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Chapter 13 - Gears Turning

Sarah moved quietly through the woods. Her eyes could see well enough by the almost full moon, so she didn’t bother with a flashlight. A small backpack was slung over her furred shoulders. Inside it were the clothes she had worn to the edge of the woods and a few things for Grandfather. Sarah's nose twitched, as she picked up the scent markings he had left behind. The young wolf smiled, she would be at his camp soon.

Abe sat on a log in front of a small fire. Other than a backpack and sleeping bag in his lean-to shelter, there was nothing from the civilized world at the camp. His large ears twitched as he heard something moving in the woods. He relaxed slightly when he heard Sarah's call cutting through the dark forest. Abe smiled before throwing back his head to return her call. A few moments later the young wolf was in the circle of his campfire light.

“Sarah,” he got up on his feet and threw his arms around her in a tight hug, “I was hoping I’d see you soon.”

“Me too,” she returned the old wolf’s hug tightly,”I hate that you are out here all alone.”

“You know we needed to hide after we got things started. I imagine the agency has noticed what we have done by now.”

“I know, but still. Anyway, I have news about that, and I brought you a little something.”

“Oh?”

“Come on,” Sarah crossed her arms over her chest, “I know you can smell that block of cheese in my pack.”

“True, but I hate to spoil surprises.”

“Let me get it out then, I'll explain what is happening while you eat.”

Taking time while eating is difficult for a wolf, but Abe wanted to enjoy his treat. To slow himself down he broke off chunks of cheese with his hands. As he enjoyed the little bit of civilization as Sarah filled him in on current events.

“So, you're right that the agency has noticed there are reports of,” she cleared her throat, “ah, ‘werewolf sightings’ all over the country. In the beginning it was being written off as some kind of viral marketing or internet hoax thing by local authorities.”

Abe licked cheese crumbs from his muzzle. “Of course, because there's no such thing as us.”

“As the reports continued to grow, the agency was brought in. We quickly noticed that all the Grandparent Wolves were ‘out on vacation’ apparently.”

“It was nice to travel, it’s a shame I wasn’t able to make it to the Grand Canyon before going into the woods.”

“Time enough for that later.” She patted his knee tenderly. “So far it looks like us young wolves are at least trying to keep a low profile. There is some chatter online about us, but it’s mainly in the tinfoil hat territories of the internet.”

“Have you gotten in any trouble yet? You are supposed to be our current liaison afterall.”

“No, but I suspect the meeting planned for tomorrow morning is all about that.” Sarah let out a small sigh. “I’m half tempted to just run off into the woods too, but I’m not much of an outdoors kind of girl.”

“To be fair, this was a lot easier for me twenty years ago than it is now. I miss starting my day with a hot shower and a nice cup of herbal tea.” He looked back into the fire. “What do you think will happen tomorrow?”

“Don’t worry, Abe, I have a plan. I’ve been working on a cover story ever since you tainted me. It was only a matter of time before the Agency noticed new wolves popping up.”

“I feel at least a little bad about going behind their backs with the plan. The agency always treated us well.”

“That's only because you were dying out and not causing any trouble. That’s why they didn’t even bother assigning a veteran agent to monitor you after Harrison retired.”

“He retired to Arizona, right? If I do get to the Grand Canyon I’ll have to stop by and visit him.”

“I think so, I didn’t know Harrison as well as you did, just for about a week when he handed off the assignment to me.” She tossed some more wood onto the fire. “Do you think he had any idea about the long con you were running?”

Abe chuckled, “It wasn't a con, though I can see why it may look that way. It took an awful lot to break past the taboo of tainting humans.”

“I'm glad you did,” Sarah leaned in and nuzzled his cheek, “I'm sure we all are.”

Abe smiled and scratched behind her ears,“Remember though, once we reach the end of this it will be up to you young ones to reinstate it.”

“I know, It’s not about taking over the world. Doesn’t mean I’m not happy with my new form.” She leaned back and looked up at the night sky. “It really changes the way you look at a lot of things.”

“I can only imagine, after all I was born this way. I have nothing to compare it to.”

“I guess when we start having kids it will be the same way”

Abe joined her looking up at the sky. “God, cubs…after all these years that will be happening again.” He could feel tears starting to well up in his eyes.

Sarah placed her hand over his. “You’re going to be a grandfather to so many cubs.”

He chuckled softly.

