EVERYONE: Biomagicka: The White Wolf

[yudgefudge]

Synopsis:
Jack's life was simple.
Then he got a voice in his head, an axe in his hand, an a week-long ultimatum to find the God of the Tundra's pet wolf.
And the worst part? He's not sure if he should.
Chapters:
1 2
Author's Notes: Welcome to the world of Biomagicka (biome, magick). A world where the biomes of the earth are personified as gods and goddesses. This story is in the likes of Percy Jackson and Harry Potter - action adventure deal. You can reply to this thread with your unending praise your reviews and criticism. I'll reply by editing the base post. I don't have a timetable for adding new chapters. They'll come whenever.

Spoiler: Chapter

ONE
I GET CHOSEN BY A MAN MADE OF ICE AND SNOW​

No.
Not now.

I hoped it wouldn’t happen. Not right now, while I was trying to do my math quiz.

But the shivers didn’t exactly have a timetable.

I felt the shiver at the base of my spine climb up the length of my back and spread through my shoulders. My teeth chattered, and I could feel myself shivering, even though I had my hoodie on. I needed to heat up.
I raised my hand.
“Mrs. Frisk?” I asked.
“Yes, Alvarez?” Mrs. Frisk replied, putting down her phone.
“Can you turn up the thermostat? I’m freezing.” I knew it didn't sound right - saying I was freezing on a Monday morning in June - but I literally was freezing.
“How?” Mrs. Frisk asked. I didn’t want to explain. Luckily, she still turned up the heat.
“Thank you ma’am.” I said politely, and turned back to the test. I let out a deep breath, trying to warm up, but it wasn’t working. I still felt like I was swimming in an Arctic pool. My hands felt colder than ever. Wait….no it couldn’t…
I looked at my pencil.

It was coated in a thin layer of ice.

“That’s new.” I said, squinting. Yep, that was ice all right. And it didn’t show any signs of melting. I was pretty mad. This was my only pencil and it decided to go popsicle. I did have my pen, but it was out of ink. Something was wrong. Usually the shivers only affected me. But today...it affected another object.
I kept writing. Luckily, ice doesn’t beat graphite, so I was able to finish the test. But something was up, and I needed to figure out what.

*******​

“Mrs. Frisk,” I said, while turning in my test paper. “Can I call my dad, please?”
Mrs. Frisk raised her eyebrows at me.
“Why, exactly?” She asked suspiciously.
“Because,” I hadn’t figured out a reason yet, so I made one up on the fly. “I left my math book at home.”
“You mean the math book sitting on your desk right now?” Mrs. Frisk looked past me.
I turned around. My math book was right there.
“My math textbook, ma’am.” I said quickly. My textbook wasn’t there.
She looked at me. She stared for a moment, and waved her hand.
“Go get your phone.”

I thanked her and walked to my backpack, and pulled out my cell phone. I unlocked it with a swipe and dialed Dad’s number, letting it ring as I walked out of homeroom.
“Come on Dad, pick up.” I said as I heard the line beep periodically. Then, I heard a click.
“I’m sorry Jacob - let me take this call - Oh, hey JJ!” Dad said on the other end of the line.
“Who’s Jacob?” I asked immediately.
“Just a friend of mine, JJ - why are you calling me? Aren’t you supposed to be in school right now?”
“Yes, I’m in school. But I have a problem.”
“What problem?” Dad asked concernedly.
“It happened again. The shivers.”
“Oh.” Dad sounded grim. “Was it like it usually is?”
“No. It was worse. And different. My pencil froze too.”
“That’s never happened before.”
“I know.”
“Do I need to pick you up?”
“Probably. But it’d look weird, since I told Mrs. Frisk you were bringing my math textbook.”
“You lied to your teacher?” Uh oh. He sounded angry.
“I just told a little fib.” I needed to save this. “Besides, its not like I could tell her the truth. I couldn’t go up to her like, ‘Hey, Mrs. Frisk, can I call my dad because my hands are frozen? Thanks!’, I had to lie Dad.”
“That’s fair. I’m coming for you now.” In the background, I heard, “Jacob, you come too.”
“Jacob doesn’t need to come.” I said, but it was futile, since my dad had already cut the line. I went back inside the class, and took my seat. I put my phone in my pocket, instead of returning to my bag, because I had a feeling I’d need it handy.

