You wanted to know what happened to the Enid of this universe and the answer is still horror genre oriented. So Warnings regarding body horror and suicide. Tread carefully.
Mosaic artwork comes from HERE.
"What happened to my local counterpart?"
The question hung in the air, followed by a deep silence in which Agent A and Yoko exchanged glances again, once more in silent conversation, their eyes darting between them and Enid as if undecided as to how to respond. The she-wolf noticed their discomfort and immediately began to retract her question.
"Ah... but... well, you don't need to answer if you don't want to, it's obviously somewhat uncomfortable and the truth is that I wasn't very tactful in asking that question," the werewolf said, gesticulating visibly nervous.
Wednesday laid a hand on her shoulder, instantly reassuring her, "Even if being abrupt, I think you have a right to ask that question, mia lupa."
"And if you think you've been tactless, be thankful it wasn't me asking," Saint-Clair interjected before returning her attention to the adult couple, "But seriously, what the fuck happened to the local Enid?"
Agent A sighed, "It's not a pleasant story..."
"No shit Sherlock," Saint-Clair continued, "You live in a world that's like a theme park of every possible apocalypse, it takes nothing to imagine like a hundred horrible things that could have happened."
"We may assume she's dead, right?" added Theo, in a serious voice.
"God, it's a little trippy to think of myself as dead," Enid mused.
"The short story is... yes, I'm afraid Enid is no longer with us," Yoko replied. The vampire's voice trembled slightly toward the end of the sentence, as if it took a visible effort for her to continue. Agent A took her hand, squeezing it gently.
"The longer story... well, it has to do with the Third Lament Configuration," Agent A continued, "And what it did to the lycanthropes."
This time it was Dora who straightened up in the chair, back upright and paying attention, "What happened to the lycanthropes?"
"There are currently only about one hundred and two werewolves in this sanctuary," Yoko explained, "Estimated figures are that in all of North America there should be no more than seven hundred lycanthropes alive."
Enid's eyes widened in alarm. So few! The lycanthropic population of the USA in her world was not the most abundant but they still numbered approximately one million individuals. That there were not even a thousand....
"We don't have any numbers on what it's like in other possible survivor hubs in the rest of the world," Agent A continued, "But there's nothing to indicate the situation is much different."
"With everything that has happened all the minority groups must have been monstrously reduced and some even disappeared, but from the way you express yourselves something exceptional occurred in this case due to that third apocalyptic event," Wednesday pointed out, her brow furrowed trying to discern what might have happened.
Agent A nodded, "It was a manifestation of Old Gods. One of them was the entity officially designated as Selene."
"Or Khonsu. Amesemi, Tecciztecatl, Muuya, Luna, Chang Xi, Tsukuyomi, Mehnot... hundreds of different names that varied depending on the listener. But all belonging to lunar deities," said Yoko, "And of course, that monster had something to do with the moon."
"The moment it manifested its physical presence in the world, the population of werewolves across the globe fell into a berserker state. Exacerbated violence, uncontrolled instincts... spontaneous transformations. Massacres and slaughter occurred everywhere in places that were thought to be safe havens or secure locations," Agent A explained, "There were a tiny percentage that were able to resist their influence, or others that were non-lethally reduced, but they were the exception to the new norm."
"Basically, every lycanthrope became overnight the bloodthirsty beast of the old racist normie stories," Yoko continued, "And it was worse for the late bloomers."
"Oh no," Enid whispered.
"Our Enid... she never managed to transform. But that didn't stop her from becoming a vital agent of the Nevermore Society," Yoko said, "And at first it seemed that she and the few confirmed cases of late bloomers among the lycanthrope community were safe from Selene's influence."
"But in reality it was just taking longer. She had been having nightmares the previous weeks but we foolishly believed it was from all the stress, all the work and rescue operations," said Agent A, "We didn't think for a moment that they were a prelude to something worse, and she always managed to put on a brave face. And on a mission to secure the relocation of a group of refugees..."
§§§
They were securing the last transport when something crackled. The vertebrae in her back, along with a sensation of pain as if a thousand hot needles had emerged beneath her epidermis. Enid Sinclair fell with a strangled scream and the only thing keeping her from hitting the ground was Wednesday, Agent A, holding her down.
