Short Stories and poems

Traitors and Turncoats

The discovery of a Traitor leads to Disturbing Revelations.

“Well, this one, J555, is about Mature,” the voice said. “He’ll make for a perfect – What in the-”

Ka-Boom!

J555, or, rather, Jay jerked awake, the dream, and memory, banished from his mind, for a time. He looked, and saw that a redhead woman about his age was bringing a few bags into the room.

“We need to pack, now,” she said.

“What is it, Jessie?” Jay asked.

“Weres have found out about our location,” she said. “Time to pack up and movie.”

“I was just starting to like this place,” said Jay. “How did they find us?”

“Father thinks that there’s a traitor in the ranks,” said Jessie. “He figures there’s less than-”

Ka-Boom! Rattattatta! Ka-Boom!

Jessie pressed her ears against her head, as if in pain. “Help me pack! Sooner than he thought!”

Jay quickly put some clothes on, and started to help Jessie pack. He then grabbed a shotgun and an axe, the latter of which he passed to Jessie, as she was the better of the two of them with the axe, not to mention a bit stronger, and they started running, Jay keeping Jessie close to him. They met up with Major Wilson.

“They got here sooner than we expected,” the older officer said. “Get moving out the emergency exit. Your father’s about to set off the explosives.”

Jay and Jessie hurried, the Major following behind them. As they ran, a werewolf jumped out at them. Jay pointed and fired his shotgun, catching them in the chest, causing them to collapse, giving Jessie just enough time to swing her axe, splitting the werewolf’s skull between their eyes.

The trio kept running after that.

They soon got out of the Emergency Exit, where they saw other members of their group.

“Has anyone seen-”

KA-BOOM! Dirt and debris flew out the exit, as did an older figure.

“Getting too old for this stuff,” they said, as they got up with a groan.

“Are you alright General?” Jay asked.

“I’ve been worse,” the old man said, brushing himself off. “Been better too. Now, where’s my-”

Jessie got out a vial and passed it to the old man.

“Thanks Jessie,” the old man said, as he opened the vial, and dabbed some of the liquid behind each of his ears.

The Major wrinkled his nose. “Do you have to wear that stuff?”

“Gives Weres a headache,” the old man said. “You getting one?”

“No, sir, but it is potent,” the Major said.

“Woodruff tends to be,” the General said. “Now, let’s get going to the next base. Janis told me that they had some room.”



“So, what happened?” an older woman asked the General a few hours later.

“They found out where we were,” said the General. “I think that there’s a traitor in the ranks.”

“Who?” the old woman asked.

Jay felt the General’s eyes on him, as he looked over the group of surviving rebels that had made it to this other base.

“It could be anyone,” they said. “That’s the problem with traitors.”

“Explains why you brought them here,” said Janis. “Alright Thomas. Stay here until you figure out who the wannabe pet is, and put them down.”



A little after noon, Jay was sitting in a chair, as Jessie rubbed his back. “Your hands are like magic. Who taught you how to do this?”

“Mother did,” said Jessie. “She always said that a little rubbing made work much easier.”

“What did she do before the Overtaking?” Jay asked.

“She was a Street Worker,” said Jessie.

Jay looked at her, not understanding.

“She had sex with others for money,” said Jessie.

“Oh,” said Jay. “Didn’t learn about that sort of stuff on the Farm. Sex was to be used to make additional human livestock.”

“I forgot that you were Rescued Livestock for a moment,” said Jessie.

Jay looked at his wrist, looking at a colorful set of patterns that hid his brand markings. He’d been First Generation Livestock, up until six months ago. He was about to be butchered by his owner, a werebear, when the General’s unit showed up. The General himself had killed the werebear with a blast from his shotgun, a shotgun that had belonged to the General’s family prior to the Overtaking.

Prior to twenty-five years ago, Weres were thought to be myths. They hadn’t been, and were merely hiding. The Weres were hiding in powerful positions, and used those positions to take control, before revealing themselves, as well as their other policies. Those that obeyed would be pets. Those that didn’t would be livestock.