***

The Federal Building, as it was called, housed the local divisions of several government agencies. Not all of them, however, were listed on the plaque by the elevators. Sarah walked into the elevator with several boxes of donuts in her hands. She inserted her key card and hit the button labeled B2. It took a moment for the system to beep in response and the elevator car started to descend.

Sarah went down two floors and nodded to the two armed guards standing by the inner door as she scanned her ID.

“That’s a lot of donuts.” Carl said, looking at the stack of boxes in Sarah’s hands.

“Yeah, It was my turn to get them today, and I went a little overboard.” She placed them on the conveyor belt to be scanned. “This new place near me is just so good. Even a day old they are still the best I’ve ever tasted.”

Bill, the other guard, chuckled at that. “Not like donuts ever last that long here, at least in our break room.”

“Hey, why don’t you two take a box for the guards? I know things have been rough lately with that bug in the security system setting off all the alarms, you guys deserve a little compensation for that.”

Carl shook his head. “It was you getting greeted with submachine guns last Monday, I think we owe you the donuts.”

“It was scary for all of us, and you were just doing your job. No hard feelings.” Sarah took the box off the top of the stack and handed it to Bill. “Try to save one to bring home to Mary, I’m sure she'll love it.”

“Thanks Sarah.” he smiled, accepting the box.

“You are more than welcome.” She smiled as she gathered up the remaining boxes and continued on into the office proper.

She went to the break room first and placed the boxes on the tables and by the coffee machine, saving the last special one for her meeting. Sarah’s coworkers were already starting to eat them by the time she left for her desk. She greeted the people in her office cheerily as she made her way to her cubicle. Jonathan, who worked out of the cubicle to her right, leaned back in his chair, watching her as she set down the last box of donuts on her desk.

“You seem pretty chipper for someone about to be chewed out.” He said, raising an eyebrow.

“I’m not too worried about that. I’m sure once I make my full report the director will see my side of things.” It took most of her willpower not to giggle. “Oh, I got something special for you.”

“Oh?” He pushed his chair further out from his cubicle.

“Yeah, the bakery I got the donuts from had some gluten-free muffins.” Sarah pulled a small box from her purse. “I know it's been tough ever since you had to change your diet.”

Jonathan looked surprised as he accepted the muffin. “You…didn’t have to do that.”

“It’s nothing, besides you help me out all the time with the more esoteric stuff.”

Jonathan opened the box and sniffed. “Is that cranberry-orange?” He smiled, “that’s my favorite.”

“I know.” Sarah winked back at him. “Enjoy!”

She settled into her desk and logged into her workstation. Sarah had enough time before her meeting with the director, but she didn’t want to get involved too deeply with a project. Instead, she focused on her email, sorting and replying to the ones she could. Sarah’s schedule popped up with the reminder for her meeting and she couldn't help the smile that spread across her face. Sarah gathered a few items and locked her computer.

“Hey, good luck in there,” Jonathan said leaning out from his cubicle, “and thanks for the muffin.”

“You’re welcome.” Sarah said as she flicked off her monitor. “Don’t worry though, you’ll see for yourself how everything will work out.”

Sarah made her way to the director’s office, and took a moment to compose herself before knocking. She knew her school girl smile wouldn’t be appropriate for the meeting she was about to attend. Once Sarah had a more professional smile on her face she knocked on the door.

There was a soft chime and Sarah opened the door with her free hand. At his desk Director Lester Mueller was sitting with his hands folded on the desk. Just to his left was Cheryl Roberts, the senior agent of this office.

“Good morning Director Mueller, and you too, Agent Roberts. Are we waiting on anyone else?”

“No, Agent Bishop, it will just be the three of us.” The director said as he stood up from his desk. “What is that in your hands?”

“This? Just some donuts. I figured we might be in here for a while.”

“Trying to bribe your way out of trouble?” Roberts smirked slightly.

“No, but my grandmother always said it’s better to cushion unpleasant news with some sugar.”

“Unpleasant is an understatement, Agent Bishop, but I can't exactly disagree with your grandmother.” Director Mueller said as he took a donut from the offered box.

Seeing her boss take a donut, Roberts followed suit. If Susan wanted to cater her own chewing out, who was she to argue?

“Let’s get started shall we?” Susan said as she moved towards the small conference table in the directors office.

Mueller shared a look with his subordinate, showing a bit of confusion over the young agent’s attitude. But she replied with a small shrug and they took their seats at the table. Susan stood by a large monitor and smoothed out her blouse before starting her report.

“As you know, I took over the case file for the surviving wolves form Agent Harrison after he retired a little over a year ago.” She brought up a file with the names and photos of the last wolf pack.