"Enid!"
"Weds! It hurts!" the young lycanthrope screamed, her eyes watering bloody red tears. She tried to speak again but only a cry of pain and terror escaped her throat revealing unnaturally sharp teeth as every muscle in her body began to tense.
Agent A noticed how Enid's left arm that she held as she tried to help her up began to swell grotesquely, tearing the fabric of the protective uniform. Violent convulsions shook the lycanthrope's body with unusual force, throwing Agent A to the ground. The soldiers of the squad accompanying them had realized what was happening and readied their weaponry.
"Don't shoot!" shouted Agent A.
"But ma'am..."
"I said don't shoot! If any of your fingers so much as graze the triggers I'll strangle you with your own entrails!"
The Addams stood up, approaching Enid. The lycanthrope had fallen to her knees on the ground, unable to lift the weight of a left arm almost as large as her own torso and covered in patches of brownish fur appearing irregularly in what looked like lumps and growths on reddened skin.
"W... Weds..." croaked Enid, turning her head. Her teeth were too big for her mouth and cut her lips. Her eyes had turned milky white. She let out a whimper as her back arched again with a painful crunch. Agent A watched as the entire mass of Enid's body seemed to inflate and deflate, limbs growing out of control and out of sync, her entire body increasing in size but in a way that made the most brutal lycanthropic transformation seem pleasant in comparison.
Bits of bone broke the skin on arms and legs, the torso stretched grotesquely with a sickening noise as the muscle mass grew but the skin over it did not, tearing.
Something similar and even more horrible happened to the face. Enid's skull changed to give shape to a muzzle... but the changes occurred only in her skull. Neither the skin nor the muscles of the face changed with it, and they were torn and split in half, revealing the elongated bone. The result was grotesque, as if a partially transformed Enid was wearing a lupine mask of blood-soaked bone. The eyes had sunk into their sockets leaving only two empty holes and something resembling antlers was beginning to emerge on her skull.
"Enid...," began Agent A, "Enid, I know you're still there...I know you can hear me...Cara mia, answer me, please."
What escaped Enid Sinclair's throat in response was a bellow that sounded like the echo of hundreds of dying souls.
"Ma'am, we must open fire!" one of the soldiers exclaimed, switching from standard ammunition to silver nitrate capsule rounds.
"I said no...!", Agent A began to order when she was interrupted by having to dodge a claw by the mutated Enid. The lycanthrope's claws had grown out of proportion, taking up the space of her fingers almost entirely in her hand.
"Enid!"
Before the transformed beast that was her beloved could pounce on her and the soldiers could react, a mass of shadows rammed into the creature, knocking her off balance and causing her to stumble back a few steps. Yoko materialized on Enid's back, holding her by the scruff of the neck in a headlock.
"Wolfie, react! Weds is right, we know you're still in there! You're stronger than this!"
The only reaction from the transformed Enid was to reach her arms back, grab Yoko, and pull her off of her by throwing the vampire against the group of soldiers.
Agent A unsheathed a pair of silver daggers, her face turned into a cold mask of horror barely held in place by her fierce self-control.
"Enid!" she shouted once more. The response she received was the beast lunging at her and the sound of gunfire.
§§§
"The soldiers opened fire, making her stop dead in her tracks and surely saving my life," narrated Agent A, "But they didn't kill her, despite the silver nitrate ammunition."
"Her body kept mutating and growing. The bullets damaged her, but her flesh shielded her, preventing them from reaching vulnerable spots and organs. The poisoning would have killed her eventually but not before tearing us all apart," Yoko said.
"But we were right. She was still there. I shouted her name one last time and I know I got through to her this once because of what she did next," Agent A said.
"What did she do?" asked Enid in a quiet, trembling voice, trying to hold back tears.
"She rammed into the soldiers she had thrown me against, throwing them and me into the air once more. But she picked up one of their rifles...and with what little maneuverability she retained in her hands, she stuck the barrel of the gun in her mouth. And fired," Yoko explained.
"She emptied an entire magazine of ammo with silver nitrate straight into her brain," said Agent A, "She died on the spot. When she fell to the ground I saw her eyes turn blue again... The only thing I remember after that is hearing a scream. I thought it was one of the civilians on the transport who had not yet departed, but then I realized it was me. It was me who was screaming."
