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fandomweekly2025-01-09 02:19 pm
badly_knitted) wrote in fandomweekly2025-01-09 02:19 pm
Entry tags:
[#245] Mythical Monster (Torchwood)
Theme Prompt: #245 – Werewolf
Title: Mythical Monster
Fandom: Torchwood
Rating/Warnings: PG
Bonus: Yes.
Word Count: 1000
Summary: Something living has come through the Rift, but is it really a werewolf?
Ianto thought they were a myth.
“Jack! Wait up!” Ianto cursed his lover for going off alone. Again. They didn’t even know what they were after, all the Rift monitor programme could tell them was that it was a living creature. Ianto had wanted to call in the rest of the team, but Jack had said there was no point doing that and then finding out they weren’t needed…
“We should find out what we’re up against first, and then, if we need backup, we’ll call. It might just be something small, or a Weevil. I’m not dragging the others out of bed in the early hours of the morning just because we might need an extra pair of hands. They’ll be cranky all day if they show up only to be told we’ve got everything under control.”
He’d been right, of course, no sense waking anyone else up unless they had to, but then, when they’d reached the coordinates of the Rift spike, Jack had taken off in a flurry of coattails before Ianto could even get his seatbelt unbuckled, never mind get out of the SUV. At least both of them had their Bluetooth earpieces in, so Ianto could keep track of his errant lover while arming himself with some of the additional tech and weaponry they’d tossed into the boot. Then it was just a case of setting off in the direction Jack had gone and trying to catch up to him before he got himself in trouble.
It didn’t especially surprise Ianto when he came upon Jack, sprawled in the mud behind some bushes, bleeding heavily, and clearly close to death. It was a distressing sight, of course; Ianto hated seeing Jack like that as much as, or possibly even more than, Jack hated dying, but it wasn’t surprising.
“Oh Jack. Why don’t you ever learn?”
“Thought I saw somethin’,” Jack mumbled. “Had to follow ‘fore I los’ sight.”
“We could have just tracked it by following the Rift energy trail. You just don’t think.” Ianto knelt down beside Jack and took his hand. “Did you see what it was, or which way it went?”
“Big, shaggy.” Jack took a pained breath. “Shot it. Went that way. Bleedin’.” He gestured feebly towards some trees a short distance away. “Sorry.” He mumbled something else that Ianto couldn’t make out, then went still, his eyes still open but staring at nothing.
Sighing, Ianto smoothed Jack’s hair back from his forehead. “We’ll go after it once you’re back,” he promised. “But this time we’ll do it together.” Jack hadn’t even taken a torch with him, and okay, he could see better at night than most twenty-first century humans, but his eyesight still wasn’t anywhere near as good as that of a nocturnal creature.
It didn’t take long for Jack to revive, thankfully. Less than ten minutes after he died, he drew that first convulsive, gasping breath, grabbing at Ianto’s arm. “Ianto?”
“Right here. Welcome back.” Ianto helped Jack sit up and handed him his Webley, which he’d dropped after being attacked. “You said big and shaggy. Not a Bozog, I hope.”
“No, smaller than that. Bigger than a large dog, but doglike.” Jack glanced sidelong at Ianto. “Maybe a werewolf.”
“Werewolf? They’re a myth, aren’t they?”
“Not exactly. Lots of shape-changing species in the universe, and with most the change is voluntary, but not with all. There are a few where the change is triggered by the moon.” He looked up at the clear night sky and the almost full moon shining overhead. “It bit me. More than once. I could be infected.”
“If it really is some kind of werewolf, and if it can pass its shape-changing ability on through a bite, you died. You always reset after death, so there shouldn’t be any problem.”
“I hope you’re right.” Jack levered himself to his feet, with a little help from Ianto. “We should get after it. I shot it, and I know I hit it, but I don’t know if ordinary bullets would have any significant effect.”
“I don’t have any silver bullets with me.”
“That part IS a myth. An extract of mistletoe works better.”
“Huh.” Ianto frowned. “Too bad it didn’t arrive before Christmas. We had plenty of mistletoe then.”
They set off, guns at the ready, following the blood trail on the grass into the shelter of the trees, where they found their ‘werewolf’. It was as dead as Jack had been twenty minutes earlier, but thankfully not showing any signs of resurrecting. As Jack had said, it did look sort of doglike, at the front end anyway, but it appeared to have died halfway through transforming. Its hind legs were more manlike, although still slightly furry, but not human, judging by the three toes and the greenish skin colour. Even as they watched, the transformation continued, the fur melting away to leave a slightly scaly, vaguely reptilian, but distinctly humanoid body.
“Is it wrong that I feel sorry for it?” Ianto asked. “I mean, it killed you.”
There was no reply, and when Ianto turned, it was to see not Jack, but a hairy, doglike creature wearing Jack’s clothes, but down on all fours.
“Oh God!” Ianto aimed his gun at the new werewolf, unsure if he’d be able to shoot his lover, or whether it would make any difference if he did.
Wolf Jack lowered his head, lifted a forepaw and shook it, giving a confused whine.
“Jack?”
The entire rear end of the werewolf waggled from side to side and a pinkish tongue lolled from its open mouth, draping itself over the bottom row of sharp, white teeth. It tried to walk towards him, but tripped on the clothes it was still wearing and fell in a heap.
