Snippet

I’ve had this idea of hybrid heroes for a while. I have several semi-started. Here is one:

Hal blinked trying to adapt his vision to the bright light.

Where the fuck am I?

He sat up and took in the luxurious room. It had the impersonal feel of a hotel and the smell of cleaning spray beneath the surface. He scanned his memory but could only remember going to dinner with his parents the night before. They’d gone to a steakhouse and discussed his future.

He hadn’t known what to tell his parents about his plans. He’d never thought about leaving the pack even though they had never accepted him since his first change. Apparently turning into a scaled wolf with wings freaked out the normal wolves. Hybrids weren’t supposed to exist. Hal didn’t know of any others like him. Of course reproduction between a wolf and a dragon didn’t happen often and the few times Hal had heard of resulted in either a dragon or a wolf not a weird conglomeration of both.

The alpha of their pack had grown increasingly upset with Hal’s presence. He had to either challenge the alpha for leadership or find a new place else to call home. Hal had hesitated to leave his parents. Although at twenty-one years old he’d stayed longer than he planned.

A piece of paper caught his attention.

Dear son,

You need to start your own life now. There are rumors the alpha is planning your death. We have paid for this room for a month. We also opened your trust fund so you have money. Love you son. Keep in touch.

Mom and Dad

Hal stared at the note for a long moment. His parents had effectively banished him. He’d never doubted his parent’s love, but he hadn’t seen this coming. They must’ve drugged him in order to get him here.

“Now what the fuck do I do?”

Groaning, Hal threw himself on the bed. Depression pressed him down. He didn’t have any reason to get up. He understood why his parents had acted but it didn’t take away the sting.

It only took a few minutes before he was so disgusted by his self-pity he had to get out of bed. Exploring his environment would be a good first step. He needed to figure out where he was and if he planned on putting down roots here or if he’d be heading out somewhere else.

His parents were right. Sticking around where the alpha could find him wasn’t a good idea. Hal could’ve stayed and killed the alpha but despite his prejudices the Alpha Viden was a good man. It wasn’t completely his fault the pack never warmed to Hal.

A quick shower and a peek in the closet revealed his wardrobe had been entered. He wondered how long they had planned this venture. He’d thought they were responding to his recent comments. This smacked of planning. A great deal of planning.