One by one the others soon joined Ryan in the basement. Each one running down the stairs and marvelled at the dim electric lights. Then to give a quick look around they each walked to where Ryan was standing.
"Wow!" "Woopie!" "Holy shit!" "Yum!" were just some of the comments they had at the sight of more than one thousand bottles of wine.
It would seem the door hooks pulled in proper sequence held their secret for many years. As others had come and gone lootting the basement of anything having worth, this was not touched, as yet!
Johnny was the bold little raskel, he stepped into the musty room filled with dead air left over unmoved for half a century. Ryan watched his little brother walk and the lingering trail of dust which loomed up making the room look eerie.
A sneeze and then two more made everyone laugh at Johnnie as he walked out the wine locker.
"Dusty?" asked one.
Johnnie's look up at them from his short stance was enough of an answer, then two more sneezes rang out.
Erick suddenly sported a flashlight and went inside to have a look for himself. Just inside he lifted a bottle from one rack and proceeded to wipe the thick layer of dust away.
"1801, red..something, bottled in France, in 1801!" said Erick his eyes wide and a glowing grin on his face.
Slowly and with great care he slipped the bottle back into the rack. Walking to another rack he again removed yet another bottle, doing as he did the first time.
"1689, bottled in Germany!" said Erick as he again tenderly placed the very valuable bottle to its comfortable resting place.
Then his flashlight caught the glimmer of some white painted writing. On top of each rack was written the name of a country of the origin for each bottle in each rack.
In one corner was a rack built like it should hold gold for Fort Knox. The rack was built of very thick wood. It had cut half rounded cradles for each of thirty clay jars. As Erick knelt down to examine the jars his hand was scratched by the raw edge of a shattered jar laying still in its rack.
"Ouch, oh shit!" grumbled Erick as he jerked his hand up seeing the blood flow from his deep wound.
In a minute Ryan and Mike joined Erick in the far corner. Ryan's clean hanky served well as a bandage, this bringing a smile from Erick.
"We have a treasure here, these have to be worth thousands of dollars, we could be rich!" exclaimed Ryan.
KERRRR THUNK! went the sound of a cork being plucked out the neck of a bottle.
Off in the dim light stood Sei as he gave a quick eye in the direction of his friends, then tipping the bottle high up he let it flow into his waiting mouth.
No doubt Sei expected the wine would be simular to the Mogan David wine his Daddy gave him quite often. Instead he found it thick and the flavor so bold he began to cough and spit the contents into the dirt floor.
"Yuck, this tastes like shit!" yelled a surprised Sei.
Ryan walked over and taking the bottle from Sei's hand he shown the flashlight at the old bottle.
"1771, made in Italy, hmmmm!" mumbled Ryan.
"Hey Sei was it sour like Grrrraaa, Growl, Grrrrolw!" said Erick as his words changed from words to the language of something far more beast like.
Ryan and Johnnie laughed but both stopped up short as Erick's knees crumbled and he fell down into a lump.
Ryan grabbed him thinking the wound from the broken jar had maybe something poisenous. Yanking back Ericks shoulder he layed his friend out flat on the dusty wine locker floor.
As the flashligh lighted Ericks face both Sei and Johnnie screamed.
"Erick, Erick can you understand me?" asked Ryan as he took charge of the situation like normal.
Erick's face was all wrinkled as teeth clenched like he was in great pain. His arms were held close to his chest as fingers now rigid were held as if the clawed paws of some wild animal.
Ryan took a step back as Erick's entire head suddenly seemed to grow larger. Then as the others watched Erick's head stretched larger, and larger as with each jump in size his eyes also grew bigger.
Erick let loose a scream like nothing any of these kids ever heard before. It was as his scream rolled out the open mouth the flashlight's light glimmered over pure white fang teeth growing up and pushing out Erick's human teeth.
Ericks own hair was fast dropping out but he was not getting bald. In place of his human hair grew in a longer than long hairs of dark brown shaggy hair. The hair sprouted from atop his head but then filled in under his chin and thickening about his neck.