Some fell in line. Others though, did not. While some humans sided with the Weres, most didn’t. Some had been members of the military. Others were police. Many though, were just civilians. While there were a lot of rebels, the Weres managed to control the heavy equipment – tanks, artillery, aircraft, large ships – anything that couldn’t be easily stolen. They had also taken control of the places where weapons could be made, even regular hunting weapons. Of course, in some areas, there was still plenty of hunting weapons, and things that could be used as weapons.

Jay’s parents had been rebels. That much he knew. His father had been eaten, when his mother got caught while pregnant with Jay. When Jay was born, she’d been eaten. What Jay knew about them came from records recovered during his rescue. His owner hadn’t been a “good” one, from what he’d been told. The marks on Jay’s back proved it.

Jay shook his head, trying to clear his mind, and saw that Jessie was dabbing the woodruff concoction behind her ears, her nose wrinkling a bit.

“Why do you wear that stuff if it bothers you?” he asked.

Jessie looked at him. “It’s for my protection when I have to go out and about. The scent bothers Weres pretty bad. They sneeze, and can’t concentrate on holding their human form if they are trying to pretend to be human.”

“Maybe I should try some,” said Jay.

“Best not,” said Jessie. “Most Weres know what this stuff does.”

“Would be nice if some Weres were on our side,” said Jay.

“Some of them are,” said Jessie. “Can’t say who though, you understand?”

Jay nodded. “Our own Turncoats, right?”

Jessie nodded. “Some even help out those that still have Pet or Livestock mentalities, help them to become free-minded, as it were.”

“I could use something like that,” said Jay.

“Still having those dreams?” Jessie asked.

Jay nodded. “I was having one when you barged in saying that we needed to leave. It was about the day you saved me from the farm.”

“Sorry we didn’t get there sooner,” said Jessie. “Could have spared you of some of the pain you’d been through.”

“Another day and I’d of been butchered,” said Jay. “So, regardless, you saved my life.”

Jessie smiled. “Good to know. Of course, I do know of a way to help you get some rest, if you’re up to it.”

“What is that?” Jay asked.

Jessie grinned. “Sex. Helps relax the mind.”

Jay chuckled nervously. “Tempting. What would your father think?”

“He’d understand, as would mother,” said Jessie. “They say that’s how I was conceived, after a tough battle.”

“Do you think we’re winning the war?” Jay asked.

Jessie smiled. “We’re not exactly losing. More of a stalemate.”

“These Weres that are on our side, what are they like?” Jay asked.

“I think that most Weres would side with us, but Weres that are known to side with Human Rebels tend to end up executed for Treason,” said Jessie. “I actually hid among the households of those that side with Human Rebels, for my own protection while growing up. Most seem to treat their human pets and slaves as friends and family, because most humans they own were friends, or family, before the Reveal, and use this as a means to protect them from Fanatics. Then there’s Weres that were the children of Fanatics that Turned, and were Turned themselves, and dislike what was done to them, or how their parents treat those that are still Human.”

“Do these Weres eat humans?” Jay asked.

Jessie nodded. “Those that are dead, or dying of illnesses and don’t want to be Turned, or those that would have been put to Death before all this. They see humans as People, not Talking Meals-to-be.”

“So, what’s stopping them from overthrowing the government?” Jay asked.

“The Secret Claws,” said Jessie. “When a Known Traitor is killed publicly, the Secret Claws will then kill their closest family members – spouse, siblings, parents, offspring, and offspring of their siblings, not to mention those of their in-laws, and eat their human pets/slaves to boot, all as a message.”

“I see,” said Jay. “It’s not their lives they fear for, but the lives of those they care about.”

Jessie nodded. “The ones in power learned that trick from some fella that tried to rule the world a hundred years ago. Don’t know if he was a Were or not, although it doesn’t matter – they’re monsters anyways, and they need to be stopped, no matter what.”