“Werewolves you mean.” Roberts idly tapped on the desk with a red enameled nail.

Susan had to struggle to not show her distaste on her face. “If you had read any part of their file, ma’am, you would know they don’t like being called that. Agent Harrison insisted on using their proper name as well. Frankly I think it keeps us more grounded when dealing with them.”

“Getting back on topic about what is actually going on. What exactly happened on your watch, agent.” Mueller said before finishing his donut.

“Not much at first. The wolves were quite diligent in checking in regularly and showed no signs of anything other than compliance for the last fifty odd years. To be fair, they were always ones to keep themselves out of the public eye on their own, even before the Hunter’s War. That was why there had never been a move to install any tracking devices on the surviving wolves.”

“I knew we should have done so.” the Director shook his head. “They aren’t a threat, it's a waste of money and resources…This is why!” he smacked the top of the table. “Sorry, Bishop, that was a decision made above my head, let alone yours, please continue.” The director was looking a little flushed now and started to loosen his tie slightly.

“Yes, well, moving on. The remaining wolves had bought lots in the same retirement community under our supervision with the stated intent of living out the remainder of their lives there. This was easily approved by your predecessor, Director, as it kept them all in one easily monitored location.”

“That sounds good on paper,” Roberts said, pulling at the collar of her blouse slightly, “But looking at it now, it allows them to plot easily without having to worry about long distance communication being monitored.”

“That is entirely possible. I can’t say if buying up most of Gray Rock Estates was part of their plans, or if said plans were thought up after the fact.” Susan shrugged. “All I can attest to was when when the last quarterly check in calls were made they either went unanswered or to voicemail. Now, one or two wouldn’t have been a big deal, it always happens. In fact, I was out at the estates after Abe missed his check-in call two quarters ago. Turns out his answering machine had a busted tape and he was out gardening when the call came through.”

“Who even has a cassette based answering machine these days?” Roberts was trying not to squirm in her seat. “Even if they still have a home phone.”

Susan shrugged, well aware of how far along the two already were. “My grandmother did, it worked for her and she saw no reason to change it before she passed.” Susan replied.

“You’ll understand when you’re older, Cheryl.” the Director sighed, suddenly starting to feel very uncomfortable. “For now, let's get back to the actual report.”

“Of course, sir. Anyway, the development was pretty much abandoned. Every single wolf was gone. I immediately started to investigate. The few human neighbors had commented that they had gone ‘on vacation’. We immediately started to track their phones and bank activity, but it was already too late. They knew enough to avoid flying, and left their cars abandoned either at their homes or at bus and train depots.”

“God damn it…” The director said under his breath, but it was unclear whether it was over the report or the itching sensation at his tailbone.

“They had slowly drained their bank accounts of cash, so that avoided any alerts popping up on the system. Since they were paying cash it’s been hell trying to track down where or how far they actually went.”

“And their phones?”

“Come on, Lester, they knew well enough how we operate. They left their cells at home or in a trash can and switched to burners or just went no contact with each other.”

Susan couldn’t help the small smile slipping out. She had figured out quite some time ago by her nose that Director Mueller and Agent Roberts’ relationship was far more than just professional.

This is going to be fun to watch she thought to herself before continuing. “More concerning than their flight, sightings started to pop up all over the country. Of course, most people just wrote it off as some kind of stunt or hoax. We, however, know better.”

“But I thought they couldn’t, ah, you know…” just trying to mention something sexual was leaving Roberts flustered.

“The Hunter’s Wrath Virus did leave all the surviving wolves sterile, that is true, but it did nothing to the potency of the essence in their body.”

“Essence?” Mueller blinked, trying to push away thoughts of his last tryst with Roberts out of his mind. “What the hell is that?”

“Oh, it is a substance found in all of a wolf’s bodily fluids. Humans exposed to it will eventually become a wolf. How long it takes depends on the amount of essence they are exposed to. I think that is where the myth of being bit by a wolf comes from, in actuality it would be the saliva that would trigger the change, not the bite itself.”

“I, ah, I don’t recall reading anything in the file about that…” He said as he rubbed the back of his head.

“Of course not, they never told you. You see, it was a huge cultural taboo to turn humans into wolves, goes back to the rise of Christianity in Europe I believe. It took near extinction to make the last few wolves break with it to save their race.”