*******​

After fifteen boring minutes of science class, I heard my name on the intercom. My dad was here.
I stood up.
“Mr. Alvarez.” Our science teacher, Mrs. Seymour, said. “You cannot leave this class.”
“Uh, ma’am.” I was confused. “My dad is here. I need my math textbook.”
“Your math class has passed.” Mrs. Seymour said, her voice as tired as ever. “Therefore, you do not need your textbook anymore.”
I stopped. She had a point.
“Still, ma’am, I need to see my dad.” I said quickly.
“No. Sit down, please.” Mrs. Seymour said “please” with a strain.
“Ma’am, please.”
“No.”
“I need to leave.”
“Sit down, Mr. Alvarez.”

I sat down. The intercom went a second time, and I got a buzz on my cell phone.
I looked up at Mrs. Seymour, who was focused on the chalkboard.
I slipped my phone out of my pocket and dropped it on my lap. A text from my dad was on the lockscreen.

What are you waiting for?

A second text popped up.

Did you freeze in place?

I chuckled and looked up to Mrs. Seymour again. So far, so good.
I quickly unlocked the phone and shot a text back.

I’m fine. Mrs. Seymour won’t let me leave.

A few seconds later, a text came from him.

What? I’m coming to get you.

I sent a text back immediately.

Dad, no

There was silence for a minute.
Then, he sent something back.

Too late, look up.

I looked up at the door, through the small window in it, I saw my dad, smiling through the glass.
“Mrs. Seymour?” Dad asked, opening the door.
Mrs. Seymour’s mood changed instantly. “Oh, Michael!” She threw herself on Dad.

Ew.

“Judith.” Dad said gratingly.
“Have you come for your son? I was just about to send him off - but I needed to see you first!”
Dad looked at me. I gave him a, bunch of crap, look, and he returned it.
Dad pushed her off.
“Come on JJ.”
I got up happily and stuck my tongue out at Mrs. Seymour as I left the class.
“Now, JJ.” Dad said as we walked down the halls. “Are you still….”
“No.” I said quickly. “I’m fine now.”
“Good.” Dad stopped. “Now, explain.”

I explained the last half-hour.

“It spread to other objects? That’s never happened before.” Dad said, once I was done.
“I know.” I replied. “And it felt worse. Dad, do you know what’s happening to me?”
“It’s….complicated."
“It’s always complicated, Dad.”
“I know. It’s just that...if I told you what’s really going on, you wouldn’t believe me.”
“Dad, I have ice hands.” I looked him straight in the eye. “I can believe anything.”
“You have his eyes. The same gray eyes.”
“Whose eyes?”
“Arktis.” Dad said, like I knew who that was.
“Who?”

Just then, a voice came into my head.

JACKSON JOAQUIN ALVAREZ! The voice boomed.

“Who is that?!” I asked, looking around. No one but my dad.

I AM ARKTIS, GOD OF THE TUNDRAS.

“Okay, and?”

DO NOT BE IMPERTINENT WITH ME, CHILD. NO MATTER. YOU MUST FIND MY PATRON WOLF. HE HAS RUN AWAY.

“Why should I care about your wolf?”

BECAUSE YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN BY ME FROM BIRTH CHILD. YOU ARE MY HERO.

“Why me? Don’t I get a choice in this?”

NO.

YOU WERE CHOSEN.

“Do I get anything if I do this for you?”

FAME AND GLORY, CHILD. YOU WILL BE HONORED BY THE GODS OF THE EARTH.

“Can you remove my ice hands?”

NO, CHILD. I CAN SHOW YOU HOW TO CONTROL IT.

“That’s good enough for me.”

GODSPEED, CHILD. IF YOU DO NOT RETURN IT BY SUMMER’S BEGINNING, THE WORLD WILL BE OUT OF BALANCE. YOU WILL BE ARMED SOON ENOUGH.

“Armed?” I asked, but the voice was gone. I looked up at Dad, who was staring at me in awe.
“What is it?”
He pointed above me blankly.

I looked up.

An axe was floating above me, in snowdrifts. Its blade looked like a snowflake.
“Armed.” I repeated. I reached out for the axe. It floated into my hand, and dropped into it. It was surprisingly light.
“Come on Dad. " I looked at the axe, and it morphed into a compact spoon form. "We have a wolf to find.”