“Still, twenty-five years this war has dragged on,” said Jay. “How much longer can it last?”

“It will last as long as one human is still a pet, a slave, or livestock to a Were,” said a familiar voice.

Jay and Jessie turned, and saw the General looking at them from the open doorway.

Jay stood up, and saluted.

“At ease,” the General said. “Put these on, as far up your arm as you can. Then, when I give the word, turn them inside-out.”

He tossed each of them some fabric armbands, the outside of which showed that they were white.

Jay then looked at the inside of his, and saw that it was blue. “What is this?”

“We got company coming,” said the General. “Two groups. One’s invited, and friendly. The other isn’t. In short, we got Fifth Column agents coming, along with the Secret Claws – Janis and I intercepted a transmission to them. I know who the traitor is – suspected it for a while, but now I got the proof needed to do what’s necessary.”

“Fifth Column?” Jay asked.

“Old war phrase about supposed subversives and such that don’t actually exist,” the General said. “In this case however, they do exist. The best thing about them is they don’t have any family to worry about if they get caught.”

“So, what about the traitor?” Jay asked, as he pulled the armband up his arm.

“I’m about to give him the rope to either hang them or save them,” the General said. “I’ll explain more, once company has arrived. Maybe half an hour.” He walked away.



A little while later, Jessie was putting on more of the woodruff concoction.

“Again?” Jay asked.

“I don’t want to be taken by surprise,” said Jessie. “Fifth Column are all Weres. They’ll be careful not to get too close. Secret Claws though, some are Weres, others are Humans, and some are Weres hiding as Humans.”

“Besides them knowing about that woodruff stuff, any weaknesses if one uses it?” Jay asked.

“A Were with enough exposure to the stuff can build up a tolerance and not sneeze so much,” said Jessie.

At this, Major Wilson stuck his head in, only to pull it back. “You’re just as bad as your old man with that stuff,” he said. “Time to get going.” He walked away.

“What’s his issue?” Jay asked.

“A month before we rescued you, his son lead an assault on a base,” said Jessie. “There were no survivors. The Major joined our group after that.”

“Still, the way he reacts around you and your father, when you put that stuff on, he could be a Were,” said Jay.

“He is, but father has asked me not to let on that I know about it, just as I’ll ask you,” said Jessie. “Father has said that Wilson will tell when he’s ready.”

“Why do you say that?” Jay asked.

“He’s not the only Were in this unit,” said Jessie. “Father’s been able to take most into a private location, and basically, he’s got them to tell him the truth, and why they sided with us.”

“What reasons have they given?” Jay asked.

“Some were born a Were, but see humans as people, others were children of Fanatics who were Turned because their parents had also Turned and dislike having been Turned against their will, one was a human pet that got adopted by a lonely Were, and a couple were mortally injured but a friendly Were turned them instead of eating them,” said Jessie.

“So, why does he trust them?” Jay asked.

“Father has a good reason as to why he’s willing to trust them,” said Jessie. “It’s bec-”

“Hey you two,” said one of the others, as they poked their head in. “Best start heading to the cafeteria.” They hurried away.

“He’s right, we should get going,” said Jessie.

“Wait.” Jay grabbed Jessie’s shoulder. “What were you going to say?”

Jessie looked at him. “Do you trust me?”

“With my life,” said Jay.

“Keep that in mind,” said Jessie. She checked the inside of her armband. “What color is your armband’s inside?”

“Blue,” said Jay. “Why does it matter?”

“Father’s about to expose every Were in the unit,” said Jessie.

Jay was surprised when the young woman gave him a hug.

“Just know that they are your friends,” she said. “I hope that you know that.”

“There’s something you’re not telling me,” said Jay.

Jessie looked him in the eyes. “Father asked me to not reveal the truth until the time was right.”

Jay’s eyes widened as he realized the truth. “You’re a Were?”

