✓ Kiergan

The echoes of my scream filled the whole burning forest, as the fire burned and licked at my skin. 

I had gone into the woods with my classmates to cut firewood for our camp party, when a large fire suddenly broke out, catching every tree and burning them down to nothing.

Everyone had dispersed into different directions, but I had stood there, something drawing me closer and deeper into the fire.

"Kiergan!" My best friend, Thane Blackwood, had called before running, and that was the last thing I heard before the fire took me.

While I burned, a very enormous animal began to make its way towards me. Like the torture I was going through wasn't enough.

The animal's eyes glowed in the fire with flecks of yellow, and sometimes with a hint of red.

It came closer and I saw what it was.

A wolf…

The wolf snarled and growled loudly as it approached me.

And, without much ado, the ferocious animal jumped on me, causing me to fall loudly to the ground.

It sunk its fangs deep into the skin on my shoulder, sending a jolting pain, and a cold shiver down the whole of my body.

A wrenching cry escaped me as my droopy eyes slowly began to close, my breathing quickening down to wheezing, as life left me, and darkness enveloped me.

Darkness.

That was all I saw as my eyes slowly opened just as it had closed.

I realized I was floating, with nothing tabling my feet underneath, and there was nothing- not even a wall surrounding me.

Cold sweat broke out of my forehead and my heart began to beat wildly against my heaving chest.

I ran, but I kept running back in circles, until I got tired, and cried. "Help! Is anybody here?!"

All I heard back was the echoes of my voice.

My body shook as I hugged my shoulders, and that was when a realization hit me.

I touched the area where the wolf had bitten me, and roamed my hands about my body to feel any form of pain from the scars the fire must have left.

But, I felt nothing. Just the smoothness of my flesh.

"Kiergan Stormsurge…" A voice, quite similar to mine, suddenly called behind me, causing a quick jerk to my heart, but then I turned to see who it was.

The gush of light that surrounded the person caused me to squint my eyes, and take a bow.

I raised my head slowly just as my eyes began to adjust to the light, my sight sharpening to find a reflection of myself standing in front of me, looking like a freshly refined gold, giving hints of light to the profound darkness.

I gasped. "Wh… who are you?! Why do you look like me?" I stuttered, stepping back.

"I'm a reflection of you." He began to take gentle strides closer, smiling gently.

"That's… that's ridiculous!" My voice shook slightly.

"I am your wolf. Your instinct who would now guide you henceforth." He continued moving forward, while I continued moving to the back.

"Wolf? I don't understand. Can you please speak in a way that I would understand?"

"Remember, you were bitten by a wolf."

"Yes. And?"

"The bite from the wolf had given you a new identity, and you're now an Alpha werewolf."

"What?! A werewolf?! Like the Lycanthrope?! What the—"

"Correct." He started, not leaving room for more questioning. "You were brought to this realm because you've been chosen. Not many have had the opportunity to meet with their wolf like this…"

"Wait, wait. Take a pause there. What do you mean "chosen"? And why are you avoiding my questions?!"

"The moon goddess has picked you to find the last wolf of a sacred Alpha bloodline, who has the power to destroy the entire Wildhunt Pack."

"What's the Wild Hunt Pack? And why must I clean up the moon goddess' mess if she's so powerful?"

"Do not speak of the goddess in that manner!" He roared, and I stiffened as the hair on the back of my neck rose.

"She's a god, and she's not entitled to do human biddings!"

"So, am I?" I muttered softly.

"You're not going to do this alone, I'll help you." He stretched forward an old oxidized knife towards me. "Take this knife."

I collected it from him and looked it over. Then my eyes stopped on some Hebrew words carved at the edge. It goes: 'Lekach chayim l'tat chayim.'

"Take life to give life." I muttered.

As I raised my head to ask what it meant and why I was given the knife, the stranger transformed into air and like a wave of the wind blew into my nostrils.

That instant it felt as though I was being merged with another person as my muscles spasmed uncontrollably, with jolts of pain circulating and finding its way down into the insides of my veins.

The merging stopped—abruptly, leaving me breathless and weak.

Silence then enveloped the place, but it wasn't just a simple silence. It carried with it something more than silence—quiet.

What is happening now? What's going to happen now? What am I supposed to do now?!

These were the questions that twirled around in my head as I looked around, noticing that there was no abyss anymore, just light.

Then, the light began to grow, mellowing uncontrollably, until it became pretty unbearable to look at.

I shut my eyes, waiting for anything that was to come, when a hard push similar to a windstorm's rage swept me off the surface, and threw me down into an endless space.

I screamed as my body went down the abyss in a blurry, yet fast motion. However as soon as it had begun, my body suddenly landed on a cold hard surface with my eyes snapping open to a dark room.