Spoiler: Reviews

@SpinyShell

At first I thought this was referring to someone else, like a monster's spirit or something lurking inside Jack (as in, Jack feels it "shivering" but his body isn't be moving). Then, I thought it was a typo until I read further down...
And now I'm unsure. If Jack is referring to another being inside him, then I think that's a really neat concept that just needs a bit more fleshing out to make it clear your intentions.

These were just typos. I've fixed them. I'm not that cool of a writer to have that sort of neat concept.

Okay, that aside, the intro definitely gives me Percy Jackson vibes--I'm assuming it's an homage--what with weird supernatural stuff happening during school that ruins the protagonist's day. It's a pretty neat concept so far, especially considering I don't think I've seen biome deities explored as a concept before. Him grabbing the icy axe, presumably accepting the quest, was pretty cool as well, no pun intended.

This does aim to be a Percy Jackson-esque story.

Now, time for the main critique. I'd like to note that I don't have much writing experience outside of Fizzy Bubbles, so take what I say with a grain of salt. I think my biggest criticism is that the intro feels rushed, like you're racing to get to the meat and potatoes of the story. When ARKTIS, GOD OF THE TUNDRAS speaks to Jack, for example, Jack seems pretty chill about having a voice talk to him in his head. He asks some basic questions, but overall seems a lot calmer and less panicky and "WTF is happening?!" than I'd expect. It feels like you're glossing over the introductory stuff because you want to get to the action, which I completely understand. However, at the same time, I feel like I have a bit of whiplash because the story is moving so fast. We don't even get to see our protagonist's first name until the latter half of the chapter, nor do I have any idea regarding the setting outside of "it's a school." We also don't know how he turned his icy battle axe into a spoon, nor even that he knew how to that (it almost reads though he's possessed by something, and is thus acting strangely calm). I fear that you haven't given yourself enough time to establish some literary bedrock, so to speak. Another thing I'd note is the lack of descriptions, which I think might be tied to my above comment about rushing. Perhaps it's just me, but I like a nice bit of detail just to better visualize what's happening in my head.

For the first thing: Jack isn't panicking right now because he doesn't want to seem like the wrong guy for the job, because like Arktis said, he was chosen from birth, and Jack thinks if he fails, Arktis might smite him.
Second thing: I think it may just be you. I showed this to a few other people and they said the exact opposite, so...

All in all, though, I think you have a neat idea on your hands that has a lot of potential. Keep up the good work. : )

Thanks!

 

[Phosphene]

I could feel himself shivering, even though I had my hoodie on. I needed to heat up.

At first I thought this was referring to someone else, like a monster's spirit or something lurking inside Jack (as in, Jack feels it "shivering" but his body isn't be moving). Then, I thought it was a typo until I read further down...

Usually the shivers only affected him. But today...it affected another object.

And now I'm unsure. If Jack is referring to another being inside him, then I think that's a really neat concept that just needs a bit more fleshing out to make it clear your intentions.
---
Okay, that aside, the intro definitely gives me Percy Jackson vibes--I'm assuming it's an homage--what with weird supernatural stuff happening during school that ruins the protagonist's day. It's a pretty neat concept so far, especially considering I don't think I've seen biome deities explored as a concept before. Him grabbing the icy axe, presumably accepting the quest, was pretty cool as well, no pun intended.

Now, time for the main critique. I'd like to note that I don't have much writing experience outside of Fizzy Bubbles, so take what I say with a grain of salt. I think my biggest criticism is that the intro feels rushed, like you're racing to get to the meat and potatoes of the story. When ARKTIS, GOD OF THE TUNDRAS speaks to Jack, for example, Jack seems pretty chill about having a voice talk to him in his head. He asks some basic questions, but overall seems a lot calmer and less panicky and "WTF is happening?!" than I'd expect. It feels like you're glossing over the introductory stuff because you want to get to the action, which I completely understand. However, at the same time, I feel like I have a bit of whiplash because the story is moving so fast. We don't even get to see our protagonist's first name until the latter half of the chapter, nor do I have any idea regarding the setting outside of "it's a school." We also don't know how he turned his icy battle axe into a spoon, nor even that he knew how to that (it almost reads though he's possessed by something, and is thus acting strangely calm). I fear that you haven't given yourself enough time to establish some literary bedrock, so to speak. Another thing I'd note is the lack of descriptions, which I think might be tied to my above comment about rushing. Perhaps it's just me, but I like a nice bit of detail just to better visualize what's happening in my head.