Jessie nodded.

Jay sighed. “What about your father?”

Jessie looked away. She nodded.

“Then why is he leading us instead of with them?” Jay asked.

“Father swore an oath to protect this nation from all threats, foreign and domestic,” said Jessie. “He was born a human, in case you want to know. He joined the Marines. Then the Overturning happened, and he made his choice, joining the initial Resistance. He encountered a woman. They got to know each other, and in time, they fell in love. They decided to have a date, or something close to one, and they decide to spruce up. Father put on that woodruff stuff behind his ears, and when the two of them leaned in close to kiss, she started sneezing, and she lost control of her form, revealing her to be a werefox, or rather a kitsune. Father reacted, grabbed his shotgun, pointed it at her face, and asked her to give him five reasons as the why he shouldn’t pull the trigger. She told him that she was Fifth Column – a Resistance group made solely of Weres that opposed the ideas of seeing humans as slaves, Pets or Livestock, and saw them as Equals. She also had a warning – the leadership of the Human Resistance was in grave danger, that someone had placed a bomb at their usual meeting place. Father tried to stop it. He was caught in the blast, and badly injured, along with every leader of the resistance, well, those not already dead.”

“Then, what happened?” Jay asked.

“That was when mother made a very big decision, got as many Fifth Column agents as she could, and to save the leadership of the human resistance, Turned all of them into Weres, including Father,” said Jessie. “She Turned him herself.”

“Wait, your mother? She’s a Were?” Jay asked.

“Of course,” said Jessie. “I’m a Born Were, not a Turned Were. I see humans as people though. I see you as someone I’d fight and die for. I see you as someone I want to love, not just for sexual pleasure.”

“What do I do?” Jay asked. “You’ve just turned everything upside-down.”

“You trusted me when you thought that I was just a fellow human,” said Jessie. “Trust me now.”

Jay breathed in, and breathed out. “Answer me one question; why do you wear that woodruff stuff?”

Jessie smiled. “Other Weres smell the woodruff when they try to sniff me. They don’t realize that I am also a Were.”

“You’re used to the scent?” Jay asked.

Jessie nodded. “Couple of dabs behind the ears, that doesn’t bother me. Throw the whole vial at me though, I’ll start sneezing up a storm, along with every other Were. Father has helped all the other Weres, except for Major Wilson.”

Jay chuckled nervously. “Maybe he’s the traitor.”

“Part of me hopes not,” said Jessie. “We’ve known him for a long time – he was human when all this started. Hopefully his Turning was the result of a friendly Were that he doesn’t want to betray.”

Jay looked at Jessie. “I guess I can trust you. Otherwise, you’d of gobbled me up back at the other place, if not now, or beforehand.”

Jessie smiled. “I’m glad you do. I hope we can get to know each other a lot better.”

“No secrets?” Jay asked.

Jessie smiled. “Not unless father says otherwise. That being said, keep what I just said secret, especially if you get caught, sentenced to death by becoming a meal, and especially if the Executioner is me or another Fifth Column agent.”

Jay nodded. “I understand.” He grabbed his stuff. “We’d best get going.” He then looked at Jessie. “One last question – what kind of Were are you?”

Jessie grinned, as she picked up her stuff. “I’m the same as mother and father; a Kitsune. If we survive this, we’re going to have some fun.”

“Let’s work on surviving first,” Jay said, as they left the room, Jessie walking behind him.



Soon enough, the two were in the base’s cafeteria.

“First to know, last to arrive,” the General said.

“We were in the middle of an important chat,” Jay said, as he looked at the General. He then glanced at the Major standing behind him, wondering if it was indeed true what he thought. He then looked at the others – men and women he’d fought alongside of for half a year. Which were his friends, and which were his enemies?

“Take a seat,” the General said.

Jay and Jessie sat down.

The General touched the armband he wore, identical to the rest worn by the rest. “We have a traitor in the ranks,” he said. “Pull your armbands down, inside out.”