The director’s eyes narrowed. “Agent Bishop…What are you…”

“But it doesn't have to be a direct transfer of essence, wolves can refine it from their blood, leaving behind tiny crystals of essence. Tasteless and odorless they are easily mixed into food and drink. Like say, some fresh baked donuts.” She smiled widely.

Roberts stood up and slapped her hands down on the desk “What the hell did you do to us!”

“Calm down, Cheryl,” It’s not just you two. Though I spiked the rest of the donuts with much smaller doses. People will probably not start to feel it till they are back home tonight, unless they got greedy and ate more than their fair share.”

“You treasonous bitch!” Mueller was shaking, trying to keep his thoughts straight, and doing his best to ignore how tempting Cheryl looked.

“By the way, I already figured out weeks ago you two were screwing around. You can’t hide it from a real nose.” she tapped the side of her own. “So why don’t I leave you both to let off some first time shift steam and we’ll talk a little later.”

“D-damn it Bishop!”

“I’ll leave the donuts, You’ll be hungry after you’re done becoming one of us.”

“Get back here!” The director shouted one last time before he was grabbed desperately by his workplace lover.

Susan let herself out of the office, closing the door behind her quickly. Even if she were shifted, the young wolf would have a hard time hearing the romp through the soundproofed room. She smiled happily and returned to her desk.

“That was fast.” Josh commented as she returned to her cubicle.

“Well, it’s not completely over. The director and agent Roberts need to go over a few things in private.”

“I bet they do.” Jonathan smirked, “People say I’m crazy but I think there’s something going on between those two.”

“Really?” Susan's smile widened as she sat down in her chair, “Tell me why you think that.”

***

Back in the director’s office things were heating up. Lester at first tried to push her away, but as his hands brushed against her he felt the need to grab a hold of her instead. Cheryl responded immediately, pressing her lips hard against his. His heart was pounding in his ears and the Director felt his body surge with vigor, more than it ever had in his youth. Cheryl was pulling at his shirt, already growing tight as his frame started to expand. Her blouse was also growing tight, as were her slacks.

Lester wasn't even thinking when he spun her around and bent her over the conference table. The seams on her slacks were already starting to pop when he grabbed her waistband and tore them down. Cheryl let out a yipe but pushed back against the director, encouraging him to continue. He was getting frustrated with his belt, but managed to get it unbuckled. He wasted no time in plunging right into Cheryl. She cried out, a bit of a growl lacing its way into it. Lester was also starting to growl and he thrust his hips with abandon, gripping her waist tightly.

As they both were lost in the throes of lust and passion, their bodies continued to change. The director's arms bulged with newfound strength as muscle built upon muscle, ripping through his shirt and jacket. Patches of dark gray fur started to form as more and more of his skin was exposed. Cheryl’s blouse stretched over her back before her delts tore through the thin material. Her nails dug into the table top as they lengthened and thickened into claws. Soft auburn fur was starting to coat her firmly toned muscles. Their ears already had a pronounced tapper and were starting to move slowly towards the top of their heads.

Cheryl let out a sharp almost yip as her feet tore through her sensible shoes as her bones shifted and popped into paws. Lester’s eyes shut tight as he felt an immense pressure building in his face. He gritted his now pointed teeth as his nose and jaw began to stretch out into a muzzle. Cheryl was in much the same state, when a similar pressure began to form at the base of her spine. A tail started to grow and twitch, even as the director continued to pound into her. His own tail was quickly growing covered with fur.

The pair let out a pair of howls that blended together in unison. Cheryl flopped down on the table, while Lester leaned over her, his hands holding his body up over hers. As they panted and recovered from their lustful romp, the memories began to take hold in their minds. Eventually, Cheryl stirred first, and her shifting knocked Lester out of his stupor.

“Cheryl?” As he spoke, Lester both heard and felt the difference in his voice.

“Mmm,” she shifted under him, “I’m ok…just help me up.”

They stumbled a bit both from using their new feet for the first time, and the shredded clothes on the floor around them. Quietly, they removed what tatters will still clinging to their furry bodies. Cheryl reached up and ran her hands along the streaks of nearly white fur along the sides of his head.

“It seems you still are sporting the distinguished look in your fur.” she smiled slightly. “I like it.”

“Cheryl…” He sighed, though he leaned into her touches.

“Oh come on, I already liked the way you looked before or I would have never slept with you in the first place. Just now you are, hmm, even better.” she leaned in close and placed her hand on his chest. “And I bet you feel the same way about me.”

Lester let out a sigh and placed an arm around her waist. Gently she scratched behind her ears with his other hand.

