[ WP ] She stumbled backward in terror as she watched her boyfriend become a beastly aberration , barely human .

We had been searching for the pair for about half an hour in that gods-forsaken wood when we heard her screaming. We knew it was n't the happy kind of scream the moment we heard it. Happy screams do n't pique my instincts, or those of my partner, very strongly. These screams though... Valarie and I are very good at detecting screams like that poor girl's. 
 
 Maria's cry was a note of pure terror. It advertised that she was easy prey, practically a free meal, to anyone with the instincts of a predator. Valarie and I have those instincts... but we did n't intend to hurt them. Our instincts come part and parcel with who we are, but they are n't all that we are. 
 
 At any rate, we both turned towards the site of the scream. The rain probably disrupted Valarie's ability to tell where the source was a bit, but it did n't affect my hearing in the same way. Storms and I get along very well, and I can see and hear just as well as I could if there was n't a storm to begin with even in a hurricane. Trust me, I've tried that out. 
 
 I pointed towards the source, and we moved together through the trees. We kept our ears wide open for more sounds, more hints as to where the students were. All the while, I had images from my past experiences with the boy's kind flashing behind my eyes. If he had lost his control... the poor girl did n't stand a chance. She'd wind up another gruesome scene for me to look back at... and so I had to hope that he was n't what had scared her. 
 
 I did n't need to worry though... the boy is n't what had scared her. We found that out when we came to the edge of a clearing. The boy was standing between the girl, his back to her, and three creatures that I generally try to avoid encountering if I can help it. 
 
 They were akin to insects. The only real difference is that they were the size of wildcats. They walked on six misshapen legs, the front two shaped more like scythes than feet. Their bodies were clad in a black chitinous armor, which had numerous barbed tips sticking out of it to catch creatures that got a little too close. Their compound eyes were easily the size of grapefruit, and they glowed a dull red that illuminated the scythe-like pincers that framed their mouths. 
 
 We call them *Harvester Beetles*. I do n't know where they come from for certain, but I *think* they probably came from The Pit. They either managed to crawl their way out of that terrifying abyss, or something intentionally brought them out for some reason. What I did know was that they tend to hunt people who have a bit of *power* to them... people like the boy, Valarie, and I. The girl would probably be ignored... if she did n't have the boy's scent all over her. 
 
 They'd been chased a fair distance away from where they had first seen the Beetles. I suppose that's the good part of the monstrosities, they were slow. They had a lot more mass to them than most insects, by a fair margin, and their bodies were n't really built to move around all that easily. Still... they were relentless and tough. They would follow their prey for weeks as long as they did n't lose the trail, and they could keep going for longer than most people... and they were patient enough to wait for someone to pass out from exhaustion before cutting them up and eating them. 
 
 The girl looked just about there. Maria was tired... I could tell that much even from a distance. Her eyes were empty, and her whole body was moving with her lungs whenever she took a breath. If it had n't been raining, she would have been drenched in sweat... although if it had n't been raining the Beetles would probably have gotten her. 
 
 The boy knew it too. I could tell as I looked him in the eye. He was n't planning to run any further. He knew that the beetles would just keep coming... and I saw him come to a decision. 
 
 The girl stumbled back away from her boyfriend in terror as he changed into something that was barely human. She watched, wide-eyed, as his muscles suddenly grew and his hair grew darker and thicker in a moment. His arms fell to his side, his hands open to grab hold of something and tear into it. His head went low, and his stance shifted to an low and aggressive form. Had he been facing her, she would have seen his teeth bared in an snarl that sent a clear message: `` I'm insane, and violent. Back off.'' 
 
 Then he let out a loud howl, one that a human's vocal chords just should n't be capable of, but it was n't the sound itself that carried with it Power. It was the things that the howl conveyed to the minds of those that heard it that carried a Power all their own. Memories of hunters long since dead flashed in my mind. I recalled the tension of stalking my prey, the thrill of a jolly chase, and the satisfaction of bringing the prey down with my strength. The dragon's blood in me stirred at this... and it hungered to join in on the hunt. 
 
 Normally I would have denied my nature that demand... but in this case I felt it was probably wise to help. Besides, Valarie was already moving towards the girl. She was the one in the most danger, after-all. 
 
 The boy charged at the nearest of the Harvesters. He was n't doing it with much skill, but I knew that even the bugs realized that the Prey/Predator dynamic had just been unfixed. I do n't know if they knew that Damian was now able to use all the strength his body could bring to bear, or that he was incapable of feeling pain so long as his blood was raging, but I can tell you for a fact that they did not return his charge. 
 
 I knew why, of course. They intended to let him come to them, and then swarm him. 
 
 I did n't give them that chance. 
 
 I closed my eyes, and raised a hand towards the Harvesters. Although I could n't see them with my eyes, I could feel them through the storm. I felt them as droplets of rain crashed into their armor, and as the wind was bent around their forms. It was better than sight... at least when I knew where to look. 
 
 I saw Damien through the Storm, and the hunter inside me knew that he was going for the central target. It knows its own kind, and the way they think, and it told me that the central target was the only one that made sense. I thanked it for that, and then directed the Storm's Rage at the other two. 
 
 Now, I'm nowhere near as good at what I do as my ancestors were. Their achievements include bending entire hurricanes to their will, and using them to smash a fleet that the Yuan Dynasty used in an attempt to invade Japan. But I am quite good at directing Storms in little ways... like having them produce Lightning on command when I already have something to play with. 
 
 The beetles did n't even see it coming. One moment they were alive, and the next they were dust. The Lightning killed them, and they dissolved into the Ash of The Pit. In a few hours, even the Ashes would n't remain of them. They would be gone... at least for awhile. 
 
 The central one did n't even stand a chance. It raised one of its arms to catch the kid and try to cut into him... but the kid was n't having it. Damian just... flowed under the thing's strike and then came up behind its other leg. He grabbed hold of that leg and ripped it right off, as easily as a kid might pull the wings off a fly. He took the bladed limb and, while the Harvester was still recoiling in pain, shoved it right into the creature's mouth and sliced its head in two. 
 
 Then the limb and the creature both dissolved. Damian looked around for more enemies, and then fell to a knee. Even someone with the blood of King Lycan in his veins ca n't ignore the limits of the human body forever... and that little stunt had exhausted his muscles. He looked around, saw me, and then smiled. 
 
 Then he fell down and passed out.
