![Chelsea: “He’s good! I said he can play for another 15 minutes before bed. Did you need to talk to him?” Maddoc, smiling: “Nah. Nah, just making sure he’s not blowing off his homework.” Chelsea: “You think I’d let him? C’mon, Mads. He actually likes school. I dunno where he got that from ‘cause it definitely wasn’t either of us.” Maddoc laughs. “While I’ve got you…” Chelsea: “Oh, here we go.” Maddoc: “Shaddup. Do you think you can pick up any patrols?” Chelsea, confused: “That’s random. Sorry babe, I’ve got two weddings this month & they both want to do hair and makeup trials this same week. I’ve gotta sleep some time. Why? [Playful] You trying to be up late with somebody?” Maddoc, serious: “Not exactly. One of the strays under us got himself infected and took out two civilians.” Chelsea, sober: “Oh, Maddoc- shit. That’s fucked.” Maddoc: “Yeah. The Wolfes are gonna have a field day, so I need to show we’re putting our strongest fighters on the streets & that’d be you…” He pulls a real bowie knife out of a holster belted to his waist. Its hilt is roughly forged and studded with stones just like Ashley’s dagger. He fidgets with it, habitually rolling it over his hand in a knife trick. Maddoc: “But I knew it was a long shot-” Chelsea: “No. I’m still a Lovell. I can do a couple, at least.” Maddoc: “I owe you. That just leaves who’s gonna look after Samson- [Emphatically] Not your sister-” Chelsea: “Mads, he’s 15, not 5. He can look after himself for a few nights.” Maddoc grabs the knife’s hilt and glares at his phone, yelling enough to reveal a tongue piercing. “The fuck he can! Kid can’t even drive yet, what would he do in an emergency?” Chelsea: “We’re werewolves. We are the emergency. If you’re that worried, you could take him with-” Maddoc, interrupting: “No.” Chelsea: “Well he asks me about it all the time and I’m running out of excuses! He’s the same age you were when your dad started taking you along.” Maddoc: “I know. Just- a potential outbreak isn’t the time.”](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:s2ajhctnddbfjwebtjushib6/bafkreianl54kcszxcasweawckftxadcwcv24cr4i5nwf2yhnbuylghzz64)
Chelsea: “He’s good! I said he can play for another 15 minutes before bed. Did you need to talk to him?” Maddoc, smiling: “Nah. Nah, just making sure he’s not blowing off his homework.” Chelsea: “You think I’d let him? C’mon, Mads. He actually likes school. I dunno where he got that from ‘cause it definitely wasn’t either of us.” Maddoc laughs. “While I’ve got you…” Chelsea: “Oh, here we go.” Maddoc: “Shaddup. Do you think you can pick up any patrols?” Chelsea, confused: “That’s random. Sorry babe, I’ve got two weddings this month & they both want to do hair and makeup trials this same week. I’ve gotta sleep some time. Why? [Playful] You trying to be up late with somebody?” Maddoc, serious: “Not exactly. One of the strays under us got himself infected and took out two civilians.” Chelsea, sober: “Oh, Maddoc- shit. That’s fucked.” Maddoc: “Yeah. The Wolfes are gonna have a field day, so I need to show we’re putting our strongest fighters on the streets & that’d be you…” He pulls a real bowie knife out of a holster belted to his waist. Its hilt is roughly forged and studded with stones just like Ashley’s dagger. He fidgets with it, habitually rolling it over his hand in a knife trick. Maddoc: “But I knew it was a long shot-” Chelsea: “No. I’m still a Lovell. I can do a couple, at least.” Maddoc: “I owe you. That just leaves who’s gonna look after Samson- [Emphatically] Not your sister-” Chelsea: “Mads, he’s 15, not 5. He can look after himself for a few nights.” Maddoc grabs the knife’s hilt and glares at his phone, yelling enough to reveal a tongue piercing. “The fuck he can! Kid can’t even drive yet, what would he do in an emergency?” Chelsea: “We’re werewolves. We are the emergency. If you’re that worried, you could take him with-” Maddoc, interrupting: “No.” Chelsea: “Well he asks me about it all the time and I’m running out of excuses! He’s the same age you were when your dad started taking you along.” Maddoc: “I know. Just- a potential outbreak isn’t the time.”
Maddoc: “He should focus on school for now.” Chelsea: “Sure, but if you want him to take over from you some day-” Their conversation is interrupted by someone out of view screaming “Help me!” Maddoc snaps to look over his shoulder at the sound, the panel splashed into stark blue shadows against a bright red backdrop to emphasise the scene. Maddoc moves quickly in the direction of the sound but stops. Something gives him pause despite the continued pleas for help happening around him. Chelsea: “Maddoc?? What was that? You good?” Maddoc, face flat: “Hey, I’m gonna call you back, Chels.” Chelsea: “Huh? Okay-” Maddoc hangs up.
Maddoc arrives on a potentially horrific scene, his feet (in slide sandals) visible in the foreground atop a roof wall. Below him in a small paved courtyard between buildings, illuminated by a street lamp, a woman cowers in fear against a brick wall, blocked in by a looming transformed werewolf. The werewolf is enormous, about as big as a car, its mouth hanging open as it growls and advances on the woman, who was the one screaming for help. “Stop it! Please! I’m sorry- just get away from me!” Both the woman and werewolf notices Maddoc and turns to him. The woman, with a scrappy but on-trend brown mullet and red lipstick, pleads, “Oh thank God- please! Help me! This guy was f-following me, and then turned into this- thing- please!” Maddoc does not intervene. Instead he plops himself to sit on the wall he was standing on, elbows resting on his knees, observing the two placidly. The werewolf growls and the woman can only stare at Maddoc in wide-eyed shock, tears running her mascara. “Hey- you? No! Please! I’ll do anything you want, please just- I’m begging you, help me! I don’t want to die!” Maddoc, unimpressed, makes a pulling gesture away from his left ear piercing. “Okay? So? Pull your pin and deal with him yourself?”
The woman looks up at Maddoc in shock and confusion as he keeps talking with a grin. “Sachets are a great way to null your scent. Then there’s no way I’d know you’re a wolf, right?” Her expression drops into bored neutrality. Maddoc: “Except they hide your scent, full stop. And when your ears say one thing but your nose says another, you know somebody’s out late playing tricks.” An extreme closeup on Maddoc’s eyes cast into shadow by the street lamp contrasts with a closeup on the woman’s lips bent into a wry smile. Maddoc: “How stupid do you think I am?” On the rooftop behind Maddoc, two enormous werewolf forms emerge from the shadows, their eyes glinting in the dark. Maddoc cocks his head to peer at them over his shoulder, emotionless. Woman, from below: “Pretty stupid.” Text: “Part 2 End.”
Silver & Iron: Part Two
Pages 51/51
[PART TWO END]
![zackeryatlas 12h
The degradation of society:
1. Celebrating the k!lling of a CEO
2. Cheering on warehouse arsons
3. Making heroes out of people who attempt political violence
You can be outraged at the system and still not glorify violence. These aren't wins. This is a society losing its moral compass.
[Coming from a liberal btw]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:lraekf2qeri6d4aai2mljla2/bafkreieu2zayd5ln2g2k6c4pz6w3subc2kg56msslvqpxnfusq6xneosly)
