A... cannibal? Why can't any of these capture targets eat like normal people! Stefan wanted blood and Luka craved brains, and now Cyrus wants flesh? I am so over this!

"C'mon, maybe you can get through to him," Nick said as he pulled me along by the hand.

I am highly doubtful of that. We haven't even held a full conversation with each other yet. So, who's to say he'll even trust me, let alone listen to me!

As Nick led me down to the cellar, anxiety soon kicked in once the sound of growling and slamming against metal could be heard.

"Jesus..." I mumbled as I watched Cyrus bite on the metal railings of his cage like a savage animal. "Why is there even a cage down here in the first place?"

Nick shrugged in response. "This house belongs to my employer, not me. He said he used to lock up his beagles down here during winter."

That's kind of cruel. The cage seems to be pretty cramped. There's definitely not a lot of space for dogs to move around in there freely...

As I observed the metal railings closer, Cyrus' hand shot out at the speed of light to try and grab me. Luckily, Nick was quick enough to pull me back from him.

I'm not sure how cooperative Cyrus is but if he can at least understand me, then it's worth trying to talk to him. "You're hungry, aren't you?" I asked in a stern voice.

Cyrus' started to snarl as his grip on the cage increased. "Flesh... I need flesh..."

Uuuu... he really is a cannibal! "Do you have any bright ideas, Nick?"

As Nick rested his hand on his chin to ponder thoughtfully, he handed me the key to the cage. "If it's just flesh, he wants then maybe we can come up with a substitute for it."

As Nick made his way back upstairs, I quickly ran over to the end of the stairs after him. "Wait! Where are you going?" I queried.

"I'm going to go check out what we've got in the fridge. Just keep an eye on him for now."

I swallowed a gulp as I hesitantly walked back towards the cage. Cyrus' appetite was getting worse by the minute as he started to contort his body into all kinds of positions to try and break the cage.

Once I got closer to the cage, Cyrus stopped trying to pry it open as he started to heave violently in the corner. As I set the key down on a nearby shelf, I looked at Cyrus in concern once more.

"Cyrus..." I called out. At the mere mention of his name, Cyrus' ears immediately perked up as he darted towards the front of the cage to once more grab me.

I shrieked in response as I clenched my eyes shut tightly. "I don't... want to die..." Cyrus whimpered.

Huh? Now that I'm looking at him, he's not so much of a wild animal anymore. If anything, he looks like a wounded creature with the way he pouts his head in pain.

I suppose I can't entirely vilify him, it's in his nature to crave and seek out flesh. He never asked to be born like this, he has to eat it for the sake of his own survival...

Sensing that he meant me no harm, I gently cupped his hands together. "I won't let you die. I promise we'll come up with a solution together. Okay?"

But that didn't ease his worries. Instead, he shook his head defiantly as he furrowed his eyebrows. As he pushed me back towards the floor, a surge of great strength overcame him as he bent the metal railings in half.

Oh no. This can't be good. As I went to reach out for Cyrus, he quickly dashed up the stairs and pushed Nick who was coming downstairs to the bottom.

"NICK!" I shouted as I hurried to crouch down and comfort him. "A-A-ARE YOU OKAY?"

Nick slowly lifted his head off of my lap as he hoisted himself up onto his elbows. "I'll be... fine." He mumbled under his breath. "Here, take this," Nick said as he handed me a packet of meat.

"Is this... pork?" I asked while carefully reading the labelling.

"No time for questions. We gotta go catch him!" Nick declared as he extended a hand to lift me up onto my feet.

Once outside Cyrus was nowhere to be found. "Fuck, where is he?" I said worriedly as I started to chew on my fingernails.

But just in the distance, a loud animalistic howl could be heard. Both Nick and I looked at each other in unison and nodded before taking off after the noise.

We were led to a place that I had yet to visit. I... don't know how I'll explain this to Ms McCollin. I mean how does someone begin to explain a sight like this.

As I watched Cyrus viciously feast on one of Ms McCollin's' new pigs in the sty, I was overcome with a wave of nausea. I quickly stuck my head in a nearby trough and proceeded to vomit uncontrollably.

"Dammit!" Nick cursed as he threw the packet of pork he was holding to the ground in frustration. As he took a seat on the side of a trough across from me, he looked at me in disappointment. "This could've ended a lot less bloody had I been quicker."

Once I had stopped vomiting, I turned to look at Nick in confusion. Nick continued. "Pigs are pretty close to humans when it comes to flesh. So, I figured he might be okay with eating raw pork..."

Oh, he likes raw pork alright. Just... not in the way Nick had hoped for. Looking towards Cyrus who was licking his fingers clean, I threw him the packet of pork onto which I was holding.

As Cyrus eyed the packet suspiciously, he slowly opened it and proceeded to devour it whole. As he slouched back against the pig he had just devoured, he purred in contentment.

"Well, it looks like your hypothesis wasn't wrong." I joked cynically as I observed Cyrus. "Let's just make sure he eats supermarket pork before aiming for the real thing next time..."

As I flopped back onto the ground. I exhaled sadly. I am so dead when Ms McCollin discovers what happened tomorrow...