This is when Sei took Johnnie's hand and with Mike just behind the three ran out the wine locker room. A thundering dash up the stairs went the scared three as Ryan continued to try and comfort his friend.
Even with the cries and whimpers of three scared kids upstairs echoing the house and basement, Erick continued to change.
As Erick laid there his legs began to have some violent convulsions which made his head pains subside. Shaking terribly from the diaphram down it gave a moment of painless time to Erick.
"Griiun, Grian!" Erick strained to form a word.
"Grian, Ryan, me!" replied Ryan as he figured out Erick was trying his best to speak.
Erick made a motion for Ryan to unbutton Erick's shirt.
One button and then two more soon had the shirt open as Erick lifted his head up, looking down his chest and belly he groaned and flopped back once again.
Ryan knew his friend was always running around as mister commando'. Never would Erick were underwear saying, I like the freedom!" Now without the extra covering and bindings of underwear the changes were quite easy to see.
The thick dark brown hairs now sprouted along Erick's chest and belly while his skin where not yet covered with a golden coloring of hair loomed a deep dark red color.
Ryan took the chore of unfastening Erick's belt and without much trouble the button holding Erick's pants in place popped off like a shot.
Seeing the agony his friend was going through he began to remove the binding clothing, starting with Erick's jeans first.
Erick seemed to at first take offense to what Ryan was doing and reached out in a very new and instinctive manner to swipe a paw at his friend. The hand now a large paws flared out black sharp claws that tore four rips in Ryan's plad shirt.
"Easy Erick, its only to stop your struggling down here!" said Ryan as his voice was shaky from the sudden attack.
It was then very easy to see as Erick's legs had changed just like the upper parts of him had become, he was looking very much like a male Lion.
At first Ryan jumped back as he saw what he thought was a snake wiggle out from under Erick's thighs. Then as he shown the flashlight down he saw it was the stiff boney tail with a dark switch growing out the end.
"A Lion's tail, Erick, your becoming a male Lion, really, a Lion!" said Ryan now more scared of his beastly friend and wondering if he would become a wild beast in mind too?
The crying from upstairs had stopped and from the top of the basement stairway came a weak little voice.
"Ryan, Ryan are you OK?" asked Johnnie.
A pause, then "Yes I'm alright, I'm here next to Erick and he's fine too!" replied Ryan.
In the meanwhile Erick had worked himself to stand on all fours and was taking an inventory of his now totally changed body. As he stood there not making any wild moves Ryan stood a few feet back letting Erick become accustom to his new shape.
"How do you feel?" asked Ryan.
Erick looked up at his friend and tried to answer but all that issued out his mouth were soft groans and growls. Then as if thinking Erick stopped and stood very still. A Lion like look upward at Ryan had his blood running cold.
A quick jump up and Erick poised his from huge paws on Ryan's shoulders as this put him muzzel to nose with Ryan. The hot breath coming from out Erick's huge fang filled mouth was making Ryan confess his past sins. Then in a vote of friendship a sandy coarse tongue reached out Erick's mouth and gave one friendly slurp to Ryan's face.
"Yuck, ah thanks, your still you and not a Lion Erick?" asked Ryan.
The growing Lion now took his huge paws and began to carress Ryan's hairy head as then his face. Then great claws were not extended but with his paws he did his best to huge Ryan.
"Alright you still like me, that great!" said Ryan.
The growing bigger Lion was now towering over Ryan and was himself feeling his own growth. Then pulling away Erick dropped to the dusty floor and took to prowling back into the corner rack where he had recieved his injury.
"Roar!" growled Erick as if he had something for Ryan to see.
Stepping toward his friend Ryan pointed the flashlight down at where Erick's big paw seemed to be pointing. The jars each were a different color. Each one had a line of symboled writing about the narrowed part of the neck on each jar. As Ryan flooded the light around he noticed the sing nailed to the rack.
(2260 B.C. Cursed wine jars) as it was written like some great note of caution.
"Little late aren't we my friend!" said Ryan as Erick turned and plodded on four big paws toward the entrance to the wine locker.