“I’m still going to yell at her.” Lester said softly

“Mmm, don’t be too hard on Agent Bishop,” Cheryl looked over at the box, “after all, she did bring donuts.”

***

To the untrained eye, Susan was goofing off online. In fact, she was actually hard at work. She was lurking on an obscure website, digging through recent forum posts. Sometimes people aren’t crazy and do see things they aren’t supposed to. Normal channels do what they were designed to do for the overall safety and well being of society and shut them down. Some people don’t take the hint they should just forget about it and turn to the less well known parts of the internet to share their stories with others. To be fair, there are a lot of crazies out there, and disinformation campaigns are always stirring them up. But part of Susan’s job was to find the true things being talked about and see just how much traction they were getting.

The wolves were everywhere at this point. Pictures, accounts, even a few videos had surfaced. About the only thing missing were actual wolves admitting what they were and outright explaining what was going on. Although there was still nothing on mainstream media covering the wolves, that wasn’t going to last for much longer, not at the rate they were growing. She was just about to click on a link when her office phone rang. She had a good guess who it was before she picked up the receiver.

“Agent Bishop, how can I help you?”

“You can get your rear back in my office for starters.” A somewhat familiar voice growled over the phone.

“I’ll be right there, sir.” She smiled as she hung up her phone.

“Back into the pit?” Jonathan asked from his desk.

“I’m not too worried at this point.” Susan said as she stood back up. “But just in case I don’t make it back before you leave, have a good night.”

He chuckled. “Yeah, you too.”

Susan made her way back to the director’s office. Along the way she got several compliments for the donuts she had brought in. Susan took a moment to smooth out her blouse before knocking. Once it unlocked she opened the door and quickly entered. She, of course, could smell the scent of fresh sex on the air, which was to be expected. The Director and Agent Roberts were both standing behind his desk. She smiled broadly as she glanced over their wolf forms.

“You are both looking much better, how do you feel?”

“That’s not important.” the director said as he glared across the room at her. “Why did you do this?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Susan walked towards the desk. “Because I don’t want the agency to interfere with our plan.”

“Our?” Mueller raised an eyebrow, “How long have you been working with the wolves?”

“Oh, they tainted me before they left on their national tour. It was no accident that Abe missed the check-in call. That was just a ruse to get me out there. He apologized for the deception, but I really don’t mind, I think you both understand why.”

Agent Roberts looked away while the director just stared at her.

“Anyway, after I shifted for the first time they explained what they were going to do. They were not going to let our people die out. They would rebuild the wolves, then live side by side with humans in the open this time.”

“Are you crazy?” Mueller leaned over his desk. “The populace will-”

“They will have to learn to deal with it. I’m sure it’s going to be rocky at first. But don’t worry, we don’t plan on revealing anything else the agency keeps under wraps. And once we break it publicly we will stop spreading the taint and restore that old tradition.”

“It will never work!” He shook his head. “You can’t-”

“Lester, it’s already too late.” Cheryl placed her hand gently on his shoulder. “We both know that. I’m sure things are much worse than we realize since Bishop has been covering for her fellow wolves. And that’s assuming she’s the only wolf in our ranks.”

“Well, I was before today. But you know all about the donuts.” she glanced over to the empty box on the conference table, “Looks like you enjoyed the rest of them too.”

The director let out a long sigh. “Agent Bishop, I’m not saying I regret this new form, but what have you and the old wolves started?”

“Director, in all the years we’ve watched over the last of the wolves, has it never occurred to you that they aren’t monsters? Really, taking a hard look at humanity, they are the monsters with all the wars, violence and various atrocities. We aren’t about to do anything that will threaten civilization, we are still a part of that you know. And really, you don’t have to do much to help in the plan as it is. Just a little longer and the Grandparent Wolves will come out of hiding and reveal the truth. By that time, most humans will already have friends and family that are wolves.”

Muller sat down in his chair and let out a heavy sigh. “I retain my doubts because I know humanity as well as I do. But it’s out of my hands now.”

“So, I take it you’re not reporting this to DC then?”

“I’m in no rush to get a silver bullet in my own head, so no.”

“Good. Is there anything else before I get back to work?”

“I want a full list of everyone in the office who is a wolf tomorrow morning.”

“May take me a while to sniff everyone out, but I’ll get that to you sir.”

“You are dismissed, agent.”

“See you tomorrow, sir.” she smiled as she turned to leave the office. The gears are spinning now, it won’t be that much longer.

_______________________________________

Original story and setting by Syntaxerror37

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