All in all, though, I think you have a neat idea on your hands that has a lot of potential. Keep up the good work. : )

 

[yudgefudge]

new chapter just dropped y'all

TWO
MY DAD DOES SOME GARDENING​

Spoiler: Chapter

Dad had told Jacob, his ‘friend’ that it was best if he went home. Jacob looked unsure, but he caved. I still wanted to know exactly who this Jacob guy was, but for the time being I was fine with him not being around at all.
I was still reeling from my “encounter” with Arktis, god of the tundra. He had sent me on a probably-impossible quest to find his wolf, and had given me an axe to defend myself.

From what? I didn’t want to know.

The car’s engine hummed in the background as we drove along the streets of Toronto, keeping our eyes out for a big wolf. We had no idea where to look.
“So, tell me exactly what this god said to you.”
I narrated.
“Are you sure this isn’t some big joke?” Dad asked once I was done.
“Big joke?” He sounded crazy. “A booming voice in my head and an axe floating above my head is a big joke?”
“Said axe is now a spoon.”
I sighed. He was right. I took the spoon from my pocket, and looked it over. It had engravings of snowflakes and ice floes all over it. It didn’t turn into its axe form. Maybe it only did when I wanted it to? Nonetheless, I put it back in my pocket.
“That just proves it even more.” I said. “Axes don’t turn into spoons as far as I know.”
“I’m still not entirely sure about this, JJ.”
“Neither am I.” I looked at him through the rearview mirror. “But I’m not gonna reject this request. What if he smites us or something?”
“Fair point.” Dad adjusted his collar, and changed the subject. “Where are we gonna find this wolf, then?”
“We’ll need to figure out who Arktis is first.” I said logically. “And where are we gonna figure that out? The internet.”
“I was gonna say the library.” Dad said, as I googled ‘Arktis’.
“Arktis’ story checks out.” I said, reading what I saw on Wikipedia. “Arktis is a god of the tundra. He was born from the branches of his father, Folium.”
“Sounds pretty realistic, when it comes to mythologies.” Dad said, and I agreed.
“Arktis and his six siblings divided up the earth. Arktis got the Tundras.”
“So what about the wolf?”
“I’m getting there. The wolf was a gift from Folium.”
“Nice gift.”
“Yeah. It says here that Arktis’ home is in Reykjavik.”
“That’s all the way in Iceland.”
“We could fly there. We’ve got lots of time.”
“We have a week.”
I glanced at today’s date. It was the 14th.
“We have a week.” I repeated. “We need to be fast.”

Dad pulled over on the side of the road.

“We need a second to think.” he said. “This is a lot.”
I got out of the car. It was a spring morning, everything was growing, the plants were thriving, and…
I felt weak as heck.
I felt out of my element.
Then I realized. I was out of my element. Here I was, hero of Arktis, standing in the middle of spring, where plants were everywhere, and the sun was warming everything up.
“Dad, let’s get going. I don’t like how this feels.” Just then, I heard a voice.

A different voice.

COME, HERO OF ARKTIS. I CAN HELP YOU ON YOUR QUEST.
What’s the weather forecast for today? Cloudy with a chance of disembodied voices?
I KNOW WHERE ARKTIS’ WOLF IS, CHILD. IT HAS PASSED THROUGH MY DOMAIN.
“Your domain?” I thought out loud.
YES. THE WOODS.
“Oh.”

Just like that, the voice was gone.

“Dad, I got another voice.”
“Arktis?” Dad asked.
“No, a different one.”
“What did it say?”
“Whoever it is, they know where Arktis’ wolf is.”
“They do?”
“Yes, and they’re willing to tell us.”
“Where are they?”
“The woods.”
“So we go in the woods, find whoever this is-”
“A god, most likely.”
“And find out where Arktis’ wolf is?”
“Yes.”
“That sounds completely safe, and not a trap at all.”

I ignored him and walked into the woods that were beside the road. Dad was soon behind me, and we had barely gotten in when I heard the voice boom.
Except it wasn’t in my head. It was all around us.
THE MAN MAY NOT FOLLOW!
“My dad? He has to come with me.”
NO. HE MUST NOT FOLLOW, CHILD.
“Why not?”
THIS IS YOUR QUEST. THE GODS SAY IT MUST BE SO.
“That sounds awfully convenient.” Dad said behind me. He could hear the voice too.
HOLD YOUR TONGUE, MORTAL!
“My dad is coming with me on this ‘quest’.” I said the last word with apprehension. “And you can’t stop us.”
YOU DARE CHALLENGE A GOD? THE GOD, IN FACT?
“I’m challenging a disembodied voice.” I said.
HOW DARE YOU? YOU WILL FEEL MY WRATH, CHILD!
I heard a loud boom, like thunder, except wrapped in leaves. If that made sense.
I turned to dad to see if he was okay.