Jay watched as around him, the rest pulled their armbands, many changing from white to blue, with some red. Others stayed white, including Jessie’s. He watched as the General’s became red. Pulling down his own armband, it was, of course, blue. He then looked at the Major’s – it was black.

“What’s the meaning of this?” the Major asked.

“Good question, Wilson,” the General said, as he looked at the Major. “Red, white and blue were the colors we swore an oath under, half a lifetime ago. Problem is, seems like you swore an oath to another set of colors fairly recently – those of the Secret Claws. Janis and I picked up the transmission between you and them. You gave them our location. Before I sentence you to Death, I want to know two things: Why, and Was your son’s death worth it?”

“They had what I needed, and Richard isn’t dead,” said Wilson.

“What are you talking about?” The General asked.

“A cure for my cancer,” said Wilson. “You Turn, and you don’t need to worry about it anymore.”

“I think you had more than just cancer,” the General said. “I wouldn’t betray the cause I’ve spent so long fighting to help achieve – with humans not being pets, slaves, or livestock to a bunch of Mythical Beasts. Did you sell your son to be a pet?”

“No, I Turned him, myself.” A growl escaped from Wilson’s throat, as he started to increase in size, ripping his clothes, revealing his true self to be a Werewolf.

“I take it he didn’t want to be seen as a traitor to humankind,” the General said.

“Humanity is losing the war,” the wolf-Wilson said. “No, they’ve lost!”

It was at that moment, a bunch of black uniformed Weres kicked in the doors, entering the cafeteria, dragging Janis in. There was no escape.

The General looked around. “Well, I recognize a few fur patterns,” he said, as he looked at one Were in particular, which seemed to take after a rabbit. “The Leader of the Secret Claws himself. A fortuitous coincidence, if I do say so myself. Here to personally preside over my execution it seems.”

The wererabbit in question chuckled. “You’ve eluded us long enough. It’s time to put an end to your silly foolishness.”

The General looked over at Wilson. “At least your son is still a Patriot, seeing as he isn’t here with you.”

“He’ll come around, once he sees the truth,” said Wilson.

“Well, the truth is, you still have issues with woodruff,” said the General, with a grin. “I’ve been wearing it for over twenty years! Problem is, I forgot to put some on.”

Wilson sniffed, only for his eyes to widen. “You’re a-”

“Yes, I am,” the General said, with a chuckle. “I smelled you out months ago. Hoped you’d explain why you’d Turned. Still, better late than never. Now, to explain the real meaning for the colors.” He tapped his red colored armband. “Red means that they were humans that were Turned, and white means that they were Born Weres. Blue means Human.” He glanced over at the group. “Red, White, and Blue Armbands represent Friendlies. Anyone wearing black is fair-game! Time to cut loose!” He pulled out a standard-issue Marine knife, and lunged at Wilson, shifting as he did so.

“You heard the General!” Jessie shouted. “If you’re Blue, get under the tables and provide supporting fire. Red and White, Shift into Were Mood and fight with everything you got!”

Jay got under the table, aimed his shotgun at the legs of a werebear wearing black, and fired, causing them to collapse. That same werebear got their face torn off by a werefox with a fur color that matched Jessie’s hair, their outfit looking like a torn version of the outfit that Jessie had been wearing moments ago.

“Explains why she’s so much stronger,” he muttered. He then looked for the wererabbit, only to find them on the losing end of a fight with a grey-furred werefox, with a white armband. However, a black-wearing werefox was about to jump in. Jay fired, catching them in the chest. The grey-furred werefox chomped their jaws into the throat of the wererabbit, and just hung on.

“Jay, look out!”

A sudden pain came to Jay, causing him to scream. He looked back, and saw that a weresnake had crawled under the table, and had bitten him in the side. He swung his shotgun, whacking them in the face. He then fired a blast into them, messing up their jaw, among other things. A sudden wave of nausea overtook Jay, making him sick.

