Metanoia; The Hybrid
CHAPTER 23: IN THE BACKGROUND OF GARA'S MIND.

Gara and the others in the position immediately prepared in case something happened. "Don't move a single bit, even if you move your eyes" Gara ordered.

But Edward moved his bead to see Gara because he heard that. Just then, the Psychophagos in front of him let out a very noisy voice. He shouted, then moved quickly towards Edward and Selena.

From different directions, Gara is faster than Psychophagos's movement. When both hands were about to reach Edward and Selena, Gara hit the body of Psychophagos strongly, to the point of falling away.

"Why are you silent? Run away!" Jerky Gara.

The frightened Edward ran to the left forest with Selena, while Gara ran behind him.

"They have a good listener, and better eyesight. They will know their prey when it moves even a little. There was a big tree near the lake, not far from where we were running. I want Edward and Selena to go straight to that big tree, and get on top of it, try not to make such a big sound. I'm going to lure this Psychophagos towards Chlea. Chlea, get ready to howl and run around the lake, I hear Beta has speed, I entrust it to you Chlea" explained Gara.

Chlea who was ready for the position simply nodded, "Then, what's after?"

"After Psychophagos convulsed you, Ardan and Jack ran away behind Psychophagos to the marked tree. Come with Edward and Selena. After you've climbed the lake, I'll howl and lure him into chasing me. Then, you quickly ran to the tree. Understand everything?"

"understand."

After almost heading towards the large tree that was marked Gara, he dashed out the round path of the lake. Because of fishing the creature out of line to decide its target which was originally fixed on Edward and Selena. Gara returned to the round path of the lake to get to the position Chlea is located.

"Chlea, get ready to howl."

For fishing Psychophagos right towards Chlea. Just then, Chlea howled loudly, until Psychophagus lost his focus on Gara. The creature screamed again, then he chased after Chlea quickly. Chlea immediately ran as Gara had ordered.

Gara, meanwhile, hints at Ardan and Jack to come running behind Psychophagos.

"The two of you, don't make a sound, or you won't survive" Gara recalled as she adjusted her breathing.

After reaching the tree, Ardan and Jack climbed on top one by one. Chlea again circled the lake, heading for Gara's position as planned. At that moment, because of howling. The sound of his howling had made Chlea and the others shocked. Similarly, Psychophagos that look very disturbed. He shouted even louder, like intentionally letting Chlea run away just like that.

"Run Chlea" said Gara.

The psychophagus chased after Gara, as if hunting him very brutally. Gara ran into the forest, leaving the area open.

Occasionally, Psychophagus uses his tail to stop Gara's footsteps, by attacking her from above. But the attacks failed.

"I want to know what you're soaking in your prey" said Gara while suddenly changing the direction of his run. Because of this, Psychophagos lost control and hit a tree very hard.

He screamed again. His voice was very disturbing to Gara and the others. Even Gara fell down because he could not hear his voice. The opportunity was taken by Psychophagos. The creature slashed the tree trunk that hit it earlier, lifted it as high as possible and threw it at the sad Gara far away from him.

"The way! Be careful!" Jack's Sweats.

Therefore, Gara refocused and realized a tree trunk was approaching him. Because it was about to dodge, but the speed of the tree could not be stopped. The tree trunk hit Gara hard. That caused Gara to crash.

Psychophagos yelled again, making Gara squirm because he was really disturbed. He ran up to Gara and attacked him using his sharp tail. However, Gara managed to dodge his attack. But luck is not forever. Psychophagos holds one leg with his leg. With his hands and claws, he restrains Gara's back.

The creature really did not want to let go of Gara, even he stuck his nails on Gara's back. The growl of Gara filled the whole forest, making the birds of the tree fly because of it.

In the training area, Chairoz realized something from afar because of the flying birds. He heard the familiar snarl.

"One of the Lycanthrope clan was injured, it was a growl of pain" Samuel said.

"Who's hurt?" Ask Arthur.

"I don't know for sure, my vision of the Lycanthrope area is weakened. Either because it is located very far away, or because the area is very privacy. They seem to disappear all of a sudden"

"When Psychophagos is deeply disturbed or vengeful on his prey, he usually marks the area into his dominion, until the prey falls on his hands. Most of the areas that were marked could not be seen by outsiders, such as disappearing into different realms. Unless the Psychophagos is already getting its prey, or the Psychophagos is being defeated" explains Arthur.

Harold let out a light from his head. The light he accidentally dropped on the ground, and just like that the light formed the scheme of the forest where the disciples were training. Students are marked by small lights. "Just relax, if their practice area was indeed made invisible to outsiders, the disciples could still be tracked by this map. And sure enough, the Mycanthrope clan's exercise area disappeared" Harold said.

"The way! Hang on. I'll help you!" Ardan is getting ready to come down from the tree.

"Don't do that!" Gara's Order.

"Are you crazy? You can't even move because of the claws" Edward said.

"He's setting us up. Another weapon besides the tail is its sound. If one of you comes down, he'll be able to hear the sound of your feet touching the ground, and then he'll yell and make you guys faint of focus."

