, the world will change forever! Since abandoning the use of artificial intelligence, due to the events of the Manhattan Massacre, we’ve devoted all of our resources to replacing AI with something better that will relieve pressure from the working man.

The more the human with the pristine lab coat and smug smile spoke, the more he infuriated me. The camera zoomed out to show the emblem for a research facility on the podium and part of a large red curtain behind him. Finally, after years of experiments and hundreds of billions of dollars in research grants, we have succeeded! Ladies and gentlemen, I am proud to present the first wolf-human hybrid, with an intelligence nearly on par with the average human!

The camera panned out toward the human’s right as he waved to the large curtain. Someone backstage drew the curtain up, and an enormous wolf, much like myself, stood there. Chains connected all his paws, and he wore a muzzle. The wolf easily towered over the human at seven feet tall, with his muscular frame barely fitting within his bindings. This is the fruit of our labor! These Wolves will….

I swiped my paw across the screen, and the old, grainy video disappeared. With a heavy sigh, I rubbed at the bridge of my muzzle. As I waited for the next video to load, I looked around and couldn’t help but sigh again at the sparse decoration of the office that served as my team’s meeting room. Every piece of furniture was once the property of the U.S. Military. Most had been given to us as surplus deemed appropriate for wolf use. While wolf packs were part of the military, we never received any proper resources. We were so expendable that all of our missions were considered black ops. When deployed, we would not be recognized as U.S. soldiers. If captured or killed, the government would deny any relation to us. We were worth less than a carton of spoiled milk.

This meant we got the bottom of the barrel equipment, but it encouraged us to acquire gear ourselves. Most of our newer armaments came from missions we had been deployed on over the years. When the government didn’t care how many wolves there were in a wolf pack, nor the resources we used, it made it easy to expand our numbers and keep anything seized during a mission. We simply didn’t report it.

The crackling of another old video played in my ears. And here we can see how efficient these wolves are. A single guard standing watch can easily manage a team of wolves. The wolves can lift significantly more than your average human, so moving fifty-five-gallon metal barrels is a simple task for them. The video moved from the reporter to pan across a warehouse full of barrels and wolves. Biohazard signs were everywhere, yet not a single wolf wore any protective gear. It was another show of power from the humans. We were never anything more than a tool to be used and discarded.

I swiped my paw across the screen again to move past that horrendous recording and start the next, much newer video. Breaking news from Russia! We have received reports that a pack of wolves living near the small town of Yam, south of Moscow, has attacked and killed all the humans living in the village. Russian President Alexei Volkov has already mobilized military forces, who are mounting an assault on the wolves. This is the first time in history that any wolves have attacked humans unprovoked. Trepidation is spreading quickly around the globe, as many fear that this may be just the beginning of more…

I snarled and bitterly swiped away the video. "You call all of this ‘unprovoked’? Denying us equal rights! Enslaving us! Torturing us! Murdering us! Using us to fight your wars and then using us as the scapegoats. That is ‘unprovoked’?" That video always made me angry, but I insisted on watching, because it showed just how the humans loved to twist the news to suit their agenda.

Jackson sighed from across the room. He’s at it again with those damn videos.

Jackson was off in his usual corner, picking at his teeth with a knife. Jones was sitting in her chair next to the medical supply cabinet, working on her medical kit. Higgs was sitting on one of the spare chairs, looking between Jackson and I nervously. What’s going on?

The captain is just torturing himself with some old news footage. Reminding himself why we all hate the fleshbags. Jackson said.

Isn’t that bad for your mental health? Higgs asked.

I ignored his question and my teammates snickering in response, pushing in my headphones as the next video played.

The shocking assault on Berlin last night has brought the total number of wolf attacks to well over one hundred. The death toll has many believing this will be the beginning of the fourth World War. While trying to calm the masses, world leaders will meet to discuss how to quell these heinous attacks… I didn’t care about the rest of the report and irritably swiped my paw again to load the next video in the list.

I tugged at my ear as I thought back on the decisions my Alpha had made for our pack just weeks ago. We had stolen everything that we could and gone rogue. In under a week, we cut all communication with the military and moved over one hundred kilometers to the northeast. We built our bases from modular buildings, making the move that much easier. Over four hundred soldiers, and their families, all vanished from the Military’s records. We risked innocent lives because the humans refused to treat us as anything more than mindless animals.

