Although people were told consistently to stay away from certain areas of Hazleton as darkness approached, it seemed that every evening he was on duty, Heath was out looking for--and finding--young people who insisted on hanging around. It was like they had a death wish or something. Half the deaths and disappearances that occurred in the forest went on to remain cold cases, although Heath had his own ideas on just what was going on out there on Eagle Ridge.
In his park ranger uniform, he walked through the trails of Pebble Lake tonight. The Ridge was far too dangerous even for him to clamor through on a cold night like this. He'd be there in the morning with his two back-ups--just in case.
With the sure feet of an expert who had wandered through these woods and mountains for years, Heath meandered out over the rocky beach that gave Pebble Lake its quaint little name.. At the moment, he was looking for the rest areas that dotted the area for those who hiked around during the day. Sweeping the area was part of his job, to make sure people weren't loitering about after dark. Technically, this area was closed a few hours ago but... well, that never stopped people from coming out here anyway. After all, Pebble Lake was a hot destination spot for teenage lovers to spend some time after the sun came down.
Heath spotted the next rest area up ahead and sure as anything, he saw a form sitting by themselves on one of the benches. Shaking his head to himself, Heath started down the trail and when he was sure he was within sight of the loner, he lifted a hand and waved.
"Hey there! You know what time it is?" he called as he drew closer.
This town really was fucking wack. The fog lifted, people returned to moving about like normal, and yet nothing felt normal to Jun Yong. He'd gone hiking in the woods to clear his head, but that didn't seem to help much even when he shifted and roamed a bit, more freely, in his animal form. Weird as fuck town, cleaning away the dead and pretending like the fog and weird shit never happened-- because there were sure to be others who'd been killed by reapers beside the one kid they saw-- as if wiping the corpses away would wipe the townsfolk's memories.
Clearly they hadn't, considering he remembered his friend being possessed and how alive the fog felt.
Coming up to the lake, he exhaled deeply, finding a bench to sit upon. Jun Yong pulled one foot onto the bench, leg up against his chest. Propping an elbow on his knee, his gaze drifted over the water and his thoughts wandered, too. Something caught his attention that looked to him like-- footsteps slowly drew his attention away from the forest and out of his head.
Whoops. Caught.
He jerked his head over at the approaching man, blinking out of his fog of thoughts when he was addressed.
"Oh." he said dispassionately after peeking at his watch, "No... I must have zoned out." Which was true, however, he knew before that he was way past the time when people were supposed to leave. It wasn't like Jun Yong worried much over something jumping out at him-- snake reflexes and all-- but he normally paid more attention. Say, so he could avoid getting yelled at by some authority for hanging around late.
"It's past midnight," he said, as he ran a hand through his hair and stopped a few feet away from the boy. He really did look like little more than a boy, probably hanging out to as a dare. Perhaps waiting for friends. This wasn't a good place for that, though--not if this kid wanted to stay alive and tell the tale of it. From the looks of things, the kid seemed nonchalant about it. Or maybe... Heath narrowed his eyes and took another step forward, tilting his head so that he could get a better look at the kid. He might have shined his flashlight in the poor kid's face while he was at it, but he was trying to get a good look at his eyes.
Didn't look like he was on something. Heath lowered the flashlight, then beckoned for the kid to come toward him.
"Come on. I'll escort you out of here." It was the nice way of saying you don't belong here, go home.
Yes, I realize this now. He was smart enough not to speak his thoughts, though did take his foot off the bench and lean away when the tall guy stepped closer. The flashlight didn't help any, and now Jun Yong looked miffed as he narrowed his eyes at the light.
"What was that for?" he mumbled, raising a brow now that the flashlight wasn't blinding him.
Dammit, he really should have been more attentive. Now he had to deal with this giant stranger. Who was that tall anyway?
"I'm not a kid, I can find my way out." he said, leaning forward with his hands on his knees but not standing yet. His night vision was... better than normal humans. Uniform or not, Jun Yong wasn't comfortable being escorted or with this guy (and not because he looked way too tall).
Heath raised his brows at the kid. Not a kid, he said. But he looked young from where Heath was standing. Probably some college aged kid hanging around to smoke some pot in peace. There were better places to do that, though. Less dangerous places. Heath saw the kid leaning forward like he was about to get up--but he didn't. Letting out a sigh, Heath shook his head.
"Sorry, policy is policy. I have to make sure you get out of here in one piece, so that means I'm escorting you."
He beckoned at the kid, signaling him to stand up.