"Teacher says he's not smart, but why would he make that plan?" Ask Jack.

"Indeed, he's not smart."

The four wolves were shocked. "You mean?" Edward asked.

"He knew that my legs and hands could have attacked him, so he held me back like this. And he held my back because he knew I could break free. But he forgot my tail."

"Right, Alpha's tail is very strong!" Chlea.

Psychophagos brought his face closer to Gara. He opened the mouth of the skeleton, and could clearly see Psychophagos shaped black energy with white eyes lit up like light.

Psychophagos absorbs Gara's soul because Gara is silent. For growling, enduring the pain of the Psychophagous act. Because he was barely conscious, because in his mind there was something. Fell through pieces that were very foreign to him. He saw a beautiful woman in an ordinary wooden house. The woman was sitting on a chair, and on her lap a boy was asleep.

Then, it flashed again, the boy was still asleep on his lap, with a scratch wound on the boy's back. It's getting bigger, like a teenager.

Then, it flashed again, the boy became an adult, also still asleep on his lap. But the beautiful woman no longer moved her hand to rub the boy's head. That woman is dead.

"SKELE, AWAKE!"

The voice came suddenly to Gara's mind. It was Edward's voice, which he was very familiar with. Because he immediately woke up and wagged his tail firmly to the abdomen Psychophagos. Luckily, because the flutter makes Psychophagos lost focus to absorb the soul Gara.

Because he took the opportunity, he forced his body to move and brushed off the hand of Psychophagos who was holding him. After his hand was freed, Gara quickly attacked the hand of Psychophagos who was clutching his back. His nails were forcibly pulled, making a huge scratch on Gara's back. He even went back to snarling.

Gara immediately got up and attacked Psychophagos. For biting his leg and levitating Psychophagos. He slammed Psychophagos into a tree, until it broke.

As Gara was about to return to attack Psychophagus, Jack stopped Gara, "Stop Gara, this is your chance to get up the tree, while he can't move, because his leg is badly injured!"

The conscious ones finally ran towards the tree where they were hiding. He quickly climbed the tree while enduring the pain on his back. After reaching the top, Gara transformed himself into a human.

"Hey-"

Apparently, after returning to human form, his body is still covered with wolf fur.

"It turns out it could be like that" Chlea said. He also transformed himself. So too with the others.

"You're Gara, let me cover" Selena pulled out her waist bag, pulled out a bandage and approached Gara. Selena also began to give bandages around Gara's body, while she wore her waist bag.

Chlea who saw Gara exhausted and endured her pain, immediately said, "It's all your fault, Edward!"

Edward was silent at first, but he also uttered his sentence, "You blame me?!"

Jack interjected, "If you listen to Gara, this won't happen. The wound must have been painful."

"Selena could be in danger!"

"You don't even feel guilty!" Jack pushed Edward's body until he fell. Disgusted by Jack's treatment, he wakes up and hits his face until Jack's balance falls, almost falling from a tree if Chlea does not hold him.

"You screwed up, Edward" said Chlea to take Edward seriously.

"What"

"Hey, stop. That thing can know our hiding place if you sound like that" Gara recalled.

"But luckily I was able to wake you up" Edward said.

Gara looked at Edward, "Thank you."

Edward turned his face away, "No need to thank." He said while hiding his smile, actually Edward was happy because he thanked him, only he did not want to because he thought Edward really cared about him.

"A terrible soul-eating psychophagos, how does it feel? You didn't lose half your soul, did you?" Jack enthusiastic.

"You're asking a lot" Chlea said.

"There was actually something when Psychophagos absorbed my soul earlier" Gara said while watching Psychophagos begin to try to wake up.

"Something what?" Ask Selena.

"It feels like my body is numb. I can't think clearly. However, something came to my mind. First I looked like an old wooden house, inside was a beautiful woman sitting on a chair. On his lap was a little boy sleeping. Then I went back to seeing that sight. Surprisingly, the second one is different. The boy was a teenager, and he was seriously injured. Then I saw that sight again. The third one is dead. There was a lot of blood coming out of his mouth. And the boy, it's grown up."

"The psychophagos may have eaten the soul of the beautiful woman, and the memory you accidentally knew when she absorbed your soul" Chlea concluded.

"They store memories when they... eat someone's soul?" Ask seriously.

"I'm not sure, I just summed it up."

"Maybe he saw your future?" This time Jack spoke.

"No way that woman is so foreign to me."

"Maybe in the future you meet that woman, right? But, do you know the man's face?" Ask Chlea.

Because she shook her head, "She does have black hair, but it's a little different from me. His hair was long and bumpy. As for his face, I did not see him from the beginning. That sight, as if he were behind me."

"You also don't know how you look in the future, you could change your hairstyle" Edward said. That made Gara quiet.

There was only one thing Gara did not tell him, he was intentional, because he did not want others to know. When the boy was an adult, he had an indistinct burn on his back. Gara does not want others to worry about him if indeed it is the future of Gara.

The burn looks very serious, and the shape resembles the previous Hybrid symbol, as people say.