The sound of the next video playing drew me from my thoughts. This one I had never seen before, and the banner at the bottom drew my attention. Recorded Earlier—Nov 10th, 2285 12:00. I pulled my earpiece out and switched the audio to project, allowing the others in my team to hear. As the audio reverberated through the room, the President of the United States appeared, standing behind a podium bearing the Presidential Seal. My fellow Americans, he began, it is obvious that these wolves do not care about peace. Their claims of wanting equal rights are just a cover for their animalistic need for violence. Nothing short of total domination over humans will satiate their alpha-predator mind set. He paused as loud jeering overwhelmed the audio. Once the crowd died down, he continued. After meeting with my Joint Chiefs of Staff, a state of emergency is being declared until we have handled the situation with the wolves. Effective immediately, any wolves enlisted in WOLF packs are discharged. We will relocate all wolves to one of four different camps, starting this afternoon. These camps are for their protection, and ours. We will also join the war in Europe, and troops are being deployed as we speak. With the combined forces of the United States, the European Nations, and Russia, we hope to bring a swift end to this war!

I closed the broadcast, not wanting to listen to another word that stupid fleshbag had to say. I was beyond furious. And I wasn’t the only one ready to start a war.

That’s fucking bullshit! Jackson growled from his corner of the room. They did this same shit during World War II. I, for one, won’t let them herd me into a concentration camp! I’d rather die fighting than roll over and let them do whatever they want.

What do you think, Captain? Will we fight back? Jones asked as she continued reorganizing her medical kit for the hundredth time this week. I mean, what was the point in moving everyone if we end up fighting, anyway?

I don’t— I started to answer when my computer pulsed with an incoming call.

My screen showed a still photo of Alpha Richard, now calling me with a video conference request. I dutifully accepted, and a projection of his relaxed form filled the space in the middle of the office. The image showed every detail of him, from his deep blue eyes to his black fur muddled with spots of brown and silver, partially hidden by a grey military uniform. Ah, Captain. I’m glad you and some of your team are here! I’m sure by now all of you have seen the president’s lovely little speech?

Yes, sir. We were actually just discussing it, I replied, sitting straight in my chair.

Excellent! Then you have a grasp of what is about to befall us. His demeanor changed as he stiffened. Captain, I have a mission that requires your team’s unique abilities.

What’s the mission? As he spoke, I, too, switched from being relaxed into the soldier I had trained to be.

The other Alphas and I have just finished our discussions regarding the internment camps. We have decided that we will join our brethren overseas in fighting back. The humans started this war, and we intend to end it swiftly and brutally. Even though it was a mere projection, it emphasized the rage I was sure he felt as he spoke to us. Through some intercepted reports, we know that they plan to exterminate us within these camps. That is where you and your team come in.

A wicked grin split my face. I’m listening.

2

Chapter 1 - Attack

Percy Ornelas (Age 6)

November 15th, 2285

Time: 09:00

I sat on the couch with Teddy in my lap while I played a game on my computer. I wanted to play at the park, but Dad was busy in his office, and Mommy wasn’t back from her mission. Taking the computer off my arm, I threw it to the side, grumbling because I beat the game for the bajillionth time. I wanted to play the games older kids played, but Mommy and Dad said I couldn’t until I was older. They always said that, even after I got older. Taking Teddy by his left arm, I hopped off the couch and wandered around the living room, looking for something to do in our empty house. Because Dad’s work, we constantly moved from house to house, and there was never anything I could play with.

Our house was always the same. It was small, and I didn’t have any room to play because my bedroom was tiny. I used to think we just brought our house with us every time we moved. Then I got to watch the soldiers put our house together because we had gotten to the new base early. The soldiers used a couple of different looking trucks and weird tools to build it. All the walls had been built already; they just stuck them together. Two days later, we had a brand new, boring home. They probably made this house the same way, because my room was in the same spot as always, like the bathroom, kitchen, and everything else.