"Come on, now. Let's go."
What? Did he look like some rebellious teen, lying through his teeth about his age? It didn't seem like Jun Yong had much choice now regardless of how old this dude thought he was. Giving in-- conflict would only end in the same result of him being walked out, plus irritating this guy which wouldn't help-- he stood up, shifting a glance at where he thought he'd seen something across the lake before returning his attention to the guy.
It was probably his mind playing troublesome tricks.
"Fine then..." he started walking, mostly to prevent the guy from thinking he was lagging it. He paused, however, when he couldn't find his phone in his pocket. Fuck. There were things on there he didn't want to be losing. It must have slipped out of his pocket when he shifted back and threw his clothes on before.
"Now what is it?" Heath asked, with a sigh, looking back over at the kid when he stopped walking. He shined his light back on him and gave him a long, hard stare.
So much for not getting on the guy's bad side.
It definitely looked just that.
"I left something behind. I'm not going without grabbing it." He knew where he shifted, so... it shouldn't be hard to find. His head was turned somewhat away from the light, brow furrowed.
"What's the something?" Heath asked, running a hand through his hair as he eyed the skyline. It wasn't going to be good for the kid, if they were stuck out here all night and it felt to Heath like the kid was seriously stalling for time.
"Hate to say it but we gotta retrace your steps so I hope you remember where you've been."
"... My phone." Maybe that didn't seem like a big thing to lose, but it wasn't the object itself Jun Yong cared about. The contents of his phone, now, those were precious. He had photos and videos from... forever ago which he never wanted to lose.
"I do." he mumbled, kind of annoyed again because he assumed the guy said so to try and stop him from heading off to find it. Well, too fucking bad because he was already going. Paying attention to the flashlight was probably smarter, but Jun Yong didn't think about how weird it may come off that he wasn't having the hardest of times maneuvering in the dark.
Crap. Heath looked up at the sky, then pointed his flashlight in the direction the kid was heading. He had to follow him and bring him back. There was no getting around it. Heath wasn't afraid of the woods after dark, per se, but he had a healthy sense of wariness when it came to it. He'd lived here and worked here long enough to know that it most definitely wasn't safe and that there was increased violent activity in the area. He just wished the freaking kid would listen to him!
A phone just didn't seem that important to Heath, when it came down to it. But this kid was going hunting after it like it was his life. What did he have on it that was precious? Or... so worth protecting? Heath frowned in the darkness, making sure to keep his guard up as they stepped through the undergrowth around the old trails.
"It can't wait until daylight?" Heath asked, turning his flashlight around the ground in search of the telltale glint from a phone screen.
Stubbornness was definitely a trait Jun Yong would admit to having only in certain cases, but when he was determined, no one could make him listen. He was perfectly fine without this guy following, but whatever, it was his own fault. If the dude thought he was suspicious for insisting on going back for a piece of technology, Jun Yong could show him what he was so attached to. That's how important they were-- the photos and videos-- enough for him to show those precious, dusty old memories to a complete stranger.
"It'll bother me to leave it until then..." he trailed off pensively (mostly because he wasn't apt on getting whacked with a flashlight if his irritability got on the guy's nerves, yet also, because he didn't want to think of losing the contents of the phone). Who knew whether it would get trampled on by some random animal or if leaving it out in the weather might ruin it. His footsteps were light as they stepped through the forest brush, and he stopped when the flashlight reflected against something. There! He went over and scooped it up, internally sighing.
A sound, oh so faint, whispered through the trees to their right, and Jun Yong shot his gaze toward it. He could see an animal-like figure not too close but not too far off, and, without waiting to see if the guy noticed-- the thing wasn't exactly blatant in the dark-- started to walk. "Found it just fine, see?" he kept his attention on even higher alert-- no zoning out now.
"Yeah... I get it."
Heath did--sort of. He was aware that kids were glued to their phones and if they lost it, they lost half their world. Personally, Heath didn't really use his much but he was an outdoorsy type. If he didn't have to have a cell phone just to stay connected, he'd probably just have a landline and call it a day.
He stopped when the kid stopped. There it was. Heath let out a soft sigh of relief. Good. They hadn't gone that deep into the woods. It meant he could escort the kid out, probably without much incidence. At least, that was what he was thinking... right before the kid went to get his phone and something in the darkness let out a low growl.
"Shit," Heath said without thinking. "Quick, get over here!"