“Must have been a venomous viper or something,” he muttered. “Not dead yet though!”

Something rolled past him. Blinking back the oncoming blackness, he realized that it was the General and Wilson, both trying to get the edge on the other. Wilson though, seemed to have the upper hand with the knife. Jay aimed his shotgun one last time, and pulled the trigger. The howl that emerged from the traitor’s throat caused Jay to grin, and he all but burst out in laughter as the General clamped down on the werewolf’s muzzle, and opened up his own jaws. The last thing Jay could recall, before blackness finally overtook him, was the sight of the kitsune general starting to swallow the werewolf traitor.



When Jay next opened his eyes, he found himself someplace warm, dark, and filled with some sort of liquid. Fearing that he was in a stomach, he tried moving around.

“Easy,” said a familiar voice. “You’re safe. Don’t move around so much.”

Jay slowed himself, realizing that it was Jessie.

“I had to Turn you,” she said. “You would have died otherwise, between the venom, blood loss, and the fact that your liver was shutting down. Just relax, and let my womb do the rest. An umbilical cord is connecting you to me, giving you what you need. You can’t exactly make sound while in there, due to the healing liquid, but you can tap my sides, and use that Morse Code stuff I’ve taught you to communicate with me.”

Jay placed his hand upon the part of her he rested on, and started tapping. “What happened?”

“Well, given that you’re inside my womb, and not a Secret Claw’s stomach, you know that you and I are alive,” said Jessie. “Aside from you, the worst any human had was just a couple of broken bones that simply need a few weeks to heal from. Everyone else, a few stray pellets here and there, some broken bones and such, which were all easily remedied, thanks to the Secret Claws themselves.” She chuckled.

“Did you eat them?” Jay tapped.

He heard some patting.

“They were dead anyways,” said Jessie. “It was close, but when Wilson was devoured by father, it threw certain ones for a loop, and even more when mother finally killed that rabbit. They tried to run, only to meet up with the Fifth Column agents. It was a slaughter – not one managed to escape alive.”

“Good to know,” Jay tapped. “What about Major Wilson’s son?”

Jessie chuckled. “I wouldn’t worry about Richard – father’s about to see to that. So, lie back, and get some shut-eye. You’ll need the rest, as will I. Mother says that Turning someone’s like having an adult baby developing inside of you. She’s got experience with both Turning and Pregnancy, so she might have a point.”

Jay tried to chuckle, only for everything to be muffled.

“I’m guessing that you tried to laugh,” said Jessie. “Like I said, talking doesn’t work right in a liquid environment. Now, get some sleep. I’ll be able to let you out in a day, maybe two. After that, you got to do some re-training, to help control yourself, so that you aren’t a danger to the rest of the unit.”

Jay lay back, and closed his eyes, to allow sleep to do its thing.



A couple of days later, Jay found himself on a cot, slightly puzzled.

“You slept right through it,” said Jessie’s voice.

Jay turned his head, to find Jessie lying next to him, grinning.

“Welcome back to the land of the living,” said Jessie.

“Good to be alive,” said Jay. He then smelled her, only to start sneezing, and thus grew fur, and a bit larger. He backed away from her.

Jessie chuckled, as the sneezing slowly stopped. “Get used to that scent – you’ll have to start wearing it.”

Jay’s stomach started to grumble. “Um, what’s to eat?”

“Beef, venison, pork, and a bunch of other meats,” said Jessie, as a werebeart came in, with a cart loaded with meat. “Not human though, because that’s just not right.”

“Um, thanks,” said Jay, as he sat up, his nose sniffing as he looked at the meat. His stomach grumbled some more.

“This is your first lesson, actually,” said Jessie. “Try to eat slowly. Helps with your control, keeps you from just shifting, and you’ll find that you don’t need as much food as you feel that you need.” She gave him a knife and a fork.

“Sounds like something a mother would tell their child,” Jay said, accepting the silverware.