I walked into the kitchen and went to the small cabinet near the sink labeled Percy’s Snacks. The computer screen on the door had a note from Mommy today. Mommy and Dad always left notes like these around the house for me. They kept getting harder to read because I insisted I was a big boy and could read all the big kid words. Only one snack. You don’t want to get big, because the evil wolves will eat you up. Always stay my little boy.—Love Mommy. Mommy and Dad were always telling me about how bad the wolves were, even the ones that were soldiers. And that I should never go near them. I pushed the button at the bottom of the screen. The message went away, and a keyboard showed. I will! I typed and pressed the send button.

I hope Mommy sees my message, I said to Teddy as I opened the door. I looked inside and pouted. The bottom shelf was empty, and the top shelf only had three bags of pretzels left. Sorry, Teddy. Mommy forgot that you don’t like those. I’ll give you some of my chips when Dad makes lunch.

"It’s okay," I said in Teddy’s voice.

I grabbed one bag and walked the very short distance to our small dining room table. I sat Teddy in his chair right next to mine. Once he was settled, I reached up and put the bag of pretzels on the table before I climbed up on my chair. The table was as tall as me, but my special chair let me be up high enough to use the table. Once I was comfortable in my spot, I grabbed the bag and opened it. I liked pretzels, but Teddy and I liked cookies more. I’m really bored… What should we do? I asked Teddy before sticking a pretzel in my mouth.

"Let’s ask Dad to take us to the park." Crumbs flew everywhere.

Dad said he would take us to the park later… I said after swallowing.

"Maybe he’ll play Soldiers and Wolves with us?"

Yeah! Let’s go ask! I grabbed Teddy’s paw and jumped off my chair. I headed down the short hallway. My room was the door on the right side, just as you got into the hall. The door on the left was a closet. At the end of the hallway was the bathroom door, and there were two more hallways on both sides. The hall on the left went to my parent’s room. And the hall on the right was where Dad’s office was.

I walked fast because I wasn’t supposed to run inside and turned right. I stopped in front of the door and knocked quietly. Dad?

What’s up, Percy?

I pressed my ear against the door, and I could hear him moving around inside. Teddy and I are bored. Can you play Soldiers and Wolves with us? I asked, hoping that he would.

Not right now. I’m very busy. I promise we will play later today. Okay?

Okay… I said sadly, turning around. I let my arms drop to my sides, and I dragged Teddy across the floor as I moped back down the hallway and back out to the living room. I looked out the front window. A small group of kids were playing at the park across the street, with soldiers walking around. I put Teddy on the window and said sadly, I wish Mommy were home. We could play Soldiers and Wolves again. Do you think she’ll be home soon?

"I hope so."

Yeah… Me too… I said sadly as I continued to watch the other kids. After a while, I noticed something scary. Teddy! Look! They don’t have their parents! Don’t they know that the wolves will get them?

"Maybe they don’t! Should we tell Dad?"

Yeah! Let’s go tell him!

As I grabbed Teddy to head back to Dad’s office again, a big black car stopped in front of our house. I completely forgot about the other kids and started jumping up and down excitedly. Teddy! Look! Mommy’s home!

I ran to the door, dragging Teddy on the floor along the way. I struggled to reach my hand up to the pad to unlock the door. It took me three jumps, but I finally got it open. A soldier was standing there, smiling at me. He was as tall as Mommy, and his hair was cut like the other soldiers and mine, really short on the sides, but a little longer on top. He wore the same green uniform that Mommy and Dad wore, but he didn’t have a lot of shiny pins and medals on his shirt. When he didn’t move out of the way, I tried to look around him, hoping to see Mommy, but she wasn’t there.

Hey there, little guy. I hated when grown-ups talked to me like a baby. Just because I’m small doesn’t mean I’m not a big boy! Can you get your daddy for me? It’s really important.

Yeah… I grumbled and ran back down the hallway, leaving the door open. When I got to Dad’s office, I knocked again. Dad, there’s a soldier here for you.

I heard Dad’s chair rolling across the floor. A few seconds later, the door opened to show my dad. He was wearing the clothes he always wore when he didn’t have to go anywhere: a white shirt that had nothing on it and black pants with lots of pockets like mine. He looked exhausted.

Did they say why? Dad asked as he took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose. I shook my head. He patted my hair as he walked around me. Then let’s go see what he needs. And how many times do I have to tell you not to drag Teddy on the floor? You don’t want to tear another hole in him, do you?