The phone was tucked away nicely into his pocket, but now there was something more pressing catching his attention. Was it a wolf? Whatever it was, he could see it through the darkness and didn't at all seem pleased by their company. Yeah, he didn't need to get growled at to know something creeping up on him wasn't there to play.
He took several steps away, moving toward the guy so they could get the hell outta there already. The phone was found so no other reason for them to stick around. "Don't need to tell me that!" he retorted back, wondering if the guy thought he didn't notice. Something black leapt out at him as he moved away, and he turned to see a black wolf staring at them from where he'd been standing a moment ago. Oh great. It didn't lunge again, and he hoped that meant if they got lost they wouldn't have a fight. "Let's go... Just go." Jun Yong nudged the tall guy to start walking while still eyeing the wolf. He couldn't do very much beside punch the fleabag without magic or shifting... and really didn't want to do either around a stranger unless he had to.
At most, maybe they could run and he'd throw up a barrier behind them to block the wolf.
Shit. It was a wolf. Heath had been told not to engage them and he knew why--there were feral wolves attacking in this area. The kid was nudging him to get out of there but Heath knew he was the one who had to protect the kid. With that in mind, he grabbed the kid's arm--carefully--and gently nudged him up the trail and away from the lurking wolf.
It was so dark that it nearly blended in with the shadows but he could definitely see it moving. Just as he was about to speak and tell the kid they needed to just hurry away without alerting or scaring the wolf--the wolf acted. It snapped its slavering jaws at them and Heath practically picked the kid up and started heading up the trail as fast as he could.
The wolf gave chase, snapping at his heels every step of the way while Heath cursed under his breath.
"Ya!" With some irritation he snapped at the guy, and he damn nearly hissed a curse, too.
He did not like when people wouldn't let him figure his own shit out. Did this guy really think he was some troublemaking teen who went to the forest without an ounce of ability to get himself back out or what?
To hell with hiding his magic when there was a wolf on their tail. Jun Yong wasn't apt on getting gnawed on by another mutt. Without batting a lash, he cast a barrier spell under his breath and the wolf let out a sudden yelp in pain, followed by snarls and more sounds. As the wolf smacked into it, the barrier was visible, shimmering into sight for less than a second and continuing to do so at each strike.
"Worry about your own ass." he did get out while they were trying to escape, since Jun Yong felt like this guy seriously wasn't understanding that, even if his job was to make sure no one was around here right now or some shit.
Blinking, Heath watched as the wolf came at the kid--before he could do anything, the kid seemed to have it under control. Magic. He wasn't dumb; he knew about the witches and magic users in town. Not that he had a list of which one did what but he knew they existed and that magic was a thing. Still, he had assumed the kid was just a kid until the moment when the barrier went up to protect him.
All right, then. So the kid had things under control...
For now.
Because the wolf, angry and shaking its head, growled and seemed to understand after a few attempts that there was a barrier. And wolves, as much as people liked to use the term lone wolf, didn't tend to come out alone. This one was no exception. From behind it, two others came creeping out, heads low as they growled.
"Fuck," Heath said under his breath. "Come on kid, if we hurry up the trail we can get in my truck."
Fucking. Wolves. I. swear. He had some shit luck with them, apparently.
"Got it." Hey, he knew when to shut up and go with it. They could get a much greater distance without worrying about fangs at their heels for now, even if Jun Yong did stop to throw the barrier up. He wasn't about to waste more magic if he didn't have to, or worse, shift. Off they went again. He glanced back once to make sure the barrier was still up. It wasn't the weakest, but he definitely had stronger. Those dogs would need to bang into it a lot more to break, so it looked like they were getting out of there without another hiccup so far. But there were multiple wolves now.
Luckily for him, the dark wasn't as much trouble to maneuver through as it could be, and they managed to get a ways away. He could see what looked like the shape of a truck in the distance, and assumed that was the truck this guy was talking about.
(I find him assuming Jun Yong is a kid so amusing, idk why it gives me this image of his giant ass self staring down his nose chastising him for being out after dark.)
(Hahaha! He's convinced he's dealing with some teenager!)
"Damn, there's a whole pack of 'em," Heath said as they came up over the hill. The kid was still keeping them at bay somehow but they were getting pissed off. Heath would have liked to try and reason with them but... they were obviously feral. That must have been what happened to the families in this area. The ones that had lived here peacefully had ended up on the bad end of a pack of ferals who recently moved into the area. It hurt Heath's heart.
But he could still help get one kid out of here! Grabbing his key fob from his pocket, he hit the unlock button and swept his arm toward the car.
