Fiction on Odyssey: The Good Doctor Finale
Sitting in a dank jail cell, the Good Doctor relinquishes control over to the upcoming full moon.
For the best experience, read part one, part two, and part three.
Where we last left off, the Good Doctor tested another cure on the sheriff's wife, whom he changed into a werewolf. Another experiment failed, he tested the sheriff next, whom the Good Doctor believed was bitten by his wife. Little did the Good Doctor know it was all a ruse when the sheriff's deputy knocked the daylights out of him.
The Good Doctor now sits in a dank jail cell with the night of full moon approaching.
The Good Doctor Finale by Kim Robinson
I woke up in a dank holding cell at the sheriff's station. My wrists were burning. I looked down and saw silver cuffs around my wrist. Nonlethal, but did exactly speak "quality of life."
"Rise n' Shine Doc'," I heard the cheery tone of the sheriff. He leaned his shoulder on the bars of my cell.
"You know, I thought you were a witch after the cobbler's boy—a werewolf—was ill after visiting you. Still, I held my tongue because I am a man of reason. Then my dear wife comes to me, saying she's a werewolf. I thought she was doing that for shits and giggles until she showed me that nasty bite mark. Then, she told me not to worry cause the good doctor was cookin' her up a mighty fine cure that was already working."
The sheriff then said his bloodied shoulder was nothing but a scratch from his wife as he forced her into the closet. Then he said the doc' knew the rest of the story.
I merely stared. "I was trying to find a cure, so I can cure myself—so I can cure ALL werewolves," I growled low and viciously.
"By turning others into beasts just like yourself? And don't think I didn't know that it was you all along." The sheriff shook his head. "There's no curing a beast like you—especially considering how many times you failed at finding a cure."
I went silent.
"We're keeping you in here, no meals. Think of it like a pre-punishment before we execute you."
-
The next week was awful. Every night, I thrashed my body against my iron prison and wailed through my barred window so that everyone could hear the pain I was going through—the pain they were causing me.
I fed on the rats that crawled on the ground the birds that flew in. They realized what I was doing and forced a muzzle on me.
Through the hunger and curdling hatred, I thought about who was really at fault. At first, I blamed the cobbler's boy for putting me in this problem, to begin with. But it wasn't entirely his fault; he lost control against a full moon.
It was the village's fault for pushing him to secrecy. If the village wasn't quick to burn and hang werewolves, and instead helped them, none of this would've happened. The cobbler's boy wouldn't have bitten me if he had the support of the village. I wouldn't have resorted to this madness if I had the support of the village.
I peered up. Sunset. It was the night before my execution. By my count, tonight was the night of the full moon. I'm probably the only one who knows because I'm smart enough to pay attention.
If it was the support of the village I needed, then it was the support of the village I'll get.
-
As the full moon begun, so too did my full transformation.
The bones in my face and limbs shifted and stretched, growing longer. My face stretched; I felt it tear in places as it couldn't contain the maw. The muzzle's belt snapped. I was finally able to breathe a heavy breath.
My mouth filled the with sharper, thicker teeth. I felt my jaw curve and stretch with my snout.
The skin around my nails ruptured as claws pierced out of them...
Finally, my entire body felt like it was set aflame. Fur grew all over, bursting at the seems. I claw at my clothes to relieve the suffocating tension.
I couldn't contain it anymore. I let out a scream that formed into a howl.
A puddle from a recent rainstorm was all the reflection I had. I looked down and saw I had a face and a mane of a wolf. The fur was damp from my blood--my body being torn apart to accommodate my new form.
-
The sheriff's deputy was the first to witness my change. He must've been sent by the sheriff to investigate the noise coming from the station. He didn't see me at first. It was too dark, after all, and the small window letting in the tiniest bit of moonlight was considered commodity enough.
A long, clawed hand—bigger than a man's—grabbed him by the wrist and pulled his arm into the cell. The deputy felt a chunk of his forearm tearing away.
He reeled back after being released
I stepped into the lit part of my cell.
I grew twice my size with a snout and mane of a wolf. The muzzle hung from my neck as it couldn't hold back my elongated face.
Any conscious part of me wasn't present. But the beast understood my mission
"You'll burn," the beast said. My deformed maw twisted the words into low, barely understandable growls. "I can stop it. Help me."
He was hesitant, almost quick to rebel. But his gaze lowered when he realized how screwed he was without the beast's help. He released me from my prison and shackles.
I waited until my new partner changed. He wasn't quite my size given his first transformation. Still, he was wild, almost uncontrollable, so I beat him until he was disciplined—until he respected me enough to follow me.
I personally lead our invasion of the village, turning each villager with a single bite. No one could get away or fight back because among everyone, turned or not, I was clearly stronger and faster and twice their size.
Soon, the village was overpowered by the wolves I lead.
One person remained—the sheriff. Instead of changing him, I fed him to wolves.
Now, there was nothing getting in the way of my search for the cure. If they wanted to be cured, they'd have no choice but to be compliant. And if all else failed, I could always find another village.
