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Were-Bovidae

The Bull Inside

By Ryan and LeannPublished 3 years ago 8 min read
2

Fist and jaw clenched, Taura tried to keep the bull inside tamed. Her wrist burned as the eyes of her marking started bursting with rage.

Taura Bovine wasn't your typical girl with anger issues. She had a secret and letting it out could be deadly. It didn't help that she had limited knowledge about her heritage or what she was actually capable of. All she had was an old book, the frayed pages barely held together by the tethered binding. She never realized the importance of the book her grandmother gave her, until it was too late....

The origin of Were-Bovidae may date back as early as 15000 BC. They are most well known for their participation in the Roman Empire and were thought to be destroyed in the collapse. While it was believed total destruction would lead to their extinction, a few were able to escape and survive. Seeking refuge in the mid-western United States, most acquired farms, with a surplus of acreage, to roam free and remain isolated for privacy. They are able to blend in well with your typical human, as long as they are able to control their rage and tame the bull inside. It is easiest to identify a were-bovidae during puberty, when they are approaching their first transformation; a newly transformed bovidae is extremely unstable and dangerous. Adult bovidae are their strongest during times of fertility but are also at risk of losing their humanity until an offspring is conceived.

Taura took a deep breath as a tear escaped her eye and made its way down her cheek. She knew all too well how dangerous and unstable she was; a discovery made at a devastating cost. Now as she started reading about who, or what, she is, her frustrations only escalated. It took all she had to hold herself together as her blood boiled through her veins. Not only did she lose the only person who could give her any of the answers she so desperately needed, but now she was also worried that she was going to lose herself. Why did she have to suffer this curse? Why did she have to face it alone?

As usual, the weather's mood and intensity seemed to align with Tauras emotions. The thunder was roaring loudly, the dark clouds pouring vigorously, the gale-force winds inciting chaos. Taura became skeptical of the irony; maybe it wasn't a coincidence after all.

Were-Bovidae usually have special abilities attuned to their element; the most powerful being a Taurus Earth. During the season of their constellation, their inner bull will try to seize control over the human in pursuit of a stronger connection to their element. While some are able to hold off the bull inside, it often leads to less control of their abilities and can cause local phenomenon and catastrophes associated with their element; hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, etc. that seem to happen with no known cause.

Taura shuddered. How many of these events could she have caused? She closed the book, knowing that if she read anymore, it would probably just trigger her to lose what little sense of control she felt she had left.

“You must accept the bull to understand the bull. Allow the human and bull to become one; that is the only way to fully access and control your power. Don't fight it, embrace it.”

Taura wasn't sure if she was dreaming or awake, but her grandmother's voice of wisdom was too prominent to ignore. She knew regardless of whether it was real or her imagination, that it was vital for her to listen. It was as if her spirit could sense these were the answers she was looking for. Her mind was spinning as she pondered the words over and over again. All this time she had been fighting the bull, trying to push it down and pretend it wasn't there. How could she accept the part of herself she hated most? How could she embrace the thing she so desperately resisted?

Her mind flashed back to the last time the bull came out…

“She is an abomination, a demon. She must be destroyed!” Taura didn't recognize the man shouting at her grandmother. She did her best to listen in without being noticed.

“She is a teenage girl. A special girl with special abilities. She cannot be destroyed! She must be tamed. She must accept her fate and pursue her destiny.” Her grandmothers usually gentle voice had a cold and stern tone she had never heard before.

“Her fate and destiny no longer exist! She is the last of her kind, to anyone's knowledge. There is no one to train her. There is no one to teach her the ways of her ancestors. As her abilities grow stronger, it will just lead to more destruction. She will lose all control and with no direction for her powers, she will lose herself. You must let her go while she can still be remembered for the sweet, human girl she has been. Her time has come, the risk is too high for her to remain alive.”

Her grandmother's eyes blared red, her nostrils flared as she ground her teeth. “She has me, she has the book. She has her intuition. She is a strong girl raised on good values and morals. She will not lose herself. She will win the battle and tame her bull. Once she does, she will be the light of hope this world so desperately needs.”

“You are deranged! You are too old and weak; you are not strong enough to protect her from herself. You are not strong enough to protect her from me. I was hoping you would be able to see reason. I hoped that you would do what is best to protect the world and the human race. You have clung too tightly to your perceived prophecy. I am truly sorry that my greatest ally has now become my greatest enemy” The man raised a gun, unlike any Taura had ever seen before, and aimed it at her grandmother.

The sight of her grandmother being threatened triggered Taura. Her body started to shake as the bull started to take over. Her blaring red eyes matched the marking on her wrist as she started transforming. Before she knew what was happening, she was standing in front of the man ready to charge.

“NO TAURA!” she vaguely heard her grandmother yell, but she couldn't listen. It was as if an earthquake suddenly erupted and the house began to shake; books, spices, knickknacks, falling all over.

The guy re-positioned the gun and now aimed it at Taura but before he could say or do anything, her grandmother had lunged at him in an attempt to disarm him and protect her. As she did, the gun went off. Her grandmother fell to the floor; limp, pale and covered in blood. Taura glanced at her grandmother's body, then fixed her menacing gaze on the man. Nothing could stop her now.

She snapped herself out of the memory just in time to prevent her from reliving the events that tormented her soul and made her feel like a monster. She did her best to calm herself down. She drew herself a bath and made a hot cup of chamomile tea, knowing that she had to slow down her mind to be able to think more clearly. The weather started to ease with the beat of her heart and her breathing relaxed.

Accept the bull to understand the bull. Become one. Access and control your power. Don't fight it, embrace it. The more she repeated the words, the more she believed them. She pushed away her fears and worries and tried to just be open; tried to just make sense of what they truly meant and how she could apply them.

She could feel her emotions rising again, but it was different this time. She was determined to let herself feel them, she was determined not to let them get the best of her but to make the best of them. Her wrist started to burn again, but this time it was more of a tingle with the absence of her heated rage. She completely cleared her mind and tried to just feel. As she did, she entered a state of tranquility. She felt like she was floating, like she was no longer part of the world, but she had also never felt more connected to it. She could feel all the energy around her and the more she embraced it, the more control she had. At first things seemed very still, but as Taura let herself become completely in tune with herself, she could feel the deepest parts of herself coming to the surface. Suddenly things started to become very clear. As she willingly let the bull coexist within her, it wasn't as much of a battle for control. She wasn't scared this time. She didn't feel like she was losing herself, she felt like she was becoming herself. What always felt like her weakness, was actually her strength.

Fantasy
2

About the Creator

Ryan and Leann

Engaged 6/11/2021

We are on a mission to pursue our passions and make the most out of life. Increasing creativity and imagination while improving our skills. Reading and writing has been an outlet and inspiration throughout our lives.

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