"Get in, get in!"
(LMAO and they're literally the same age. Is it because he's short?!)
There were too many wolves coming out at them for Jun Yong's comfort. What, did he end up pissing off a pack when he knocked out that one wolf forever ago, while protecting Jasper? He almost scoffed at the thought, but didn't to avoid looking like a nut job to this guy. It was a stupid guess anyway.
They were at the car already, and Jun Yong didn't argue one bit. He opened the door and jumped into the passenger's seat, checking back to see how those wolves were dealing. He kind of hoped barriers were enough to keep them a fair distance away, because no matter how violent they were, Jun Yong hated to hurt anyone.
He could tell it was starting to crack. Maybe I should've used a stronger one. At least they weren't too close anymore. "Damn persistent mutts." he grumbled. "It's gonna break soon." he didn't need to tell the dude to hit the gas, that was probably his intention, but since he saw the barrier go up he should know those dogs may come at them full speed once the barrier fell.
And magic was harder to swing out while in a moving vehicle.
(He's not even short, just a shorty to GIGANTIC HEATH!)
"Shit!" The passenger's side was the first door and the kid leapt right in, which meant the wolves were closing in on him. Hurry, hurry, hurry! He sped up, leaping over the truck and into the bed before leaping over the other side. It was just faster than running around the back of the thing. On the other side, he opened the driver's side door and immediately slammed the door shut behind him. His heart thumped against his ribs and he peered through the kid's window to see where and what the wolves were doing.
"What the hell? How did so many of them gather here?" he asked. Was it the blood? Did it call them?
No time to sit and wonder. Heath jammed his key into the ignition and turned it. Unlike a cliche horror movie, it roared immediately to life--Heath took excellent care of his truck and he had no patience for those scenes.
He backed up, hitting one of the wolves as it tried to leap at them. He heard the sound of its cry but luckily, its body had been launched away so his tire didn't flatten it. Heath didn't think he could live with himself if he ended up killing one, despite what they'd done.
Heath hit the acceleration and headed down the trail away from the park.
"I'm Heath," he said, now that the panic was drawing further behind them. "Sorry about all that back there but this is why we're trying to keep people away. The wolves this season are pretty... wild."
(LMAO)
That's what I'm curious about too. "No idea. Nothing was happening before they all popped out." At least not around him. Jun Yong sure as hell wasn't injured so maybe there was something else that went down he didn't know about to attract all the wolves (or they were craving snake).
He was eyeing outside the truck to make sure none of the wolves crashed through a window or the likes, and got a good look at the one that was rammed. Ouch, that must have hurt. At least they didn't have to actually fight any of the wolves to get out of here.
Jun Yong faced forward again.
"Oh. Um, Jun Yong." He felt kind of weird introducing himself after his initial irritation with Heath, but most of that went away while they were making a mad dash away from the mutts. "I noticed..." he said thinking back, "Why are they like this? They weren't the other times I been here..." he trailed off, briefly glancing out the window for good measure, genuinely puzzled now.
Maybe he was lucky the other times.
Heath checked his rearview mirror. The wolves were pissed but they weren't pissed enough to carry on chasing a metal contraption. They were looking for blood. It wasn't good; Heath was going to have to call this in to the head of the department and let him handle it but first he had to get rid of the kid. Er. Jun Yong.
"The wolves you saw around here before weren't the same ones," he informed Jun Yong. "It looks like a pack of feral wolves have moved down here into this part of the forest. Usually they're higher up in the mountains, away from people. Something's making them come down here for food, though."
He watched out the window while Heath drove them further and further from the snarling dogs. "What's different for them to be comin' down here now?" Did he miss something? Jun Yong didn't run into anything strange while he was slithering around, and even when he shifted back, nothing was around. It was much darker by the time they went back for his phone though, so something could have happened in that time. Or the wolves only came looking here after some time.
He wasn't the most kept up with town news, so even if anything happened while he was in the forest, he wouldn't know unless it was close enough for him to sense.
"See, that's the thing," Heath said, lifting one hand to stroke his chin. "We have no idea. Could be something bigger's hunting around their old haunts. Could be something's scaring them back down this way. Could just be they don't have anything left to eat where they came from, though I doubt it."
He hesitated a moment before he lowered his hand and focused for a moment on simply driving. Then he let out a soft sigh and glanced over at the kid.
"The animals they tore up, they didn't... eat them. And ravenous wolves will eat until there's pretty much nothing left, you know? So this is... well, it's pretty unusual, to say the least."