I looked down at all the spots where Mommy and Dad had fixed Teddy. There were patches of fur missing all over his body, part of his right ear was gone, thread and stuffing were showing on his left foot, and his left eye was missing. I frowned. N-no…

Then pick him up. Dad turned around and walked down the hallway toward the living room. I followed behind him, holding onto Teddy tightly. When we got to the door, I moved Teddy to my left arm and held onto Dad’s pants with my right hand as he talked with the soldier. Hello, Corporal. Percy said you needed to see me?

The soldier saluted Dad like they always did before speaking to him. Yes, Admiral. An urgent message came in from Command. You are to be evacuated to a secure location as soon as possible. We will handle bringing your belongings, but I need you and your family to quickly pack any necessities and come with me to the airship.

Dad placed his hand on my left shoulder and pulled me a little closer to him. What’s the cause for the evacuation?

I don’t know all the details, sir. I just know that it has to do with the wolves.

Dad squeezed my shoulder. Percy… I need you to quickly pack up your backpack with a change of clothes, your pajamas, and don’t forget your inhaler.

I looked up at him. He looked a little scared, but mad at the same time.

I let go of his pants, held Teddy tightly to my chest, and ran back to my room. My bed was on the back wall, in the middle, with my nightstand right next to it. To my left was my closet and on my right was my dresser. And right next to the door was my desk. I carefully set Teddy down on my bed before I ran to my closet and pulled out my backpack. It was bright orange and had a bunch of pictures of cartoon foxes playing. It still had that fresh backpack smell because I hadn’t ever used it before. I wasn’t supposed to use it before the first day of school next year. I had made sure that I kept it clean, because I wanted it to look perfect for first grade. I wish I had something else to use, but all I had was the trunk at the foot of my bed, and it was too big for me to carry. Grumbling, I moved around my bed and went to my dresser.

My dresser was always the same kind of wood as the bed and nightstand. It had three drawers, and I could barely see in the top because it was as tall as I was. I reached up and opened the top drawer. I stood on my tiptoes as I dug around for my favorite shirt. I cheered a little as I found it and pulled it out. The shirt was orange with a big fluffy fox playing with a giant ball on the front. Foxes were my favorite. I carefully put it in my backpack before grabbing another and shoving it in. I went to the middle drawer for my pants; they were all black and had a bunch of pockets on them. I grabbed out two of them and stuck them in my bag before closing the drawer. I finally opened the bottom drawer. Inside were some huge shirts that I wore to bed and all my undies and socks. I grabbed a couple of nightshirts, and then I stuck as many of my undies and socks on top as I could. I zipped my backpack shut and dragged it behind me over to my desk. I grabbed my inhaler from the drawer on the left and then stuck it in my pants pocket above my left knee.

I picked Teddy up and held him under my right arm as I left my room and walked back to the front door. Dad was there, holding a brown bag that looked like the kind Mommy always took when she went on a mission. He was talking to the soldier again. I stopped right behind him and gently pulled on his pants. I got my backpack ready.

They both looked down at me, and the soldier smiled as he held out his hand. I’ll take that for ya, little guy.

Looking from him to my dad, my tummy began to hurt. Dad smiled at me—but it didn’t feel like a happy smile—and nodded his head. Give him your backpack, Percy. We really need to get going.

I looked down at my backpack, then slowly handed it to the soldier. As soon as he had the bag, he turned around and walked to the car. Dad picked me up and followed the soldier. The short walk to the car had my tummy feeling icky. Dad sat me down on the back seat before putting on my seatbelt and closing the door. They both got in the front, and the soldier started the car. It rose slightly, and a small bit of dirt flew around the car like it always did, and then it felt like we were driving faster than usual.

There wasn’t anything interesting in the car, so I watched all the buildings go by as we drove to the airship. Dad and the soldier quietly talked to each other, but I ignored them because I wasn’t supposed to listen to an adult’s conversations. When Dad’s computer started ringing, he quickly pressed a button to answer. Hello, General.

He was silent for a moment before he shouted, WHAT? D.C. is gone? And the President?

He was silent again for a bit until he sighed. I understand, General. I will see you in Washington. He tapped on his computer and looked at the soldier. Step on it. We need to get to the airship NOW! The soldier pushed something on the car’s computer screen. The car made a loud roar, and we were suddenly driving very fast. I held Teddy tighter and clenched my eyes as we went so quickly that I couldn’t even tell the buildings apart.