“In a way, it is,” said Jessie. “Unless you’re really active, you don’t need more than ten pounds of beef a day. Of course, the more active you are, the more calories you burn, and thus the more food you need. The same sort of thing occurs if you’re recovering from an injury, or have just Turned someone.”

“Explains your appetite,” said Jay, as he started eating. “So, what’s been going on?”

“First off, the humans are used to the Weres in the unit, and haven’t really freaked out about them in a Shift,” said Jessie. “It helps that some had already known already, and were already involved with each other before the mass reveal. Second, father and mother posted a nice video of them with the head of the Secret Claws on the airwaves, all of them, which has caused a certain amount of panic among Were Officials that don’t see humans as equals. Third, they found and rescued Richard, his men, and a bunch of other prisoners, both human and sympathetic Were alike in a hidden Secret Claws prison – I won’t tell you want that place looked like, and all I saw was just the photos.”

“Sounds pretty bad if that’s the case,” Jay said, swallowing his food.

“It was a Dachau, as my father called it,” said Jessie. “He and the Fifth Column agents abducted the Weres leading the nearby towns, or at least those that were known for their cruelty, and forced them to bury each dead human, in nice and proper graves, with the threat that if any of them ate the bodies, they’d all end up dead and buried in an unmarked hole in the ground. He left the place standing – I would have burned it down, but father said, ‘We must let it stand, so that we don’t forget, so that we don’t repeat this, yet again. This is a Dachau.’ I guess the name Dachau meant something important because I asked him about what it meant. He looked at me, and he said, ‘A place where Evil thrived, because folks were too afraid, or ignorant, to do the right thing. This is our Dachau – it must stand so that we don’t let this happen yet again.’ I did some research – the original one was a place where Nazis killed those that opposed their ideology, among other things.”

“Sounds like a prototype,” said Jay.

“Wouldn’t surprise me,” said Jessie. “If nothing else, the death of the Secret Claws leader has inspired Weres that side with humans to openly rebel, and join the Resistance, along with their pets and slaves. The war has taken a turning point in our favor.”

Jay smiled, his mouth full of food. “I like the sound of that.”

Jessie chuckled. “Don’t talk with your mouth full. Also, you need a better name than just being called after a J.”

Jay chuckled. “It’s better than J555. Still, what would you suggest?”

Jessie smiled. “I think that James would be more fitting.”

Jay looked at her. “Sounds like an outlaw or something.”

Jessie smiled. “Just think on it.”

Jay nodded. “I will.”



Ten years later, a werefox named James was on a tour of a certain Farm that had been converted into a War Memorial site. Most of the tourists were humans, but there were some Weres looking around. He looked at the list of Livestock, faces coming to each name mentioned. He then stopped at one – J555. He tapped on it. The monitor spoke.

“J555, the son of resistance members, Abigale and Charles Jones, was born on this farm, after his parents had been captured. At almost twenty years of age, the owner of the farm was about to butcher him when the Resistance managed to liberate the livestock. Joining the Resistance, he played a key role in a battle against Secret Claws agents, when he mortally wounded several high ranking Secret Claws agents, allowing members of his unit to win the day, despite sustaining serious injuries. He recovered, and assisted in many more battles. At the end of the war, he married into the family of General Thomas MacArthur, who would eventually run for Presidency, openly revealing himself to have been a Werefox for the duration of the war. It was also around this time that J555, or James Jones as he prefers, admitted to having been Turned into a werefox after the key battle, as he would have died otherwise. These days, he lives with his wife, Jessie Jones, and together they’ve raised a couple of children. He has also become an author, having written about his time during the war.”

“Pretty speech, given how things went,” he muttered, as he walked away, holding the hand of his son, the kit looking at everything in wonder.

“You grew up at this place?” the kit asked.

“That I did, Charlie,” James said. “I was born here, and I would have died here, had your grandfather not rescued me. That was the moment everything changed, for the better.”