In this big forest? There's no way they'd run low on food to satiate themselves, would they?
"Yeah... That doesn't make much sense..." he mumbled while looking out the front window, trailing off as he pondered why those wolves wouldn't finish off their kills like normal. Jun Yong didn't want to think about torn up bodies, animal or not. Somehow he felt relief over missing that sight, but then guilty for feeling so.
Getting back to the train of thought he was on, Jun Yong cocked his head. "Did those animals get on their bad side or something? It could have been out of anger." With a feral pack especially, he thought they may be more... temperamental. He didn't consider being pissed of to qualify as a good reason for attacking others, but still.
Heath laughed but there was a hint of nervousness in it. Did this guy know about shifters? It was possible that he was even one of them; that might even explain his close proximity to the scene. Discreetly, Heath tried to study him out of the corner of his eye, to assess whether he was bleeding or had blood carelessly left behind somewhere. No, the wolves had come for him, too, but they were feral so... well, that made sense.
"Animals don't normally just snap like that," he said gently, although he kept glancing over every now and again to get a better perspective on Jun Yong. "Especially not in large groups like that."
Jun Yong quirked a brow at Heath, turning his head slightly to look at him. Did he catch Heath glancing his way once or twice or was that Jun Yong's paranoia? Actually, if he saw the barrier... maybe he suspected Jun Yong of having done something bad in the forest, something that made the wolves come down from their normal hunting grounds? Jun Yong was out late at night in the forest; thinking about it now, he might rub off as pretty questionable.
"This town's pretty weird, maybe something's wrong with those wolves." He wanted to say maybe they had some motivation to resort to attacking those animals, since if they were wildlings then they weren't as simple as normal animals, right? Bringing up magic himself made Jun Yong anxious, but, the magic he used earlier wasn't discreet at all-- unless wolves running into invisible walls was normal for humans.
And if that was the case, Jun Yong was more sane than he thought.
"...You saw the barrier, right?"
Heath nodded, yeah. Maybe there was something wrong with the wolves. He already knew there was but he was starting to think there was something even more wrong with them than he previously thought. Staring through the window out at the dirt road that turned into the highway, he gunned it up the street. Finally. Away from the forest itself. He'd have to bring the kid--Jun Yong--somewhere safe, maybe the ranger's station. Then again, they were probably dealing with the fallout of that wolf attack.
Shit. Heath braked hard. When the truck came to a cold stop, he turned and looked the kid in the face. Yeah, so the kid knew more. He had to. That whole thing out there, that had to be him and it was magic. No use ignoring it any longer.
"Didn't see it exactly," Heath said after a long moment of silence and studying the kid. "But I saw the way the wolves couldn't get to us like something invisible was between us and them." He paused again. "That was you. Right?"
Whoa. Jun Yong jerked forward some from the abrupt stop, nearly cursing again. He blinked, looking fully at Heath. Maybe he should have expected that. Heath hadn't brought up anything about the barrier, so he could have been ignoring the thing coming out at all...
What was off to Jun Yong, now that he thought about it, was his lack of reaction to the barrier when it was cast.
"... Yeah." Hesitating, Jun Yong continued, "Why didn't you say anything about it?"
"I didn't think it was none of my business," he said with a shrug. He glanced into the rearview mirror to make sure they weren't being followed. Hesitantly, he started forward again, the engine making a worrying sound after the sudden stop and sudden start. He had to remember to stop being so hard on the poor girl.
"It's okay, though. I'm a shifter," he said. "So I'm not going to out you. And I guess that means I can be frank with you. Those feral wolves are a pack of infected werewolves that used to go way out past the mountains during their shifts. Hard to tell why they're hanging around here now unless this was a show of power."
Well, he was right, it wasn't his business... but even Jun Yong would have been curious enough to ask if he suddenly saw someone throwing magic around.
Jun Yong relaxed just a little. So he was a shifter too (even though Jun Yong was only half)? Turning to focus on the road again, he set his an elbow against the door and leaned his chin in his palm. "They could wanna take more of the forest for themselves." Or maybe they got tired of having to go so far to shift.
"It's a good possibility."
The wolves were restless and people said the vampires were starting to act up, too. Everything was so volatile lately. And Heath used to think that Hazleton was immune to all that big city drama. He sure as hell wished it were.
"So, you're a witch, then, right?"
"... Well, half, yeah." He was in the forest to shift, not throw curses around or play like a reckless teen on a dare. Not that Heath would know this.