He was not.

I blinked, and sure enough, I was seeing clearly.
My dad had been turned into a tree. I walked up to him and touched him. His skin felt like rough tree bark.
“Did you do this?” I called out angrily. “Did you turn my father into a tree?”
YES, CHILD.
“How could you? You’re a god. You’re supposed to be kind and stuff! Benevolent!” I remembered the Wikipedia article. Gods sounded like great people from what I read. I also felt proud for using such a big word.

The voice laughed.

WHO TOLD YOU THAT, CHILD?
“The-” I stopped, realizing a god probably didn’t know what a Wikipedia article is. “The stories they tell. About you gods.”
STORIES? MY CHILD, YOU COULDN’T POSSIBLY THINK THOSE WERE TRUE STORIES?
“Well, I never really thought-” Was I dumb for believing those stories? “I don’t care. Tell me where the wolf is, and turn my father back. Now!”
PATIENCE, CHILD. PATIENCE.
“No!” I didn’t want to wait. I wanted my dad back. I didn’t want to do this god thing anymore.
I SAID PATIENCE!
“NO!” I pulled out my spoon, which instantly morphed into an axe in a swirl of snow, and I swung it at one of the trees and cut it down. I cut down another. And another. I didn’t know where I got the strength to, but I kept tearing down the forest in rage. My dad was a tree. He couldn’t talk. And it was all this forest’s fault.
YOUR INSOLENCE...CHILD…..HOW DARE YOU TEAR DOWN MY FOREST?! YOU WILL HAVE YOUR FATHER BACK WHEN YOU LEARN MANNERS. NOW OUT!

With the boom of the last two words, one of the still standing trees bent downwards and smacked me out of the forest.

I went flying, and landed in the grass on the other side of the road.
“Woah, are you okay?” I heard a voice say. I was stunned, my axe was back to being a spoon, and I was sitting there, disheveled on the side of the road. I looked up in the direction of the voice, and it was coming from a girl with curly blond hair.
“Yes, I’m fine. I was just...attacked by a wild animal. It knocked me back, and I flew out of the forest.” I couldn’t tell her what really happened, or she’d probably rush me to the nearest padded cell.
“You were attacked by a wild animal?” The girl looked frantic. “Quentin!” She called out. “We’re gonna get you to the hospital.”
“....Hospital?” I asked her. But she didn’t answer. She was busy talking to a fancy looking butler.
“Quentin, get the limo, we need to take this kid to the hospital. He was attacked by a wild animal.” She said to the butler, Quentin.
“Right away, ma’am.” Quentin said diligently, and whisked off.
“Can you walk?” The girl asked me.
“Uh, yeah.” I was still a little dazed, but I got up to show her I could walk.
“Good.” She said. “Now come with me. I’m Penny, by the way. You?”
“Jack.” I said, and with that, we walked into the waiting limo.

******​

While the limo drove to a hospital, me and Penny talked for a bit.
“Thanks for, you know, picking me off the side of the road.” I said.
“Don’t mention it.” Penny said, smiling. “What attacked you?”
“I was attacked by a giant tree shrew.” I had no idea what I was saying.
“A giant tree shrew?” Penny looked at me.
“Yeah. Gotta watch out for those.”
“I had no idea there were giant tree shrews in Toronto.”
“The more you know.” Then I remembered we were going to the hospital. “I don’t need a hospital, I’m fine, really.”
“Are you sure?” Penny studied me. I studied her too. She looked like your average Canadian, with blue eyes, and curly blond hair that went to her shoulder. She had on what looked like a preparatory school uniform. She was very clearly rich.
“If you say so.” she said finally, breaking me out of my trance. “Quentin, forget the hospital. Take us home.”
“Okay ma’am.” Quentin replied from the front seat.
“Quentin calls you ‘ma’am’?” I asked after a few minutes of silence.
“Yes.” Penny looked a little embarrassed. “He’s the family butler, and insists on calling me that...so…”
“That sounds cool.” I laid back in my seat, letting out a breath, taking in what had just happened. My dad was a tree. I needed to find a wolf. And now, thanks to that jerk forest god, I had no help.