There was silence in the room again, broken only by the almost inaudible murmurs of Saint-Clair repeating "σκατά" continuously as Woe rested a hand on her back. Enid had put her hands to her mouth, holding back sobs as Wednesday hugged her gently. Theo and Dora exchanged a saddened and unsure look, not quite certain what to do while feeling a lump in their throats. Pup watched everything with an expression of disconsolate sadness, clutching one of Taylor's hands tightly and without realizing it. The Hyde's attention was focused entirely on her.
"I'm... I'm sorry," Enid began to say, "I shouldn't... I shouldn't have asked..."
"Uh, uh... shsss, shsss… Easy," said Agent A, "You have nothing to apologize for."
Yoko left her position near the bar cabinet and advanced next to Enid's chair, kneeling down in front of the she-wolf and taking one of her hands, looking at her and Wednesday, "It's okay. It's painful to remember, but it's okay. We always have her in our memories and try to remember the best times. You didn't know any of this and as your Weds said, both you and your other variant present had a right to know what happened."
"Still, I'm sorry," Enid repeated.
"And we are thankful to you," the vampire replied, looking at Enid and then at Saint-Clair, "May I give you both a hug?"
Enid nodded and rose from her chair. Saint-Clair did the same, moving toward the other two almost at a run. Yoko stood up and wrapped her arms around them both, the three of them melding in an embrace.
"I know the two of you aren't her, but it comforts me to think that somewhere our beloved has managed to be happy," the vampire said, shooting a glance at Wednesday and Woe, "Take good care of them, okay?"
"With our lives," Wednesday replied.
"And forever," Woe added, nodding.
Something seemed to change again in the mood after that. The silence in the moments that followed was no longer oppressive and uncomfortable, and a sense of serenity seemed to have taken over the atmosphere of the place, sweeping away the sadness of a few moments before.
Serenity broken by a timid throat coughing.
Everyone's attention turned to the person responsible. Dora, with a slightly apprehensive expression but the beginnings of a mischievous smile on her face as she looked at Yoko, "Sorry for the interruption, but I couldn't help but notice that... well, you said 'our beloved', didn't you? Aren't you two married?"
"Oh," the vampire said, starting to rub the back of her neck, "Well yes, we didn't explain that part..."
"Yoko and I are widows," said Agent A, "Enid was the wife of both of us, the three of us were together."
"Oh!" Enid said, surprised, trying to take in the concept.
"Ha!" laughed Saint-Clair before turning to look at her girlfriend, "Willa?"
Woe nodded, her expression thoughtful, "Mmm, I suppose when we get back home we could look for another creature of the night to form a lascivious triumvirate."
"Please Woe, don't use expressions like lascivious triumvirate," Enid sighed before shooting an apologetic look at the vampire, "I'm sorry... it's just... My Yoko is my best friend, but nope, not in a million years. She’s like a sister."
"I subscribe to that. While I've learned to tolerate and even appreciate the leech, such an arrangement would end up with stakes through the heart and ripped necks," Wednesday added, trying to contain a twitch in her eye. She wouldn't admit it in a million years, but Yoko had also become something like a sibling figure to her. An annoying sister who exacerbated her homicidal instincts, mind you.
"And that's not even taking into account what would happen with Divina," said Enid, "Ouch."
"Wait, Divina? The Yoko of your reality is with Divina Watson?" asked Yoko, with an incredulous smile.
"Uh... yeah, why?" Enid replied.
"Well, it's just that aside from being my high school ex, she's currently Divina Ottinger."
"Shut the front door! You have to tell me more about that!" said Enid, unconsciously slipping into her gossip mode that had made her a veritable fountain of insider intelligence at Nevermore.
But before the vampire or anyone else could respond, the door to the room opened with thunderous noise, letting in a towering female figure dressed in a sober military officer's uniform. Short platinum blonde hair topped a head with a face marked by sternness and an irritated glint in her eyes as she rested her gaze on the local Wednesday and Yoko.
"Agent Addams! Agent Tanaka! Are you aware of the breach of procedure you have incurred!?"
Agent A merely rolled her eyes, not at all disguising her own annoyance.
"Good morning to you as well, Director Weems."
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