When the hell would this town ever have a calm day? There always seemed to be weird shit going on. They came here years ago for a better place to live, which Jun Yong especially needed. So much for that though.
"Is it normal for those wolves to attack just anyone?" He was kind of curious now, considering they were moments ago running from the angry ferals' unwarranted attack.
"Half, huh? All right."
Heath accepted it; there were a lot of people who were half one thing, half another. There wasn't much keeping them from one another, except explicit stereotypes or prejudices. Overall, though, no whole group saw another whole group a certain way.
"What, the feral ones?" Heath let out a sigh and tried to relax against the back of his seat. The truck rumbled and shook a little as they came up to a rocky path rolling upward. "Yeah. Not the normal ones, though. It's just... what's pushing them down here? They're usually smarter than this."
The bumpy road set his nerves on edge for no real reason except his paranoia, and Jun Yong tried not to show it. The wolves were way behind them. A bumpy road wasn't going to flick the car over.
"It's not like they're regular wolves. I dunno that anyone can figure it out without asking one of them." And casually hanging around for a feral to shift back in order to try and make conversation didn't seem that smart of a plan.
"What benefit would they even have coming down here anyway..." Jun Yong added as an after thought. Unless there was something more intimidating up where they usually were (which was hard to think of againt a pack of ferals).
(I'll have you know I spelled road, rode at least three times.)
Heath nodded knowingly. That was exactly the problem: they couldn't stick around and simply ask the feral wolves what was going on. Heath didn't know any and it sounded to him like Jun Yong didn't either. Being afflicted as they were, feral wolves weren't forthcoming with their condition and Heath could see why. He wouldn't want to spread that info around, either. But without that information, it meant that they didn't know what was going on or why. Was it biological? Something in the air? Was it something they ought to be worried about?
Scratch that--they were definitely worried about it, especially after a bunch of innocent shifters got the sharp end of their teeth.
"Not sure," Heath said, also trying to figure out what would send them down the mountain. "But there's been a lot of supernatural action around here lately. I bet that has something to do with it."
(Dude, I know those feels too well.)
Maybe Jay would know someone who had some inkling as to what was happening with the ferals, but Jun Yong was far from having anyone to ask, despite being curious himself now. Normal wolves could be figured out, the same couldn't be said of feral werewolves. They were so unpredictable that even he didn't want to be around an angry feral, since the only 'help' he could be happened to mean shifting and strangling one until they passed out.
And that didn't sound very helpful.
Jun Yong wasn't the best at keeping up with what went down in town, but he did have enough of an idea to know not all the magic folk were lying so low. "...That could be drawing them closer."
He sighed internally. "What can the smaller shifters even do with the ferals coming down here now?" he added thoughtfully. No way were they safe, especially little ones who couldn't defend themselves or escape well against bigger animals. Those ferals better have a legit reason for it, since he didn't consider them monsters, but certainly an unpredictable danger when they weren't in control (even if he could be considered one at times too).
Not to mention them ripping up defenseless animals.
"My boss has been talking about setting up a task force. I guess to drive the ferals back up the mountain. The problem is that we have to wait on cops to investigate why they're down here in the first place. If we send them back up without knowing the full story, they'll just come back."
And then they'd go back to hunting and harming innocent shifters. Being one himself, Heath could hardly sit back and watch it happen right in front of him. He sighed, then glanced over at Jun Yong.
"Did you say what you do for a living yet?" he asked, a somewhat hopeful tone seeping into his voice. "Know any cops, maybe?"
"It doesn't seem possible to get anywhere until they find that story out." he said thoughtfully, rubbing the nape of his neck. What was really going on around here any more?
Come to think of it, he should tell Little fox to watch out for the ferals.
"My friend and I sell art at a shop downtown." Nothing helpful to Heath in this case. "No, don't know any, sorry." Sadly, he wasn't going to be any assistance to finding out what was going on. Not unless he could catch a feral and try to talk it out of them somehow.
"Why? Not enough cops around to help?"
"Not enough of us in the force," Heath said, hoping that Jun Yong caught his meaning. He ran a hand through his hair and turned his gaze out the window as he slowed at a stop sign. After this stop sign was the highway, which they could take out to downtown. Away from here. Somewhere safer. Heath would have to find out more later, since he wasn't sure how much Jun Yong was privy to and he didn't need to drag hapless travelers into the mix.
"I guess we're just going to have to find a feral and ask them for ourselves."
