John Wolfstone-The Book

John's protest, and his reasons, and a voice

As John raced towards his ultimate goal, he destroyed several stockyards, places that served humans as meals, and various other things that prevented humans from living their lives to the fullest.

Of course, his actions didn’t go unnoticed.

Many people, from the highest of the high, to the lowest of the low, were in fear for their lives as he moved closer and closer to the heart of the city, where the county courthouse and city hall stood.

The city guard and police forces mobilized to intercept him on his path of apparent destruction.

However, John swept all of them, including those who were giants, aside like flies.

When he got to the courthouse and city hall, he tore the roofs off of both buildings and tossed them to the ground.

“I am here to stage a protest,” he said, breathing heavily, but calmly, “against the intolerable practices done to humans, not only here in this city, but throughout the entire world. If I were you, I’d make sure I’d call every news network I’d know and get them here, as well as wake up every high ranking politician I knew.”

With that, John sat down to wait.

Within the hour, virtually everyone for miles around was glued to their radios and televisions.

Hundreds of reporters and journalists converged upon the scene as fast as they could.

For the first time ever, a person most would have thought wanted to eat every single human he saw was speaking out in favor of them.

Many were at the various buildings that had been destroyed, interviewing witnesses, dodging the occasional piece of masonry hurled at those who tried recapturing the people that had been held at those “places of murder”, as John had called them.

However, most everyone in the city was standing around the center of it, watching John as he sat there, watching and waiting for something, or someone.

Near him was the shattered remains of the roofs he had torn off, hurling a piece every so often towards where the stockyards and certain restaurants once stood.

In his eyes was a look of immense coldness directed towards certain people and places. No one escaped his gaze, not even those who were in the shadows of various places, usually because they couldn’t survive being in the sunlight, not because they were doing something illegal.

Meanwhile, Janus had just landed on the rooftop of a building some distance away from the scene.

“My God John, what have you done?” she thought.

She then bent over and vomited something up, it was Julia. She had wanted to go to John when she saw him on the television, so Janus had placed her in her crop and flew as close as she could.

However, there were too many people on the roofs closer to John than she felt comfortable bringing someone up around than she preferred.

“Are you all right?” Janus asked. “Crop travel is not exactly comfortable.”

“I’ve been through worse,” Julia said as she walked close to the edge of the roof. “Besides, John’s been there for me. I want to be there for him.”

“You know he’s doing this not only for you but for all humans,” Janus said.

“I know," Julia said. "But this was all because I showed up in someone’s mouth yesterday. If I hadn’t showed up-”

“He would have done this anyways," Janus said. "It’s in his blood. His parents, may they rest in peace, were, not only half human, and mostly vegetarian, they were part of an underground movement that sought equality for humans, even those without magic.”

“How do you know this?” Julia asked.

“I’m part of it myself," Janus said, as she looked at John. "However, our numbers are small, maybe a few hundred thousand throughout the world, and we are always being watched, if only to make sure we don’t do anything that would jeopardize how the governments and such run. John though, as much as he would hate to admit it, would not make a good member of our group. For one thing, he has a very long record of assaulting people that were just ‘following their stomachs’, as it were, and saving humans from them. Of course with this stunt, he may achieve the goal we have been striving for, equality for all.”

Then, Julia asked,“Can you take me to him?”

“Why?” the harpy asked, looking back at the girl.

“He needs someone beside him now," Julia said. "Otherwise something really bad could happen to him.”

“Well, I don’t know what could be worse than being at the top of the majority of most countries Most Wanted lists," Janus said. "But, in a way, his caring for you, as a fatherly figure, might finally drive home the point that our group has been trying to make for years, that people that are not humans can get along with those that aren’t, without any blood being shed in the process. Now hold on, it’s been a while since I’ve done what I’m about to do.”

“And what would that be?” Julia asked.

“Let’s just say we are going to go parasailing," Janus said. "So when I grab your shoulders, grab onto my ankles as best as you can.”

With that, Janus quickly ran to the other side of the roof and jumped off, spreading her wings.

Then she came back up and grabbed Julia by her shoulders. The girl, more by instinct than anything else, grabbed onto Janus’s ankles, for fear of falling.

As Janus soar close to John, he looked at them in shock.

“Janus,” he said. “What in the hell are you doing here? You should be at the school keeping an eye on Julia!”

“I was," Janus said. "But when Mr. Snapjaw saw you on the news, well, someone wanted me to take her to you. Now hold your hand out, my wings are getting tired and I’m not as young as I used to be.”

With that, John held his hand out and felt something settle on it, a moment before Janus herself landed on one of his shoulders. As John looked at his hand, he saw a somewhat damp Julia looking at him.

“I’m not going to even ask you how you got here,” John said as he raised his hand and carefully pressed it against his chest. “But I am glad you are here with me.”

He smiled as he felt Julia hug him, as best as she could.

“I just don’t want to lose the only one that seems to actually care about me as a person,” said Julia, her voice somewhat muffled, and sobbing as well.

“I know how you feel Julia. However, unless certain things change, people like you and me will not be allowed to call each other equals. That and there is a law preventing me from adopting you, due to your previous situation that caused you to meet me,” John said, as large tears rolled down his face and land just bellow his hands.

Then a deep voice said, “Finally, someone that understands why I abandoned this world, though I did have hope that things would change on this planet for the better, eventually anyways.”

At this, John lifted his head and said, “Who said that, show yourself.”

“Relax my child,” said the voice. “I am not here to harm you or any of my children, nor do I wish them to harm those who are also my favored children whom I’ve gifted with the ability to think for their own selves, and not just follow instincts.”

“Well, if you are not here to harm us, why don’t you show yourself instead of hiding?” asked John, who was suspicious of this voice.

“You don’t believe what I just told you?” the voice asked.

“I was raised not to take things at face value," John said, looking for the owner of the voice. "Instead, I was to look for the real truth behind someone’s words, and find the meaning behind them. And besides, I’d be a fool to just trust what someone, who I don’t know, with what they say. Also, I don’t know you.”

Then a deep throated laughter is heard. “Those are wise words, my child.”