Here’s the first 3 pages of a story I hope to write. Let me know what you think!
It was a slaughter. The whole night was just an eradication of any, and all loose ends. Anyone that knew their secret had a target on their back. Even the wind didn’t dare make an appearance. The night’s still and cold, but the smell still made its way to her nose. The warm, tongue curling smell of metallic. In her younger days the smell would’ve put her into a frenzy, but she had matured.
Learnt to control the wild beast.
Lying in the treeline using the darkness- and fallen leaves- as cover she waits. Her eyes are fixated on the empty car park; as if he would just appear. A car stops, leaving the headlights on and a figure gets out. He’s here. Her whole body tenses.
It is time.
He walks closer to the forest, oblivious to what is about to happen. Unaware of the wolf lurking in the shadows. She crouches, hesitating, before crawling forward. A twig snaps under her paw and she freezes, staring at her prey.
“Shae?” He calls, looking around for her. She doesn’t answer, doesn’t move. Just watches. He takes out his phone, attempting to call her but there’s no answer.
‘I have to do this. I have to do this. I have to do this.’
“Shae? Are you there?” Getting closer to the trees he stops. The silence circles her mind. She had to do it, it is her job. She must protect her pack.
‘He’s harmless to the pack,’ She stares at his face; his eyes strain to see into the darkness, ‘He’d never betray us. He would never betray me…’ fear suddenly fills the air as he backs away from the treeline. He’s seen her.
“Sha-” She lunges herself towards him, knocking him to the ground. Screaming he struggles, trying to push his way from underneath her.
‘I can’t do this.’ Gripping the arm of his jacket she drags him across the ground.
“SHAE.” Hearing him call her name, his voice riddled with fear and desperation, she lets go of the fabric. For a minute, everything is calm. They watch each other, his gaze shifts between the predator and his car.
‘Please don’t Arron. Don’t run. Let me just think there has to be a way I can sav- ‘ He hurries to his feet and races towards his car.
Shae bounds after him, it doesn’t take her long to catch up. She latches onto his arm and drags him to the ground. Blood soaks through his jacket and into her mouth.
‘No, I don’t want to do this. I don’t want to, but I have to. Arron, I hope you understand. I have to do this.’ She drags him across the tarmac like he weighs nothing, compared to her he doesn’t. A fist collides with her nose, yelping she releases him. Gripping his arm, he tries to shuffle out of her reach, but she gets a hold of his leg, keeping him in place. She shakes her head, sending blood across the ground.
“Get off!” He lands a kick on her muzzle and she lets go, pawing at her head. He struggles to his feet, trying to get to his car, but she won’t let him get away. She can’t let him get away.
‘I have to do this.‘ Leaping across the car park she knocks him to the ground. Snarling, she stands over him. Spit drips down her muzzle landing on his face. He doesn’t blink or react, he just looks into a pair of familiar blue eyes.
‘I have to do this. I must do this. I have to do-‘
“Shae?” His voice is shaky, tears were running down his cheeks. It was a question, but he was certain; those eyes belonged to her.
“You don’t have to do this.” He says, still unable to move. He’s pinned underneath her large auburn form. If he moves, she’ll kill him. But what if she can’t? This is Arron, one of her best friends. She trusted him with her secret, and now, she has to kill him for it. She doesn’t have a choice.
‘I-I-I have-I have to- to do this.’ Growling she latches onto his throat, holding him in place. Blood rushes into her mouth as he claws at her face. Frantically he pries at her mouth, his fingers ripping at her gums. Gurgling, he attempts to take a breath. His body suddenly relaxes, and he stops fighting against her. Reaching his hand up, he grips the back of her head and his finger strokes her ear. Loosening her grip slightly, she meets his eyes. They look heavy, paling in colour.
‘I can’t do this.’ She lets go of him and he clutches his throat. Blood begins to pool around his head from the open wound. Looking around she gets off him, backing away with her tail between her legs; realising what she’s done. He turns his head looking towards her.
‘He’s still alive…but he won’t be for long.’ Turning, she bolts into the trees, letting out an excruciating howl as she runs. Leaving him to the mercy of Mother Nature. She didn’t kill him, but she knew he wouldn’t survive. He was as good as dead.
‘I’m sorry, Arron. I’m so, so sorry.’ Running through the forest everything around her is a blur. She just left him there, bleeding out. She just killed him, like he meant nothing to her; like he was just a stranger worth less than a dead rat on the street. She’s a murderer. A cold-blooded killer. A monster.
‘Arron…I’m sorry…’ With every passing second, the regret and pain deep inside her claws its way to closer to the surface. With each leap through the forest her mind becomes more clouded. All she can see is his terrified expression. The trust he had for her: shattered. The hurt and betrayal on his face, as she clamped her teeth around his throat and forced the life out his body. Reaching the grassy clearing in the forest, she trips. Yelping in pain she rolls across the ground, eventually stopping in a crumpled heap. She lies on the grass, whimpering, as her body begins to change.
‘I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m-’ Shae’s whole body begins to shake. She stretches out on the ground, letting out a howl as her bones begin to break and mend, repeatedly. Her paws lengthen to form hands and she digs her nails into the soil as her back arches, and her howl turns into a scream. If it wasn’t for the adrenaline pumping through her body the change would kill her. For her ancestors, changing their form used to be effortless, painless and quick; but with each new generation the process gets worse. That is the price of her kind’s freedom. One that was accepted without thinking of the future. One that left Shae naked, panting on the floor, covered in a layer of sweat.
“-sorry.” Curling up in the foetal position, she cries. It’s a desperate cry that quickly turns into a scream.
-Ashleigh Tucker
A.L.Tucker 