"Ah, right..." More supernaturals. And if there were more, would they be intent on letting that be known? The ones who were pretending to be human to everyone might not be all that easy to pick out, even to another supernatural. He himself couldn't feel them out so easily, except maybe other witches, but he didn't have the sense of smell of a dog to pick up on different scents. That, sadly, didn't exactly come with his snake senses, even if the night vision part was useful.
Despite being chased by ferals just now, the curious risk taker in him wanted to delve further into what was going on.
What? Sometimes painting wasn't exciting enough, sue him.
"Now how do you do that? Bait one?"
Heath looked over at the kid in surprise. The way he was talking, it sounded like he wanted to be a part of it but when Heath said we, he meant himself and the other rangers. Maybe some cops. But this kid? What did Heath even know about him? (He didn't know anything.) For all he knew, he was more powerful than Heath. Witch, was it? Half? Still more powerful than Heath, since he couldn't use anything close to magic.
"Yeah," he said slowly. "Bait one."
He gripped the steering wheel a little harder, then cleared his throat.
"That magic you used, that barrier. Think you could do it again?"
Was he being too obvious? Well, Jun Yong didn't know how to outright say it, so that was easier on him.
After a brief pause, he nodded slowly. "... Yeah. It's the magic I know best." Reflective spells too, but those also counted as barriers. "Why?"
Okay, maybe he also wanted to know in the hopes of having less ferals to nip at him with the wolves moving down the mountain. Whatever the reason, color him interested.
"We could use it to trap one, I think. Is there any way you could make the barrier around the creature?"
"I should be able to. Then what, try talking it into shifting to communicate?" That was only a guess, Jun Yong didn't know how well that would work but how else could they ask it anything?
"Tire it out," Heath said, still thinking as he spoke. He slowed the truck down a little, checking up and down the trail, wondering if any wolves had managed to keep up with them. Maybe there were some lurking out there right now. He frowned slightly. As much as he wanted to do this now, he also didn't like that it was so dark out. In human form, it was hard to see in the forest. He looked over at Jun Yong as he braked.
"They change back when they're exhausted, right?"
"Normally yeah."
His barrier staying up wasn't an issue, rather how long it would take for a werewolf to tire themselves out and shift. In the forest they were at risk, especially considering the wolf could call for more friends while trapped. Jun Yong could hide himself and others in some barriers, but a wolf howling for its pack mates would be heard through even those spells.
"What about other wolves coming around?" Just like what happened with the wolf that saw them earlier, he doubted one would tire itself out without alerting other wolves.
"Shit, you're right," Heath said, seeing that Jun Yong had a point. If they trapped one wolf, others would surely be close behind. Heath let out a sigh and he stepped back on the gas. No wolves had come up to them when he stopped, anyway. Still, he checked in his rearview mirror and he could have sworn he saw something back there, like a glint of light that disappeared before Heath could properly make it out.
"I was thinking of shifting and finding out for myself but..."
How could they keep the other wolves away to get to one? He could trap the one and put a barrier around them as well, but that didn't sound like the most convenient idea. The group would likely break through the one surrounding them, or... there were just too many things that could go wrong the more he had to separate his focus. Jun Yong didn't slither fast enough as a snake to fight off a bunch of wolves, either. He bit his lip thoughtfully.
"But what? Too dangerous with all the wolves?"
(If I misunderstood what he was saying you can assume Jun Yong did too, fyi lol)
"Hehe, yep. I mean, I shift into a nice sized raptor. Eagle, you know? But..." He tapped his fingers restlessly against the steering wheel, then checked his rearview mirror. Nothing behind them except his tail lights on rough dirt terrain and the trees and shrubbery that flanked it.
"I mean, I can fight a wolf if I have to but a whole pack of 'em? Not so much."
"Yeah..." An eagle, huh? It seemed they were both in the same boat against the wolves. Taking out two mutts wasn't going to benefit them amidst a full pack, and he didn't have the ability to fly away if the situation went south; Jun Yong didn't even slither fast-- oh the perks of being a fat ass serpent.
"Did you see something?" Jun Yong hadn't been looking behind them but thought he noticed Heath check his mirror a couple of times. Turning, he glanced out of the back window, hoping his special little nighttime sight would aid in catching a glimpse at anything out there.
"Nope, nothing." Unfortunately.
There wasn't much going on behind them. He was guessing that since the wolves had been thrown off their trail, they were no longer concerned with them. Up ahead, he saw his station and the truck hit rocky territory, jolting them around for a moment. At the station, he could see his replacement waiting, casually looking out into the woods and not looking altogether concerned.