Or did I.
“Why do you have a spoon in your pocket?” Penny asked.
“Oh, my spoon?” I realized my axe-spoon was sticking out of my pocket. “It's my….lucky spoon.”
“Lucky spoon?” Penny gave me an eyebrow.
“Yes. My dad gave it to me when I was little.”
“Where’s your dad?”
“He’s….not here anymore.” Although I still had hope I could get my dad back, it wouldn’t make sense to say so.
“Oh.”

Silence fell.

It lasted till I heard the engine of the limo coughing, and the limo screeched to a stop.
“What’s that, Quentin?” Penny asked.
“I’m sure it's nothing, ma’am.” Quentin said, and he got out of the limo.
“Should we check it out?” I asked Penny.
“I don’t see why not.” Penny replied, and we both got out of the limo and walked out to the front of the car. The bonnet was wide open, exposing the engine. Quentin looked flabbergasted.

“What the…” Penny and I shared the same statement when we saw the engine. It had plants growing through it.
“How did this happen?” Quentin asked.
“I don’t know.” Penny said.

I kept quiet. I knew this had to be the work of that forest god guy. What next, was he gonna turn Penny into a very pretty orange tree?
“I don’t know either.” I lied. I felt bad lying to Penny. She had been so nice and here I was, lying.

But I knew the truth would be even harder to say.

“Well, can you fix it, Quentin?” Penny asked.
“I would if I knew what happened. But this has never happened before.” Quentin still managed to keep his poise.
“Jack, any ideas?” Penny turned to me.
“I don’t know. Why do you think I would know?” I looked at her suspiciously, like she knew more than she let on.

“I just wanted to ask.” Penny looked at the engine. The plants were growing slowly, but they were puncturing the engine pretty bad.
I looked up, turning to the forest, giving it an accusing look.

Then I noticed something.

“Is that…” I squinted. No….it couldn’t be...this had to be some kind of cruel joke. But nope, there it was, barreling towards us.
“A giant tree shrew?” I asked out loud, and pointed. Penny spun around. Yep. It was a giant tree shrew.
“Looks like the tree shrew wants revenge, Jack.” Penny said. “Guess we run?”

“You can run.” I said to her. “I’ll deal with it.”
“Deal with that? How? And if you can ‘deal’ with it, how did it deck you before?”
“I’ll explain later, but for now, run!”

The tree shrew was much closer. I pulled out my spoon. It stayed a spoon.
“Uh oh.” I said.
“Are you gonna fight it with a spoon?” Penny called as she hid behind the limo.

“I said run. You’ll get hurt!” The tree shrew halted, as if it was giving me a chance to look at it before it ripped me to pieces. It was about seven feet tall, had greenish fur and was covered in mud. It looked like it had crawled out of the earth. Oddly, it had what looked like a Roman war helmet nestled on its head.

Roman war helmet....

“Uh, Jack?” Penny called out. “Shrew at 12 o’clock?”
I snapped out of it. Then, I realized, the shrew wasn’t really attacking me. It was...bowing?
“The shrew is bowing to me.” I called out to Penny. “I think you can come out.” I still kept my spoon handy in case anything happened.
“Huh, weird.” Penny said, coming out from behind the car.
Then, the shrew’s face twisted, like it was in pain. I hadn’t even touched it. It looked like it was resisting orders.

Resisting orders.

I looked at my spoon. I concentrated on it. Nothing.
“Uh, Jack the shrew’s-” Penny was cut off by something. She fell, clutching her head like she was in pain.
“Mademoiselle!” Quentin called out from where he was standing a few feet away, and caught her before she hit the asphalt. I looked to the shrew, who seemed to have taken its orders.
It bared its fangs, but still seemed to stop for a few seconds, like whatever was controlling it was giving me a choice. Run, or fight.

I looked at the spoon. Nothing. I had nothing to defend myself.
I looked to Penny, who was still writhing in pain.
I froze on the spot. I felt sweat collecting on my brow, and a drop fell to the ground. As it touched the road, it caused a little of the asphalt to freeze over.

Freeze.

I charged at the giant shrew, my fist clenched tightly.

I was gonna punch it in the face.