attn: Bar Fight / mention: Good as Hell

One last swing of the axe and Tyler was finished with his pile of wood. Pack life was something to get used to, but Tyler knew that with his wandering eye, he needed to be somewhere to belong. It wasn’t until later in life that he realized all his actions, everything he ever did, led to this point. They say hindsight is 20/20. They were so right. Who knew he was an untriggered werewolf when he was growing up? It was all so crystal clear now.

Tyler was still shirtless with the sweat glistening on his torso. Small branches of his ebony hair were matted with this perspiration on his forehead. He left the axe buried in a stump as he reached to wipe his forehead with this t-shirt that was lying nearby. There was enough wood there to last for a few days. Tyler already knew that this was one of his chores as part of the pack. He was glad this less glamorous side of pack life was finally over, at least for one day. The Lockwood Scion tossed the sweaty shirt over his shoulder. He was going to head back inside to kick back with a cold one in his own little cabin. He had deserved it after all he’d done today. He turned on his heels to start in a familiar direction.

A blood curdling scream tore through the Bayou interrupting the symphony of nature’s creatures. Tyler immediately turned his head back in the direction of where he’d been standing only moments before. Dropping his shirt to the ground, he immediately bolted for the direction of that scream without a second thought. His past as a star wide receiver for Mystic High school came back reflecting in the way he sprinted and how his muscles bulged when he ran. As a full fledged werewolf, he could run even faster, longer and harder than he did when he was a regular kid.

He reached a partial clearing that he easily wiped away with the movement of his right hand. “OH TYLER!” The girl who had brought him lemonade plus two more were actually crying. It didn’t dawn on him that these girls were hiding in this tidy little spot watching him split wood. That would be addressed later. He just needed to get to the bottom of this reaction by these girls. Surely the scream carried in the bayou and would be heard by others. There were some people they just didn’t need to have poking around in the bayou. Klaus would undoubtedly know where the Crescents were holed up, but staying hidden from both Klaus and Caroline was going to be the issue. A scream in the bayou was not going to help keep them hidden long.

“I’m here now girls. Calm down! Just tell me what’s happening, alright?” He held the arms of the redhead and made her look into his eyes. “What’s happening. What did you see?” He demanded firmly.

They were sobbing as they started motioning to an area off to the right side from where they currently stood. Tyler let the girl’s arms go. “Go back inside. You might want to find Hayley. I’ll go take a look.” He wasn’t afraid of anything. Tyler had been through so much pure crap in his life, nothing scared him anymore. He moved in the direction the girls pointed. Peeling back the underbrush he saw it. Immediately his heart sunk.

Lying there was obviously a Crescent in his wolf form. It was definitely a male wolf, so he knew that. He could also smell the familiarity of the wolf. He had been a Crescent. The Wolf, or what was lying there was in pieces. His head was severed and left approximately three inches away from the rest of his body. It looked as though his heart had been ripped from his body. It was lying near the torso with what looked like a big bite mark taken out of it. Someone had brutalized this wolf and it infuriated him. His fangs were bared and his eyes were golden. He didn’t smell a trap. He was just pretty certain this was just a message.

Tyler wasn’t sure who this young wolf had been. Hopefully Hayley would be able to find out if anyone was missing. This whole debacle starting with Klaus was enough to put him in a state of perpetual anger. He’d actually admired Klaus and was thankful to him when he’d made him a hybrid. When Tyler wouldn’t be a loyal soldier, Klaus turned it all around on him. He would despise and loathe everything Klaus stood for and everything he represented. Tyler had every right to be bitter. He wasn’t going to apologize to Klaus for anything.

If he could go back and change anything it was how he’d treated Caroline. It was his fault that she left him. It was his fault because he did hate Klaus more than he loved her. He drove her into his arms and he hated himself for it. This was his guilt and his alone. He had to carry it by himself since it was nobody’s fault but his own. He closed his amber hues and tried to calm his anger. This dead wolf deserved respect. He shoved his anger and tremendous guilt down into a tiny ball deep inside.

Tyler stood protectively over the spot where the slaughtered wolf lay. The girls would undoubtedly spread the word that a young wolf was dead. Once it was determined who this was, then the pack would mourn. In the meantime, Tyler had a job to do. He had to find out who was responsible for this and make them pay. His time at the Armory had made him quite coldly efficient as a killer. Maybe Alexandria St. John was good for something after all. Tyler opened his eyes once more with his eyes back to a normal warm chocolate. His fangs were retracted but he was still obviously enraged. The cold seething anger of Tyler Lockwood was something to be feared. He was going to take great joy in killing the murderer of his packmate. It was guaranteed.


 

Tyler Lockwood/Cerberus