"I guess whatever's happening didn't reach him yet," he said to Jun Yong as he turned into the small parking area and the other ranger began to stroll unhurriedly over to them.
Hm, weird... He let that thought trail off as they neared their destination. No use bothering about it now.
"... Or maybe he's not bothered by it." As much as Jun Yong hoped otherwise, some people couldn't care less. Maybe the guy was just interested in getting his job done. Or he was guessing wrong.
Jun Yong glanced out the window at the guy, curious what he'd have to say.
"Howdy!" said the other ranger cheerfully as he reached them. He was slightly older than Heath and his hair was already starting to grey at the temples. Heath quickly introduced them, saying, "Jun Yong, this is Pete. Pete, this is Jun Yong."
Pete reached out to take Jun Yong's hand. "Pleasure to meet you." He cut his gaze to Heath. "What were you two doing out there in those parts this late?"
"Actually, there was another attack." He scratched the back of his neck. "More like a massacre, actually..."
(OOC: Feel free to control Pete too.)
Whoa, so... bubbly. He blinked, shaking hands and nodding his head in greeting. It was a little awkward to be seeing someone act so pleasantly after what they were previously running from. The juxtaposition threw Jun Yong off since he was still thinking of that.
Maybe the guy really hadn't heard yet...
"What? Really, when?! I haven't heard anything except from you now."
"I didn't want to alarm you," Heath said, instantly regretting saying anything in front of a civilian. At the same time, knowing that he was part of the supernatural community--while Pete wasn't--made it somewhat easier. He had to know somehow. Maybe he should have said something sooner. Pete looked at Jun Yong and took in his surprise before clearing his throat and giving Heath a knowing Look. Yeah, well. Pete didn't know all the details either. And to be fair, neither did Heath.
"But yeah, there was a massacre. A bunch of... animals," he glanced at Jun Yong. "They were attacked by those feral wolves that were up north."
"Ah..." he should have expected it though, with the swarm of ferals that attacked them earlier. Clearing his throat, "No... it's fine..." Frankly, Jun Yong would have probably found out about it eventually, no? He thought so anyway. Exclaiming like that in front of them bothered Jun Yong, who didn't normally allow himself such reactions.
Animals, huh? He looked at Pete then Heath, wondering what they'd do now that they were here. Not talk more about werewolves and barriers, that was certain. "Did anyone from town get attacked?" ... He wanted to include any of those shifter animals but didn't get into that detail with Pete there, who might have thought him some punk who lost his way in the forest (or that's what his expression told Jun Yong).
(... I actually forgot if Heath brought up the other attack or not before but hope I didn't miss that not checking back.)
"Not anybody from town," Heath said carefully. He wondered if it meant anything to Jun Yong or if he knew what it meant for them not to be accounted for in town. Guys like Pete wouldn't even know these people were missing, at least, not the majority of them. They were a small community that lived on their own in the forests around Hazleton. They didn't really come into town. If Heath could liken them to anybody, it might have been a community like the Amish; they eschewed the modern world in favor of their own world. Look what it brought them. Heath wasn't bitter--he was sad. They hid themselves and now nobody would even know they were gone.
Heath looked over at Jun Yong as Pete shook his head and turned back to the station, presumably to radio one of the other rangers. As he did, Heath said in a low tone, "Are you fine from here or would you feel safer if I brought you home?"
Well that... was depressing to think about. All those people, suddenly gone and all that was left of them were their mangled corpses. He was relieved he didn't happen upon them. Without even knowing what the scene looked like, he imagined it... would have been a huge trigger, and that wasn't something he wanted to deal with.
Uncomfortable merely by the thought, he shivered.
Jun Yong shook his head. "I'll be fine getting home on my own." he glanced over at Heath, "And if you really wanna try catching a feral I won't mind helping." They could certainly think of some way for it to work, and Jun Yong would be putting his barriers to good use, he thought.
"I do," he said. He was serious about catching a feral and understanding what was happening. Heath didn't want to jump to conclusions and he surely didn't want to go around murdering innocent people. Heath wasn't even into the revenge fantasy thing; he just wanted to find out what happened, get some type of justice for those lives that were lost so cruelly. Heath glanced in the direction of the older ranger and then looked back at Jun Yong.
"We'll meet here tomorrow afternoon? Pete won't be here. Shouldn't be, anyway. And it'll be light so we'll be able to see better."