The Werewolf Whisperer by H. T. Night

                            They let go of me and I quickly transitioned into the great white eagle and flew up as fast as I could.  I needed to get the hell out of here.   Two ravens and two hawks followed me.  Suddenly, one of the hawks began squawking uncontrollably.
    I looked back to see if anyone was coming at us and I noticed on the ground the Mani had surrounded another body.
    I circled and turned back around to see who it was.  It was a man.  Holy crap!  It was Tommy!  They had Tommy!  What the hell was he doing here?
    I circled back and made an impulsive decision that took zero thought from my end.  I flew down hard towards Tommy. Krull had Tommy by his throat.  SCREW THAT SAMURAI PIECE OF SHIT!   I aimed my beak at his back like a dagger and torpedoed down to the mob.  Krull was right in the middle of the heap. I gave another burst of speed. My elongated beak cracked into Krull’s back, piercing through his skin and muscles.  Krull was a specimen.  I tore into him real good, but I had ricocheted off of him on contact.  He flew forward and I flew backwards.   It looked like a scene out of Rocky.
    He let go of Tommy.  I transitioned quickly into my Mani form and charged Krull.  Krull turned around to face me.  My beak had fucked him up pretty good.  He was still in a daze.   I gave him the hardest uppercut punch I had ever given in my life.  He popped up about four feet in the air, I didn’t slow down—I round-house kicked him right in his fat skull before he hit the ground knocking him another ten feet in the air.  I didn’t see what kind of damage I had done because I needed to get Tommy the hell out of here.  I quickly transitioned back to the eagle, grabbed Tommy by the shirt with my claws, and got him out of there.  I flew faster than I had ever had before.  My claws were deep into Tommy’s shirt. He wasn’t going anywhere. The two red hawks and ravens followed us. 
    Lena was right. Everyone had my back, even when the odds were stacked horribly against us.  All four were there to help me, including Tommy.  I turned around, expecting ravens to be close behind me, but we were alone.  They apparently decided they had enough.  I didn’t take any chances by slowing down.  I kicked my speed into another gear with Tommy in hand—or should I say clawed hand.   I had hit Krull real good and I would have loved to have been there when he realized that this boy just laid him out.  I knew deep down that I couldn’t fight him straight up.  I had to sucker punch him.  But he had the numbers, and when you come to a fight with 50 times the numbers—all bets are off.
    “Fly up the San Bernardino Mountains and head over to Running Springs.” Tommy said as he dangled from my claws. “We’ll all stay where I’ve been hiding out.”
    With that, the six of us made our way up the mountain.

Chapter Eight

                 
    Tommy guided me to a cabin just north of Running Springs.  I dropped him down on the front porch and then proceeded to land on the roof.  I nearly fell off, but I had to admit my landings were getting better.  I settled on top of the roof and watched my four-bird friends land next to Tommy and transitioned. I nodded my head to let them all know the coast was clear from where I was perched.
    I lifted my wings, leaped off the roof, and landed next to my friends.  We all just looked at each other and no one said a word.  Somehow, through a will that was not our own this group of six had found one another.  If I was ‘The Chosen’, then it was time for me to accept that these five were chosen with me.
    “So this is it,” I said out loud. “This is who we are going to war with?”
    “Yes it is,” Lena agreed.
    “We’re all in this together.” I said, looking at each of them directly in the face while nodding with approval.  Again, no one spoke.
    Tommy broke the silence, “Let’s go