“Just, whatever you do, don’t bite me, or even lick me, okay?”
The werewolf whimpered.
“Stay there while I fetch the car. Looks like I’ll have to do everything myself.”
In retrospect, they really should have called the others in.
The End
“We should find out what we’re up against first, and then, if we need backup, we’ll call. It might just be something small, or a Weevil. I’m not dragging the others out of bed in the early hours of the morning just because we might need an extra pair of hands. They’ll be cranky all day if they show up only to be told we’ve got everything under control.”
He’d been right, of course, no sense waking anyone else up unless they had to, but then, when they’d reached the coordinates of the Rift spike, Jack had taken off in a flurry of coattails before Ianto could even get his seatbelt unbuckled, never mind get out of the SUV. At least both of them had their Bluetooth earpieces in, so Ianto could keep track of his errant lover while arming himself with some of the additional tech and weaponry they’d tossed into the boot. Then it was just a case of setting off in the direction Jack had gone and trying to catch up to him before he got himself in trouble.
It didn’t especially surprise Ianto when he came upon Jack, sprawled in the mud behind some bushes, bleeding heavily, and clearly close to death. It was a distressing sight, of course; Ianto hated seeing Jack like that as much as, or possibly even more than, Jack hated dying, but it wasn’t surprising.
“Oh Jack. Why don’t you ever learn?”
“Thought I saw somethin’,” Jack mumbled. “Had to follow ‘fore I los’ sight.”
“We could have just tracked it by following the Rift energy trail. You just don’t think.” Ianto knelt down beside Jack and took his hand. “Did you see what it was, or which way it went?”
“Big, shaggy.” Jack took a pained breath. “Shot it. Went that way. Bleedin’.” He gestured feebly towards some trees a short distance away. “Sorry.” He mumbled something else that Ianto couldn’t make out, then went still, his eyes still open but staring at nothing.
Sighing, Ianto smoothed Jack’s hair back from his forehead. “We’ll go after it once you’re back,” he promised. “But this time we’ll do it together.” Jack hadn’t even taken a torch with him, and okay, he could see better at night than most twenty-first century humans, but his eyesight still wasn’t anywhere near as good as that of a nocturnal creature.
It didn’t take long for Jack to revive, thankfully. Less than ten minutes after he died, he drew that first convulsive, gasping breath, grabbing at Ianto’s arm. “Ianto?”
“Right here. Welcome back.” Ianto helped Jack sit up and handed him his Webley, which he’d dropped after being attacked. “You said big and shaggy. Not a Bozog, I hope.”
“No, smaller than that. Bigger than a large dog, but doglike.” Jack glanced sidelong at Ianto. “Maybe a werewolf.”
“Werewolf? They’re a myth, aren’t they?”
“Not exactly. Lots of shape-changing species in the universe, and with most the change is voluntary, but not with all. There are a few where the change is triggered by the moon.” He looked up at the clear night sky and the almost full moon shining overhead. “It bit me. More than once. I could be infected.”
“If it really is some kind of werewolf, and if it can pass its shape-changing ability on through a bite, you died. You always reset after death, so there shouldn’t be any problem.”
“I hope you’re right.” Jack levered himself to his feet, with a little help from Ianto. “We should get after it. I shot it, and I know I hit it, but I don’t know if ordinary bullets would have any significant effect.”
“I don’t have any silver bullets with me.”
“That part IS a myth. An extract of mistletoe works better.”
“Huh.” Ianto frowned. “Too bad it didn’t arrive before Christmas. We had plenty of mistletoe then.”
They set off, guns at the ready, following the blood trail on the grass into the shelter of the trees, where they found their ‘werewolf’. It was as dead as Jack had been twenty minutes earlier, but thankfully not showing any signs of resurrecting. As Jack had said, it did look sort of doglike, at the front end anyway, but it appeared to have died halfway through transforming. Its hind legs were more manlike, although still slightly furry, but not human, judging by the three toes and the greenish skin colour. Even as they watched, the transformation continued, the fur melting away to leave a slightly scaly, vaguely reptilian, but distinctly humanoid body.
“Is it wrong that I feel sorry for it?” Ianto asked. “I mean, it killed you.”
There was no reply, and when Ianto turned, it was to see not Jack, but a hairy, doglike creature wearing Jack’s clothes, but down on all fours.
“Oh God!” Ianto aimed his gun at the new werewolf, unsure if he’d be able to shoot his lover, or whether it would make any difference if he did.
Wolf Jack lowered his head, lifted a forepaw and shook it, giving a confused whine.
“Jack?”
The entire rear end of the werewolf waggled from side to side and a pinkish tongue lolled from its open mouth, draping itself over the bottom row of sharp, white teeth. It tried to walk towards him, but tripped on the clothes it was still wearing and fell in a heap.
“Just, whatever you do, don’t bite me, or even lick me, okay?”
The werewolf whimpered.
“Stay there while I fetch the car. Looks like I’ll have to do everything myself.”
In retrospect, they really should have called the others in.
The End
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Thank you!
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I'm working on the idea that anything could potentially become a werewolf, but the werewolf version of some species will be more vicious than others, some might be more animalistic.
Thank you!
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The way I see it, Jack may be a werewolf now, but he's still Jack.
Thank you!