Soon the big airship came into view at the end of the road. It was always so cool to see how big it was, but I didn’t like being in it. It could fit our house with a whole bunch of room left over. It had a kitchen and bathrooms, but most of it was a big open space with a lot of chairs and places for the soldiers to put big crates. As we got closer, I saw a huge group of soldiers running around carrying boxes and other stuff into the ship. A few seconds later, we suddenly jerked to a stop at the ramp of the airship. Dad got out of the car as fast as he could before opening my door and picking me up again. I clutched Teddy as tightly as I could while Dad carried me to the ship.

This wasn’t like any other time that we rode on the big ship.

Something bad is happening. Isn’t it, Teddy?

I don’t know. Teddy sniffled in my head.

When we got to the ramp, Dad stopped, and I couldn’t hold in a slight whimper when he shouted at a soldier over my shoulder. I want this ship in the air in three minutes! Now, MOVE!

Dad gently rubbed my back and held me a little closer. It will be all right, Percy, he murmured. Once we get inside, I want you to stay in your seat. No wandering around like you normally do. Can you do that for me?

Y-yeah… I sniffled out as he took me up the ramp and into the ship. I looked around as Dad walked me to our seats at the very front. All the soldiers inside were also running around putting things away, and some of them seemed scared too. I pulled Teddy tighter to my chest. Dad… I-I’m scared…

He gently sat me down in my seat and then knelt in front of me, There’s nothing to be scared of. We are just moving like we always do.

I shook my head back and forth as tears fell down my face. N-no! It’s not! We never leave without Mommy!

He wiped the tears from my face and smiled at me. Mommy is already at our new house. Her mission was near our new home, so she went there instead of coming here first. He kissed my forehead and stood up. Now be a good boy and put on your seatbelt. Once we are in the air, I’ll get your computer out—which you just left lying around again, by the way—and you can play on that while we fly to Washington.

O-okay… I wiped my nose. I buckled up as he smiled at me and walked away toward the back of the ship. I waited a few seconds before taking my seatbelt back off, and then I stood up on my seat and turned around to see what was going on.

Soldiers were still bringing in a lot of huge crates, and Dad was standing with a few other soldiers as they watched something on the giant screen. It looked like a news lady was talking about something, and it was making everyone very angry. A picture of a gigantic hole replaced the news lady, and next to it was a picture of a wolf. All the wolves I had seen were taller than Dad, and they looked a little weird when they walked. Their paws looked like a mix of a dog’s paws and my hands. They had sharp claws on their paws too, but the scariest part was their big teeth!

I knew we should have never trusted those fucking flea-bitten mongrels! Dad shouted, which made me whimper again. I turned back around and sat back down. Equal rights, my ass! We should have never let them fucking think they were in any way equal to us to begin with! We created them to serve us! Giving them their own little communities and letting them all be together was one of the stupidest things we could have ever done!

Suddenly the loud noise of the ship getting ready to leave filled the big room, and I scrambled to put my seatbelt back on. Once I had it buckled, I buried my face into Teddy and silently cried. It always scared me when we were leaving, and this time Mommy wasn’t here to hold me. The noise got louder and louder before I felt a sudden jolt, and then I could feel us moving. I curled up as small as I could, but I still didn’t feel safe. I wished Mommy was here because she always made me feel safe. I continued to cry, hoping that Dad would come back and help make me feel better. But he never did, and eventually, I fell asleep curled around my teddy bear.

My dream was really scary. A bunch of wolves were chasing me, and when they caught me, they started to scratch me with their claws. It felt so real! I couldn’t do anything but lie there as they attacked me. I felt a jolt and opened my eyes to see I was back in the ship, but something was wrong. I couldn’t hear the sounds of the ship, but I could hear lots of shouting and guns firing. I unbuckled myself and slid from my seat. As soon as my feet were on the ground, I carefully moved around the chairs and looked at the back of the ship. The big ramp was down, and that was where all the noise was coming from. I slowly made my way to the ramp, and as I got closer, I could see Dad at the bottom. He was shooting his gun at something far away. I saw blood everywhere, and it looked like all the soldiers were sleeping, even though some of them looked uncomfortable.

I looked farther out, and what I saw had me terrified.